Extreme Right in France, 1789 to the Present

This work surveys the history of a fascinating but contentious political and intellectual tradition. Since 1789, the far right has been an important factor in French political life and in different eras has taken on a range of guises including traditionalism, ultra-royalism, radical nationalism, anti-Semitism and fascism. This book is structured around the five main phases of extreme right activity, and the author explores key questions about each: counter-revolution - what was the legacy of Joseph de Maistre's writings?; anti-Third Republic protest - how was the "new right" of the 1880s and 1890s different from the "old right" of previous decades?; inter-war fascism - how should we characterize the phenomenon of fascisme francaise?; Vichy - why did Petain and Laval collaborate with the Nazis?; and the post-war far right - what is the relationship between Poujadism, Algerie Francaise and Le Pen's FN?;This title provides the key to an understanding of this vivid and long-standing feature of France's political history, with its amazing ability to reinvent itself and to appeal anew to important sections of the French population.

'This is a balanced and well argued study that should be made compulsory reading for all students of French history and politics.' - Contemporary Review, August 2002'Davies is clearly on familiar ground when talking about neo-fascism' - History of Political Thought, vol 24, issue 3, 2003