After the resignation in January 1946 of General de Gaulle, who wanted a bicameral regime with two chambers (Assembly and Senate) and a powerful President of the Republic, French political life was governed by “tripartism”, with 3 main political parties: MRP, SFIO and PC.
The Fourth Republic was approved on October 13, 1946 by the vote of the French people. It succeeded the Provisional Government of the French Republic from 1944 to 1946.
It consists of a bicameral parliamentary system (National Assembly and Council of the Republic), a weak Head of State and a government (ministers) exercising most of the executive power. Executive power is in the hands of the President of the Council. It will know 2 presidents: Vincent Auriol and René Coty.
The socialist Vincent Auriol was elected President of the Fourth Republic on 16 January 1947 by Parliament (deputies and councillors), for a period of seven years. Its role is essentially representative but it appoints the President of the Council of Ministers and it has the power to dissolve by decree the Chamber of Deputies (National Assembly). A new government called “of the 3rd force” is formed: SFIO, MRP, radicals and moderates opposed to the communists and Gaullists.
After the Liberation, France benefited for its reconstruction from the Marshall Plan, a financial aid provided by the United States of America to European countries (1948-1952). On this occasion, the Charbonnages de France, EDF and GDF were created.
We then know the nationalization of important sectors of industry such as transport, energy, SNCF, insurance and banking.
We also witness the creation of the Economic Community of Coal and Steel, thanks to Robert Schuman and Jean Monnet. This led to the creation of the EEC (European Economic Community) in 1957, which later gave rise to the European Union under the Fifth Republic.
During the period of the Trente Glorieuses, important social and economic progress led to the introduction in 1950 of the SMIG (Guaranteed Interprofessional Minimum Wage) and the 3rd week of paid leave, the creation of Social Security and works councils.
As early as 1946, the French colonies in Africa and Asia demanded their independence because of their participation in the war. The war broke out in Indochina, the conflict ended in 1954 with the French defeat. The new President of the Council Pierre Mendès-France signs peace in Geneva, and Vietnam, separated in two, becomes independent. Morocco and Tunisia also gained autonomy.
But in 1954, it was Algeria that rose up against the French presence. The situation in Algeria is getting worse. René Coty, elected President of the Republic in December 1953, appealed to General de Gaulle in June 1958. He appointed him President of the Council, threatening the National Assembly to resign if General de Gaulle refused to join. The constitution of the Fifth Republic was promulgated on 4 October 1958, and René Coty transmitted his powers to General de Gaulle on 8 January 1959.