Droit Constitutionnel 2

{French Constitutional Law: From Revolution to the Fifth Republic}

This course summary navigates French constitutional history from 1789 to 1958, highlighting key periods and constitutions. It aims to clarify the unique French parliamentary system and its evolution.

By the end of this summary, you'll:

• Grasp the historical context of the Fifth Republic.
• Understand the cycles of power between legislative and executive branches.
• Identify the core characteristics of the French constitutional journey.

Core Content:

1. The First Cycle of French Constitutional History (1789-1848):

• This period marks the birth of modern constitutional law, establishing principles of the rule of law.
• It is classified into three periods:
  • Parliamentary Supremacy: Marked by the French Revolution principles.
  • Executive Reaction/Dictatorship: Characterized by strong executive power under leaders like Napoleon.
  • Balance of Power: Attempts at constitutional monarchy and cooperation between branches.
• Detailed explanation:
  • The French Revolution of 1789 (1789-1795) marks a dramatic break from the old order, leading to initial parliamentary dominance inspired by Montesquieu and Rousseau, but this period leads to the Reign of Terror and is deemed unsustainable.
  • Executive reaction (1795-1814): There is a period of executive reaction, with The Constitution of the Year III (1795) establishes a bicameral legislature and Directory, seeking to balance powers after the excesses of the Revolution, but the Directory itself proves unstable.
  • The 1814 Constitutional Charter (1814-1848) The Bourbon Restoration attempts to reconcile monarchy with revolutionary gains. This charter establishes a constitutional monarchy with a bicameral legislature, setting the stage for the gradual development of parliamentarianism in France

2. The Second Cycle of French Constitutional History (1848-1958):

• Echoes the pattern of the first cycle but with a new series of republics and empires, following the same cyclic pattern noted in the first cycle.
  • Parliamentary Supremacy: Focus on the legislative branch.
  • Executive Reaction/Dictatorship: Shift towards a strong executive.
  • Balance of Power: Attempts at a compromise with a parliamentary republic.
• Detailed explanation:
  • In 1848 French Revolution led to the Second Republic (1848-1851). The desire for democratic ideals with parliamentary power led to a system inspired by the American model, with an elected president.
  • Followed by the Second Empire (1852-1870), in which Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte seized power, signaling a pattern of strong executive control, followed by an increasing parliamentary role in its final years.
  • The Third Republic (1870-1940): Despite its shaky beginnings, the longest-lasting regime since 1789 features a parliamentary democracy marked by coalition governments, legislative dominance, and the rise of political crisis.
  • During this time, the Vichy Regime (1940-1944) is established, this period witnessed the suspension of democratic governance, but it was later overturned by the Provisional Government.

3. Key themes in French Constitutional Development:

• The oscillation between strong legislative and executive power: The French system has swung between prioritizing legislative power and a strong executive, leading to instability, and the Constitution of 1958 will find a way to balance these forces.
• The challenge of establishing a stable parliamentary system: Finding a stable balance within a parliamentary model where no branch is too powerful is a difficult issue.
• The role of constitutional custom and practice: Unwritten rules and norms play a vital role in shaping the French constitutional system.
• Detailed explanation:
  • Throughout their cycles of revolution, empire, and republic, France struggled to achieve a stable combination of executive strength and legislative power.
  • The Third Republic demonstrates the negative effects of a dominance of the legislature, often expressed as a system of unstable and often short-lived governments.
  • The frequent rewriting of the constitution is linked to the idea of establishing one that can last, and create a system of checks and balances that last the test of time.

4. The Third Republic's (1875) characteristics:

• It was a compromise between monarchists and republicans and helped to establish a longer lasting system.
• Organized around three constitutional laws: Governing the Senate, how to operate the public powers, and the relationship between each branch.
• Executive powers for The President: Appointing ministers, executing laws, negotiations of treaties, and power over legislation.
• However, there was a decline of the executive, because of the Parliament was often the deciding influence.
• Detailed explanation:
  • A significant amount of political instability (104 governments before 1940), despite long overall existence.
  • The practice of "interpellation", where legislature quizzes government parts.
  • "Delegated legislation" allows executive to act faster.

Q&A:

Q: Why is the French constitutional history so unstable before the Fifth Republic?

A: France struggled to find a sustainable balance between strong executive leadership and parliamentary power. Intense ideological divisions also made it difficult to craft constitutions with broad support.

Q: What is core feature of the Third Republic?

A: While intended as a balanced parliamentary system, it evolved into a system of parliamentary supremacy, marked by weak executive power and unstable governments.

Q: What measures were taken to address problems of the Third Republic?

A: Efforts included strengthening the office of Prime Minister and using "delegated legislation" (laws passed by the executive branch with parliamentary approval to meet important and sudden emergencies in economics or society) that helps to make the government more stable.