French nationalism () usually manifests as

civic Civic is something related to a city or municipality. It also can refer to multiple other things: Civic or CIVIC can also refer to: General *Honda Civic, a car produced by the Honda Motor Co. *Civics, the science of comparative government * Civic ...

or cultural nationalism, promoting the cultural unity of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

History

French nationalism emerged during the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a conflict between the kingdoms of Kingdom of England, England and Kingdom of France, France and a civil war in France during the Late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy ...

, which consisted of a series of intermittent conflicts with the

Kingdom of England The Kingdom of England was a sovereign state on the island of Great Britain from the late 9th century, when it was unified from various Heptarchy, Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland to f ...

. The wars produced a great icon of French nationalism,

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc ( ; ; – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the Coronation of the French monarch, coronation of Charles VII o ...

. The

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

also played a major role after the

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

. French nationalism became a powerful movement after the French Revolution in 1789.

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

promoted French nationalism based upon the ideals of the French Revolution such as the idea of '' liberty, equality, fraternity'' and justified French

expansionism Expansionism refers to states obtaining greater territory through military Imperialism, empire-building or colonialism. In the classical age of conquest moral justification for territorial expansion at the direct expense of another established p ...

and French military campaigns on the claim that France had the right to spread the enlightened ideals of the French Revolution across Europe, and also to expand France into its so-called " natural borders." Napoleon's invasions of other nations had the effect of spreading the concept of nationalism outside of France.

1814-1914

After Napoleon's defeat and downfall, French nationalism from the 19th to early 20th century took on an assertive and extreme patriotism that supported military force to achieve its political goals. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, France pursued

irredentist Irredentism () is one state's desire to annex the territory of another state. This desire can be motivated by ethnic reasons because the population of the territory is ethnically similar to or the same as the population of the parent state. Hist ...

claims on the region of Alsace-Lorraine that had been lost to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

at the end of the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

of 1870–1871. French national pride was damaged in

by the long, drawn-out war with Germany fought on its soil; especially in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

when the French government surrendered to Germany in 1940; and after France lost many of its colonies due to decolonization after World War II. The symbols of nationalism included not only Joan of Arc but also Roland, the hero of '' The Song of Roland'' (). He died in combat against the Unfaithful while defending Charlemagne and his men, making him a suitable patriotic symbol for the modern age. The politics of left and right played a role as conservatives seized on nationalism to attack the left. Conservative French nationalists successfully labeled antimilitarism as antinationalist in the 1898-1914 era. Many of the more vocal antimilitarists were activist anarchists and radical Marxist organizations. Historians have interpreted this attack by arguing French nationalism was rejecting its roots in the French Revolution and was becoming something of an extremist, protofascist movement. However, most antimilitarists did not reject their nation but instead claimed to be protecting the Republic which they saw as synonymous with the nation. They saw the conservatives as a danger to a republican France. The large conservative Catholic element, frustrated by the failure to restore the monarchy, turned to a new variation on nationalism. Led by the daily newspaper '' La Croix,'' founded by the Assumptionist priests in 1883, it denounced the Republic's anti-clericalism and encouraged Boulangism and Germanophobia. It promoted French imperialism as the fulfillment of a mission to bring civilization and Christianity to the pagans ("mission civilisatrice") and it boasted of France's cultural superiority over everyone else. The Dreyfus affair of the 1890s saw conservatives use nationalism to attack the Third Republic. However, when the republicans passed laws hostile to the Catholic Church in 1901-1905, such as disbanding the Assumptionists, many conservatives switched their energies and funding away from nationalistic projects to a defense of the Church instead. Devout Catholic women were especially active in this switch. Historian Robert Fuller argues it effectively ended the nationalist challenge to the Third Republic.

Since 1914

The disaster of the

Nazi Occupation of France The Military Administration in France (; ) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zone in areas of northern and western France. This so-called ' was established in June 19 ...

led to a collapse of confidence in Republican governance. ''Maréchal''

Philippe Pétain Henri Philippe Bénoni Omer Joseph Pétain (; 24 April 1856 – 23 July 1951), better known as Marshal Pétain (, ), was a French marshal who commanded the French Army in World War I and later became the head of the Collaboration with Nazi Ger ...

, a hero of the world war, was called upon to save France again in the name of French nationalism. He responded by stressing "the need to stay in France, to prepare a national revival, and to share the sufferings of our people. It is impossible for the government to abandon French soil without emigrating, without deserting. The duty of the government is, come what may, to remain in the country, or it could not longer be regarded as the government". Robert Bruce wrote: "He longed to take an active part in remaking France in his image and ridding the nation of the past twenty years of socialist and Marxist teachings and programs whose bitter fruit had been the defeat of 1940. France would be strong again. France would be great again, and it was his duty to make that come to pass." Pétain's great enemy was the leader of

Free France Free France () was a resistance government claiming to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third French Republic, Third Republic during World War II. Led by General , Free France was established as a gover ...

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

. He became President of France and sought to resurrect national pride. De Gaulle sought to make France the leader of an independent Europe - free from American and Soviet influence. De Gaulle's government sought Franco-German reconciliation and took a leading role in the founding of the

European Coal and Steel Community The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was a European organization created after World War II to integrate Europe's coal and steel industries into a single common market based on the principle of supranationalism which would be governe ...

that sought to resolve economic tensions between France and Germany, that French foreign minister

Robert Schuman Jean-Baptiste Nicolas Robert Schuman (; 29 June 1886 – 4 September 1963) was a Luxembourg-born France, French statesman. Schuman was a Christian democrat, Christian democratic (Popular Republican Movement) political thinker and activist. ...

declared was designed "to end Franco-German hostility once and for all". Into the 21st century, one controversy has been the legal treatment of veiled Muslim women and prostitutes. The government has targeted what some perceive as the 'under-covered' bodies of prostitutes and the 'over-covered' bodies of veiled Muslim women in order to exclude them from the public space. After the multiple Islamic terrorist attacks of 2015 and 2016, French nationalists had a new reason to promote anti-immigration laws. The emerging forms of French nationalism emphasize the promotion of sexual liberalism as a core value of citizenship. Julie Billaud and Julie Castro argue that the goals are to enforce a virile nationalism, prescribe new sexual norms, and criminalize immigrants and those living at the social margins.Julie Billaud and Julie Castro, "Whores and Niqabées: The Sexual Boundaries of French Nationalism," ''French Politics, Culture & Society'' (2013) 31#2 pp 81-101

Parties and organizations

Current

National Rally The National Rally (, , RN), known as the National Front from 1972 to 2018 (, , FN), is a French far-right politics, far-right political party, described as right-wing populist and French nationalism, nationalist. It is the single largest Nat ...

(1972–present) * French Nationalist Party (1983–present) * Popular Republican Union (2007–present) * Debout la France (2008–present) *

League of the South The League of the South (LS) is an American White nationalism, white nationalist, Neo-Confederates, neo-Confederate, White supremacy, white supremacist organization that says its goal is "a free and independent Southern republic". Headquarte ...

(2010–present) * The Patriots (2017–present) * French Dissidence (2018–present) * Reconquête (2021–present)

Defunct

* Croix-de-Feu (1927–1936) * Mouvement Franciste (1933–1944) * French National-Collectivist Party (1934–1944) * French Popular Party (1936–1945) * National Popular Rally (1941–1945) * Groupe Union Défense (1968–2017) * French and European Nationalist Party (1987–1999) * Social Bastion (2017–2019)

Personalities

* Édouard Drumont * Joseph Darnand *

Jean-Marie Le Pen Jean Louis Marie Le Pen (20 June 1928 – 7 January 2025), commonly known as Jean-Marie Le Pen (), was a French politician, lawyer and activist. He founded the far-right National Front (now National Rally) party and served as the party's presi ...

* Marcel Bucard *

Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque Philippe François Marie Leclerc de Hauteclocque (22 November 1902 – 28 November 1947) was a Free France, Free-French general during World War II. He became Marshal of France posthumously in 1952, and is known in France simply as or ju ...

* Marc Augier * François Brigneau * Alain Soral * Jacques Ploncard d'Assac * François Duprat * Éric Zemmour * Dominique Venner * Jérôme Bourbon * Yvan Benedetti * Hervé Ryssen * Alexandre Gabriac * Daniel Conversano

References

Bibliography

* Bell, David A. "Lingua Populi, Lingua Dei: Language, Religion, and the Origins of French Revolutionary Nationalism." ''American Historical Review'' 100#5 (1995), pp. 1403–1437
in JSTOR
* Bell, David A. ''The Cult of the Nation in France: Inventing Nationalism, 1680-1800'' (2001) emphasizes religion and the wars with England. * Ben-Amos, Avner. "Monuments and Memory in French Nationalism." ''History and Memory'' 5#2 (1993), pp. 50–81
in JSTOR
* Billaud, Julie and Castro, Julie. "Whores and Niqabées: The Sexual Boundaries of French Nationalism." ''French Politics, Culture & Society'' (2013) 31#2 pp 81–101 * Hyslop, Beatrice Fry. ''French Nationalism in 1789 According to the General Cahiers'' (1934) * * Sternhell, Zeev. "Paul Deroulede and the Origins of Modern French Nationalism." ''Journal of Contemporary History'' 6#4 (1971), pp. 46–70
in JSTOR
* Vincent, K. Steven. "National Consciousness, Nationalism and Exclusion: Reflections on the French Case." ''Historical Reflections / Réflexions Historiques'' 19#3 (1993), pp. 433–449
in JSTOR
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Nationalism Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...

Political history of France