From Liberalism to Fascism: The Right in a French Province, 1928-1939

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title From Liberalism to Fascism: The Right in a French Province, 1928-1939
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Kevin Passmore
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:352
Dimensions(mm): Height 235,Width 158
Category/GenreWorld history - from c 1900 to now
ISBN/Barcode 9780521894265
ClassificationsDewey:320.5330944582
Audience
Professional & Vocational
Illustrations 20 Maps

Publishing Details

Publisher Cambridge University Press
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publication Date 16 May 2002
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

The Croix de Feu and its successor the Parti Social Francais stood at the centre of political conflict in the turbulent final years of the French Third Republic. Membership peaked at 750,000 in 1937, and at the time the movement was widely regarded as the counterpart of fascism in Germany and Italy. However, only recently has the view that fascism also has roots in France become a serious topic for debate. From Liberalism to Fascism is based largely on archival research, and shows that contemporary perceptions of the Croix de Feu and the PSF as fascist were in fact correct. Dr Passmore places French fascism in the wider context of the history of French conservatism through a micro-study of a crisis of the liberal-conservative tradition in Lyon. This book is the first to place the emergence of French fascism in the wider political and social context. In the process, received views of the nature of French society and politics are contested.

Reviews

'Leaving behind the vacuous rhetoric of fascist intellectuals and Parisian elites, Passmore provides us with what we most need: a study of the provincial dynamics of the right ... the real strength of this important book is that Passmore enables us to confront the French provincial right of the inter-war years in all of its messy diversity.' History