Another avenue to power is through Marshall Petain. In the 30s Marshall Philippe Petain was always careful with his public statements, although he did let slip in an interview during the 1936 elections that he had considerable sympathy for the Croix de feu and their ideals. Petain's popularity was possibly overstated at various times since this interview didn't materially change the electoral result for the Popular Front, but perhaps if Petain decided to actively campaign for these far right movements he might give them more prestige. Marshall Lyautey was also a supporter of this movement, but whereas Petain was more careful and didn't actively assist them Lyautey's support was overt and very public. The other Marshall in this period, DÉsperey, also courted controversy by giving material and moral support to an anti-communist club in the Army whose name escapes me. Petain and a number of high ranking officers were aware of this movement (there were two, one militant and one limited to information sharing). It indicates that many senior officers in the Army were at least sympathetic to such ideas, even though most of them would not actually commit treason and stage a putsch. If they can win through the ballot box then that's different.
These movements were arguably not in the same mould of the German and Italian fascists. Petain, at least in the 30s, seemed to favour some kind of authoritarian republic. He was also at different points in heavy discussions with Pierre Laval who was always plotting some scheme. Laval seems to have wanted Petain to be a mere figurehead, something Petain wasn't keen on and went lukewarm on the proposals (above all he wanted to be called to service, not campaign for it).
Also the Croix de feu successor organisation was part of the French Resistance against German occupation. I'm not sure it's right to say the French far right were more anti-semitic than the Nazi's (is that possible?). Even prominent French anti-semites like Xavier Vallat favoured forced deportation and seperate zones not extermination. He even allowed several Jews to escape during the war because of this belief and was eventually dismissed by the Vichy regime because he didn't go far enough.
These movements were arguably not in the same mould of the German and Italian fascists. Petain, at least in the 30s, seemed to favour some kind of authoritarian republic. He was also at different points in heavy discussions with Pierre Laval who was always plotting some scheme. Laval seems to have wanted Petain to be a mere figurehead, something Petain wasn't keen on and went lukewarm on the proposals (above all he wanted to be called to service, not campaign for it).
Also the Croix de feu successor organisation was part of the French Resistance against German occupation. I'm not sure it's right to say the French far right were more anti-semitic than the Nazi's (is that possible?). Even prominent French anti-semites like Xavier Vallat favoured forced deportation and seperate zones not extermination. He even allowed several Jews to escape during the war because of this belief and was eventually dismissed by the Vichy regime because he didn't go far enough.
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