Constitutional Law France

Abstract

In order to understand the present, one must be aware of past events. Each political regime stems from a reaction to previous regimes. The current French constitutional and political regime is no exception as it is made up of a complex sum of reactions―positive and negative―to a long line of constitutional experiments. In that respect, it is generally agreed that the landmark starting point is the Revolution of 1789. Although there was an organized polity under the old regime (Ancien Regime), with a kind of customary constitution as embedded in the fundamental laws of the Kingdom, there was no constitution in the modern sense―that is understood as a set of rules and principles regulating the relationships between government and those being governed. The Revolution of 1789 represents this significant break from previous political tenets. While representing a significant trauma in the French society at the time, it really marked a fresh start towards the institutional and constitutional principles as we know them today, which include the separation of powers, the principle of a bill of rights, the primacy of the constitution, the principle of sovereignty and the right of suffrage.