Originality and Permanence of the French Fifth Republic Cover Image

Oryginalność i trwałość V Republiki Francuskiej
Originality and Permanence of the French Fifth Republic

Author(s): Kazimierz Michał Ujazdowski
Subject(s): History of Law, Constitutional Law, Political history, Government/Political systems, Politics and law, Post-War period (1950 - 1989)
Published by: KSIĘGARNIA AKADEMICKA Sp. z o.o.
Keywords: de Gaulle; The French Fifth Republic; constitutional judiciary; reinforcement of sovereignty; constitutional thought;

Summary/Abstract: The case of the Fifth Republic encourages reflection on comparative constitutionalism both because of the originality of de Gaulle’s constitutional work and the fact that during its validity the 1958 Constitution had to face new challenges – a change in the balance of political powers, European integration and the growth of the judiciary. The last two trends were universal in nature. The Fifth Republic proved an original and permanent constitution, giving the French democracy stability and efficiency. The constitutional system has not evolved either towards parliamentarianism or a presidential system like that of the USA. If there were significant amendments to the constitution, this happened in the area of external challenges. But also, in this area, where the constitutional judiciary became more dynamic and the guarantee of independence of the common judiciary increased, the Fifth Republic retained its originality, expressing the specificity of the French legal tradition.

  • Issue Year: 17/2020
  • Issue No: 64
  • Page Range: 21-36
  • Page Count: 16
  • Language: Polish