France : The Fourth Republic

First published in 1955 France: The Fourth Republic is the first book to provide an account of the working constitution of the Fourth French Republic. It summarises the innovations introduced by the 1946 constitution, comments on its working and on the revisions, describes how the French Parliament functions, the organisation of local government, and the new constitutional provisions governing the relations between France and her overseas territories. It also describes the outlook and organisation of the political parties and trade unions. It attempts to capture the institutional background to French politics, post war problems, fundamental characteristics of French political life, permanent attitudes of French politicians, and shifting moods of public opinion. This is an essential read for students and scholars of French politics, political history, European politics, and international relations.