Putsch d'Alger (1958)

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The coup d'Alger is the coup d'état by the French military in Algeria on May 13, 1958, which was directed against the newly formed government in Paris under Prime Minister Pierre Pflimlin . The aim of the coup was to appoint a government to guarantee that Algeria would remain with France. The result of the coup was the return of Charles de Gaulle to power and the end of the Fourth Republic and the beginning of the Fifth Republic .

history

The background to the coup was the Algerian war and the maintenance of French colonial rule over Algeria, which saw parts of the military and the Algerian French in danger through the government of Pierre Pflimlin ( MRP ). This was seen in the military as a supporter of a negotiated solution. On May 13, his cabinet had to be confirmed in parliament, the still incumbent Prime Minister Félix Gaillard ( PRS ) had just lost his majority because of the Algeria question.

On the same day, parts of the military and French Algerians called for protest rallies. There were demonstrations that soon got out of hand. A number of public buildings were occupied. Under the leadership of the military, among them the commander of the paratroopers General Jacques Massu and the commander in chief of the armed forces in Algeria, Raoul Salan , a welfare government ( Gouvernement de salut public ) was formed. Massu became president. For France, the insurgents demanded the formation of a similar government. The ruling government under Prime Minister Félix Gaillard granted Salan and Massu extraordinary powers to restore order. The new Prime Minister Pflimflin confirmed the powers only for Salan and cut the telephone connection between France and Algeria.

Initially, the officers probably did not plan to bring General Charles de Gaulle back to power. However, the Gaullists in France used the welcome opportunity to bring de Gaulle into discussion as the savior of the nation. A confidante of de Gaulle, Jacques Soustelle , negotiated in Algiers to this end.

On May 15, General Salan ended a speech by shouting "Vive de Gaulle". Thereupon de Gaulle declared in Paris ready to form a new government. De Gaulle indirectly turned to the rebels and asked them to continue to exert pressure to overthrow the Pflimlin government.

The Parti communiste français took advantage of the coup and called for the formation of a popular front government . Against the background of the communist advance and a possible invasion of the French colonial troops in France itself (→ Opération Résurrection ), the majority of parliament was ready to hand over power to General de Gaulle.

Movies

  • La Guerre d'Algérie, Yves Courrière et Philippe Monnier, Reggane Films, 1972

literature

  • Roger Trinquier: Le coup d'état du 13 mai Ils ont pris Alger pour mieux la perdre . L'esprit Nouveau, 1962.
  • Günther Haensch, Hans J. Tümmers: France . Politics, society, economy. Munich 1998, ISBN 3-406-43345-6 , pp. 82-84 .
  • Johannes Willms: France . Munich 2009, ISBN 978-3-406-57853-3 , pp. 120-121 .