Rally of the French People

political party, France

Also known as: RPF, Rassemblement du Peuple Français

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 13, 2026

Quick Summary

The Rally of the French People (RPF) was a French political party founded in 1947 by Charles de Gaulle. It aimed to bring de Gaulle back to power and operated as an extra-parliamentary body. The RPF achieved electoral success in 1951 but dissolved in 1953. Gaullist political movements continued under various names, eventually leading to the formation of the Rally for the Republic (RPR) in 1976 by Jacques Chirac, which succeeded earlier Gaullist parties like the Union for the New Republic (UNR) and the Union of Democrats for the Republic (UDR). The RPR merged in 2002 to form the Union for a Popular Movement.1

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

5 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Rally for the Republic
…when de Gaulle organized the Rally of the French People (Rassemblement du Peuple Français; RPF), originally conceived as a means by which de Gaulle might regain office without having to participate in party politics. It was thus at first organized as an extraparliamentary body in the hope that it might…
Read More
…when de Gaulle organized the Rally of the French People (Rassemblement du Peuple Français; RPF), originally conceived as a means by which de Gaulle might regain office without having to participate in party politics. It was thus at first organized as an extraparliamentary body in the hope that it might…
Read More