After having appeared first at the end of the 19th century, during the Dreyfus affair, they became common in the 1920s and 1930s, and famously participated in the 6 February 1934 crisis and riots which overthrew the second Cartel des gauches, i.e. the center-left coalition government led by Édouard Daladier.
Individual trajectories during Vichy France, when some far-right members ultimately chose the Resistance against the German occupant, illustrate these ideological conflicts.
Both Cartels des Gauches (Left Wing Coalition, the first from 1924 to 1926 and the second from 1932 to the 6 February 1934 riots) saw the appearance of many leagues intent on overthrowing them through street demonstrations.
Daladier was replaced after the 6 February 1934 riots by conservative Gaston Doumergue, who included in his cabinet many right wing personalities close to the far-right leagues, such as Philippe Pétain and Pierre Laval.
The most famous far-right leagues included: This context of street agitation led Pierre Laval's government to outlaw paramilitary organizations on 6 December 1935,[5] and then to pass the 10 January 1936 law on militias and combat groups.
[8] On 19 June 1936, interior minister Roger Salengro had President Albert Lebrun sign a decree outlawing the major leagues, which were soon dissolved (these included Croix-de-Feu, Solidarité Française, Jeune Patrie and Francistes).