The Republic of de Gaulle offers a comprehensive account - the fullest yet available in English - of the eleven years that followed the establishment of the Fifth Republic in 1958. Serge Berstein analyses the new constitutional and political system that emerged under de Gaulle, and shows how France was able to disengage from the war. He then conducts a detailed analysis of the socio-economic changes wrought during this period, and discusses the ambitions, achievements and failures of de Gaulle's highly individualistic foreign policy. In the final section, Professor Berstein traces the decline of de Gaulle's ascendancy, from the election of 1965 to his eventual resignation in 1969. A separate chapter is devoted to the momentous events of 1968, which are located within the overall context of French politics and society during this period. In conclusion, the author assesses the contribution of a remarkable political leader to the no less remarkable changes that took place in France during his presidency. This volume, the eighth to appear in the Cambridge History of Modern France, is lucidly translated by Peter Morris, and is complete with a chronology and English-language bibliography.

List of illustrations; List of tables; List of abbreviations; Chronological summary; Part I. The Two Foundings of the Fifth Republic: 1. The compromise of 1958; 2. The problem of Algeria; 3. The political evolution of the regime and the crisis of 1962; Part II. Charles de Gaulle and 50 Million French People: 4. The institutional and political framework; 5. The golden age of growth; 6. The birth of a consumer society; 7. The policy of grandeur: a world design?; Part III. The Twilight of de Gaulle's Republic: 8. Early symptoms of a waning power; 9. The crisis of 1968; 10. Failed recovery and the end of de Gaulle's Republic; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index.