Abstract:
Post-World War II France faced a complicated situation in finding its national identity. After being a European and World power for the first half of the 20th century, its reputation and influence were in decline. One of its remaining sources of prestige was its colonial empire. But after rebellion broke out in Algeria, which was considered part of France itself, in November of 1954, the French government faced difficult questions concerning its role in the world. Although the French National Assembly strongly supported attempts to maintain a hold on Algeria, thereby maintaining France's international strength, it could never find a political solution to end the insurrection led by the Front de Liberation Nationale, and many Algerians flocked to the cause of Algerian nationalism. The government of the French Fourth Republic was structured so that ministerial instability and weak cabinets prevented any sort of political cohesion in foreign policy, and political squabbles led to disorder. When the French government eventually decided on a military solution to keep the peace in Algeria, the results brought about military victories, but political and ideological defeats. In "La Crise d' identite"�, I argue that this new power thrust onto the army gave it license to interfere in the affairs of the Fourth Republic, leading to a coup in the colonial capital of Algiers, the ascension of General Charles de Gaulle to the presidency, and the destruction of the feeble Fourth Republic in favor of the much stronger French Fifth Republic. AcknowledgementsI would like to thank Dr. Ellen Thorington of the Department of Modern Languages and Classics for advising me throughout the entirety of this project from its beginning in the Fall semester of 2006. Without her guidance, my work would not have been possible. I would also like to thank Dr. Christopher Thompson of the History Department, who made me realize that I know much more about the history of France than I tend to let myself believe.
