Trente Glorieuses

Etymology

The name was first used by the French demographer Jean Fourastié, who coined the term in 1979 with the publication of his book Les Trente Glorieuses, ou la révolution invisible de 1946 à 1975 ('The Glorious Thirty, or the Invisible Revolution from 1946 to 1975'). The term is derived from Les Trois Glorieuses ('The Glorious Three'), the three days of revolution between 27–29 July 1830 in France.

Dynamics

As early as 1944, after returning to a still partially occupied France as leader of the Free French, Charles de Gaulle introduced a dirigiste economic policy, which included substantial state-directed control over a capitalist economy that since 1940 had been controlled by German occupation. This was followed by thirty years of unprecedented growth, known as the Trente Glorieuses. Over this thirty-year period, France's economy grew rapidly, like economies of other developed countries within the framework of the Marshall Plan, such as West Germany, Italy, and Japan.

From 1946 to 1950, France, paralyzed by an obsolete economy and infrastructures, did not achieve real growth, and living conditions remained very difficult after the war and the penury which resulted from it. The cost of living rose. Rationing, present until 1947–1948, and the housing crisis accentuated the problems of a people still scarred by World War II.

With restored borders and tariffs, this interchange was limited. With the 1951 introduction of the "Montanunion" European Coal and Steel Community trade according to supranational High Authority decisions, efficiency and prosperity rose.

These decades of economic prosperity combined high productivity with high average wages and high consumption, and were also characterized by a highly developed system of social benefits. The real purchasing power of the average French worker's salary went up by 170% between 1950 and 1975, while overall private consumption increased by 174% in the period 1950–1974.

The French standard of living, which had been damaged by both World Wars, became one of the world's highest. The population became far more urbanized. Many rural départements experienced a population decline, while the larger metropolitan areas grew considerably, especially Paris. Ownership of household goods and amenities increased considerably, while the wages of the French working class rose significantly as the economy became more prosperous. As noted by the historians Jean Blondel and Donald Geoffrey Charlton in 1974,

If it is still the case that France lags in the number of its telephones, working-class housing has improved beyond recognition and the various 'gadgets' of the consumer society—from television to motor cars—are now purchased by the working class on an even more avid basis than in other Western European countries.

In his 2013 book Capital in the Twenty-First Century, French economist Thomas Piketty describes the Trente Glorieuses as an exceptional 'catch up' period following the two world wars. He cites statistics showing that normal growth in wealthy countries is about 1.5–2%, whereas in Europe growth dropped to 0.5% between 1913 and 1950, and then 'caught up' with a growth rate of 4% between 1950 and 1970, until settling back to 1.5–2% from 1970 onward.

References

References

1. (28 October 2016). "Full Speed Ahead? The ''Trente Glorieuses'' in a Rear View Mirror". Contemporary European History.
2. (1984). "Contemporary France: Politics and Society Since 1945". Routledge.
3. The New France: A Society in Transition 1945-1977 (Third Edition) by [[John Ardagh]]
4. (13 March 2000). "The Pompidou years, 1969–1974 – Serge Berstein, Jean-Pierre Rioux – Google Books". Cambridge University Press.
5. (2007). "French welfare state reform: idealism versus Swedish, New Zealand and Dutch ... – James Angresano – Google Books". Anthem Press.
6. (1993). "Recent Social Trends in France, 1960–1990". MQUP.
7. (1974). "Contemporary France: politics, society, and institutions". Methuen ; Distributed by Harper & Row Publishers, Barnes & Noble Import Division.
8. Piketty, Thomas. (2014). "Capital in the twenty-first century". Belknap Press.