# Generals’ putsch in Algiers fails (1961)

URL: https://history-france.com/timeline/1961-generals-putsch-in-algiers-fails
Location: Algeria

Senior officers attempted to block de Gaulle’s movement toward Algerian self-determination. Within the broader Fifth Republic period, The 1958 Constitution created a stronger presidency and a durable Fifth Republic. Decolonization, European integration, social change, economic shocks and recurring debates over identity, secularism and the role of the state have shaped contemporary France. At this point in the timeline, the relevant governing authority is Charles de Gaulle (President of the French Republic). Generals’ putsch in Algiers fails is a useful marker in the longer transformation of political authority, society and culture in France. The event is positioned here so visitors can read it alongside changes in government, warfare, society, religion, culture and France’s wider international setting.

## Why it matters
Generals’ putsch in Algiers fails is a useful marker in the longer transformation of political authority, society and culture in France.

Ruler at the time: [Charles de Gaulle](https://history-france.com/rulers/charles-de-gaulle-1959)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia topic lookup — Generals’ putsch in Algiers fails](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=Generals%E2%80%99+putsch+in+Algiers+fails&go=Go)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Generals’ putsch in Algiers fails](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Generals%E2%80%99+putsch+in+Algiers+fails)
- [Élysée — Institutions of the Fifth Republic](https://www.elysee.fr/en/french-presidency/the-institutions)