Named for the infamous Dreyfus case, which dominated French politics, reinforced religious feelings, disrupted the old party system and divided the nation for more than 10 years. In 1894 a French Jewish army officer, Alfred Dreyfus {1859–1935}, was wrongfully convicted of high treason. The famous French writer Emile Zola {see planet  (8096)} came to his defense by writing the emotional article “J’accuse” in the journal l’Aurore. In 1906 Dreyfus was rehabilitated and decorated with the légion d’honneur. (M 25446) _ _.