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The Provisional Government of the French Republic (gouvernement provisoire de la République française or GPRF) was an interim
Provisional government

A provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a previous administration or regime....
 government which governed France from 1944 to 1946. Following the Battle of France
Battle of France

In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the Germany invasion of France and the Low Countries, executed from 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War....
 in 1940 the state of Vichy France
Vichy France

Vichy France, or the Vichy regime are the common terms used to describe the government of France from July 1940 to August 1944. This government, which succeeded the French Third Republic, officially called itself the French State , in contrast with the previous designation, "French Republic." Marshal of France Philippe P?tain pro...
 had been established under the rule of Philippe Pétain
Philippe Pétain

Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph P?tain , generally known as Philippe P?tain or Marshal P?tain , was a France general who reached the distinction of Marshal of France, later Head of state of Vichy France , from 1940 to 1944....
. However, after Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord

Operation Overlord was the code name for the invasion of Western Front during World War II by Western Allies forces. The operation began with the Normandy Landings on 6 June 1944 , among the largest amphibious warfares ever conducted....
, the liberation of Paris and the fall of the Chambois pocket
Falaise pocket

The Falaise pocket or Falaise gap was the encirclement and destruction of German forces in the Normandy area of France during August 1944 by the Allies of World War II armies, as part of the larger Battle of Normandy, during World War II....
, the Vichy regime dissolved. Jurisdiction was then seized by the Provisional Government under the leadership of Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle

Charles Andr? Joseph Marie de Gaulle , , was a French people general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President of France from 1959 to 1969....
 in the wake of the Allied front lines moving through France.






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The Provisional Government of the French Republic (gouvernement provisoire de la République française or GPRF) was an interim
Provisional government

A provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a previous administration or regime....
 government which governed France from 1944 to 1946. Following the Battle of France
Battle of France

In World War II, the Battle of France, also known as the Fall of France, was the Germany invasion of France and the Low Countries, executed from 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War....
 in 1940 the state of Vichy France
Vichy France

Vichy France, or the Vichy regime are the common terms used to describe the government of France from July 1940 to August 1944. This government, which succeeded the French Third Republic, officially called itself the French State , in contrast with the previous designation, "French Republic." Marshal of France Philippe P?tain pro...
 had been established under the rule of Philippe Pétain
Philippe Pétain

Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph P?tain , generally known as Philippe P?tain or Marshal P?tain , was a France general who reached the distinction of Marshal of France, later Head of state of Vichy France , from 1940 to 1944....
. However, after Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord

Operation Overlord was the code name for the invasion of Western Front during World War II by Western Allies forces. The operation began with the Normandy Landings on 6 June 1944 , among the largest amphibious warfares ever conducted....
, the liberation of Paris and the fall of the Chambois pocket
Falaise pocket

The Falaise pocket or Falaise gap was the encirclement and destruction of German forces in the Normandy area of France during August 1944 by the Allies of World War II armies, as part of the larger Battle of Normandy, during World War II....
, the Vichy regime dissolved. Jurisdiction was then seized by the Provisional Government under the leadership of Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle

Charles Andr? Joseph Marie de Gaulle , , was a French people general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President of France from 1959 to 1969....
 in the wake of the Allied front lines moving through France. It was eventually succeeded by the Fourth French Republic in 1946 and the Fifth French Republic in 1958.

The GPRF was dominated by the tripartisme alliance between the French Communist Party
French Communist Party

The French Communist Party is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. Although its electoral support has greatly declined in recent decades, it remains the largest party in France advocating communist views, and retains a large membership and considerable influence in French politics....
 (PCF), claiming itself by exaggeration to be the parti des 85,000 fusillés ("party of the 85,000 shot") because of its leading role in the Resistance
French Resistance

File:Croix de Lorraine2.svgThe French Resistance is the collective name used for the French resistance movements which fought against the Nazi Germany German occupation of France in World War II and the collaborationist Vichy Regime during World War II....
, the SFIO
Sfio

Sfio, or Safe/Fast String/File I/O, is a C I/O Library developed by David Korn and Kiem-Phong Vo AT&T Labs Research, intended as a replacement for the standard C stdio.h....
 socialist party and the Christian Democratic MRP
Popular Republican Movement

The Popular Republican Movement was a French Christian Democracy political party of the French Fourth Republic. Its leaders included Georges Bidault, Robert Schuman, Paul Coste-Floret, Pierre-Henri Teitgen and Pierre Pflimlin....
, led by Georges Bidault
Georges Bidault

Georges-Augustin Bidault was a France politician. During World War II, he was active in the French Resistance. After the war, he served as foreign minister and prime minister on several occasions before he joined the Organisation arm?e secr?te....
. This alliance between the three most important political parties after the war — the Radical-Socialists and the conservative, right-wing parties, such as the ARD
Democratic Republican Alliance

The Democratic Republican Alliance was a History of France created in 1901 by followers of L?on Gambetta, such as Raymond Poincar? who would be president of the Council in the 1920s....
, had lost their legitimacy due to their collaboration
Collaboration

Collaboration is a recursive process where two or more people or organizations work together toward an intersection of common goals ? for example, an intellectual endeavor that is creative in nature?by sharing knowledge, learning and building consensus....
 during Vichy and to their attitude before the war — lasted until the May 1947 crisis during which Maurice Thorez
Maurice Thorez

Maurice Thorez was a France politician and longtime leader of the French Communist Party from 1930 until his death. He also served as vice premier of France from 1946 to 1947....
, vice-premier, and four other Communist ministers were expelled from the government, both in France and in Italy
History of Italy as a Republic

After History of Italy as a monarchy and in the World Wars, History of Italy was dominated by the Christian Democracy political party for 40 years, while the opposition was led by the Italian Communist Party ; this condition endured until the Tangentopoli scandal and operation Mani pulite, which led to the dissolving of most of the...
. Along with the acceptance of the Marshall Plan
Marshall Plan

The Marshall Plan was the primary plan of the United States for rebuilding and creating a stronger foundation for the countries of Western Europe, and repelling communism after World War II....
, reserved to countries who had not fallen under the influence of the USSR, this marked the official beginning of the Cold War
Cold War

The Cold War was the continuing state of conflict, tension and competition that existed between a number of world powers, including the United States, the Soviet Union, People's Republic of China, France, United Kingdom and those countries' respective allies from the mid-1940s to the early 1990s....
 in these countries.

Although the GPRF was active only from 1944 to 1946, it had a lasting influence, in particular regarding the enacting of labour laws, which were envisioned by the National Council of the Resistance
Conseil National de la Résistance

The Conseil National de la R?sistance or the National Council of the Resistance is the body that directed and coordinated the different movements of the French Resistance - the press, trade unions, and members of political parties hostile to the Vichy France, starting from mid-1943....
, the umbrella organisation which united all Resistant movements, in particular the Communist Front National. The Front National was the political front of the Franc-tireurs et partisans
Francs-tireurs

The phrase francs-tireurs was used to describe irregular military formations deployed by France during the early stages of the Franco-Prussian War and from that usage it is sometimes used to refer more generally to Guerrilla warfare fighters who fight outside the laws of war....
 (FTP) Resistance movement. Beside de Gaulle's ordinances granting, for the first time in France, right of vote to women
Women's suffrage

The term women's suffrage refers to the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending suffrage ? the right to vote ? to women. The movement's modern origins lie in France in the 18th century....
, the GPRF passed various labour laws, including the October 11, 1946 act establishing occupational medicine. It also appointed commissioners
Commissioner of the Republic (Provisional Government)

The Commissioners of the Republic or Regional Commissioners of the Republic were government officials appointed as representatives of Charles de Gaulle by the Provisional Government of the French Republic between 1944 and 1946....
 to fulfil its aims.

List of Chairmen of the Provisional Government of the French Republic

  • Charles de Gaulle
    Charles de Gaulle

    Charles Andr? Joseph Marie de Gaulle , , was a French people general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President of France from 1959 to 1969....
    , 1944-1946
  • Félix Gouin
    Félix Gouin

    F?lix Gouin was a France Socialist politician, member of the SFIO....
     (SFIO), 1946
  • Georges Bidault
    Georges Bidault

    Georges-Augustin Bidault was a France politician. During World War II, he was active in the French Resistance. After the war, he served as foreign minister and prime minister on several occasions before he joined the Organisation arm?e secr?te....
     (MRP), 1946
  • Léon Blum
    Léon Blum

    Andr? L?on Blum , was a France politician, usually identified with the moderate left, and three times the Prime Minister of France....
     (SFIO), 1946-1947


See also

  • Post-War France