1930s between the socialists and the left-radicals (who were in fact a centrist
party of the lower-middle classes and richer peasants). In 1936 this coalition
took office, supported by theParti Communiste Franc ̧ais, which had
received orders from the Third International (seeinternational socialism)
to co-operate, though it refused actually to enter office. It was the first left-
wing government that France had experienced in the 20th century, and was
brought to power partly because of the international economic depression,
which took effect in France later than in the United Kingdom or the USA.
The second reason for its success was that both the centre and the far left in
France had become badly frightened by an upsurge of extreme right-wing, at
times openly fascist, strength and agitation inspired by Hitler’s Germany. Thus
an alliance that might plausibly have occurred much earlier, and solved many of
the problems and deep divisions in French society, was delayed until much too
late.
The government, which lasted until 1938, made a brave attempt at social
reform. Its most important reforms were increasing industrial wages, short-
ening working hours and carrying out long needed welfare programmes. But
by then the economy, which had long needed modernization, could not
sustain the demands made on it, and French financiers deserted the franc
forcing the government to moderate much of its programme. External threats
and the whole problem of defence added to burdens that were exacerbated by
the hostility of the trade unions who felt the pace of change was much too slow
and staged crippling strikes. The popular front coalition fell as a direct result of
its leader, Daladier’s, appeasement of Hitler at Munich, which the more left-
wing members could not accept. Had theThird Republicnot been destroyed
soon after by the Second World War, some revived form of the government
would probably have returned to office, but nothing quite like it was to
reappear on the French political scene, unless the periodic co-operation
between theParti Socialisteand the increasingly minor PCF is regarded as
such.
Popular fronts appeared at roughly the same time in Spain (losing the civil
war to Franco) and Chile. The first Chilean popular front government, elected
in 1938 (although the communist party was outlawed in 1948, while the front
itself continued in government until 1952), certainly achieved lasting social
reform. However, Chile’s second popular front, elected in 1970 under the
leadership of Salvador Allende, was too far to the left to allow the centre and
right parties to help it against the brutalcoup d’e ́tatof General Augusto
Pinochet, and led straight to military dictatorship. Popular fronts are less and
less likely to emerge as the non-communist left in most developed countries
increasingly gains ground over the communists, and becomes electorally
popular in its own right through presenting an efficient and united alternative
to the centre and right.
Popular Front