The parliamentary regime that emerged almost by chance 1871 after the defeat of France by the Prussians. Its chronic instability reflected the country's deep social and political divisions, its fragmented party system, and the parochialism of its politicians. Lacking legitimacy and unable to handle the domestic and external crises of the 1930s, it collapsed 1940 under the impact of the German invasion.

— Ian Campbell

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics. Copyright © 1996, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.