The Origins of Economic Regions in France, 1918-1940

‘A full-frontal attack on France’s blind spot – regionalism – demonstrating that regional structures and identities were part of her reconstruction and modernization after the First World War. Deeply researched and a masterly comparative study.’

 -Robert Gildea, Emeritus Professor, Oxford University

 “A book of deep research into economic organisations at the grass-roots level” OR “an important exploration of France’s economic and social development between the wars.”

–Julian Wright, Professor at Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK

  Most studies of French regionalism before Mitterand are about its failures, brought about in part by its passéiste outlook.  Cudbird’s careful archival research demonstrates that, in the wake of the First World War, French regionalism was not just the concern of intellectuals and traditionalists.  Industrialists and government ministers also saw the need to decentralize, because it would further economic development.  Bringing decision making closer to local stakeholders enabled significant change in the interwar period, and those achievements are documented here, in many cases for the first time.

– David Hopkin, University of Oxford

 This books provides a comprehensive account of the achievements of the economic regions set up in France after the First World War. It identifies exactly how they operated, as well as critical success factors such as effective leadership. Some recent historians have taken a very negative view of the part played by these regions in economic development. This new study instead argues that they made a significant contribution and laid the foundations for the regions created in France after 1945. The key areas which they identified: transport, power generation, and technical education, have remained the preoccupations of regional governments in France and elsewhere to this day. The author covers the needs of commerce and industry, but also agriculture and tourism. Based on fresh research using a wide range of primary sources, this book will appeal to economic historians, economists, and geographers, as well as historians with a particular interest in France.

Terence Cudbird gained his doctorate from the University of Oxford in 2019 and is an Associate Member of the History Faculty there. He published an article on the French regions in French History in 2023.