Ordre nouveau, fin des illusions droitières et matrice activiste du premier front national

Ordre nouveau was the most important French neo-fascist movement after 1945. It lasted only for four years (1969-1973) but it induced seve-ral changes shaking the radical right wing. As it was defined as a revolutionary party, ordre nouveau spread its identity onto activists on the one hand, while it also collaborated with state authorities fighting against leftists on the other hand. Following the successful italian model of the MSI, the movement oscillated between media coverage — which gave it an identity but also led to its dissolution in 1973 — and acceptance of the electoral game for which Front national had been founded. The disappearance of ordre nouveau meant the end of dreams of revolutionary right sustained by some active minorities using political violence, as well as it stood for a transition to a post-industrial radical right symbolized by the rise of Front National.