France and its Empire Since 1870

Providing an up-to-date synthesis of the history of an extraordinary nation-one that has been shrouded in myths, many of its own making-France and Its Empire Since 1870 seeks both to understand these myths and to uncover the complicated and often contradictory realities that underpin them. It situates modern French history in transnational and global contexts and also integrates the themes of imperialism and immigration into the traditional narrative. Authors Alice L. Conklin, Sarah Fishman, and Robert Zaretsky begin with the premise that while France and the U.S. are sister republics, they also exhibit profound differences that are as compelling as their apparent similarities. The authors frame the book around the contested emergence of the French Republic-a form of government that finally appears to have a permanent status in France-but whose birth pangs were much more protracted than those of the American Republic. Presenting a lively and coherent narrative of the major developments in France's tumultuous history since 1870, the authors organize the chapters around the country's many turning points and confrontations. They also offer detailed analyses of politics, society, and culture, considering the diverse viewpoints of men and women from every background including the working class and the bourgeoisie, immigrants, Catholics, Jews and Muslims, Bretons and Algerians, rebellious youth, and gays and lesbians. "The book is unique in the field with its coverage of both France and its empire, and in that regard is au courant with modern scholarship. It is well written, concise, and very competitively priced."--Julius R. Ruff, Marquette University"The main strengths of France and Its Empire Since 1870 are its attention to gender, empire, and to cultural and intellectual developments, elements that are often missing or weak in other comparable books."--Katrin Schultheiss, George Washington University"France and Its Empire Since 1870 is an excellent textbook that rightly embeds the well-known narrative of French history into broader imperial and global contexts. It is written with a lively turn of phrase that gives a powerful sense of the often tumultuous, fast-paced and exciting developments of French history."--Edward Baring, Drew University"For a survey text, its detail and scope surpasses all competition. I particularly appreciate the emphasis on colonial issues and France as a major player on the international stage."--Michael V. Leggiere, University of North Texas"The strengths of France and Its Empire Since 1870 lie in its clear prose and its integration of the empire into the basic framework of the narrative. It also integrates aspects of social, cultural, and gender history into what is often in other textbooks a very straightforward political narrative of the development of the French Republican ideology. The authors have surveyed and integrated the most current and relevant scholarship in the field, which makes the text relevant and engaging."--Darcie Fontaine, University of South Florida"The breadth and scope of the book is admirable, clearly setting it apart from its competitors."--Stephen Auerbach, Georgia CollegeIllustrations and Maps ; Preface ; About the Authors ; Map of the French Empire in 1939 ; Map of the Francophone World in 2006 ; Chapter 1: The Embattled Republican Tradition, 1792-1870 ; France's Old Regime ; Causes of the French Revolution ; The Birth of a Republic (1789-1793) ; France's First Republic (1793-1804) ; Napoleon's Empire (1804-1815) ; Legacies of the 1789 Revolution ; The Bourbons Restored (1815-1830) ; 1830 Revolution to July Monarchy (1830-1848) ; 1848 Revolution and the Second Republic (1848-1852) ; Napoleon III and the Second Empire (1852-1870) ; Society and Economy Under the Second Empire ; Napoleon III and the City of Paris ; A Failed Liberalization ; The Empire and Europe ; Chapter 2: L'Annee Terrible, 1870-71 ; The Franco-Prussian War ; The Fall of the Empire ; From One Siege to Another ; The Paris Commune ; The Fall of the Commune ; May 1871 ; Chapter 3: The Return of the Republic, 1871-1885 ; The Early Republic ; Constitutional Laws and Crisis ; The Republic Triumphant ; The Republic and Women's Rights ; Cult of the Public ; The Republic Founds a New Empire ; The Republic and the Provinces ; The Working Class ; Chapter 4: The Imperial Republic, 1885-1894 ; Demographic and Economic Upheavals ; Boulanger's Rise and Fall ; Cultural Transformations ; Church vs. Republic? Fears of Degeneracy ; Civilizing Overseas ; The Labor Movement and Socialism ; Chapter 5: The Republic Divided, 1894-1914 ; The Dreyfus Affair ; The "Affair" ; The Denouement ; The Public Intellectual ; State and Church Go Their Separate Ways ; New Crises ; News of Cycles, Cycles of News ; A Dangerous Diplomacy ; Preparing for War ; Chapter 6: The Republic at War, 1914-1919 ; 1914: Mass Mobilization ; Taking the Offensive 1915-1916 ; The Soldier's War 31 ; The Civilian's War: Occupied Zones and the Homefront ; Private Life, Censorship, and Consent ; 1917: Breaking Point ; Revolution? ; 1918-1919: War's End ; Making Peace ; Chapter 7: The Deceptive Peace, 1919-1929 ; 1919: Fears of Revolution and a Shift to the Right ; Foreign Policy in the 1920s ; Domestic Politics: Realignment on the Left ; The Center-Right: Radicals and Conservatives ; Economic Modernization ; Women's Roles: The Advent of Modernity? ; France and its Empire ; A New Cosmopolitanism? ; Challenges to the Republic ; Calls for Renewal ; Chapter 8: The Republic in Peril, 1929-1939 ; Depression ; 1932-1934: Radicals in Power ; The Riots of February 6, 1934 ; 1934-1936: Conservatives in Power and Radicalization of the Right ; The Formation of the Popular Front ; The Road to Victory ; May-August 1936: Reform ; Economic and Foreign Policy ; Division and Failure ; The Politicization of Intellectuals ; Republican Reaction: 1938 ; War-Ready? ; The Path to War ; Chapter 9: The Dark Years, 1939-1945 ; From Phony War to the Battle of France ; Exodus and Armistice ; Vichy: Revenge of the Minorities ; Collaboration ; The National Revolution ; Daily Life in France under the Occupation ; Anti-Semitism ; Vichy and the Empire ; Resistance ; Turning Point: 1942 ; Civil War: Resistance, Liberation, and the Purge ; Turning the Page: The Myth of the Gaullist Resistance ; Chapter 10: Reconstruction at Home and Overseas, 1945-1958 ; The Provisional Government in Charge ; The New Political Landscape ; The Birth of the Fourth Republic and the French Union ; Politics as Usual? The Evolution of the Fourth Republic ; The Great Divide Between Intellectuals ; Launching an Economic Miracle ; Welfare, Repopulation, and Immigration ; Women's Lives and Changing Gender Norms ; Reimagining Europe: Franco-German Cooperation ; The Fourth Republic Refuses Decolonization ; The Algerian Quagmire ; Chapter 11: De Gaulle Founds a New Republic, 1958-1969 ; The Republic Transformed ; The Algerian War ; From Empire to Neo-Colony ; The Politics of Grandeur ; Marrying the Century ; The Affluent Society ; Explosion: May 1968 ; Youth, Intellectuals, and Culture under the Fifth Republic ; Chapter 12: A New France in a New Europe, 1969-1981 ; Reconfiguration on the Right ; Old and New Left ; Foreign Policy ; Economic Policy ; The Secularization of French Society ; Making France More Egalitarian: The Reform of Education ; Media and the Free Market of Ideas ; The Politics of Memory: De Gaulle's Resistance Myth Questioned ; The Revival of Feminism ; Sexual Minorities Demand Rights ; Immigrants' Place in the Nation ; Chapter 13: The Republic of the Center, 1981-1995 ; Socialism's Last Hurrah ; Regionalism ; Culture from Above ; Culture from Below ; Immigration and Frenchness ; The Reinvention of "La Pause" ; Foreign Policy ; Odd Bedfellows: The Evolution of Cohabitation ; Mitterrand's Second Term ; The Furor Over the Foulard ; The Paradoxes of Parity ; A Second Act for the Socialists ; France and the World ; The Autumn of the Patriarch ; Chapter 14: France since 1995 ; From "Social Fracture" to "Social Demand" ; A Nation in Search of a Definition ; The Left(s) Strike Back ; Abroad at Home ; Intellectuals: The Reason for the Clerks? ; The Republic in Danger ; Freedom Fries ; France Today ; Abbreviations ; Notes ; Suggested Readings ; Index