In an effort to restore its world-power status after the humiliation of defeat and occupation, France was eager to maintain its overseas empire at the end of the Second World War. Yet just fifteen years later France had decolonized, and by 1960 only a few small island territories remained under French control.The process of decolonization in Indochina and Algeria has been widely studied, but much less has been written about decolonization in France's largest colony, French West Africa. Here, the French approach was regarded as exemplary -- that is, a smooth transition successfully managed by well intentioned French politicians and enlightened African leaders. Overturning this received wisdom, Chafer argues that the rapid unfurling of events after the Second World War was a complex , piecemeal and unpredictable process, resulting in a 'successful decolonization' that was achieved largely by accident. At independence, the winners assumed the reins of political power, while the losers were often repressed, imprisoned or silenced.This important book challenges the traditional dichotomy between 'imperial' and 'colonial' history and will be of interest to students of imperial and French history, politics and international relations, development and post-colonial studies.

In revisiting the Popular Front some 60 years on, this work explores the link between metropolitan France and the empire at a defining moment in their history. The contributors aim to widen our understanding of the Popular Front experience and show that it represents an important watershed in French history, marking the beginning of an irreversible process of reform that was ultimately to lead to decolonization and the end of empire.

The Routledge Handbook of Francophone Africa brings together a multidisciplinary team of international experts to reflect on the history, politics, societies, and cultures of French-speaking parts of Africa. Consisting of approximately 35% of Africa’s territory, Francophone Africa is a shifting concept, with its roots in French and Belgian colonial rule. This handbook develops and problematizes the term, with thematic sections covering: French and Belgian colonialism The Maghreb Francophone Africans in France Francophone African Literature and Film International relations beyond colonialism The chapters demonstrate the evolution of "Francophone Africa" into a multi-dimensional construct, with both a material and an imagined reality. Materially, it defines a regional territorial space that coexists with other conceptualisations of African space and borders. Conceptually, Francophone Africa constitutes a shared linguistic and cultural space within which collective memories are shared, not least through their connection to the French imperial imagination. Overall, the Handbook demonstrates that as global power structures and relations evolve, African agency is increasingly assertive in shaping French-Africa relations. Bringing this important debate together into a single volume, this important Handbook will be an essential resource for students and scholars interested in Francophone Africa.

Against the broad historical background of economic globalisation and dwindling nation-state resources, this book examines the impact of the end of the Cold War and of the geo-political transformation of Europe on a wide range of issues, from changing perceptions of France's future world role to the internal ramifications of a new ideological and strategic environment. Multi disciplinary in focus, it draws on the expertise of historians, political scientists, sociologists and economists working in the field of French studies.

The notion of French exceptionalism is deeply embedded in the nation's self-image and in a range of political and academic discourses. Recently, the debate about whether France really is "exceptional" has acquired a critical edge. Against the background of introspection about the nature of "national identity," some proclaim "normalisation" and the end of French exceptionalism, while others point out to the continuing evidence that France remains distinctive at a number of levels, from popular culture to public policy. This book explores the notion of French exceptionalism, places it in its European context, examines its history and evaluate its continuing relevance in a range of fields from politics and public policy to popular culture and sport. Emmanuel Godin is Senior lecturer in French and European Studies; Tony Chafer is Principal Lecturer in French and African Studies, both at the University of Portsmouth.

France's presence on the African continent has often been presented as 'cooperation' and part of French cultural policy by policy-makers in Paris - and quite as often been denounced as 'the longest scandal of the republic' by French academics and African intellectuals. Between the last years of French colonialism and France's sustained interventions in former African colonies such as Chad or Cote d'Ivoire during the 2000s, the legacy of French colonialism has shaped the historical trajectory of more than a dozen countries and societies in Africa. The complexities of this story are now, for the first time, addressed in a comprehensive series of essays, based on new research by a group of specialists in French colonial history. The book addresses the needs of both academic specialists and those of students of history and neighbouring disciplines looking for structural analysis of key themes in France's and Africa's shared history. -- .

This book critically examines peacebuilding, humanitarian intervention and peace operation practices and experiences in francophone spaces. Francophone Africa as a specific space is relatively little studied in the peace and security literature, despite the fact that almost half of all peacekeepers are deployed or were deployed in this part of Africa during the last decade. It is an arena for intervention that deserves more serious attention, if only because it provides fertile ground for exploring the key questions raised in the peacekeeping and peacebuilding literature. For instance, in 2002 a French operation (Licorne) was launched and in 2003 a UN force was deployed in Cote d'Ivoire alongside the French force there. Filling a gap in the current literature, Peace Operations in the Francophone World critically examines peacekeeping and peacebuilding practices in the francophone world, including but not limited to conflict prevention and resolution, security sector reform (SSR), francophone politics, and North-South relations. The book explores whether peace and security operations in francophone spaces have exceptional characteristics when compared with those carried out in other parts of the world and assesses whether an analysis of these operations in the francophone world can make a specific and original contribution to wider international debates about peacekeeping and peacebuilding. This book will be of much interest to students of peacekeeping, peacebuilding, peace and conflict studies, African politics, security studies, and IR in general.

The notion of French exceptionalism is deeply embedded in the nation's self-image and in a range of political and academic discourses. Recently, the debate about whether France really is "exceptional" has acquired a critical edge. Against the background of introspection about the nature of "national identity," some proclaim "normalisation" and the end of French exceptionalism, while others point out to the continuing evidence that France remains distinctive at a number of levels, from popular culture to public policy. This book explores the notion of French exceptionalism, places it in its European context, examines its history and evaluate its continuing relevance in a range of fields from politics and public policy to popular culture and sport.

This book critically examines peacebuilding, humanitarian intervention and peace operation practices and experiences in francophone spaces. Francophone Africa as a specific space is relatively little studied in the peace and security literature, despite the fact that almost half of all peacekeepers are deployed or were deployed in this part of Africa during the last decade. It is an arena for intervention that deserves more serious attention, if only because it provides fertile ground for exploring the key questions raised in the peacekeeping and peacebuilding literature. For instance, in 2002 a French operation (Licorne) was launched and in 2003 a UN force was deployed in Cote d'Ivoire alongside the French force there. Filling a gap in the current literature, Peace Operations in the Francophone World critically examines peacekeeping and peacebuilding practices in the francophone world, including but not limited to conflict prevention and resolution, security sector reform (SSR), francophone politics, and North-South relations. The book explores whether peace and security operations in francophone spaces have exceptional characteristics when compared with those carried out in other parts of the world and assesses whether an analysis of these operations in the francophone world can make a specific and original contribution to wider international debates about peacekeeping and peacebuilding. This book will be of much interest to students of peacekeeping, peacebuilding, peace and conflict studies, African politics, security studies, and IR in general.

'From Rivalry to Partnership' is the first to study a potentially valuable way forward in tackling the challenges of Africa, namely bilateral partnerships. The book evaluates the significance and strength of the emerging Anglo-French partnership and explores how far this and other forms of 'bilateral' and 'bi-multi' cooperation might serve as a valuable alternative or complement to traditional unilateral and multilateral approaches in Africa. Practitioners, established academic experts as well emerging scholars in the field bring to bear a sophisticated synthesis of neoclassical realism and 'discursive institutionalism' and findings from over 100 research interviews to explore how joint approaches and bilateral partnerships have been used to address the challenges of Africa. In developing this argument, the editors explore: * Anglo-French cooperation in Africa * other bilateral partnerships in Africa, notably the Nordic states and the US * the Africa-EU Strategic Partnership * the China-Africa partnership and its implications for the EU-Africa partnership and for leading European states Written in a clear and accessible style, 'From Rivalry to Partnership' offers a much needed fresh insight into whether and how bilateral partnerships make a real difference to people's lives on the African continent.'

Against the broad historical background of economic globalisation and dwindling nation-state resources, this book examines the impact of the end of the Cold War and of the geo-political transformation of Europe on a wide range of issues, from changing perceptions of France's future world role to the internal ramifications of a new ideological and strategic environment. Multi disciplinary in focus, it draws on the expertise of historians, political scientists, sociologists and economists working in the field of French studies.

In an effort to restore its world-power status after the humiliation of defeat and occupation, France was eager to maintain its overseas empire at the end of the Second World War. Yet just fifteen years later France had decolonized, and by 1960 only a few small island territories remained under French control.
The process of decolonization in Indochina and Algeria has been widely studied, but much less has been written about decolonization in France's largest colony, French West Africa. Here, the French approach was regarded as exemplary -- that is, a smooth transition successfully managed by well intentioned French politicians and enlightened African leaders. Overturning this received wisdom, Chafer argues that the rapid unfurling of events after the Second World War was a complex, piecemeal and unpredictable process, resulting in a 'successful decolonization' that was achieved largely by accident. At independence, the winners assumed the reins of political power, while the losers were often repressed, imprisoned or silenced.
This important book challenges the traditional dichotomy between 'imperial' and 'colonial' history and will be of interest to students of imperial and French history, politics and international relations, development and post-colonial studies.