Action Française: Difference between revisions

'''''Action Française''''' ({{IPA-fr|aksjɔ̃ fʁɑ̃sɛːz}}, '''AF'''; {{lang-en|'''French Action'''}}) is a French [[far-right]] [[monarchism in France|monarchist]] political movement. The name was also given to a journal associated with the movement.

 

 

Shortly after it was created, ''Action française'' tried to influence public opinion by turning its journal into a daily newspaper and by setting up other organizations. It was at its most prominent during the 1899&ndash;1914 period. In the inter-war period, the movement still enjoyed some prestige from support among conservative elites, but its popularity gradually declined as a result of the rise of [[fascism]] and of a rupture in its relations with the [[Catholic Church]]. During the [[World War II|Second World War]], ''Action française'' supported the [[Vichy France|Vichy Regime]] and Marshal [[Philippe Pétain]]. After the fall of Vichy, its newspaper was banned and Maurras was sentenced to life imprisonment. The movement nevertheless continued in new publications and political associations, although with fading relevance as monarchism lost popularity, and French far-right movements shifted toward an emphasis on Catholic values and defense of classical French culture. It is seen by some as one progenitor of the current [[National Rally]] political party.{{sfn|DeClair|1999|pp=13–17}}<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pmwYAAAAIAAJ|title=Political parties of the world|first=Alan John|last=Day|publisher=University of Michigan |year=2002 |page=193 |isbn=978-0-9536278-7-5}}</ref> In 2023, the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) released a report in which it classified the modern-day Action Française as an "antisemitic" and "religious nationalist" group.<ref>{{Cite web |title=GPAHE report: Far-Right Hate and Extremist Groups in Australia |url=https://globalextremism.org/france/ |access-date=2023-04-07 |website=Global Project Against Hate and Extremism |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=News |url=https://globalextremism.org/news/ |access-date=2023-04-07 |website=Global Project Against Hate and Extremism |language=en-US}}</ref>

The ideology of ''Action française'' was dominated by [[Maurrassisme|the precepts]] of [[Charles Maurras]], following his adherence and his conversion of the movement's founders to [[royalist|royalism]]. The movement supported a restoration of the [[House of Bourbon]] and, after the [[1905 French law on the separation of Church and State|1905 law on the separation of Church and State]], the restoration of [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]] as the state religion, all as rallying points in distinction to the [[Third Republic of France]] which was considered corrupt and atheistic by many of its opponents.

 

 

''Action française'' was not focused on denouncing one social or political group as the conspiratorial source of ills befalling France. Different groups of the French far-right had animuses against [[Jew]]s, [[Huguenot]]s (French [[Calvinist]]s), and [[Freemasons]]. To these, Maurras added unspecific foreigners residing in France, who had been outside French law under the ''[[Ancien Régime]]'', and to whom he invented a slur name derived from ancient Greek history: ''[[Metic|métèques]]''. These four groups of "internal foreigners" Maurras called ''les quatre états confédérés'' and were all considered to be part of "[[Anti-French sentiment|Anti-France]]". He also opposed [[Marxism]] and the [[October Revolution]], but antagonism against them did not have to be manufactured.

[[Charles Maurras]] quickly joined ''Action française'' and became its principal ideologist. Under the influence of Maurras, ''Action française'' became [[monarchist]], [[counter-revolutionary]] (objecting to the legacy of the [[French Revolution]]) and anti-democratic, and supported [[integralism]] and [[Catholicism]]. The [[Dreyfus affair]] gave some Catholics the impression that Catholicism is not compatible with democracy. Therefore, they regarded ''Action française'' as rampart of religion and the most fitting expression of the church doctrine regarding society.<ref name="Rémond 2006 8"/>

 

''L'Institut d'Action française'' was created in 1906 as an alternative institute for higher education.<ref name="Judaken 2005 1">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Judaken |first=Jonathan |editor=Richard S. Levy |encyclopedia=Antisemitism: A Historical Encyclopedia of Prejudice and Persecution |title=Action française |year=2005 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |location=[[Santa Barbara, California]], United States of America |isbn=978-1-85109-439-4 |page=1}}</ref> In 1908 the movement's periodical was turned to a daily newspaper, called simply ''Action française''.<ref name="Rémond 2006 8"/> [[Camelots du Roi]], the movement's youth wing, was created in the same year to sell the newspaper in the streets. Its members also served as a paramilitary wing, providing security for meetings and engaging in street violence with political opponents. The newspaper's literary quality and polemical vigor attracted readers and made Maurras and the movement significant figures in French politics. By 1914, ''Action française'' was the best structured and the most vital nationalist movement in France.<ref name="Judaken 2005 1"/>

 

During and after the manifestations "la manif pour tous" (2013–2014) opposing the [[Same-sex marriage in France]], Action Française created "le printemps français", an activist submovement, and grew a lot recruiting a young generation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nouvelobs.com/rue89/rue89-mariage-homosexuel/20130410.RUE5457/ex-para-ultracathos-et-fachos-les-visages-du-printemps-francais.html|title = Ex-para, ultracathos et fachos : Les visages du Printemps français|date = 10 April 2013}}</ref>

 

 

''Action française'' is active on the Internet and is followed by 11,000 accounts on Twitter and 24,000 people on Facebook. The movement uses [[YouTube]] videos and memes to spread its ideas.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.lemonde.fr/pixels/article/2018/02/21/youtubeurs-memes-et-tweets-cinglants-la-feroce-bataille-des-royalistes-sur-internet_5260231_4408996.html|title=Youtubeurs, " mèmes " et Tweet cinglants… la féroce bataille des royalistes sur Internet|newspaper=Le Monde.fr|date=21 February 2018}}</ref>