François Altwies

Who was François Altwies?

François Altwies was a Luxembourgian politician. He sat in the Chamber of Deputies, of which he served as President from 1917 until 1925.

Altwies was a lawyer by profession, and was appointed notary in Junglinster in 1897, before holding that office in Luxembourg City from 1922. He was first elected to the Chamber in 1911, representing the canton of Grevenmacher. A conservative, Altwies joined the Party of the Right upon its formation in 1914. He was reelected in 1915 and 1918.

An eloquent and prominent member, Altwies became, along with Emile Prüm, Joseph Bech, and Auguste Thorn, one of the PD's main weapons on the floor of the Chamber. He became Vice-President of the Chamber on 28 June 1917 when Léon Kauffman, a fellow PD member, became Prime Minister. Only four months later, he was elevated to President, in which capacity he remained until 1925, when the Party of the Right lost their overall majority in the Chamber.

Altwies played a key role in putting down the attempted communist revolution led by Émile Servais in January 1919, calling upon French soldiers to intervene in the crisis.