The uncertain foundation : France at the Liberation, 1944-1947

France's liberation was expected to trigger a decisive break both with the Vichy régime and with the pre-war Third Republic. What happened, over three crucial years (1944-47), was an untidy patchwork of unplanned continuities and false starts - along with fresh departures that defined France's future for the next half-century. Prepared by an international team of specialists, The Uncertain Foundation analyses a complex process of regime change, economic renewal, social transformation, and adjustment to a fast-evolving world. France's new rulers at the Liberation promised a decisive break with both the wartime Vichy řgime and the pre-war Third Republic. There were indeed fresh departures - but alongside messy, unplanned continuities and false starts. The 'new' Fourth Republic resembled the Third (but contained some seeds of the Fifth). ¡lites were purged, yet politicians from the Resistance were still held back by established party figures. Catholics embraced the ideals of the Republic and Resistance, until called to order by the Church hierarchy. Women won the vote, but still lacked full civil rights. France's empire, promised a new deal, was subjected to repression. Radical economic reforms were accommodated within a neo-capitalist framework. Reluctantly aligned with the West, France maintained uneasy relations with her 'Anglo-Saxon' allies. Prepared by an international team of specialists, The Uncertain Foundation analyses a complex and defining period of regime change, economic renewal, social transformation, and adjustment to a fast-evolving world Front Matter....Pages i-xv Introduction: France’s ‘Long’ Liberation, 1944–47....Pages 1-22 The Liberation and the Institutional Question in France....Pages 23-40 Sénat ou pas Sénat? The ‘First’ Council of the Republic....Pages 41-56 De Gaulle and the Paradox of Post-War French Politics....Pages 57-74 Replacement or Renewal? The French Political Élite at the Liberation....Pages 75-86 ‘The Politics of Political Women’: Reassessing the First Députées....Pages 87-102 France’s Liberation Era, 1944–47: a Social and Economic Settlement?....Pages 103-120 Catholics and the Long Liberation: the Progressive Moment....Pages 121-138 Whose Liberation? Confronting the Problem of the French Empire, 1944–47....Pages 139-159 Moscow, the Parti Communiste Français, and France’s Political Recovery....Pages 160-182 Washington at the Liberation, 1944–47....Pages 183-206 The Half-open Window: France and Britain, 1944–47....Pages 207-233 Occupation, Liberation, Purges: the Changing Landscape of French Memory....Pages 234-249 Back Matter....Pages 250-263 France's liberation was expected to trigger a decisive break both with the Vichy régime and with the pre-war Third Republic. What happened was an untidy patchwork of unplanned continuities and false starts. This volume analyses the complex process of regime change, economic renewal, social transformation, and adjustment to a fast-evolving world. France's liberation was expected to trigger a decisive break both with the Vichy regime and with the pre-war Third Republic. What happened was an untidy patchwork of unplanned continuities and false starts. This volume analyses the complex process of regime change, economic renewal, social transformation, and adjustment to a fast-evolving world. The liberation of France was expected to trigger a decisive break both with the Vichy régime and with the pre-war Third Republic. This text analyses a complex process of regime-change, economic renewal, social transformation, and adjustment to a fast-evolving world