Charles de Gaulle, part the second.

"Ce n'est pas à soixante-sept ans que je vais commencer une carrière de dictateur" - "At sixty-seven, I do not intend to make dictartorship my new career".

In 1958, the Algerian crisis has boiled over and the Fourth Republic was at the edge of chaos. The government had once again been overthrown by parliament and the army was becoming agitated as the events in Algeria erupted in massive demonstrations.

Many generals implore de Gaulle to return to power as the new legitimate government of Pierre Pflimlin tries to take control of the situation, but within a few days the 67 year old General is called upon by President Coty to assume the role of Prime Minister.

On the 1st of June 1958, de Gaulle began the process that would terminate the unstable Fourth Republic. De Gaulle immediately flew to Algiers and made his famous "Je vous ai compris - I have understood you" speech.

De Gaulle Speech at Constantine, Algeria, October 3, 1958

His first objective is to build his new republic. On September 28th all citizens are asked to accept or reject the new constitution. The result is overwhelming: 80 % are in favor of the Fifth Republic. The same day, another election is held in the colonies, all decide to remain within the French Community of Free Peoples save Guinea. De Gaulle is elected French President in Decemeber of the same year by the Electoral College).

De Gaulle's first Prime Minister is Michel Debré. The economy is saved and decolonisation begins, however the Algerian situation will fester until 1962. In 1961 the same generals who asked for de Gaulle foment a coup d'état in Algeria. De Gaulle crushes this insurrection with the help of the population as many factions of the army who refuse to follow the rebel generals. But the troubles do not end there, a secret rebel army now engages in terrorist acts against the French state; the OAS even tries to execute de Gaulle on august 22nd 1962. The Algerian crisis ended with the Evian Accord approved via referendum

The same year a new referendum, the fourth since 1958, asked the French if they wanted to directly elect the French President rather than having him appointed by the French Parliament. Obviously this was a political ploy to take more power away from the National Assembly. The French approved this new electoral method by 66 %. De Gaulle mistrust of Parliamentary politics had been spelled out in his famous Bayeux Speech of June 16th 1946 : " Needless to say, the executive power must under no circumstances flow from the Parliament, consisting of two chambers and exercising legislative power, unless we are to end up with such a confusion of powers that the Government is soon nothing more than a concatenation of delegations."

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