The Independent Left (French: Gauche indépendante, GI) was a French parliamentary group in the Chamber of Deputies of France of the French Third Republic during the interwar period. It was not a political party but a technical group formed by independents and parties too small to form their own parliamentary group, including dissidents from the Communist, Socialist and Radical-Socialist parties, as well as left-wing regional parties and left-wing Catholics.
It provided a home to those republican independents and small parties who supported the Cartels des Gauches and the Popular Front. As such, its exact membership changed from legislature to another. It was thus similar but distinct to the right-of-centre Independents of the Left group, which gathered up the independents and small parties who in temperament were similar to the right wing of the Radical-Socialists and the centre-right Radical Left, but who refused to support the Cartel and Popular Front.
Legislature of 1932 to 1936: the Cartel des Gauches
editThe following parties and independents sat in as the Left Independent technical group between 1932 and 1936:
| Surname | Forename | Political Party (if applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| BERON | Emile | Communist Party of Alsace-Lorraine |
| CHATENET | Henri | independent |
| CHAUVEL | Georges | independent |
| DAHLET | Camille | Alsatian Progressive Party |
| DELOM-SORBE | Maurice | Jeune République |
| DEUDON | Paul | independent |
| DOEBLÉ | Victor | Communist Party of Alsace-Lorraine |
| LA CHAMBRE | Guy | independent Radical |
| MOURER | Jean-Pierre | Communist Party of Alsace-Lorraine |
| MOUTET | Georges | independent Radical |
| PRENTOUT | Richard | independent Radical |
| RENAITOUR | Jean-Michel | independent Socialist Republican |
| SABIANI | Simon | independent socialist |
| THEBAULT | Léon | independent |
| TORRES | Henry | independent socialist |
Legislature of 1936 to 1940: the Popular Front
editThe Independent Left group's most famous incarnation existed between 1936 and 1940, when the following small parties sat in it:
- Party of Proletarian Unity (PUP), dissident communist;
- Frontist Party (PF), a party formed by antifascist Radical-Socialists.
- Radical-Socialist Party Camille Pelletan (PRS-CP), a party formed by antifascist Radical-Socialists.
- Former members of the Republican-Socialist Party who did not join the Socialist Republican Union (USR)
- Progressive Party, the federalist counterpart to the Radical-Socialist Party, before its decision to sit with the other Alsatian regionalist parties in 1936.
- Social-National Party (PSN), a small party founded by Jean Hennessy.
- League of the Young Republic (LJR), a social-Catholic pacifist party.