Which parties were part of the left bloc. Chapter II. France in the interwar period. IV. Immediate prospects for the “pacifist-democratic” era

Domestic policy of France in the 1920s

French domestic policy in the 1920s was largely determined by unresolved problems that arose after the end of the war. Two main directions were associated with the financial and foreign policy of the country, which was led by Raymond Poincaré (President of France in 1913 - January 1920, Prime Minister in 1912 - January 1913, 1922-24 and 1926-29, repeatedly minister. He pursued a militaristic policy (nickname "Poincaré's War") and Aristide Briand (repeatedly in 1909-31 Prime Minister of France and Minister of Foreign Affairs.). 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. Poincare, who did not share these doubts, in 1922. sent troops into the Ruhr region. 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.

And yet more or less progressive economic development France in the 1920s was aided by additional factors such as the annexation of Alsace and Lorraine, the exploitation of the Saar coal basin, a vast colonial empire and the militarization of the economy. Therefore, the crisis in France did not come in 1929, but only in the fall of 1930, somewhat later than in other countries, but was distinguished by a longer and more protracted character. The overall level of production fell by 1/3. In an atmosphere of economic chaos, a wave of bankruptcies swept across the country; not only thousands of small industrial enterprises and commercial establishments, but also dozens large companies. The crisis in industry was accompanied agrarian crisis: Agricultural production decreased by 40%. Peasants' incomes dropped by almost half, tens of thousands of farms were sold for debts. Ruined peasants moved to the cities, joining the ranks of the unemployed. Foreign economic relations were disrupted, foreign trade turnover decreased by 2/3. The French economy was thrown back to the level of the end of the 19th century. The decline in production caused huge unemployment. Wages decreased (by 20%). A wave of workers' strikes and demonstrations swept across France.

A mass labor movement developed in the country and at the same time the threat from Nazi Germany. 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 there was a worldwide decline in production, France was unlikely to be able to achieve genuine international cooperation, which alone could save the country's economy from collapse.

French foreign policy in the early 20s

By the beginning of 1921, a certain reorientation of French foreign policy was taking place. The Leygues ministry, which had been in power since September 1920, was forced to resign, and on January 16, 1921, a new government was formed, headed by Aristide Briand. His appointment was an indicator of the regrouping of forces within the National Bloc. Unlike his predecessors, Briand belonged to one of the “left” bourgeois organizations - the Republican Socialists party. Briand's commitment to the ideas of the League of Nations and declarative pacifism were perceived as a rejection of military adventures and a guarantee of normalization of relations with other countries, and his chauvinistic position during the war seemed to guarantee persistence in matters of German reparations or the debts of the Tsarist and Provisional Governments of Russia.

In relation to Russia, the anti-Soviet course remained the basis. The new cabinet intended only to make a transition from direct participation in armed intervention to methods of isolation and blockade of the Soviet Republic. The French bourgeoisie made this turn much more slowly and hesitantly than the ruling circles of other countries (for example, England and Italy). The Briand government continued to provide support to all forces hostile to Soviet Russia and to seek the creation of military blocs dependent on France on its borders. It slowed down the conclusion (and then implementation) of the Soviet-Polish agreement, and in February 1921 it signed an alliance agreement with Poland. France completed the formation of the Little Entente and the so-called Baltic bloc (a guarantee agreement between Poland and Latvia, Estonia and Finland), which began in 1920; in March 1921 concluded a secret agreement with Japan, which was in a state of military conflict with Soviet Russia, about transfer to Far East remnants of Wrangel's troops.

Briand acted as a champion of mitigating disagreements with England, which had worsened on the eve of his coming to power, and an opponent of unilateral actions towards Germany. “It is not enough for France alone to decide to implement the concluded agreement in accordance with its interests,” he said. “A constant exchange of views with the allies is necessary... Otherwise, everything could collapse.”

Briand's idea was to link demands for German reparations with the issue of guaranteeing the security of French borders. At the Allied conferences in Paris (January) and London (March 1921), agreement was reached on the total amount of reparations and on the procedure for collecting payments, as well as on sanctions, up to the occupation of German territory, which could be applied in the event of refusal or sabotage with Germany side. In order to implement this agreement, allied troops were sent to the cities of Duisburg, Ruhrort and Düsseldorf in March 1921.

By the fall of 1921, opposition to the Briand government had grown and intensified. A series of actions taken by the Briand government at the end of the year exacerbated the situation. France failed at the Washington Conference, where, having agreed to conditions that limited its sea power, it failed to achieve any serious guarantees for its land borders. Briand clearly overestimated the severity of Anglo-American contradictions. The plan he put forward to create an Anglo-French banking consortium to control Germany's finances turned out to be unfeasible. The US government decisively rejected the attempt to make settlements of inter-allied debts dependent on the receipt of reparation payments to Germany.

In France, after the failure of the intervention, voices began to be heard with increasing insistence in favor of a change in policy towards Soviet Russia. They expressed disappointment in attempts to forcibly change the course of history, and the fear that other powers would get ahead of France, securing the vast Russian market, and even the hope, naive from today’s point of view, that the Bolsheviks themselves would change under the influence of cooperation. The impact of these sentiments and a realistic assessment of the situation prompted Briand to speak out in favor of a more flexible, maneuverable course and to take part in discussing the conditions for convening a conference in Genoa, to which it was planned to invite the Soviet delegation.

But for the most influential groups of the bourgeoisie, even this seemed unacceptable. In the newspapers "Maten". "Tan", "Journal de Debate", "Eco de Paris" began a fierce campaign against Briand and his policies. The President of the Republic, Millerand, in a telegram sent to Briand, expressed “regrets and concerns” about the decision to convene a conference with the participation of Soviet Russia. Briand's cabinet fell, and Raymond Poincaré became the head of the new government, formed in January 1922. His rise to power foreshadowed the abandonment of all previously planned negotiations and the adoption of unilateral actions designed to use force to resolve the issue of hegemony in Europe in the national interests of France.

First of all, the anti-Soviet policy of the National Bloc intensified. Unable to openly refuse to participate in the Genoa Conference, the head of the new government persistently repeated that he intended to follow the course of his predecessor and was even ready to “recognize the Soviets,” but only if this happened on a “solid realistic basis,” i.e. . subject to recognition of the debts of the tsarist and Provisional governments and the return of nationalized property to foreigners.

From the first day of its existence, the Poincaré government began to pursue an active policy to establish hegemony in Europe. Military spending has increased. The draft budget for 1923 proposed spending more than 5 billion francs on military equipment alone, while only 283 million francs were allocated for public health needs. If for four years (1919-1922) the military budget amounted to 22 billion francs, then for 1923 alone 9.5 billion francs were intended.

In June 1922, a law was passed establishing the period of military service at 18 months. This increased the contingents of the French army by one third compared to the original plans and brought its peacetime strength to 700 thousand people. In terms of length of military service, France came out on top in Europe (sharing it only with its ally Poland).

The chauvinistic slogans put forward by the Poincaré government; attracted a significant part of the population with the seeming ease of achieving French dominance in Europe. However, throughout 1922, within the National Bloc there was a growing divergence between the right-wing parties that formed the basis of the government coalition and the radicals who advocated a more flexible course. The contradictions within the ruling coalition reached their greatest intensity in connection with the problem of relations with Soviet Russia. Many influential radical leaders demanded with increasing insistence a turn towards "reconciliation."

Poincaré saw a way out in intensifying the struggle for French dominance in Europe. From mid-1922, the foreign policy of the French government began to acquire an increasingly provocative and threatening character. It was clearly designed to lead to a dead end in negotiations on the settlement of the reparations problem and to give itself a free hand for unilateral actions. Speaking in June 1922 in the Chamber of Deputies, Poincaré openly threatened that if “the allies do not agree to the application of sanctions, then France will act independently.” At the London Conference in August, he demanded “productive pledges” (which Poincaré included, for example, the occupation of the Ruhr region of Germany) as a guarantee of payment of reparations, which in essence meant the establishment of unlimited control over German metallurgy. The breakdown of negotiations between representatives of the metallurgical industry of the two countries in December 1922 was perceived by France as a signal to attack. Relying on a secure majority in the reparations commission, the French achieved a decision on December 26 that Germany had deliberately failed to make reparations supplies.

It was obvious that the invasion of the Ruhr was a matter of days. In preparing the act of aggression, the Poincaré government tried to push all internal political problems into the background. In the speeches of the prime minister himself and his closest collaborators - Minister of Justice L. Barthou, Minister of Internal Affairs M. Maunoury, Minister of Public Works I. Le Troquer and others - the idea of ​​​​the need to unite the entire nation against those who want to deprive France of the fruits of its victory. The idea was also spread that receiving reparations was the main condition for raising the standard of living of all French people, no matter what. social groups They neither belonged.

On January 11, 1923, the French army under the command of General Decoute entered Essen. By the beginning of February, the entire Ruhr region was occupied by French and Belgian troops, the number of which reached 60 thousand people. The Poincaré government did its best to present its actions as some kind of “police action” caused by Germany’s refusal to pay reparations. The head of government argued that the soldiers' task was only to ensure the safety of the French and Belgian engineers from the "International Metallurgical Plants and Mines Control Mission", which was tasked with establishing production in Pvpe: both countries "have only one intention - to ensure the supply of coal . which is theirs by right."

The French press of all shades and trends persistently inspired its readers that the occupation of the Ruhr corresponded to the interests of the entire French people; They insisted in every possible way that the misfortunes of the workers, the ruin of the petty bourgeoisie and the impoverishment of the peasantry, inflation and high prices were caused by the sabotage of the payment of reparations by the Boches. “We need to postpone all clashes between parties and help our government...” the Tan newspaper called on January 30. - Speech It’s just about being French and wanting the victory of justice for France.”

The actions of the Poincaré government increasingly revealed the desire to dismember Germany. Customs barriers were installed to separate the Ruhr from the rest of Germany, and restrictions were introduced on the import and export of goods; The management of the railways began to be carried out by mobilized French officials and specialists. At the same time, cash subsidies were provided and various types of support were provided to the Rhineland separatists who sought the creation of a “buffer” Rhineland Republic. Negotiations were held with their leader Dorten and with the mayor of Cologne, K. Adenauer, about carrying out a separate monetary reform in the Rhine-Westphalia region, which would be the first step towards destroying the unity of Germany. Secret connections were also maintained with separatist circles in Bavaria.

The threat created by the French government's policies caused a strain in international relations. England, which had previously provoked France to invade out of a desire to isolate it and also to cause an aggravation of the fuel crisis (beneficial to English coal exporters), as soon as the occupation began, found itself in a state of acute conflict with France. The United States of America also did not intend to allow France to assert itself in the Ruhr, although before the events began they pushed it to take decisive action, believing that the aggravation of the crisis in Europe would allow them to act as an arbiter.

The invasion of the Ruhr caused a political crisis to brew in Germany. The Cuno government, which expressed the interests of the leading Ruhr monopolies, responded to the occupation by recalling its diplomatic representatives from Paris and Brussels, put forward the slogan “the fatherland is in danger” and called on the people to “passive resistance”, i.e. to stop coal mining and production of products intended for for France and Belgium, to refusal to comply with the orders of the occupation authorities. The “Ruhr War” started in this way caused disorganization of the entire German economy.

But the consequences of the occupation of the Ruhr had a heavy impact on the French economy. The almost complete cessation of coal mining in the Ruhr led to the curtailment of a number of French industries, unemployment and high prices. Coal prices were growing rapidly: England was its only supplier.

Evidence of the failure was the Franco-Belgian negotiations in April 1923, at which the question of the advisability of the occupation was first raised. Justifying their actions, the Allies stated that the withdrawal of their troops from the Ruhr would only become possible when Germany not only paid reparations, but also covered the costs associated with the occupation. The minimum calculation showed that this meant 10 years of occupation.

The invasion of the Ruhr and the wave of chauvinism it caused temporarily slowed down the growth of the opposition, but by mid-1923 the consequences of this adventure had already borne fruit. The international isolation of France and opposition to the policies of the National Bloc on the part of England and the United States increased. The situation of the French population steadily worsened, and the strike movement expanded. In such a situation, the departure of the “left” parties of the French bourgeoisie from the National Bloc was completed. Parliament again started talking about the need to normalize relations with the USSR.

As the failure of the occupation policy was revealed, the persistence with which the Poincaré government sought cooperation with the central German government increased. This cooperation began to develop rapidly after the fall of the Cuno government in Germany. The new government headed by Stresemann, which included Social Democrats, pursued a course designed to resolve the Ruhr crisis with the participation of England and the United States.

French foreign policy after the radicals came to power

The years 1924-1929, when the tragedy of the First World War seemed to be receding into the past, and the threat of the Second had not yet appeared on the historical horizon, was a period of temporary partial stabilization for Europe. But France in these same years went through a series of crises in the internal and foreign policy.

The political history of these years is divided into two distinct parts: the stay in power and the collapse of the Left Bloc, the alliance of radical socialists with the socialist party (1924-1926) and the rule of the center-right coalition of bourgeois parties led by Poincaré, which adopted the slogan of “national unity" (1926-1929). The first of these parts refers to the period under review. It was primarily marked by the rise to power of radicals in France.

In less than five years since the defeat of the radical socialists in the previous elections, this party has regained its strength so much that it has come to govern the country. This revival was largely due to its chairman, Edouard Herriot, who was first elected to this post in 1919.

Immediately after coming to power, on June 21, Herriot went to England to negotiate with MacDonald, and then visited Brussels. The subject of discussion was the problem of German reparations and the occupation of the Ruhr, which put France in a difficult position.

France tried to make the payment of its war debts to America and England dependent on the receipt of German payments, but it failed. The London Conference of the Allied Countries and Germany (July 16-August 16, 1924) approved the plan of the Commission of Experts on Reparations (“Dawes Plan”). At the same time, France pledged to evacuate the Ruhr military contingent within one year.

The most important foreign policy action of the new government was the recognition of the USSR and the establishment of diplomatic relations with it.

While advocating the establishment of Franco-Soviet relations, Herriot also wanted to prevent further rapprochement between the USSR and Germany. Moreover, he hoped for the evolution of the Soviet system, naively believing that he could push internal development Soviet Russia took a bourgeois path similar to the one that France followed after the revolution of the 18th century. He, in particular, thought that the NEP would lead to the development of private ownership of land by peasants.

On April 17, 1925, a new government was formed, with most of the main posts given to Republican Socialists and members of the “radical left.” The cabinet was headed by P. Painlevé. Joseph Caillot became Minister of Finance and Aristide Briand became Minister of Foreign Affairs.

In foreign and domestic policy, the new government met the demands of the big bourgeoisie and conservative parties. The embassy in the Vatican was restored, concessions were made to the Alsatian clerics. While Painlevé was in power, the so-called Locarno Agreements were concluded, developed on October 5-16, 1925 at a conference of seven European countries.

The main issues that occupied its participants were ensuring border security for Germany's western neighbors and establishing a system of alliances that opposed Soviet Russia.

In the mid-20s, Germany, whose industrial and military power was steadily recovering, again began to pose a potential threat to France. France raised the question of its security by demanding that Great Britain guarantee the borders established by the Treaty of Versailles. Preliminary negotiations on a guarantee pact were started by the Herriot government. Great Britain, seeking to end France's claims to dominance in Europe, took advantage of France's demand for guarantees and initiated the convening international conference.

The main result of the Locarno Conference came down to three groups of agreements: between Great Britain, France, Belgium, Germany and Italy - on the mutual guarantee of borders (Rhine Guarantee Pact); Germany's bilateral agreements with France, Belgium, Poland and Czechoslovakia on arbitration in the event of border disputes; bilateral treaties between France and Poland and Czechoslovakia on mutual assistance in the event of an attack on one of them.

Yielding to pressure from England, France abandoned its initial demand to guarantee the western borders of Poland and Czechoslovakia, and to unite Germany's arbitration treaties with these countries with the Rhine Pact. Thus, the borders of France's Eastern European allies were not guaranteed by other powers; mutual assistance agreements were not effective enough. According to one prominent Polish diplomat, the Polish government, starting in 1925, began to doubt the effectiveness of the alliance with France. By 1929, Polish diplomats realized that France was becoming more and more dependent on England and that its obligations under the Locarno Accords were unrealistic.

On the other hand, for France, the system of alliances with small countries - Poland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Yugoslavia and Belgium - could no longer serve as a reliable support and replace, as French diplomacy believed, the absence of an alliance with Russia. “After the adoption of the Dawes Plan, after Locarno, it became obvious that the support of small countries was not enough for France and that, as France’s position weakened and Germany’s strength increased, this support became increasingly shaky and unreliable.”

The Locarno Accords were a major foreign policy defeat for France. They led to a change in the balance of power in Europe in favor of Germany, weakened France's continental alliances and reduced its political influence among small countries. The full extent of this, of course, came to light later. In the days when these agreements were signed, there were not many political figures in France who were aware of their negative consequences. The Chamber of Deputies ratified the Locarno Accords by 413 votes to 71, with 68 abstentions.

Story

Third Republic

Radical Republicans were present in the French National Assembly throughout the period of the Third Republic (among their most prominent leaders in turn of the 19th century and XX centuries were Georges Clemenceau and Emile Combe). In certain periods, radical politicians became heads of government (for example, Henri Brisson in 1885-1886 and 1898; Leon Bourgeois in 1895-1896).

On June 21, 1901, the Republican, Radical and Radical Socialist Party (French) was formed in Paris on the basis of a faction of radicals. Parti républicain, radical et radical-socialiste - PRRRS). At their very first elections in 1902, the radicals acted as part of Left block, which, along with them, included socialists and more moderate Republicans from the Democratic Republican Alliance. The bloc won a majority of seats, and Émile Combes became prime minister. The radicals and their allies managed to pass the law on the separation of church and state (1905), which is still in force. Before the next elections in 1906, the coalition collapsed, but the Radical Party faction was again the largest; the new cabinet of ministers (1906-1909) was headed by Clemenceau. Under him, income tax and labor pensions were introduced.

Until the end of the Third Republic, the radicals were usually the largest party in parliament, however, having achieved their main goals, the party began to move to more conservative positions; on the left it was increasingly pressed by the socialists. Being in the center of the political field, radicals participated in almost all coalition governments, either blocking with the right, or receiving support from the left. Duverger wrote: “In France, since 1905, the dominance of the radical party has been outlined: it practically did not stop until 1940, since the right wing of the radicals usually had a certain influence on conservative governments, even during the period of the National Bloc.” He also classified the radicals among the parties in which the parliamentary faction dominates the party leadership, explaining this by the high decentralization of the party.

In 1917-1920, Clemenceau was again prime minister, bringing the First World War to a victorious end and participating in the signing of the Treaty of Versailles.

Fifth Republic

In 1959, the radicals went into opposition to President de Gaulle. The parliamentary elections of 1962 were the last in which the radicals acted independently, and not as part of a broader coalition. In 1965, they again created a coalition with the socialists - Federation of Democratic and Socialist Left Forces(fr. Fédération de la gauche démocrate et socialiste ), which lasted until 1968, when the left suffered a heavy defeat in the elections.

In 1972, there was a final split in the Radical Party between the left and right wings. The first created its own party, which still exists today under the name Radical Left Party. The remaining radicals, opposed to both the left and the Gaullists, first united with the Christian Democrats in the Reform Movement and supported the presidential candidacy of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing in the 1974 elections. The alliance with the Christian Democrats soon disintegrated, and in 1978 the Radical Party joined the Union for French Democracy created by Giscard d'Estaing, within which it operated until 2002, after which it moved to the more conservative Union for a Popular Movement. Currently, the radicals are a small faction within the Union for a Popular Movement, still standing out among other conservatives for their anti-clericalism.

In the Senate, the radical right and left, despite belonging to different parties, still sit as part of a single faction called "European Democratic and Social Assembly"(fr. Rassemblement démocratique et social européen ).

Party chairmen

• Gustave Mesureur (1901-1902)
• Jean Duboeuf (1902-1903)
• Maurice Faure (1903-1904)
• Maurice Berto (1904-1905)
• Emile Combe (1905-1906)
• Camille Pelletan (1906-1907)
• Auguste Delpeche (1907-1908)
• Louis Lafferre (1908-1909)
• Ernest Vallee (1909-1910)
• Emile Combe (1910-1913)
• Joseph Caillot (1913-1917)
• Charles Debierre (1917-1918)
• André Renard (1918-1919)
• Edouard Herriot (1919-1920)
• Maurice Sarraud (1920-1927)
• Edouard Daladier (1927-1931)
• Edouard Herriot (1931-1936)
• Edouard Daladier (1936-1944)
• Edouard Herriot (1944-1957)
• Edouard Daladier (1957-1958)
• Felix Gaillard (1958-1961)
• Maurice Faure (1961-1965)
• Rene Biller (1965-1969)
• Maurice Faure (1969-1971)
• Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber (1971-1975)
• Gabriel Peronnet (1975-1977)
• Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber (1977-1979)
• Didier Bariani (1979-1983)
• Andre Rossino (1983-1988)
• Yves Galland (1988-1993)
• Andre Rossino (1993-1997)
• Thierry Cornillet (1997-1999)
• Francois Loos (1999-2003)
• Andre Rossino (2003-2005)
• Jean-Louis Borloo and Andre Rossino (together, 2005-2007)

Notes

Literature

• Serge Berstein, Histoire du Parti radical, in 2 volumes, Presses de la FNSP, Paris, 1982, ISBN 2-7246-0437-7
• Gerard Baal, Histoire du radicalisme, La Découverte, Paris, 1994, ISBN 2-7071-2295-5
• Jean-Thomas Nordmann, Histoire des radicaux, editions de la Table Ronde, 1974.
• Kaninskaya G.N. Radicals and radicalism in post-war France. M.: Nauka, 1999.

As a result of the elections, the government of the “left bloc”, chaired by Herriot, came to power. The Socialists refused to join the government, but promised their support.

During the ten months of its existence, Herriot's government fulfilled some of the promises made by the parties of the "left bloc" during the election campaign.

It carried out a political amnesty, reinstated railway workers fired in 1920 for participating in a strike, and granted civil servants the right to organize trade unions; women gained the right to participate in municipal and cantonal elections.

In 1924, diplomatic relations were established with the Soviet Union.

Herriot government limited privileges catholic church in Alsace-Lorraine, which attracted fierce attacks from right-wing parties and clerics. The Herriot government encountered great difficulties in the field of financial policy.

The socialists, who campaigned under the slogan “Let's make the rich pay!”, proposed introducing a tax on capital. But the government did not dare to enter into conflict with the big capitalists and limited itself to half measures.

The $4 billion domestic loan issued in December 1924 failed.

Monopoly capital, through the French Bank, artificially caused a fall in the exchange rate of the franc. The cost grew rapidly.

The critical moment came in April 1925, when Herriot finally agreed to a proposal to introduce a capital tax. This immediately caused a sharp rebuff from the Senate, where the positions of right-wing parties were stronger than in the Chamber of Deputies.

The Senate's adoption of a resolution of no confidence in the government forced Herriot to resign.

On April 17, a new government of the “left bloc” was formed, headed by Painlevé. In its party composition it differed little from the Herriot cabinet, but its political course was characterized by a sharp shift to the right.

The Painlevé government decisively rejected the proposal to introduce a capital tax from the very beginning. At the same time, all taxes on workers, introduced during the reign of the “national bloc,” were retained. To cover the deficit at the expense of the broad masses of the population state budget, the government resorted to inflation.

The reactionary nature of the Painlevé government was clearly manifested in colonial policy. Continuing the war in Morocco that had begun under Herriot, the Painlevé government in August 1925 started a colonial war in Syria. Colonial wars consumed enormous amounts of money and placed a heavy burden on the state budget.

All this caused deep disappointment among the masses. Under their influence, part of the “left bloc” began to show dissatisfaction. Socialists have repeatedly voted against the government in parliament. A serious crisis arose in the ranks of the main party of the “left bloc” - the radical socialists, at whose congress in October 1925 Painlevé’s policies were sharply criticized.

Fearing losing the support of this party, Painlevé tried to take a more independent course in relation to financial monopolies, but encountered resistance from the monopolists and, under their pressure, resigned at the end of November 1925.

He was replaced by a government led by Arpstpd Briand, the leader of one of the parties of the “left bloc” - the Left Republicans. Unlike the governments of Herriot and Painlevé, Briand's cabinet included representatives of the “national bloc”. The post of Minister of Finance went to the major banker Lusher.

Briand's cabinet, which changed its composition three times, lasted about eight months. This was a period of increasing financial difficulties. The monopolies, which set a course for the return of their protege Poincaré to power, accelerated the decline in the value of the franc. In May 1926, the pound sterling was worth 170 francs, and in July it was already 250 francs.

The government obtained permission from parliament for an additional issue in the amount of 7.5 billion francs. Inflation became more and more severe. new scales. The right-wing press launched a noisy propaganda campaign in favor of Poincaré, proving that he only person, which can “save” France.

In such a situation, another government crisis broke out in July 1926. Briand's cabinet fell. The new government formed by Herriot did not last long.

Under pressure from financiers, it was forced to resign a few days later. “I was once again convinced,” Herriot later wrote, “how in tragic moments the power of money triumphs over republican principles. In a debtor state, the democratic government is a slave. After me, others could be convinced of this.”

Elections to the Chamber of Deputies of 1919 In November 1919, the first parliamentary elections after the end of the war were held in France. In preparation for them, the country's right-wing parties united into the pre-election coalition National Bloc.

It was based on the Democratic Alliance and the Republican Federation, joined by smaller right-wing groups. The leadership of the radical party also declared support for the National Bloc. His main task The pre-election association proclaimed the “struggle against Bolshevism” and “social unrest.” The electoral program of the National Bloc spoke about the defense of the republican system, a secular state and schools, the restoration of areas liberated after the occupation, and concern for the fate of the disabled and former front-line soldiers. One of the main points of the foreign policy part of the program was the requirement for strict compliance with the terms of the Treaty of Versailles.

As a result of the elections, candidates united in a bloc received more than two-thirds of the seats in the Chamber of Deputies. The first and second governments of the National Bloc (January - February 1920 and February - September 1920) were formed by Alexandre Millerand, a former socialist who joined the right camp. Before next elections The Chamber of Deputies, which passed in 1924, was replaced by four more cabinets representing the National Bloc (see Appendix).

Domestic policy. Following the election program of the National Bloc, the Millerand government waged a fight against “social unrest.” The cabinet took a number of tough measures against the labor and trade union movement. When the general strike on the railways began in May 1920, many trade unionists were arrested by order of the government and more than 20 thousand railway workers were fired from their jobs. Civil servants were prohibited from joining trade unions and participating in strikes. Many entrepreneurs

tacit support of the Cabinet of Ministers refused to conclude collective agreements with trade unions and did not comply with the law passed by the Clemenceau government in 1919 on an 8-hour working day.

Millerand's cabinet restored diplomatic relations with the Vatican, broken in 1905. In 1920, the government adopted a law on the celebration of Victory Day and the memory of the fallen - November 11. On this day in Paris, under the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs Elysees, the eternal flame was lit at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. His remains were brought from the battlefield of Verdun.

Formation of the French Communist Party and the Unitary General Confederation of Labor. The victory of the October Revolution in Russia in 1917 had a great influence on the world socialist movement. The Third Communist International (Comintern) was created in Moscow in March 1919. He declared his task to be the unification of all the forces of the world proletariat for the purpose of the revolutionary struggle of the working class and the establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat, as well as the coordination of the policies of all parties that joined the Comintern. After this, discussions began in socialist parties in almost all countries of the world on the issue of joining the Comintern. The French socialists did not escape them either. Two directions emerged within the Socialist Party. Left socialists and syndicalists called for joining the Comintern. Representatives of the right movement wanted to remain in the positions of social reformism.

The final decision on the general line of the party was made at the next congress of the SFIO, held in December 1920 in Tours. The congress delegates had to agree with the 21 conditions for admission to the Communist International put forward by V.I. Lenin. They envisaged a break with social reformism, propaganda of the idea of ​​the need for a revolutionary overthrow of capitalism and the establishment of the dictatorship of the proletariat, a restructuring of all party activities on the basis of the principles of democratic centralism, etc. Parties that agreed to join the Comintern pledged to implement its decisions, conduct systematic revolutionary work, combine legal and illegal methods of activity, and protect the peoples of colonial countries. They had to change their name and henceforth be called communist.

At the SFIO congress in Tours, a resolution on joining To the Communist International was adopted by a majority of 3203 votes against 1126. This day became the day of the formation of the French Communist Party (PCF). A minority of delegates, consisting of social reformists and centrists, refused to obey the decision of the congress. They founded a party under the old name - SFIO. The Communist Party had 180 thousand members in its ranks (after the congress in Tours), SFIO - 30 thousand.

Following the split of the Socialist Party, there was a split in the main trade union organization of France - the General Confederation of Labor. At the congress in Saint-Etienne in July 1922, a group of “revolutionary minorities” broke away from the CGT, whose leaders took reformist positions. Its representatives, defending communist principles, founded the Unitarian General Confederation of Labor (UGCT). New trade union organization joined the branch of the Comintern - the International of Trade Unions (Profintern). In 1919, another trade union organization was founded in France - the French Confederation of Christian Workers (FCHT), which included Catholic believers. Thus, there were already three main trade union centers operating in the country.

Foreign policy. Millerand's government did not change the course taken by Clemenceau's cabinet. It supplied weapons to the White Guard army of Baron Wrangel and the troops of lordly Poland, who fought against the young Soviet republic. A military mission led by General Weygand was sent to Poland to educate and train Belopol officers. After the victory of the Red Army, the government of the National Bloc agreed to accept many White Guards in France.

The cabinets of the National Bloc entered into alliances with individual states of the Eastern and Central Europe, interested in preserving the Versailles system and, due to their geopolitical position, represented a barrier from Bolshevik Russia. So in 1921 France

concluded a political pact and military convention with Poland. The French government provided support to Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia and Romania, which in 1920-1921. united into the so-called Little Entente. Both Poland and the countries of the Little Entente in their foreign policy focused on France, considering it the main guarantor of the inviolability of the Versailles system.

The struggle to fulfill the terms of the Treaty of Versailles occupied a central place in the foreign policy of the governments of the National Bloc. France opposed any attempt to revise the treaty. However, its strengthening, which could only take place due to the weakening of Germany, was not desired by the United States and Great Britain. Therefore, the policy of these states towards Germany became a constant source of contradictions between the former Entente allies. Disagreements on the reparations issue became especially acute. France demanded the maximum amount of payments and the transfer to it, as the most affected country, of 2/3 of the total amount, and the USA and England spoke in favor of limiting reparation payments. Only in May 1921 did the United States, Great Britain and France manage to agree and establish a total amount of reparations in the amount of 132 billion gold marks with payments of 2 billion per year, 52% of this amount was intended for France.

Occupation of the Ruhr. In 1922-1924. The government of the National Bloc was headed by the leader of the Democratic Alliance, a well-known right-wing politician in France, ex-president Republic Raymond Poincaré (January 1922 - March 1924 and March - June 1924). The Chairman of the Council of Ministers was a supporter of strict implementation of the Treaty of Versailles and one of most important tasks saw his foreign policy in receiving reparations from Germany.

In the summer of 1922, the German government, citing a difficult financial situation, requested a deferment of reparation payments for 4 years. In response, Poincaré's cabinet, enlisting the support of Belgium, decided to occupy the Ruhr in accordance with the Treaty of Versailles. In January 1923, French and Belgian troops entered the Ruhr region.

The government's actions were supported by all political associations that were part of the National Bloc, and even by the socialists. Only the French Communist Party opposed the occupation. The United States and Great Britain did not approve of it. Germany called on the population of the region to “passive resistance” and refused to pay reparations until the Franco-Belgian troops left the occupied area.

Contrary to Poincaré's expectations, the occupation of the Ruhr not only did not lead to the payment of reparations, but also required large expenses for the maintenance of the occupying troops. In addition, supplies of Ruhr coal to France ceased. Radicals and socialists, convinced that the Ruhr operation did not lead to the desired results, refused to support Poincaré's cabinet. Some right-wing members of parliament also spoke out against his policy. As a result, France was forced to leave the Ruhr. She agreed to refer the decision on reparations to an international committee of experts.

Left Bloc Board

Elections to the Chamber of Deputies of 1924 On the eve of the parliamentary elections of 1924, a regrouping of political forces took place in France. The radicals refused to cooperate with right-wing parties and entered into an electoral agreement with the Socialist Party, forming the Left Bloc, or, as it was also called, the Cartel of the Left.

The Communist Party did not block with radicals and socialists and stood in the elections independently.

The program of the Left Bloc included: an amnesty for participants in the revolutionary movement; reinstatement of railway workers dismissed during the strike of 1920; granting civil servants the right to join trade unions; creation of a unified system social insurance at the expense of entrepreneurs; establishment of a progressive income tax; implementation of legislation on the 8-hour working day.

In the field of foreign policy, the Left Bloc did not adhere to the idea of ​​​​strictly following the Treaty of Versailles. Representatives of the new party coalition promised to pursue a policy of peace, disarmament and international cooperation within the framework of the League of Nations. They advocated close relations with the USA and England, reconciliation with Germany and the latter's admission to the League

nations. One of the most important points in the foreign policy program of the Left Bloc was diplomatic recognition of the Soviet Union.

Elections to the Chamber of Deputies took place in May 1924. The Left Bloc parties won the majority, receiving 315 seats. For the first time, the FKP participated in the elections, which brought 26 deputies to the chamber. When forming the cabinet, the socialists refused to join it. Nevertheless, the Socialist Party allowed its deputies to support the government. It was formed only from radicals and representatives of groups adjacent to them. The first cabinet of the Left Bloc was headed by the radical leader Edouard Herriot (June 1924 - April 1925).

Domestic policy. The Herriot government first began to fulfill its election promises in the field of domestic policy. The amnesty law freed participants in the Black Sea uprising who were in prison and at hard labor. Railway workers fired for the 1920 strike were returned to work.

Herriot's cabinet also adopted laws restricting night labor for women and children and granting civil servants the right to organize trade unions. Women were allowed to participate in municipal and cantonal elections for the first time.

The government's attempt to extend the law on the separation of church and state to the Catholic regions of Alsace and Lorraine ended in failure. The country's clergy publicly spoke out against him. The cabinet also failed to implement the progressive income tax law. Bankers and financiers refused the government a loan. They presented the cabinet's financial obligations for payment and at the same time organized "capital flight" abroad, thus undermining France's balance of payments and the exchange rate of the franc.

After such failures, Herriot's cabinet resigned, and the Left Bloc coalition lasted in power only until 1926. The governments were led first by the right-wing radical Paul Painlevé, and then by Aristide Briand (see Appendix). Their policy gradually reigned and was characterized by a rejection of the provisions election program Left block.

Foreign policy. The foreign policy course of the cabinets of the Left Bloc was strikingly different from the policy pursued by the Poincaré government. The demand for “strict implementation” of the terms of the Treaty of Versailles was replaced by a pacifist line. Herriot encapsulated the basic principles of his foreign policy in the slogan “Arbitration, security, disarmament.” He proposed to resolve all disputes international problems through arbitration.

On the issue of reparations, the Herriot government followed the plan of an international committee of experts chaired by the director of one of the largest Chicago banks, Charles Dawes, associated with the Morgan banking group. The chairman of the committee of experts believed that payment of reparations would become possible only after the restoration of German heavy industry. For this, according to the Dawes Plan, Germany received a large international loan. The total amount of reparations was not recorded. The plan only set annual payments for the first five years at 1 billion marks, and in subsequent years at 2.5 billion marks, and the amount could change “in accordance with changes in the German welfare index.” Morgan's Bank also provided a loan to France. In response, she pledged to pay off her war debts to the governments of the United States and England.

Control over the payment of reparations was removed from the Allied Reparations Commission, headed by France, and transferred to an international committee, where the majority of votes belonged to the United States and Great Britain. During the period of the Dawes Plan (1924-1929), France received almost 4 billion marks in reparations. At the same time, Germany was provided with 15-20 billion marks of foreign loans and credits. With their help, she was able to restore the military-industrial potential in a fairly short time and get ahead of the French.

The strengthening of Germany's position was evidenced by the results of the international conference held in October 1925 in Locarno. France, Germany, England, Italy and Belgium took part in it. Main document conference - the "Rhine Guarantee Pact" - contained obligations of France, Germany and Belgium to respect the inviolability of existing between

They have boundaries and do not attack each other. Italy and Great Britain acted as “guarantors” of the Rhine Pact. In case of non-compliance, they had to provide support to the country against which the aggression was committed. In addition to the Rhine Pact, the conference participants signed a number of arbitration treaties on the peaceful resolution of conflicts between them and agreed to admit Germany to the League of Nations.

So France enlisted the support of England and Italy in case of military action from Germany. However, similar assistance was promised to Germany in the event of an attack by the French. Thus, for the first time since the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, France, representing the camp of the victorious countries, and defeated Germany were placed on an equal footing.

All parties and political associations that were part of the Left Bloc advocated the normalization of relations with the USSR. In this they were supported by the French Communist Party and the Unitary General Confederation of Labor. Diplomatic recognition of the USSR was also advocated by some entrepreneurs who wanted to penetrate the huge Soviet market. The right-wing parties in France and many major bankers and industrialists opposed recognition. The real anti-Soviet campaign was waged by the owners of enterprises nationalized by Soviet Russia and the owners of canceled “Russian loans.”

In October 1924, the Chairman of the Council of Ministers decided to officially recognize the USSR and then discuss with it all “controversial problems,” including the issue of debts Tsarist Russia. Herriot officially reported to Moscow that the government of the French Republic, “faithful to the friendship that binds the Russian and French peoples, recognizes de jure the government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics” and is ready to enter into diplomatic relations with it through a mutual exchange of ambassadors. The Soviet side responded positively to this proposal.

Colonial wars in Morocco and Syria. France was still the second colonial power in the world. During the reign of the Left Bloc cabinets, the rise of the national liberation movement began in some of its possessions. The government took the path of suppressing it.

In the spring of 1925, on the border of French and Spanish possessions in Morocco, in the Rif region, an uprising of Arab tribes broke out under the leadership of Emir Abd el-Kerim. The rebels announced the creation of an independent state - the Rif Republic. In response to this, the French authorities provoked a clash with the newly formed republic, accused Abd-el-Kerim of aggression and, together with Spain, began military operations against the Rif Republic. A large French military contingent, equipped with heavy artillery and aircraft, was sent to Morocco. The colonial war lasted almost a year. Only in the spring of 1926 was the uprising suppressed and Emir Abd el-Kerim captured.

In the summer of 1925, in another French colony - Syria - the population of the mountainous region of Jebel Druz rose. The rebels were led by Sultan Atrash. The manifesto with which he addressed all Syrians demanded the independence of Syria, the withdrawal of occupation forces and the creation of a people's government. After some time, the uprising spread throughout the country. The Druze occupied the Syrian capital Damascus and fought the colonialists for more than two years. The French government sent army corps to Syria and bombed Damascus. The Druze uprising was suppressed only in the fall of 1927.

Collapse of the Left Bloc. Colonial wars in Morocco and Syria led to a crisis in the Left Bloc. At first, only the French Communist Party opposed them, while the socialists, on the contrary, supported the government’s actions. However, the SFIO soon changed its position and began to insist on a peaceful resolution of colonial conflicts. The Socialists also demanded that the Painlevé and Briand cabinets implement the points of the Left Bloc program on the creation of a social insurance system at the expense of entrepreneurs and the introduction of a progressive income tax. The government not only did not do this, but prepared a bill on internal loan, which provided benefits to representatives of large capital, and increased indirect taxes, burdensome for large sections of workers. Against the bill

During the years of capitalist stabilization in France, such branches of heavy industry as metallurgy, engineering, automotive, aviation, and chemicals increased significantly.

"Left bloc" in power

The financial situation in France remained difficult, and agriculture never emerged from the crisis. Intensification of labor and increased exploitation of the peoples of the colonies served as the main sources for some improvement economic situation.

“The National Bloc compromised itself in the eyes of voters with the failure of the “Russian adventure.” The radical socialists left it in 1923 and created a “left bloc” in 1924 together with the Republican Socialist Party.

In May 1924, parliamentary elections were held in France. The "Left Bloc" received about 3.5 million votes and 272 mandates, the "national bloc" - 3.8 million votes and 274 mandates, the Communists - 900 thousand votes and 26 mandates. In June 1924, the radical Herriot headed the new government.

During the years of rule of the “left bloc,” a partial amnesty was carried out for political prisoners, civil servants were given the right to create their own trade unions, night work of women and children was legally limited, and women received the right to participate in municipal elections. In foreign policy, the French government was forced to increasingly take into account the position of the United States and Great Britain. An important direction France's foreign policy was a colonial policy, the purpose of which was to prevent the growth of the national liberation movement in its colonies and increase the exploitation of their peoples.

The masses were dissatisfied with the policies pursued by the "left bloc". Crowded meetings and protest rallies took place throughout the country. On October 12, 1925, about 1 million people took part in a strike against the colonial wars of French imperialism. It had great political significance and dealt a blow to the “left bloc.” At the same time, large capitalists began to export their capital abroad. In 1926, the export of capital reached 17 billion francs, compared to 10 billion francs in 1924-1925. Financial crisis contributed to the fall of the “left bloc” governments.

Government of National Unity

In July 1926, representatives of right-wing parties formed a government of “national unity” headed by Poincaré, which was in power until the end of 1928. economic life In France, during this period, there was a stabilization of the franc and some industrial growth. The intensification of labor increased, capitalist rationalization developed, which was characterized by exhausting labor methods, lengthening of the working day, a reduction in the number of jobs, and an increase in injuries among workers. At the same time, the process of concentration and centralization of production and capital accelerated, and the export of capital abroad increased. France provided loans to Poland, Italy, Czechoslovakia, Germany, and Belgium. The country's gold reserves have increased. In 1929 it was 41.6 billion francs, compared to 38 billion francs in 1928.