For 40 years, the paper was directed by economist and law professor Joseph Rambaud, a Lyon native, father of 12 children, and former Papal Zouave.

He also founded and directed Le Nouvelliste de Bretagne, which was sold in 1905 to La Presse régionale.

[4] Collaborating with other Catholic publications, Rambaud and his colleagues established a common service for these newspapers in their Paris editorial offices.

After a failed attempt to dissolve the paper, Henri Rambaud resigned in 1942 and joined the French Resistance, participating in Lyon's clandestine press.

On 31 December 1943, the Mouvements Unis de la Résistance distributed a fake edition of Le Nouvelliste.