France - Government and Society

First published in 1957, France is a collection of essays which was originally delivered as lectures in the University of Oxford. While there is an intense interest in French history, it is still true to say that no satisfactory short history of France is available to the English reader. A single writer, or, indeed, a group of two or three writers could not hope to master the state of studies over the whole range of French history; this could only be done by a team of experts, and such a team of experts could only be found in one of our major universities. The volume which is here presented consists of twelve essays by recognized experts in particular fields, each essay being complete in itself, while together they cover the interaction of government and society over the whole range of French history from the earliest times to the 1950s. This book will be of interest to students of politics, government, history, sociology, and policy.