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{{about|the current constitution|a more general article|List of constitutions of France}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Infobox constitution
| document_name        = Constitution of the French Republic
| image                =
| image_size           =
| image_alt            =
| caption              = Constitution of France (1958)
| orig_lang_code       = fr
| title_orig           = {{noitalic|{{in lang|fr}}}} Constitution française du 4 octobre 1958

| date_created         =
| date_presented       =
| date_ratified        = [[1958 French constitutional referendum|{{Start date and age|df=yes|1958|09|28}}]]
| date_effective       = {{Start date and age|df=yes|1958|10|04}}
| system               = [[Unitary state|Unitary]] [[semi-presidential]] [[republic]]
| number_entrenchments =
| date_last_amended    = 2024
| federalism           = Unitary
| chambers             = [[Parliament of France|Two]] ([[Senate (France)|Senate]] and [[National Assembly (France)|National Assembly]])
| branches             = Three (executive, legislative and judiciary)
| executive            = [[President of France|President]]-led [[Government of France|Council of Ministers]] responsible to the [[National Assembly (France)|National Assembly]]; <br /> [[Prime Minister of France|Prime minister]] as head of government
| jurisdiction         = [[France]]
| courts               = [[High Court (France)|High Court]] is established for presidential Impeachment purposes; an extra-judicial body, the [[Constitutional Council (France)|Constitutional Council]], reviews the constitutionality of laws; no other part of the court system is referenced.
| electoral_college    = No, but senate elections mandated to be indirect
| supersedes           = [[French Constitution of 1946]]
| wikisource           = Constitution of the Fifth French Republic
| wikisource1          = Constitution of the Fifth French Republic (unamended)
}}
{{Politics of France}}

The current '''Constitution of France''' was adopted on 4 October 1958. It is typically called the '''Constitution of the Fifth Republic''' {{lang|fr|([[French language|French]]: la Constitution de la Cinquième République)}},<ref>{{Cite web |title=Élysée Palace |url=https://www.elysee.fr/la-presidence/la-constitution-de-la-cinquieme-republique |website=Official website of the President of France|date=20 November 2012 }}</ref> and it replaced the [[Constitution of the Fourth Republic]] of 1946 with the exception of the [[Constitution of France#Preamble|preamble]] per a [[Decision 71-44 DC of 16 July 1971|1971 decision]] of the [[Constitutional Council of France|Constitutional Council]].<ref>{{cite Legifrance|base=NONE|number=0|text=Const. Council dec. 71-44 DC of 16 July 1971|url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/cons/id/CONSTEXT000017665605}}</ref> The current Constitution regards the [[Secularism in France|separation of church and state]], democracy, social welfare, and indivisibility as core principles of the French state.<ref name="Conseil-const" />{{primary source inline|date=July 2022}}

[[Charles de Gaulle]] was the main driving force in introducing the new constitution and inaugurating the [[French Fifth Republic|Fifth Republic]], while the text was drafted by [[Michel Debré]]. Since then, the constitution has been [[Constitutional amendments under the French Fifth Republic|amended twenty-five times]], [[French constitutional law of 23 July 2008|notably in 2008]] and most recently in 2024.<ref>{{cite web|title=Les révisions constitutionnelles|url=http://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/conseil-constitutionnel/francais/la-constitution/les-revisions-constitutionnelles/les-revisions-constitutionnelles.5075.html|website=Conseil Constitutionnel|access-date=15 June 2016}}</ref>

==Provisions==

=== Preamble ===
The preamble of the constitution recalls the ''[[Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen]]'' from 1789 and establishes [[France]] as [[Laïcité|a secular]] and [[democracy|democratic]] country, deriving its [[sovereignty]] from the people.

Since 2005 it includes the ten articles of the [[Charter for the Environment]].

=== Government institutions and practices ===
The French Constitution established a [[Semi-presidential system|semi-presidential]] system of government, with two competing readings.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last1=Bell|first1=John|url=http://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199541393.001.0001/acprof-9780199541393|title=Principles of French Law|last2=Boyron|first2=Sophie|last3=Whittaker|first3=Simon|date=2008-03-27|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-954139-3|doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199541393.001.0001}}</ref> In one reading, the executive branch has both a [[President of France|president of the republic]] and a [[Prime Minister of France|prime minister]], as is commonly seen in [[parliamentary systems]] with a symbolic president and a prime minister who directs the government.<ref name=":1" /> This reading is supported by Articles 5 and 21 of the Constitution, which respectively state that the president is a guardian of the state and of the Constitution, while the prime minister has the power to decide on the government's actions and policies.<ref name=":1" />

In the other reading, the [[French Parliament|parliament]] is very weak for a parliamentary system.<ref name=":1" /> The parliament has a limited legislative competence: article 34 of the Constitution lists domains exclusive to parliamentary legislation, but the remaining domains are left to the executive's regulations.<ref name=":1" /> The president also has the crucial powers to call a [[referendum]] and to dissolve the [[National Assembly (France)|National Assembly]].<ref name=":1" /> While the parliament may pass a vote of no confidence in the government, so that the government has to resign, this has been rare, happening in 1962 and on 4 December 2024.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2024/dec/04/france-government-vote-no-confidence-barnier-lepen-europe-live|title=French government of Michel Barnier toppled after losing no-confidence vote|work=The Guardian|date=5 December 2024|access-date=5 December 2024}}</ref>

Charles de Gaulle, the first president of the Fifth Republic, was instrumental in the adoption of the new constitution, as he was called back from retirement and narrowly avoided a coup resulting from the [[Algerian War]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Jackson, Vicki C.|title=Comparative constitutional law|others=Tushnet, Mark V., 1945-|year=2014|isbn=978-1-59941-594-9|edition=Third|location=St. Paul, MN|oclc=887207632 |publisher=Foundation Press}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> De Gaulle always supported the second interpretation of the constitution, in favor of a powerful president.<ref name=":1" /> The first socialist president, François Mitterrand, elected in 1981, also supported this interpretation.<ref name=":1" />

Beginning in 1986, elections have from time to time resulted in parliaments with a majority that did not support the president.<ref name=":1" /> Such periods are known in France as [[Cohabitation (government)|cohabitation]], where a president appoints a prime minister from the new parliamentary majority.<ref name=":1" /> During cohabitation, besides powers reserved to the president by the Constitution,<ref>See e.g. articles 5, 12, 19, and 64, on the role of the President of the Republic, the right to dissolve the National Assembly, the personal powers of the president, and the power to appoint three members of the Conseil constitutionnel, among whom is its president.</ref> all other government powers would be exercised by the prime minister.<ref name=":1" /> In 2000, the Constitution was amended by shortening the president's term of office from seven years to five, to coincide with the term of parliament.<ref name=":1" /> The amendment means that the presidential election would take place around the parliamentary election, making it more likely to have winners who agree with one another and make cohabitation less likely.<ref name=":1" />

The Constitution provides for the election of the president and the [[Parliament of France|parliament]], the selection of the government, the powers of each and the relations between them.<ref name=":1" /> It ensures judicial authority and creates a High Court (a never-as-yet-convened court for trying the government),<ref>see article 68 of the Constitution</ref> a [[Constitutional Council (France)|Constitutional Council]] (an innovation of the Fifth Republic),<ref name=":1" /> and an Economic and Social Council.

=== Shared lawmaking power ===

A unique feature of the Constitution of the Fifth Republic is that it establishes a shared law-making power between two branches of government: the legislative branch, where such powers resided in previous constitutions; and the executive branch, headed by the president and the prime minister appointed by the president.{{sfn|Elliott|Jeanpierre|Vernon|2006|p=37}}

Parliament has the fundamental responsibility for passing legislation in the Fifth Republic. There are two Houses of Parliament: the National Assembly and the [[Senate (France)|Senate]]. The Assembly is directly elected, and the more important, and has primary power in passing legislation; the Senate can delay legislation, but not ultimately block it.{{sfn|Elliott|Jeanpierre|Vernon|2006|p=42}}

Traditionally, the prime minister is the executive branch's liaison with the parliament; [[Article 49 of the French Constitution|Article 49]] says they must pledge this role. This is weaker than the constitutions of the [[Constitution of the Third French Republic|Third]] or [[Constitution of the Fourth French Republic|Fourth]] republics, where the government could not be installed until the parliament had received the pledge from the prime minister.{{sfn|Dickson|Hübner|1994|p=8–9}}

The unique aspect in the Fifth Republic is in {{ill|Article 21 of the French Constitution|fr|Article 21 de la Constitution de la Cinquième République française|lt=Article 21|v=sup}}, where the prime minister has power to make legislation.{{sfn|Elliott|Jeanpierre|Vernon|2006|p=37}} In another unique feature in {{ill|Article 38 of the French Constitution|fr|Article 38 de la Constitution de la Cinquième République française|lt=Article 38|v=sup}}, the Parliament can {{ill|Legislative delegation in France|fr|Délégation législative|lt=temporarily delegate|v=sup}} a portion of its constitutional law-making power to the government to enable rapid consummation of urgent legislation, by passing an enabling law of legislative delegation called a {{lang|fr|loi d'habilitation}} ("enabling law").{{sfn|Dickson|Hübner|1994|p=8–9}}

According to Article 38, a {{lang|fr|loi d'habilitation}} may be issued by the parliament upon request of the government to temporarily delegate the parliament's constitutional law-making power to the government in a specifically defined subject area and for a specific length of time. While in effect, Parliament is blocked from issuing statutes in that area, and the government is permitted to draw up {{lang|fr|ordonnances}} that normally would be beyond their remit. The {{lang|fr|ordonnance}} comes into effect immediately, but must be ratified by Parliament before the end of the period or it expires. Until ratification, the {{lang|fr|ordonnance}} has the same status as a {{lang|fr|réglement}} (regulation), and can therefore be challenged by the [[Council of State]]; but after ratification, it takes on the same status as a statute ({{lang|fr|loi}}), and can no longer be challenged. In practice, there have been 23 such {{lang|fr|lois d'habilitation}} from 1960 to 1990, with effective periods from one month to three and a half years, resulting in 150 {{lang|fr|ordonnances}}. About a third of them were subsequently ratified by Parliament. The {{lang|fr|loi d'habilitation}} is a new constitutional feature, not present in earlier constitutions.{{sfn|Dickson|Hübner|1994|p=8–9}}

{{Wikisource|fr|Déclaration des Droits de l’Homme et du Citoyen de 1789|Declaration of the Rights of Man}}
Power sharing was unique in being part of the constitution in the Fifth Republic, but the practice was not recent.

The determination that the parliament has responsibility for the law goes back to article 6 of the [[Declaration of the Rights of Man]] of 1789, and the role of the executive branch was only to execute it. In theory, the parliament would specify general laws, and the executive could only make regulations about how to apply the laws to day-to-day situations. In practice, this turned out differently, as the parliament on its own initiative sometimes passed acts delegating to the executive the right to alter or void acts of parliament, called {{lang|fr|décrets-lois}}. This practice slowly found its way into the Constitution.{{sfn|Elliott|Jeanpierre|Vernon|2006|p=69}}

Although [[Article 1 of the Constitution of the Fifth French Republic|Article 1]] of the [[French Third Republic|Third Republic]]'s {{clarify span|Constitutional Act of 25 February 1874|reason=Supported by EJV-2006 p.69, but cannot find corroboration elsewhere that such a law even exists. Not a mixup with art. 1 of the Constitutional Act of 25 February 1875, which is about the Senate.|date=October 2023}}{{better source needed|reason=To confirm the 25 Feb 1874 act|date=October 2023}} explicitly forbade the parliament to delegate its responsibility, within five years this was ignored and had occurred several times. In 1939, in the run-up to the Second World War, Parliament gave the government power to enact decrees to protect the country. This practice became entrenched after the war, despite the fact that Article 13 of the [[French Constitution of 1946|1946 Constitution]] of the newly founded Fourth Republic expressly forbade it.{{efn|"The National Assembly alone votes Statutes. It cannot delegate this power." —French Constitution of 27 October 1946, Article 13.}} Part of the reason for this, was a lot of squabbling among numerous small political parties in the parliament, who were unable to agree on anything and were ineffective in passing legislation. This became especially problematic in the 1950s, as the [[Algerian Crisis|crisis in Algeria]] began to heat up, and the parliament was unable to deal with it. Charles de&nbsp;Gaulle, a private citizen at the time, conceived that the way out was to have a more powerful executive and a weaker parliament; when he was finally invited to form a new government in 1958 and write a constitution, his ideas were incorporated into the [[Constitution of the Fifth Republic]], including the legislative power-sharing defined in Articles 21 and 38.{{sfn|Elliott|Jeanpierre|Vernon|2006|p=69–70}}

In the original version of Article 37, everything that was not reserved to the legislative domain in the article was of a regulatory character (i.e., under control of the executive branch), although that clause was removed later. Since 1982, the legislative domain expanded, and since the landmark 1971 decision of the [[Constitutional Council (France)|Constitutional Council]],{{which?|date=October 2023}} additional sources were defined as part of the [[Constitutional block (France)|constitutional block]], such as the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and the 1946 constitutional preamble, which were henceforth part of the legislative domain, and after further reforms in 1996, the legislative domain has more power than was originally thought in 1958.{{sfn|Elliott|Jeanpierre|Vernon|2006|p=70–72}}

=== Treaties and the EU ===
It enables the ratification of international treaties<ref>International treaties enter into domestic legal system by law which, according to the French Constitution (Article 55), has above-the-primary rank: {{cite journal|last1=Buonomo|first1=Giampiero|title=Incompatibilità tra parlamento italiano ed europeo: le "contraddizioni" costituzionali e i paletti ai consiglieri regionali|journal=Diritto&Giustizia Edizione Online|date=2004|url=https://www.questia.com/projects#!/project/89382051|access-date=5 April 2016|archive-date=1 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120801002834/http://www.questia.com/projects#!/project/89382051|url-status=dead}}</ref> and those associated with the European Union. It is unclear whether the wording, especially the reserves of reciprocity, is compatible with [[European Union law]].{{citation needed|date=December 2024}}

=== Amendment ===
The Constitution also sets out methods for its own amendment: either a [[referendum]] (article 11) or a parliamentary process with presidential consent. The normal procedure of constitutional amendment is that the amendment must be adopted in identical terms by both houses of parliament and then must be adopted by a simple majority in a referendum or by a three-fifths supermajority of the [[French Congress]], a joint session of both houses of Parliament (article 89).

==Principles==
{{more cn|date=September 2023}}

=== Judicial review ===

Prior to 1971, though executive, administrative and judicial decisions had to comply with the general principles of law ([[jurisprudence]] derived from law and the practice of law in general), there were no such restrictions on legislation. It was assumed that unelected judges and other appointees should not be able to overrule laws voted for by the directly elected French parliament.

=== Constitutional block ===
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{{Further ill|Constitutional block|fr|Bloc de constitutionnalité}}

One of the cornerstones of the Constitution of the French Fifth Republic was the establishment of the [[Constitutional Council (France)|Constitutional Council]], composing of nine justices, who oversaw the constitutionality of legislation (treaties, statutes, regulations), ensured election and referendum oversight, and arbitrated legislative disputes between the President and National Assembly.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Constitutional Council {{!}} Conseil constitutionnel |url=https://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/en/landing/3 |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr |language=en}}</ref> This followed a broader trend during post-war Europe to establish specialized judiciary tribunals to serve as a bulwark against unconstitutional legislative activities.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ján Mazák |url=https://www.venice.coe.int/SACJF/2006_02_Venice_Strasbourg/report_mazak.htm |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=www.venice.coe.int}}</ref> However, the Council was quite limited in its power under de Gaulle’s presidency and was only decisive when it erroneously upheld a popular referendum to streamline the popular presidential election via the Constitution.<ref>{{Cite magazine |date=1962-10-26 |title=France: The Referendum: De Gaulle Has as Good as Won |url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,874518,00.html |access-date=2024-05-13 |magazine=Time |language=en-US |issn=0040-781X}}</ref> Following [[1969 French constitutional referendum|de Gaulle’s resignation in 1969]], the Council entertained greater judicial power and discretion upon adjudicating in the consequential political crisis. The staunch Gaullist [[Georges Pompidou]] was elected as de Gaulle’s replacement. He faced a political crisis when his Prime Minister [[Jacques Chaban-Delmas]] pressured the [[National Assembly (France)|National Assembly]] into banning the radical [[Gauche prolétarienne|Proletarian Left (La gauche prolétarienne)]] twice, which he deemed a threat to the public order and national security. This led to opposition from the [[Senate (France)|French Senate]], whose president appealed to the Constitutional Council.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gow Calabresi |first=Steven |title=The History and Growth of Judicial Review: The G-20 Civil Law Countries |url=https://academic.oup.com/book/39903/chapter/340151204 |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=academic.oup.com |doi=10.1093/oso/9780190075736.003.0007}}</ref>

Consequently, in 1971, the Constitutional Council ruled its landmark decision [[Decision 71-44 DC of 16 July 1971|71-44 DC]], better known as the 1971 Freedom of Association Decision.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Decision no. 71-44 DC of 16 July 1971 {{!}} Conseil constitutionnel |url=https://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/en/decision/1971/7144DC.htm |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr |language=en}}</ref> In such, the Council broke precedent by striking down legislation that allegedly violated the right to freedom of association, thereby fostering the "Constitutional Block."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Law, History, and Memory: "Republican Moments" and the Legitimacy of Constitutional Review in France – Columbia Journal of European Law |url=https://cjel.law.columbia.edu/print/1996/law-history-and-memory-republican-moments-and-the-legitimacy-of-constitutional-review-in-france/ |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=cjel.law.columbia.edu}}</ref> The Block consisted of the 1958 Constitution, explicit standards ([[Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen|Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 1789]], [[French Constitution of 27 October 1946|the Preamble to the Constitution of the Fourth Republic or 1946 Constitution]]), and implicit standards (the [[Fundamental principles of the Republic (France)|fundamental principles of the Republic]]—indivisibility, secularism, democracy, equal opportunity). Thus, according to the Council, the actions taken violated the collective principles of the Constitutional Block. Prior to the 1971 Freedom of Association Decision, the Council could only verify laws under the explicit textual stipulation of the 1958 Constitution. Since the 1971 decision, the Constitutional Court obtained an enhanced role in judicial review by having a broader constitutional basis to review alleged legislative breaches, curbing the goal of [[Gaullism|Gaullists]] from 1958 of maintaining a strong executive. Since the ruling, the Constitutional Council has added the [[Charter for the Environment|2004 Charter of the Environment]] to France’s Constitutional Block, demonstrating France’s newfound tenacity in judicial review.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-11-16 |title=The Charter for the Environment |url=https://www.elysee.fr/en/french-presidency/the-charter-for-the-environment |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=elysee.fr |language=en}}</ref>

===Principles of the Republic===
{{primary|section|find=French constitution|find2=basic principles 1958 |date=September 2023}}
In the Constitution are written the principles of the French Republic:<ref name="Conseil-const">https://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/le-bloc-de-constitutionnalite/texte-integral-de-la-constitution-du-4-octobre-1958-en-vigueur | website = Conseil Constitutionnelle</ref>
* [[Social welfare]], which means that everybody must be able to access free public services and be helped when needed.
* [[Secularism in France|Laïcité]], which means that the churches are separated from the [[Sovereign state|State]] and the freedom from religion is protected.
* [[Democracy]], which means that the Parliament and the Government are elected by the people.
* Indivisibility, which means that the French people are united in a single [[Sovereign state|sovereign]] country with one language, the [[French language]], and all people are equal.

==Amendments==
{{details|topic=amendments|Constitutional amendments under the Fifth French Republic}}
The Constitution, in Article 89, has an amending formula. First, a constitutional bill must be approved by both houses of Parliament. Then, the bill must either be approved by the [[Congress of France|Congress]], a special joint session of both houses, or submitted to a [[referendum]].

In 1962, Charles de Gaulle proposed that the president be elected by direct suffrage.<ref name=":1" /> He bypassed the amendment procedure by directly sending a constitutional amendment to referendum (article 11). The Art. 11 procedure was envisioned as a procedure for proposing legislation, including changing the organization of constitutional institutions.<ref name=":1" /> The [[1962 French presidential election referendum|1962 referendum]] was approved by 62% of the vote but only 46% of registered voters.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> The amendment permitted the establishment of a popularly-elected presidency, which would otherwise have been vetoed by the Parliament.<ref name="DN">[[Dieter Nohlen]] & Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p674 {{ISBN|978-3-8329-5609-7}}</ref>

The referendum was highly controversial at the time, but the [[Constitutional Council of France|Constitutional Council]] ruled that it can only review legislative acts for unconstitutionality, not executive acts; since the referendum was proposed by the executive, it was unreviewable.<ref name=":0" /> Since a referendum expressed the will of the sovereign people, the Council ruled that the amendment had been adopted.<ref>See C. cons. 6 Nov. 1962, ''Election du Président de la République'', Rec. 27.</ref> Some scholars had regarded the amendment as a post hoc manifestation of the constituent power, which is the inherent power of the people to bypass an existing constitution to adopt a new constitution.<ref name=":0" />

Article 11 was used for constitutional changes for the second and final time in [[1969 French constitutional referendum|1969]], but the "No" prevailed, causing Charles de Gaulle to resign from the presidency.<ref name=DN/>

On 21 July 2008, Parliament passed constitutional reforms championed by President [[Nicolas Sarkozy]] by a margin of two votes. The changes, when finalized, introduced a consecutive two-term limit for the presidency, gave Parliament a veto over some presidential appointments, ended government control over Parliament's committee system, allowed Parliament to set its own agenda, allowed the president to address Parliament in-session and ended the president's right of collective pardon. (See [[French constitutional law of 23 July 2008]]).<ref name="BBC 21 July 2008">{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7517505.stm |title=France backs constitution reform  |date=21 July 2008 |work=BBC News  |access-date=4 September 2009}}</ref>

On 4 March 2024, Parliament amended Article 34 in a 780 to 72 vote. This amendment made France, as of passage, the only nation to guarantee the right to an abortion.<ref name="ap-abortion">{{cite news |last1=Surk |first1=Barbara |last2=Garriga |first2=Nicolas |title=France becomes the only country to explicitly guarantee abortion as a constitutional right |url=https://apnews.com/article/france-abortion-right-constitution-parliament-vote-versailles-d6ce4fb3a6a7288033f58235b65f570e |access-date=4 March 2024 |work=AP News |publisher=The Associated Press |date=4 March 2024 |language=en}}</ref> The amendment describes abortion as a "guaranteed freedom";<ref name="nyt-abortion">{{cite news |last1=Porter |first1=Catherine |title=French Lawmakers Enshrine Access to Abortion in Constitution |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/04/world/europe/france-abortion-rights-constitution.html |access-date=4 March 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=4 March 2024}}</ref> while [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]] included similar measures in 1974 guaranteeing the right to "decide on having children", the French amendment is the first to explicitly guarantee abortion.

== Timeline of French constitutions ==
[[File:Chronologie constitutions françaises.svg|910px]]

==See also==
* [[Article 49 of the French Constitution]]
* [[Constitutionalism]]
* [[French Constitutional Council]]
* [[Constitutional economics]]
* [[Fifth Republic (France)]]
* [[French Community]], which succeeded the [[French Union]]
* [[Political system of France|Government of France]]
* [[Politics of France]]
* [[Parliamentary immunity in France]]
* [[General principles of French law]]
* [[De Gaulle's 1946 Bayeux speech]], in which he outlined his vision of the constitution
* [[Article 2 of the Constitution of the Fifth French Republic]]

==Notes and references==
;Notes
{{notelist}}

;Citations
{{reflist}}

;Works cited
{{reflib|lib=FCL|Dickson-Hübner-1994|Elliott-Jeanpierre-Vernon-2006}}
{{sfn whitelist|CITEREFDicksonHübner1994|CITEREFElliottJeanpierreVernon2006}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal
 | date = 5 October 1958
 | title = Constitution
 | journal = Journal Officiel de la République Française
 | language = fr
 | pages = 9151–9173
 | url = http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jopdf/common/jo_pdf.jsp?numJO=0&dateJO=19581005&numTexte=&pageDebut=09151&pageFin=09173
 | access-date = 14 May 2012
 | archive-date = 7 July 2022
 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220707153306/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jopdf/common/jo_pdf.jsp?numJO=0&dateJO=19581005&numTexte=&pageDebut=09151&pageFin=09173
 | url-status = dead
 }}
* {{cite thesis
|type=Th. Etat
|last=Ghevontian
|first=Richard
|title=L'élaboration de la Constitution de la V<sup>e</sup> République
|location=Aix-en-Provence
|year=1979
}}
* Hoffmann, Stanley H. (1959). "[https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/abs/i-the-final-text-and-its-prospects/D85AA879589E7DF7D8A55534DB7DA40E The French Constitution of 1958 –&nbsp;I. The Final Text and its Prospects]". ''American Political Science Review'' '''53''' (2): 332–357.
* {{cite book
| last          = Jamot
| first         = Didier
| year          = 2019
| title         = Annuaire des engagements internationaux ayant fait l'objet d'une loi d'autorisation sous la Ve République
| series        = Logiques juridiques
| publisher     = L'Harmattan
| location      = Paris
| language      = fr
| isbn          = 978-2-3431-6237-9
}}
* {{cite book
| last          = Oliva
| first         = Éric
|author2=Sandrine Giummarra
| year          = 2011
| title         = Droit constitutionnel
| edition       = 7
| series        = Aide-mémoire
| publisher     = Sirey
| location      = Paris
| language      = fr
| isbn          = 978-2-247-10965-4
}}
* Frédéric Monera, ''L'idée de République et la jurisprudence du Conseil constitutionnel'' – Paris : L.G.D.J., 2004 [http://www.fnac.com/Shelf/article.asp?PRID=1601897&Mn=2&Ra=-1&To=0&Nu=2&Fr=3]-[https://web.archive.org/web/20060923201826/http://www.lgdj.fr/rech_rapide.php?_Sess=c22f5de9dee93f9554d169596caad970&_Mots=monera&_TypeCode=].
* Martin A. Rogoff, "French Constitutional Law: Cases and Materials" – Durham, North Carolina: Carolina Academic Press, 2010.[http://www.cap-press.com/books/isbn/9781594606540/French+Constitutional+Law]
* {{cite web |last=Rogoff |first=Martin A. |title=Fifty years of constitutional evolution in France: The 2008 amendments and beyond |website=Jus Politicum 
|url=http://juspoliticum.com/article/Fifty-years-of-constitutional-evolution-in-France-The-2008-amendments-and-beyond-373.html |access-date=11 July 2022}}
* Wahl, Nicholas (1959). "[https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/abs/ii-the-initial-draft-and-its-origins/92D479973A8C263D5135FB6243FC9D21 The French Constitution of 1958 – II. The Initial Draft and its Origins]". ''American Political Science Review'' '''53''' (2): 358–382.

==External links==
{{Wikisource|fr|Constitutions françaises}}
* {{cite web
 | url    = http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/Droit-francais/Constitution
 | title  = La Constitution
 | language    = fr
 | work   = Légifrance
 | access-date = 14 May 2012
}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/sites/default/files/as/root/bank_mm/anglais/constiution_anglais_oct2009.pdf|title=Constitution of October 4, 1958}} (in English)
* {{cite web
 | url    = http://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/conseil-constitutionnel/francais/la-constitution/la-constitution-du-4-octobre-1958/texte-integral-de-la-constitution-du-4-octobre-1958-en-vigueur.5074.html
 | title  = Texte intégral de la Constitution du 4 octobre 1958 en vigueur
 | language    = fr
 | work   = Conseil Constitutionnel
 | access-date = 14 May 2012
}}
* {{cite web
 | url=https://www.conseil-constitutionnel.fr/en/constitution-of-4-october-1958
 | title=Constitution of 4 October 1958
 | language = en
 | work = Conseil Constitutionnel
 | access-date = 10 July 2024
}}

{{S-start}}
{{Succession box
| title = [[Constitutions of France]]<br/>Constitution of the Fifth Republic
| years = 1958 - Present
| before = [[French Constitution of 27 October 1946|Constitution of the Fourth Republic]]
| after = -
}}
{{S-end}}

{{Constitutions of France}}
{{Hierarchy of norms in French law}}
{{France topics}}
{{Constitution of Europe}}{{Charles de Gaulle}}{{Portal bar|France|Law}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Constitution of France}}
[[Category:Constitutions of France]]
[[Category:1958 in law]]
[[Category:Legal history of France]]
[[Category:1958 documents]]