Formation of the French Communist Party. Movement for the creation of the Popular Front

At the beginning of the war, chauvinistic sentiments among the masses of the French people seemed very strong. The bourgeoisie and the leaders of the socialist party proclaimed slogan of "sacred unity" nation in the face of an external enemy. The government, headed by the former socialist Viviani, included representatives of various bourgeois parties and socialists. Guesde and Samba became ministers in the same government with Millerand. After some time, a third socialist, A. Toma, joined the government and took the important post of Minister of Military Supply. Anarcho-syndicalist trade union leaders, such as Jouhaux, took part in the leading government bodies involved in mobilizing industry and workers for the war effort.

The development of events at the front, the deterioration of the situation of the working people with the growing enrichment of the bourgeois strata, gradually opened the eyes of the masses to the true nature of the war. The beginning of the ferment was evidenced by the strike movement that swept through the city in 1915-1916. various layers of workers - railway workers, garment workers, tram operators, miners, bank employees. In 1916, the number of strikes more than tripled compared to 1915. The government introduced compulsory arbitration at defense industry enterprises, depriving workers of the right to strike, and created the institution of “workshop delegates,” which was supposed to promote cooperation between workers and entrepreneurs . But at the beginning of 1917 the strike movement reached even greater proportions. The mass of soldiers was also gripped by discontent. The soldiers began to understand who benefited from the imperialist war.

As the war dragged on and the ferment of the masses intensified, anti-war opposition in the socialist party and trade unions. Due to the small number of revolutionary Marxist elements in the French labor movement and the weakness of Marxist traditions, the opposition was dominated by centrists. J. Longuet and other leaders of the opposition in the Socialist Party justified the party’s behavior at the beginning of the war, its vote for war loans and defended the slogan of “defense of the fatherland.” They rejected revolutionary means of anti-war struggle and limited themselves to pacifist projects of “pressuring the government to make peace.” Representatives of this opposition took part in the events that took place in 1915 and 1916. international conferences of internationalists in Zimmerwald and Kienthal, supporting the centrist majority there. In the trade unions, the anti-war opposition was also led by centrist elements who were conciliatory towards the reformist policies of Jouhaux and other right-wing leaders of the General Confederation of Labor.

The activity of the left and the difficult situation at the front provoked increased disagreement among the Republican parties. If over the previous three years only two cabinets changed in power, then only in 1917 four followed. government crisis. By the end of the year, the socialists had practically gone into opposition. The country's slide into political chaos was stopped by education government cabinet of J. Clemenceau . Ignoring the threat of a split in the republican camp, Clemenceau harshly suppressed anti-war propaganda. Several editors of the socialist newspaper Bonnet Rouge were court-martialed. A show trial also took place over the famous politician from the radical party, J. Caillot, who was a member of many government cabinets in the pre-war years. With an “iron hand,” Clemenceau, practically without relying on parliamentary power, implemented a program of emergency measures that made it possible to prepare the decisive offensive in the 1918 campaign.

History of France:

Social economic situation France during the First World War (1914-1918)

North, Jonathan.
H82 Soldiers of the First World War 1914-1918. Uniforms, insignia, equipment and weapons / Jonathan North; [transl. from English M. Vitebsky]. - Moscow: Eksmo, 2015. - 256 p. ISBN 978-5-699-79545-1
"Soldiers of the First World War" - complete encyclopedia stories military uniform and equipment for the armies that fought on the fronts of the “Great War”. Its pages show the uniforms of not only the main Entente countries and Triple Alliance(England, France, Russia, Germany and Austria-Hungary), but in general all the countries involved in this terrible conflict.

F R A N C I A
CAVALRY
The French cavalry began the war fully equipped and in excellent uniform. But quickly suffering heavy losses, she switched to more practical types of uniforms.

Nominally, cavalry was still divided into heavy cavalry (whose task was to deliver crushing blows to the enemy on the battlefield; its representatives rode large, powerful horses and had heavier equipment) and light cavalry (intended for reconnaissance or performing the functions of highly mobile infantry). The first included cuirassiers and dragoons, the second - horse huntsmen (chasseursacheval) and hussars. In 1914, the French army consisted of 12 cuirassier regiments, 32 dragoon regiments, 21 regiments of mounted chasseurs (and six regiments of African chasseurs - chasseurs d.Afrique) and 14 hussar regiments. There were four more regiments of the so-called. spagi - cavalrymen from North Africa, commanded by European officers.

Cuirassiers
Cuirassiers considered themselves the elite of the cavalry and proudly went into battle in 1914, just as many of them had done in 1870. Officers were still required to have four sets of uniforms (dress uniform, casual uniform, full dress uniform and marching uniform ). The marching uniform consisted of a dark blue uniform (fastened with nine buttons) with a red collar with dark blue buttonholes on it (the emblem was a flaming grenade) and silver epaulettes, red breeches (with black stripes), black cavalry boots with spurs and nickel-plated cuirasses. The cuirassier's headdress was a leather helmet covered with silver, adopted in 1874. It was usually worn without a plume (the latter was supposed to be worn by staff officers, as well as during parades and on Sundays).

Cuirassiers also wore brown gloves (in full dress - white). A beige or brown cover was put on the helmet, and sometimes the cover was also put on the cuirass. The officers were armed with pistols and sabers, in addition, they had binoculars in a black leather case.
Ordinary cavalrymen wore the same uniform, but with red epaulets, and a steel cuirass. True, their shape was of poorer quality. Ordinary cuirassiers were armed with carbines. In 1915, squadrons of foot soldiers, created from former cuirassiers, appeared in some cuirassier regiments. They still wore helmets, but without a crest. By this time, most cavalry regiments had adopted blue-gray uniforms, which began to resemble infantry in many aspects. Cavalry breeches had blue piping.

Now the cuirassier could be distinguished by his red regimental numbers and two red stripes on his buttonholes. They switched to Hadrian's helmets, but continued to wear single-breasted cavalry greatcoats, which were longer than infantry ones. The collar had triangular buttonholes, also with regimental numbers and double red piping. This cut was approved in December 1914. Non-commissioned officers had silver piping, officers - gold. However, the officers soon also switched to silver edging. In July 1916, six regiments were officially designated as foot cuirassiers (4th, 5th, 8th, 9th, 11th and 12th) and therefore on their buttonholes, in addition to the double red edging, a single yellow. At the corner of the buttonhole the soldiers of these regiments had discs of different colors - black for the first battalion, red for the second, yellow for the third and green for the reserve company.
In January 1917, the triangular buttonhole was replaced by a diamond-shaped buttonhole. All six infantry cuirassier regiments received the right to wear the red and green cords of the Military Cross. These units relied primarily on pistols, knives and hand grenades rather than carbines or rifles. All regiments used leather leggings and windings.

Dragoons
The uniform of the French dragoons was similar to that of the cuirassiers. The 1874 model helmet with a gilded dome and front plate and metal scales was worn with or without a cover. Officers and enlisted men wore dark blue uniforms (officers were almost black) with nine silver buttons, a beige collar with dark blue buttonholes and red regimental numbers. The uniform was completed with red breeches and high leather boots, which were preferred in heavy cavalry. Ordinary dragoons were armed with carbines and pikes of the 1913 model. Officers used a heavy cavalry saber of the 1880 model. Dragoon regiments switched to a grayish-blue uniform and quickly ceased to stand out against the background of other branches of the army. The cavalry helmet was replaced by Hadrian's helmet with or without a crest. The cavalrymen changed into grayish-blue uniforms, greatcoats and breeches (now with blue piping). Now, white regimental numbers appear on the dark blue buttonholes with double piping. After 1915, dragoons continued to use the triangular-tipped pike with a steel shaft, but also used carbines. They used brown leather belts and pouches and often hung extra cartridge belts around the horse's neck. The gendarmes, responsible for maintaining law and order, had similar uniforms, but with white grenades on the buttonholes, and were armed with carbines to which bayonets could be attached. They wore breeches with white piping.

Light Cavalry
In 1914, the vast majority of mounted chasseurs (chasseurs a cheval) and hussars wore elegant shakos. However, it was believed that in 1913 a helmet similar to that of the dragoons and also made of steel was adopted for use by the light cavalry. There should have been an emblem on the helmet - a hunting horn for the huntsmen and a star for the hussars. The number of helmets for light cavalry remains unknown, but the 5th Regiment of Mounted Chasseurs, as well as the 10th and 15th, wore them, and the 8th and 14th Hussars received them on the eve of 1914. Another five regiments received helmets at the end of 1914. Those regiments that did not receive helmets were forced to make do with blue leather shakos with emblems in the form of a hunting horn for the huntsmen and a Hungarian knot for the hussars. The visor was black; for non-commissioned officers and officers it had a gilded edge. A colored pompom was attached to the shako - each squadron had its own (blue, red, green, light blue and yellow). The huntsmen wore light blue uniforms with a red collar and a white regimental number; instead of epaulettes, there were white shamrocks on the shoulders. The breeches were red with blue piping. Black leather cavalry boots (with spurs) served as footwear for horse huntsmen. Equipment belts were Brown. Like the dragoons, the chasseurs were armed with carbines without bayonets. The hussars wore almost the same uniform, but with a blue collar with red piping. The introduction of grayish-blue uniforms meant that Chasseurs and Hussars switched to using the same practical uniform that the Dragoons had switched to in 1915. Chasseurs were distinguished by their green regimental numbers and piping, while the Hussars had blue ones. At the same time, the blue breeches of both had dark blue piping.

Colonial cavalry
The African Chasseurs (chasseurs d.Afrique) began the war in a uniform reminiscent of that of the horse-chasseur regiments, but with characteristic tapering shakos (known as "taconnet") with a red crown and a light blue band. On the front was a traditional cockade in the shape of a hunting horn. The collar of the uniform was yellow.
Spahi cavalrymen wore an Arabian-style uniform with a turban and a red cloak, a red sash and a red uniform with dark blue patterns. In addition, they used sheshias like those of the Zouaves. The officers preferred a more European style - a cap, a red uniform, gray-blue breeches and a cape. Shoes were represented by brown boots or gaiters.
Although most of The French cavalry were dressed in a grayish-blue uniform, these African regiments in 1915 switched to a khaki uniform with a shako or sheshiya in a light brown cover. On the blue buttonholes of the uniforms of both African chasseurs and spagi were yellow regimental numbers. The edging on the buttonholes was also yellow. Cavalry breeches had dark blue piping. The Jaegers switched to khaki uniforms, but the Spags did not adopt them, preferring loose khaki jackets or capes with equipment worn on the outside.

Having defeated the main enemy - Germany, France (like England) became the leading country in Western Europe. She regained her highly developed industrial areas Alsace and Lorraine, gained control over German and partially Turkish possessions (Togo, Cameroon, Syria, Lebanon, etc.). But the war brought huge losses to France: 1.3 million people died, it turned from a creditor country into a debtor, the level of industrial production in 1921 was 55% compared to 1913.

France, together with England, the USA, and Japan, was one of the organizers of the intervention against Soviet Russia. Stay of French troops in Russia during 1918-1919. had a profound influence on soldiers and sailors, who, upon returning to France, contributed to the rise of revolutionary sentiment in their homeland.

In the parliamentary elections in November 1919, the parties of the National Bloc won, which acted with ultra-patriotic positions: strict adherence to the terms of the Versailles Treaty, protection of social peace and the republican system, restoration of the economy destroyed by the war, protection of the rights of veterans and disabled war veterans, and the like. These slogans corresponded to the sentiments of the majority of the country's population, frightened by the strike movement.

France's hopes for regular reparations payments from Germany were not justified, since due to the crisis in the economy and society, Germany could not and was in no hurry to pay for them. In January 1923, French troops, together with Belgian troops, occupied the Ruhr region of Germany. France hoped not only to achieve the payment of reparations, but also to establish its control over the German economy. However, this action was condemned by the world community, so the troops were withdrawn from the Ruhr.

during 1924-1926. The Left Bloc, led by E. Herriot, which included radical socialists and socialists, was in power. He unsuccessfully tried to reform the financial and tax systems, officially recognized the USSR, and suppressed uprisings in the colonies - Morocco and Syria.

In 1926, after the collapse of the Left Bloc, a coalition of right-wing parties came to power and proclaimed a policy of national unity. The government was headed by Raymond Poincaré. In terms of the rate of growth in industrial production, France is ahead of England and Germany. The heavy, steel-smelting, and automobile industries developed at a rapid pace in the Carpathians. However, this was interrupted by the global economic crisis, which in France became protracted. Thus, the decline in production, which began at the end of 1980, continued until mid-1935. The pace of stabilization was so slow that the level of 1929 was not reached in 1939. Foreign trade declined sharply.

An unprecedented economic crisis, rising unemployment and poverty caused discontent among large sections of the population; the authority of traditional right-wing parties fell - from 1929 to 1932, 8 governments changed. Extremist, fascist and pro-fascist organizations have become more active in the country ("Fiery Crosses", "Patriotic League", " French action"). Unlike the German and Italian fascists, the French extremists did not enjoy the support of the middle strata of the population - owners of small enterprises.

A significant part of the workers were oriented toward the communists. Under such conditions, the attempt of reactionary forces to organize a putsch in February 1934 in order to eliminate the republican system encountered resistance from left-wing forces. A wave of demonstrations and rallies swept across the country.

1934 representatives of the communist and socialist parties, who were subsequently joined by progressive radicals and figures of other liberal movements, agreed on joint actions against fascism. During the municipal elections in the spring of 1935, leftist forces achieved significant success. In the summer of 1935, communists, socialists, and radicals, united in the Popular Front, held a demonstration. 1936. The French press published the program of the Popular Front, which provided for state control over the development of the economy in order to stabilize prices and finances of the country, as well as expand social assistance to the population from the budget, guaranteeing democratic freedoms and prohibition fascist groups, active international activities to ensure peace in the world.

In the parliamentary elections of 1936, the Popular Front parties won the right-wing parties. The new government was formed by socialist leader Leon Blum. The National Assembly adopted more than 130 laws to implement the Popular Front program, but its implementation required a lot of funds at a time when budget revenues were declining. The government was forced to make large loans. The country's economy gradually destabilized. Blum's government demanded that he be given emergency powers, but the Senate refused.

French foreign policy was dominated by the desire to assert influence in post-war Europe and ensure the implementation of the Treaty of Versailles. France tried to limit Germany's revanchist aspirations by creating a system of collective security in Europe. An important step in this direction was the signing in Paris in 1928 of the Treaty of Paris prohibiting war as a means of national policy, condemning war and proposing only peaceful negotiations to resolve disputes. The pact provided for collective action on the part of its participants against any country that would take the path of aggression. French diplomacy in the early 1930s made an attempt to get closer to Germany, trying to maintain the status quo in Europe and limit German military spending, but Germany refused the deal. In 1932, a non-aggression treaty was signed between France and the USSR.

The French government unsuccessfully protested against the Anglo-German Naval Agreement (1935), under which Germany received the right to build a fleet. But France, like England, did nothing to force German troops to leave the Rhineland demilitarized zone. France recognized the Anschluss of Austria.

1935 an agreement was signed in Paris on mutual assistance between France and the USSR. The parties to the treaty pledged to immediately provide each other with support in the event of an attack by any European state. France and England, having proclaimed a policy of neutrality, actually contributed to the aggressive policy of Germany and Italy and their intervention in the civil war in Spain. France was a party to the Munich Agreement of 1938.

France and England, concerned about the unpredictable development of events, turned to the USSR with a proposal to provide guarantees of assistance to European states in the event of aggression from Germany. The USSR responded by proposing to conclude a mutual assistance pact between England, France and Soviet Union with the simultaneous provision of guarantees to all states bordering the USSR. However, no agreement was reached due to mutual distrust and the parties' reluctance to compromise. In the 40s, Germany was already ready for revenge.

Immediately after the end of the First World War, Prime Minister Clemenceau adopted a program to restore the French economy. As a result, by 1925 the regions most affected by the fighting had restored their economic power. In order to somehow compensate for the losses in the workforce caused by the death of millions of French at the front, more than 2 million foreign workers were invited to the country. The French government decided to receive funds from Germany to restore the destroyed economy. The slogan of the day was “The Germans pay for everything!” In 1921, the French calculated the full amount of reparations, which amounted to an absolutely fantastic figure - $33 billion. The British, realizing the unreality of paying such an astronomical sum to a war-drained Germany, proposed reducing it to a reasonable size, but the French remained adamant.

Already at the end of 1921, the British advocated reducing reparations from Germany, which was supported by Prime Minister Briand. This caused a storm in parliament, which removed Briand and appointed Poincaré in his place. In 1923, after Germany again failed to pay reparations, he occupied the Ruhr region. IN next year The Dowers Plan was adopted to restore German economy, so that she was able to pay off the former Entente, and French troops left the Ruhr.

However, in the same 1924, Poincaré was forced to cede power to the radicals led by Herriot, during a reign that included an unprecedented financial crisis. Thanks to this, already in 1926 Poincaré was again in power. He introduced wise economic policies that revived the French national currency. Poincaré was hailed as the "savior of the franc." When the prime minister retired in 1929 for health reasons, he was considered one of the most outstanding politicians of the Third Republic.

By the end of the 1920s, France was able to restore its pre-war level of economic development. Moreover, the prosperous country seemed to remain aloof from the general crisis that engulfed Europe in 1929. Thanks to high customs duties, France remained the only island of stability in a world plunged into chaos by depression. However, by 1931, the crisis had reached France, which was affected no less seriously than its neighbors.

According to the election results in 1932, right-wing parties lost their majority in parliament, losing power to radicals and socialists. At the very beginning of 1934, the reputation of the radical party was greatly damaged by a dirty political scandal in which a number of its leaders were involved. French fascist organizations took advantage of this to try to seize power into their own hands on February 6, 1934. A huge crowd gathered near the parliament building, which was dispersed by police. 15 rebels were killed and more than 1.5 thousand were wounded. Faced with a direct threat of beginning civil war Prime Minister Daladier resigned, giving up his post in favor of Gaston Doumergue, who formed the Cabinet of the National Union.

In 1935, the Popular Front was formed in France, headed by socialist leader Leon Blum.

In 1935, Doumergue's government collapsed due to the exorbitant ambitions of radical ministers. Doumergue was replaced by Pierre Laval, a former socialist who defected to the right. He tried to fight the crisis by cutting social spending and increasing taxes. This led to the fall of his government already at the beginning of 1936.

The Popular Front won the subsequent parliamentary elections. The Socialists gained a majority in parliament for the first time, but at the same time the share of the Communists increased, gaining 72 seats. Blum became prime minister. The Popular Front government decided to fight the crisis through sweeping social reforms, which did nothing to improve the country's economic situation. In France, an 8-hour working day, paid leave were introduced, and negotiations began between entrepreneurs and trade unions on working conditions. The Socialists tried to nationalize the banking system, but the Senate strongly opposed this. Blum's social reforms were a very expensive undertaking, which hit the ailing economy even harder. The actions of the Popular Front were least of all aimed at stimulating production and restoring the economy. Unemployment remained high, and the increase in wages was quickly eaten up by rising prices. Entrepreneurs began to take their capital out of France, which further fueled inflation.

Blum's reforms failed completely, and when he tried to raise taxes in June 1937, the Senate dissolved his cabinet. In April 1938, the radicals returned to power, and the socialists were again in opposition. The radical Edouard Daladier, who became the new prime minister, formed a cabinet in which the post of finance minister went to Paul Reynaud, who set about restoring the economy destroyed by the crisis and the reforms of the Popular Front.

Through Reynaud's efforts, it was only in 1938-1939 that the French economy reached the level of 1928, but this was achieved mainly due to feverish preparations for war. In March 1940, Paul Reynaud became Prime Minister of France.

On May 10, 1940, the Wehrmacht attacked France, and within weeks the fate of the campaign was sealed. On June 10, with the Germans rapidly approaching Paris, the government moved to Tours. After 4 days, the government left Tours and moved to Bordeaux. Reynaud insisted on continuing hostilities, and on June 16 he was replaced by Marshal Henri Philippe Pétain, a supporter of the truce. On June 22, 1940, a preliminary truce with the Germans was signed in the Compiegne Forest. The ceremony took place in the same carriage in which the French accepted the surrender of the Kaiser's army in November 1918.

After this, more than 30 prominent French politicians, including Daladier, fled to North Africa to form a government in exile there. However, upon arrival in Morocco, they were all arrested on the orders of Pétain. However, he emigrated to England former deputy The Minister of War, General Charles de Gaulle, already on June 18, 1940, addressed all the French on the radio, urging them to continue the fight. Soon he created the Free France movement in London, which set as its goal the fight against Nazi Germany.

On July 9, 1940, the remnants of parliament gathered in the resort town of Vichy to discuss the future of France. Pétain's deputy Pierre Laval was able to convince the deputies that Germany had won the war and would now reign supreme in Europe. At Laval's suggestion, parliament transferred all its powers to Pétain. III Republic ceased to exist.

Laval took a pronounced pro-German position, which is why Pétain dismissed him at the end of 1940. However, in April 1942, under pressure from Berlin, Laval returned to the government and remained in it until the collapse of the Vichy regime in 1944.

Meanwhile, during 1940-1942, with the help of the British, de Gaulle managed to win over to his side some commanders of colonial units in the Middle East and Indochina. However, during this period serious disagreements arose between the general himself and the British. The British government was not satisfied with the fact that de Gaulle campaigned based on the imperial interests of France and paid little attention to strengthening friendly relations between the British, American and French military. The problem was that the French colonial units did not like the Allies and were not very keen to help them in the fight against the Germans. But de Gaulle was unable to fulfill the role of a connecting link during this period.

Nevertheless, in August 1940, the administration of the colonies of Chad, Cameroon, French Congo and Ubangi-Shari (now the Central African Republic) came over to his side. In 1941, de Gaulle's units took part, together with the British, in operations against French units loyal to the Pétain government in Syria. However, due to the difficulties with the allies described above, de Gaulle's movement was not officially recognized by the United States, and therefore did not have much political weight. But the general continued to act.

During 1942, his people established contact with the bourgeois resistance groups operating in France and subordinated them to their leadership. With the help of General de Gaulle, these groups began to receive weapons, money, and radio stations from London. But at the same time, de Gaulle did not provide support to resistance groups of Marxist and socialist orientation leading an active struggle against the occupiers. However, this situation did not last long, and he soon managed to come to an agreement with some communists. Moreover, in December 1942, a meeting of representatives of both movements took place, at which it was decided to join forces in the fight against the Germans. Already in January 1943, a representative office of the Communist Party operated at the general’s headquarters in London.

Work continued in France itself. In May 1943, General Jean Moulin's representative founded the National Council of the Resistance (NCR), which included representatives of 16 different movements, including the Communist Party, the National Front, the CGT, Christian trade unions, and so on. Armed groups of various Resistance parties united at the beginning of 1944 into the French Internal Forces (FFI), and about half of their numbers were partisan units. The general management of the FFI units was carried out by the military commission of the NSS, the chairman of which was general secretary National Front, communist Pierre Villon. The communist General Joinville became the chief of staff of the FFI. General de Gaulle, who wanted to control the activities of the partisans, appointed General Koenig, who was in London, as commander of the FFI.

Meanwhile, in the summer of 1943, a unification of organizations led by de Gaulle and General Giraud took place. On July 3, 1943, the French Committee for National Liberation (FCNL) was formed in Algeria under the chairmanship of de Gaulle and Giraud, which effectively became the French Provisional Government in exile. A Provisional National Assembly was established under the FKNO, which performed the functions of parliament. During the same period, General de Gaulle established strong ties with the USSR, and thanks to them, on August 27, 1943, with very cold support from the USA and England, the FKNO was recognized by the international community. In 1944, communists entered this body for the first time.

In March 1944, NSS participants adopted unified program actions after the end of the war and the liberation of France. It pointed out the need to establish true democracy in France for all segments of the population and contained many socialist points. And very soon there was a chance to bring it to life.

Opening of the Second Front and landing allied forces in Europe served as a signal for the start of the uprising. On June 6, 1944, the PCF Central Committee ordered the start of military operations against the Germans throughout France, and on the same day, de Gaulle, speaking on the radio from London, called on all his supporters to begin a decisive battle with the Germans. After these calls, a huge number of volunteers joined the FFI units - their number increased 10 times and reached 500 thousand people. As a result, the uprising covered 40 of the 90 departments of France, and 28 of them were liberated from the Germans exclusively by Resistance forces. However, strengthening the communists was not part of de Gaulle's plans. He was afraid that France might turn red, and for this reason his representatives began to negotiate with representatives of the police and gendarmerie, especially in Paris, so that their units would come over to his side, and together they would prevent the communists from seizing power. De Gaulle sent his best and most combat-ready units to capture Paris in order to prevent its capture by communist units. Moreover, when an uprising began in Paris before the arrival of the Allied troops and de Gaulle’s units, the general’s representative took an unprecedented step: to sign a truce with the German commandant of Paris, but it was not supported by other fighting groups of the Resistance. Street fighting began in Paris, as a result of which on August 24 most of it was liberated by the rebels. On the same day, de Gaulle's units entered Paris.

Domestic policy of France, the emergence of a deep economic crisis in the country. The emergence of the Popular Front as a result of the powerful rise of the anti-fascist movement. Contents of the program, legislation and historical significance of the Popular Front.

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France between the two wars (1918-1939)

Plan

Introduction

1. Movement for the creation of the Popular Front

2. Popular Front Program

3. Legislation of the Popular Front

4. Disagreements in the Popular Front. The end of the Popular Front

Introduction

Domestic policy France in the 1920s was largely defined by the unresolved problems that arose after the end of the war. Two main areas were related to financial and foreign policy country led by Raymond Poincaré and Aristide Briand. High military expenses were covered by France through loans, which inevitably led to inflation. Poincaré counted on German reparations to keep the franc at least 1/10 of its pre-war value, cover the cost of rebuilding the destroyed areas and pay interest on loans to Great Britain and the United States. However, the Germans did not want to fulfill their obligations. Many generally doubted the possibility of Germany paying large reparations. Poincaré, who did not share these doubts, sent troops into the Ruhr region in 1923. The Germans resisted and capitulated only after emergency measures were introduced. British and American experts put forward the Dawes Plan to finance reparation payments, mainly through American loans to Germany.

In the first half of the 1920s, Poincaré enjoyed the support of a nationalist-minded parliament, elected in 1920. But in the next elections of 1924, despite the split of the left forces into warring communist and socialist parties (1920), the coalition of radical socialists and socialists (the union of the left) was able get the most seats. The new chamber rejected Poincaré's line, along with his firm monetary policy in France, and, in order to improve relations with Germany, brought to power first Edouard Herriot and then Briand. Briand's plans for peace in Europe apparently met with a favorable response from Gustav Stresemann, the Reich Chancellor and Foreign Minister of Germany. Stresemann was the initiator of the conclusion of the guarantee pact on inviolability state borders in the Rhine region and on maintaining the demilitarization of the Rhineland, which was reflected in the Locarno Treaties of 1925.

From the mid-1920s until his death in 1932, Briand led French foreign policy. He made skillful and tireless attempts to improve relations with Germany as a basis for maintaining peace under the auspices of the League of Nations, although he knew that Germany was rearming. Briand was confident that France would never be able to confront Germany on its own without the support of its former allies or the League of Nations.

In the early 1930s, France was gripped by a deep economic crisis. A massive massacre has unfolded in the country labor movement and at the same time the threat from Nazi Germany increased. Both the program of equal social security, which the working class insisted on, and the policy of effective rearmament to eliminate the threat from a remilitarized Germany rested on the need for an effective recovery of the French economy. Moreover, in the 1930s, when production was in decline throughout the world, France was unlikely to achieve genuine international cooperation, which alone could save the country's economy from collapse.

The world crisis and its most severe consequence - unemployment - manifested themselves in France in mid-1934. In the elections of 1936, the Popular Front won a decisive victory, partly because it seemed to be the only defense in the face of totalitarian right-wing forces, but mainly because of the promise to improve the economic situation and implement social reforms (similar to the New Deal in the USA). Socialist leader Leon Blum formed a new government.

Hitler's rise to power initially had little effect on events in France. However, his call for rearmament (1935) and the seizure of the Rhineland (1936) posed a direct military threat. This radically changed the French attitude towards foreign policy. The left could no longer support the policy of rapprochement between the two states, and the right did not believe in the possibility of military resistance. One of the few concrete foreign policy measures of this period was the mutual assistance pact with the USSR, concluded by Pierre Laval in 1935. Unfortunately, such an attempt to revive the long-standing Franco-Russian alliance to curb Germany was not crowned with success.

After the annexation of Austria (1938), Hitler demanded that Czechoslovakia transfer the Sudetenland to Germany. On Munich Conference France agreed to the division of Czechoslovakia. The French could take a decisive position at the conference, since it had non-aggression agreements with both Czechoslovakia and the USSR. However, the French representative Edouard Daladier took a position similar to that of the English Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.

1. Movement for the creation of the Popular Front

france popular front anti-fascist

The Popular Front in France arose as a reaction of democratic forces to the fascist rebellion, the reason for which was the case of Stavissky, who organized a fraudulent operation - the issuance of counterfeit bonds worth over 200 million francs! The fascists, putting forward the slogan “Down with the thieves!”, called for an end to corrupt parliamentarians and ministers, to liquidate the parliament and, in general, the “rotten regime” of the Third Republic. On February 6, 1934, the fascists tried to seize parliament by organizing a rebellion. Only on the night of February 6 did the police open fire and the Nazis retreated. The right accused the government, led by the radical socialist Daladier, of reprisals against demonstrators, and it decided to resign. The new government, headed by the right-wing radical Doumergue, included not only radicals, but also leaders of right-wing parties, including Tardieu, Laval and Marshal Petain.

The attempted fascist revolt shook the whole of France, causing a powerful upsurge of the anti-fascist movement and awakening a craving for unity. February 9, 1934 in Paris under the leadership Central Committee The FCP and the leadership of the UVKT held an anti-fascist demonstration, in which 50 thousand people took part and called on workers to hold a mass anti-fascist demonstration. On February 12, 1934, a general protest strike took place. against fascism, organized by the Communist Party, the Socialist Party, the CGT and the UVKT. In the main industries, 80-90% of workers went on strike. Many small traders and artisans joined them. IN total 4.5 million people stopped working. The general strike was accompanied by numerous rallies and demonstrations in almost all major cities of France. For the first time, communists, socialists, trade union members, and non-partisans participated jointly in demonstrations and strikes. The success of the demonstration and general strike on February 12, 1934 showed that a serious regrouping of class forces was taking place in France. French anti-fascists, alarmed by the tragic experience of Germany and the threat of a fascist coup, met with massive support from the French people. The Nazis did not achieve the cooperation of the army and police. A significant part of the population opposed them.

On July 27, 1934, the Communist and Socialist parties signed a pact of unity, which stated that their goal was:

a) Mobilize all workers against fascist organizations in order to achieve their disarmament and dissolution.

b) Protect democratic freedoms and demand proportional representation and the dissolution of the House.

c) Oppose military preparations...

f) Oppose fascist terror in Germany and Austria"

On behalf of the PCF, M. Thorez proposed creating a “People's Front for Freedom, Labor and Peace” facing the front of reaction and fascism. The organizing committee for the creation of the Popular Front included, along with the PCF and SFIO, radicals, other left-wing groups, trade unions, the League of Human Rights, etc. Thus, in the fall of 1934, the term “Popular Front” was first born to denote a broad coalition of socio-political forces united a platform for the anti-war and anti-fascist struggle, the struggle for improving the living conditions of workers.

Further rapprochement between communists, socialists and radicals was facilitated by the signing of the Franco-Soviet mutual assistance treaty on May 2, 1935. On July 14, 1935, a demonstration was organized in which for the first time all three main left parties - communists, socialists and radicals, both main trade union centers - the CGT and UVKT, as well as many other anti-fascist groups - officially agreed to participate. It ended with a grand meeting, the participants of which took a solemn oath: “On behalf of all parties and free groups, on behalf of the people of France throughout its territory, the authorized representatives, representatives or members people's assembly On July 14, 1935, inspired by the same will to give bread to the working people, workers, youth and peace to the whole world, they took a solemn oath to unanimously strive for the disarmament and dissolution of fascist unions, the protection and development of democratic freedoms and the provision of peace.” The Popular Front Oath served as the basis for his program. Organising Committee for the preparation of the demonstration was transformed into National Committee Popular Front. Popular Front committees began to be created locally.

2. Popular Front Program

In January 1936, the program of the Popular Front was published, in the development of which all its groups participated. In the political section of the program, demands were made for a general amnesty, to disarm and dissolve fascist organizations, to respect trade union freedoms and freedom of the press, to respect women’s right to work, to extend compulsory education until the age of 14, to ensure that everyone, both students and teachers, complete freedom conscience.

The section “Defense of Peace” provided for the establishment of international cooperation within the framework of the League of Nations in order to ensure collective security, as well as the limitation of weapons and the nationalization of the military industry. The program advocated the spread of mutual assistance pacts open to all "according to the principles of the Franco-Soviet treaty." IN economic section program contained the following requirements:

“Against unemployment and industrial crisis. Shortening the work week without cutting wages. Involvement of young people in the labor process as a result of the creation of a system for the transition of elderly workers to a pension in an amount sufficient to live on. Quick implementation of a wide-ranging work plan public importance in the city and in the countryside; for this purpose, to join local resources to the efforts of the state and individual groups.” Taking into account the difficult situation of the middle strata of the population suffering from the crisis, the Popular Front program proposed preventing a decline in the living standards of pensioners and employees, reducing fees for retail premises, and prohibiting the sale of property for debts. To alleviate the situation of the peasants, it was planned to introduce fixed prices for agricultural products and create a state intermediary bureau for the sale of grain.

The Popular Front's financial recovery program contained demands:

“Pursuit of wasteful spending of funds by civilian and military administrative authorities. Creation of a military pension fund. Democratic reform of the tax system, providing for the easing of the tax burden in order to create economic recovery, the creation of new resources through measures affecting large capitals (high progression of general tax rates on income exceeding 75 thousand francs, changes to the inheritance tax - taxation of the profits of monopolies, preventing the price of consumer goods from rising). Democratic tax reform that would ease the tax burden on working people and increase the tax burden on the rich. She proposed establishing state control over the French Bank."

The Popular Front program did not contain socialist demands. It was democratic, anti-fascist in nature and was feasible within the framework of the capitalist system. By bringing to the fore general democratic tasks, it made it possible to unite all opponents of fascism, war and big capital. In March 1936, a unifying congress of trade unions took place in Toulouse, formalizing the merger of the CGT and UVKT into a single organization that adopted the old name: the General Confederation of Labor.

3. Forlegislation of the Popular Front

In the spring of 1936, as a result of the elections, the Popular Front won, collecting the votes of 57% of voters. In accordance with the election results, the formation of the government was entrusted to the leader of the largest parliamentary faction - socialist Leon Blum. Blum invited all three main parties of the Popular Front to join the government: communists, socialists and radicals. Socialists and radicals agreed to take part in Blum's government, but the communists refused, because they believed that their entry into the government could be used by the reaction to intimidate voters with the “Red danger”. Without participating in Blum's government, the communists nevertheless decided to support him on the condition that he fulfill the Popular Front program.

The victory of the Popular Front aroused enormous enthusiasm among workers, who expected the speedy fulfillment of election promises. A few days after the elections, strikes spontaneously began at many enterprises. Their participants demanded higher wages, the introduction of paid holidays, and a reduction in working hours. The strike movement acquired unprecedented proportions. At the beginning of June 1936, about 2 million people went on strike. The workers occupied the largest enterprises and took them under guard.

The bourgeoisie, frightened by the unprecedented scale of the strike movement, hastened to make concessions. On June 7, 1936, at the government residence - Matignon Palace - agreements were signed between representatives of trade unions and entrepreneurs. Under the terms of the Matignon Agreement, wages increased by an average of 7-15%, and especially low wages increased by 2-3 times.

Law establishing annual paid leave in industry, commerce, liberal professions, domestic service and agriculture (June 20, 1936):

"St. 54f. Every worker, employee or apprentice...has the right, after one year of continuous service in the enterprise, to paid leave of a minimum duration of 14 days, including 12 working days.

Art. 54d. When setting remuneration, benefits for large families must be taken into account, as well as additional and in-kind payments that cannot be used during the continuation of the vacation.”

Law Establishing a Forty-Hour Workweek in Industrial and Commercial Organizations and Determining Hours of Work in Underground Mines (June 27, 1936):

"St. 6. In industrial, commercial and craft enterprises and cooperatives... the duration... of work of workers and employees, of both sexes and of any age, cannot exceed 40 hours per week.

Art. 8 In underground mines, the duration of each worker’s stay in the mine cannot exceed 38 hours 40 minutes per week.”

4. Disagreements in the People'sfront. The end of the Popular Front

The Popular Front's measures aimed at improving the financial situation of workers naturally required additional expenses and, consequently, increased the budget deficit. The Communist Party believed that in order to cover the budget deficit, it was necessary first of all to “force the rich to pay”, impose an emergency tax on them, and prohibit the export of capital abroad. In response, the financial oligarchy sabotaged the country's economy: in 1936-37 alone, over 100 billion francs were transferred abroad. “Capital flight” undermined the stability of the currency. The government of L. Blum that came to power (June 1936 - June 1937) did not take proper measures to suppress sabotage. Having devalued the franc by 30%, Blum in February 1937 announced the need for a “pause” in the implementation of the Popular Front program. In the field of foreign policy, the Blum government, in response to the outbreak of the civil war in Spain (1936-39) by the Francoists with the help of the fascist powers, declared the “neutrality” of France, banning to legitimate authorities The Spanish Republic imported weapons purchased by them across the Franco-Spanish border.

Blum's successors, the radicals Chautan (June 1937 - March 1938) and E. Daladier (April 1938 - March 1940, until October 1938 formally a government based on the Popular Front) increasingly deviated from his program. In October-November 1938 the radicals, and in May 1939 the socialists openly broke with the Popular Front. Having signed the shameful Munich Agreement of 1938, which handed over Czechoslovakia to arbitrariness Hitler's Germany By issuing a series of anti-people decrees on November 13, 1938 and brutally suppressing the protest movement against these decrees, the Daladier government opened the way for the return of the right to power. Soon the Franco-German Declaration of 1938 was signed in Paris, which actually crossed out the Franco-Soviet Pact of 1935.

The Munich Agreement led to the final collapse of the Popular Front. The Communist Party condemned Munich agreement and voted against him in parliament. However, all other parties, including the socialists and radicals, approved the Munich Agreement. Referring to the Communist vote against Munich, the leadership of the radical party officially announced its withdrawal from the Popular Front. This was the end of the Popular Front.

The Popular Front did not last long, but had great historical significance. His main merit was the successful fight against fascism. The Popular Front blocked the path of fascism, ensured the preservation and expansion of democratic freedoms, and brought real improvements in the lives of French workers. The social and economic legislation of the Popular Front, which was then the best of all major industrialized countries, was of great importance. During the years of the Popular Front, the influence of the working class and its political and trade union organizations increased significantly. However, it was not possible to consolidate and develop the influence of the working class due to the flight of capital abroad. The government was forced to follow the lead of entrepreneurs, devaluing the franc and curtailing socio-economic reforms.

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