The Croix de Feu and its successor the Parti social fran ais stood at the center of the political conflict in the final years of the French Third Republic and were widely regarded as the counterpart of fascism in Germany and Italy. Only recently has the view that fascism also has roots in France become a serious topic for debate. From Liberalism to Fascism is based largely on archival research and places French fascism in the wider context of the history of French conservatism. Received views of French social and economic structures are also overturned.
