List of presidents of France

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The president of France is the head of state of France. The first officeholder is considered to be Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, who was elected in 1848 and provoked the 1851 self-coup to later proclaim himself emperor as Napoleon III. His coup, which proved popular as he sought the restoration of universal male suffrage previously abolished by the legislature, granted the newly-established Second Empire firm ground.

A republican regime was given way again in 1870 through the Third Republic, after the fall of Napoleon III. A 1962 referendum held under the Fifth Republic at the request of President Charles de Gaulle transferred the election of the president of France from an electoral college to a popular vote. Since then, ten presidential elections have taken place. The 25th and current officeholder has been Emmanuel Macron since 14 May 2017.

French First Republic (1792–1804)[]

National Convention[]

The National Convention (20 September 1792 – 26 October 1795) was led by the president of the National Convention; the presidency rotated fortnightly.

From 1793 the National Convention was dominated by its Committee of Public Safety, in which the leading figures were Georges Danton and then Maximilien Robespierre.

Directory[]

The Directory was officially led by a president, as stipulated by Article 141 of the Constitution of the Year III. An entirely ceremonial post, the first president was Rewbell who was chosen by lot on 2 November 1795. The Directors conducted their elections privately, with the presidency rotating every three months.^[1] The last President was Gohier.^[2]

The leading figure of the Directory was Paul Barras, the only director to serve throughout the Directory.

Directors of the Directory (1 November 1795 – 10 November 1799)
Paul Barras	Louis-Marie de La Révellière-Lépeaux	Jean-François Rewbell	Lazare Carnot	Étienne-François Letourneur
				Drawn by lot to be replaced, 1 Prairial year V (20 May 1797).
				François Barthélemy
			Barthélemy and Carnot proscribed and replaced after the Coup of 18 Fructidor year V (4 September 1797).
			Philippe-Antoine Merlin de Douai	François de Neufchâteau
				Drawn by lot to be replaced, 26 Floréal year VI (15 May 1798).
				Jean-Baptiste Treilhard
		Drawn by lot to be replaced, 27 Floréal year VII (16 May 1799).
		Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyès
	Compelled to resign, 30 Prairial year VII (18 June 1799).		Compelled to resign, 30 Prairial year VII (18 June 1799).	Election annulled as irregular, 29 Prairial year VII (17 June 1799).
	Roger Ducos		Jean-François-Auguste Moulin	Louis-Jérôme Gohier
After the Coup of 18 Brumaire (9 November 1799), Barras, Ducos and Sieyès resigned. Moulin and Gohier, refusing to resign, were arrested by General Moreau.

Consulate[]

Provisional Consuls (10 November – 12 December 1799):

• Napoléon Bonaparte
• Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès
• Roger Ducos

Consuls (12 December 1799 – 18 May 1804):

• Napoléon Bonaparte (First Consul)
• Jean Jacques Régis de Cambacérès (Second Consul)
• Charles-François Lebrun (Third Consul)

Napoléon Bonaparte proclaimed himself Emperor of the French in 1804, reigning as Emperor Napoleon I 1804–1814 (First French Empire) and 1815 (Hundred Days).

The monarchy was restored 1814–1815 and 1815–1830 (Bourbon Restoration); again 1830–1848 (July Monarchy).

French Second Republic (1848–1852)[]

President of the Provisional Government of the Republic[]

• Jacques-Charles Dupont de l'Eure (26 February 1848 – 9 May 1848)

Executive Commission[]

Members of the Executive Commission (10 May 1848 – 24 June 1848):

• François Arago (President of the Executive Commission)
• Alphonse de Lamartine
• Louis-Antoine Garnier-Pagès
• Alexandre Auguste Ledru-Rollin
• Pierre Marie de Saint-Georges

Chief of the Executive Power[]

• Louis-Eugène Cavaignac (28 June 1848 – 20 December 1848)

President of the Republic[]

Political parties

  Bonapartist

Nº	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office; Electoral mandates		Political party	Ref.
1		Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (1808–1873)	20 December 1848	2 December 1852	Bonapartist	[3]
			1848
			Nephew of Napoléon I. Elected first President of the French Republic in the 1848 election against Louis-Eugène Cavaignac. He provoked the coup of 1851 and proclaimed himself Emperor in 1852. Henri Georges Boulay de la Meurthe, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte's vice president, was the sole person to hold that office.

Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaimed himself Emperor of the French in 1852, reigning as Emperor Napoleon III 1852–1870 (Second French Empire).

French Third Republic (1870–1940)[]

President of the Government of National Defense[]

• Louis Jules Trochu (4 September 1870 – 13 February 1871)

Chief of the Executive Power[]

• Adolphe Thiers (17 February 1871 – 30 August 1871); became President on 31 August 1871

Presidents of the Republic[]

Political parties

  Monarchist
  Opportunist Republican
  Democratic Republican Alliance; Democratic Republican Party; Social and Republican Democratic Party; Democratic Alliance
  Radical-Socialist and Radical Republican Party
  Independent

Nº	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office		Political party	Ref.
2		Adolphe Thiers (1797–1877)	31 August 1871	24 May 1873	Moderate Monarchist (Orléanist); Opportunist Republican	[4]
			Initially a moderate monarchist, named President of France following the adoption of the Rivet law, establishing provisional republican institutions. He became a supporter of the Third Republic during his term. He resigned in the face of hostility from the National Assembly, largely in favour of a return to the monarchy.
3		Patrice de MacMahon, Duke of Magenta (1808–1893)	24 May 1873	30 January 1879	Monarchist (Legitimist)	[5]
			A Marshal of France, he was the only monarchist (and only Duke) to serve as President of the Third Republic. He resigned shortly after the republican victory in the January 1879 legislative election, following a previous republican victory in 1877, after his decision to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies. During his term, the Consitutional Laws of 1875 that served as the Constitution of the Third Republic were passed; he therefore became the first President under the constitutional settlement that would last until 1940.
The Government of Jules Armand Dufaure deputises during the interim (30 January 1879).
4		Jules Grévy (1807–1891)	30 January 1879	2 December 1887	Opportunist Republican	[6]
			The first President of France to complete a full term, he was easily reelected in December 1885. He was nonetheless forced to resign, following an honours scandal in which his son-in-law was implicated.
The Government of Maurice Rouvier deputises during the interim (2–3 December 1887).
5		Sadi Carnot (1837–1894)	3 December 1887	25 June 1894†	Opportunist Republican	[7]
			His term was marked by Boulangist unrest and the Panama scandals, as well as by diplomacy with Russia. †Assassinated (stabbed) by Sante Geronimo Caserio a few months before the end of his term, he is interred at the Panthéon.
The Government of Charles Dupuy deputises during the interim (25–27 June 1894).
6		Jean Casimir-Perier (1847–1907)	27 June 1894	16 January 1895	Opportunist Republican	[8]
			Casimir-Perier's was the shortest presidential term: he resigned after six months and 20 days.
The Government of Charles Dupuy deputises during the interim (16–17 January 1895).
7		Félix Faure (1841–1899)	17 January 1895	16 February 1899†	Opportunist Republican; Progressive Republican	[9]
			Pursued colonial expansion and ties with Russia. President during the Dreyfus affair. †Four years into his term he died of apoplexy at the Élysée Palace, allegedly during fellatio.
The Government of Charles Dupuy deputises during the interim (16–18 February 1899).
8		Émile Loubet (1838–1929)	18 February 1899	18 February 1906	Democratic Republican Alliance	[10]
			During his seven-year term, the 1905 law on the Separation of the Churches and the State was adopted; only four Presidents of the Council succeeded to the Hôtel Matignon. He did not seek reelection at the end of his term.
9		Armand Fallières (1841–1931)	18 February 1906	18 February 1913	Democratic Republican Alliance; then Democratic Republican Party	[11]
			President during the Agadir Crisis, when French troops first occupied Morocco. He was a party to the Triple Entente, which he strengthened by diplomacy. Like his predecessor, he did not seek reelection.
10		Raymond Poincaré (1860–1934)	18 February 1913	18 February 1920	Democratic Republican Party; then Democratic Republican Alliance	[12]
			President during World War I. He subsequently served as President of the Council, 1922–1924 and 1926–1929.
11		Paul Deschanel (1855–1922)	18 February 1920	21 September 1920	Democratic Republican Alliance; then Democratic Republican and Social Party	[13]
			An intellectual elected to the Académie Française, he overcame the popular Georges Clemenceau, to general surprise, in the January 1920 election. He resigned after eight months due to health problems.
The Government of Alexandre Millerand deputises during the interim (21–23 September 1920).
12		Alexandre Millerand (1859–1943)	23 September 1920	11 June 1924	Independent	[14]
			An "Independent Socialist" increasingly drawn to the right, he resigned after four years following the victory of the Cartel des Gauches in the 1924 legislative election.
The Government of Frédéric François-Marsal deputises during the interim (11–13 June 1924).
13		Gaston Doumergue (1863–1937)	13 June 1924	13 June 1931	Radical-Socialist and Radical Republican Party	[15]
			The first Protestant President, he took a firm political stance against Germany and its resurgent nationalism. His seven-year term was marked by ministerial discontinuity.
14		Paul Doumer (1857–1932)	13 June 1931	7 May 1932†	Independent	[16]
			Elected in the second round of the 1931 election, having displaced the pacifist Aristide Briand. †Assassinated (shot) by the mentally unstable Paul Gorguloff.
The Government of André Tardieu deputises during the interim (7–10 May 1932).
15		Albert Lebrun (1871–1950)	10 May 1932	11 July 1940 (de facto)	Democratic Alliance	[17]
			Reelected in 1939, his second term was interrupted de facto by the rise to power of Marshal Philippe Pétain.

The office of President of the French Republic did not exist from 1940 until 1947.

French State (1940–1944)[]

Chief of State[]

• Maréchal Philippe Pétain (11 July 1940 – 19 August 1944)

Provisional Government of the French Republic (1944–1946)[]

Chairmen of the Provisional Government[]

• Brigadier General Charles de Gaulle (3 June 1944 – 26 January 1946)
• Félix Gouin (26 January 1946 – 24 June 1946)
• Georges Bidault (24 June 1946 – 28 November 1946)
• Vincent Auriol (interim) (28 November 1946 – 16 December 1946)
• Léon Blum (16 December 1946 – 16 January 1947)

French Fourth Republic (1946–1958)[]

Presidents[]

Political parties

  Socialist (SFIO)   Centre-right (CNIP)

Nº	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office; Electoral mandates		Political party	Ref.
16		Vincent Auriol (1884–1966)	16 January 1947	16 January 1954	French Section of the Workers' International	[18]
			1947
			First President of the Fourth Republic; his term was marked by the First Indochina War.
17		René Coty (1882–1962)	16 January 1954	8 January 1959	National Centre of Independents and Peasants	[19]
			1953
			Presidency marked by the Algerian War; appealed to Charles de Gaulle to resolve the May 1958 crisis. Following the promulgation of the Fifth Republic, he resigned after five years as President of France, giving way to De Gaulle.

French Fifth Republic (1958–present)[]

Presidents[]

Political parties

  Socialist (PS)   Centrist (LREM)   Centre-right (CD; RI; PR ; UDF)   Gaullist (UNR; UDR)   Neo-Gaullist (RPR; UMP; LR)

Nº	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of office; Electoral mandates		Political party	Ref.
18		Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970)	8 January 1959	28 April 1969	Union for the New Republic (renamed Union of Democrats for the Fifth Republic in 1967)	[20]
			1958, 1965
			Leader of the Free French Forces, 1940–1944. President of the Provisional Government, 1944–1946. Appointed President of the Council by René Coty in May 1958, to resolve the crisis of the Algerian War. Supported by referendum, he adopted a new Constitution of France, thus founding the Fifth Republic. Easily elected to the presidency in the 1958 election by electoral college, he took office the following month; having modified the presidential election procedure in the 1962 referendum, he was reelected by universal suffrage in the 1965 election. Launched the Force de dissuasion in 1961. He signed the Élysée Treaty in 1963, building Franco-German cooperation, a key to European integration. In 1966, he withdrew France from NATO integrated military command and has American military personnel stationed on French soil sent home. Supported Quebec sovereignty. Having refused to step down during the crisis of May 1968, resigned following the failure of the 1969 referendum on regionalisation.
—		Alain Poher Acting (1909–1996)	28 April 1969	20 June 1969	Democratic Centre	[21]
			Interim President of France, as President of the Senate. Defeated by Georges Pompidou in the second round of the 1969 election.
19		Georges Pompidou (1911–1974)	20 June 1969	2 April 1974†	Union of Democrats for the Republic	[22]
			1969
			Prime Minister under Charles de Gaulle, 1962–1968. Elected to the presidency in the 1969 election against centrist Alain Poher. Favoured European integration. Supported economic modernisation and industrialisation, most notably through the TGV high-speed rail project. Faced the 1973 oil crisis. †Died in office of Waldenström's macroglobulinemia, two years before the end of his term.
—		Alain Poher Acting (1909–1996)	2 April 1974	27 May 1974	Democratic Centre	[21]
			Interim President of France again, as President of the Senate. Did not stand against Valéry Giscard d'Estaing in the 1974 election.
20		Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (1926–2020)	27 May 1974	21 May 1981	Independent Republicans (until 1977) Republican Party (from 1977) (within the Union for French Democracy from 1978)	[23]
			1974
			Founder of the Independent Republicans and later the Union for French Democracy in his efforts to unify the centre-right, he served in several Gaullist governments. Narrowly elected in the 1974 election, he instigated numerous reforms, including the lowering of the age of civil majority from 21 to 18 and legalisation of abortion. He soon faced a global economic crisis and rising unemployment. Although the polls initially gave him a lead, he was defeated in the 1981 election by François Mitterrand, partly due to disunion within the right.
21		François Mitterrand (1916–1996)	21 May 1981	17 May 1995	Socialist Party	[24]
			1981, 1988
			Candidate of a united left-wing ticket in the 1965 election, he founded the Socialist Party in 1971. Having narrowly lost in 1974, he was finally elected in 1981. Mitterrand supervised a series of Great Works, the best known of which is the Louvre Pyramid. He instigated the abolition of the death penalty. After the right-wing victory in the 1986 legislative election, he named Jacques Chirac as Prime Minister, thus beginning the first cohabitation. Reelected in the 1988 election against Chirac, he was again forced to cohabit with Édouard Balladur following the 1993 legislative election. He retired in 1995 after the conclusion of his second term. He was the first left-wing President of the Fifth Republic; his presidential tenure was the longest of any French Republic.
22		Jacques Chirac (1932–2019)	17 May 1995	16 May 2007	Rally for the Republic (until 2002) Union for a Popular Movement (from 2002)	[25]
			1995, 2002
			Prime Minister, 1974–1976; upon resignation, founded the Rally for the Republic. Eliminated in the first round of the 1981 election, he again served as Prime Minister, 1986–1988. Defeated in the 1988 election, he was elected in 1995. He engaged in social reforms to counter "social fracture". In 1997, he dissolved the National Assembly; a left-wing victory in the 1997 legislative election forced him to name Lionel Jospin Prime Minister for a five-year cohabitation. Presidential terms reduced from seven to five years after approval by referendum. In 2002, he was easily reelected against Jean-Marie Le Pen. Sent troops to Afghanistan, but opposed the Iraq War. Declined to seek a third term in 2007 and retired from political life.
23		Nicolas Sarkozy (born 1955)	16 May 2007	15 May 2012	Union for a Popular Movement	[26]
			2007
			Served in numerous ministerial posts, 1993–1995 and 2002–2007. Easily elected to the leadership of the Union for a Popular Movement in 2004. Elected to the presidency in 2007, defeating Socialist Ségolène Royal. Soon after taking office, he introduced a new fiscal package and other laws to counter illegal immigration and recidivism. President of the Council of the EU in 2008, he defended the Treaty of Lisbon and mediated in the Russo-Georgian War; reintroduced France to NATO integrated military command; President of the G8 and G-20 in 2011. At national level, he had to deal with a financial crisis and its consequences. Following the 2008 constitutional reform, he became the first President of France since Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte to address the Versailles Congress on 22 June 2009. He introduced education and pension reforms. Sent troops to Libya (Operation Harmattan) in 2011. Narrowly defeated in the runoff of the 2012 election.
24		François Hollande (born 1954)	15 May 2012	14 May 2017	Socialist Party	[27]
			2012
			Served as First Secretary of the Socialist Party, 1997–2008 and President of the General Council of Corrèze, 2008–2012. The second left-wing President of the Fifth Republic. Elected in 2012, defeating Nicolas Sarkozy. Legalised same-sex marriage in 2013. Had the French Army intervene in Mali (Operation Serval), in the Central African Republic (Operation Sangaris) and against the Islamic State (Operation Chammal). Paris suffered Islamic terrorist attacks in January 2015 and November 2015, as well as Nice in July 2016. Hosted the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference. Did not seek reelection in the 2017 election, for which polls suggested his defeat in the first round.
25		Emmanuel Macron (born 1977)	14 May 2017		La République En Marche!
			2017
			Served as Élysée Deputy Secretary-General, 2012–2014 and Minister of the Economy, Industry and Digital Affairs, 2014–2016. Easily defeated Marine Le Pen in the 2017 election. Youngest President of France in history. Has encountered massive demonstrations since 2018 over his policy orientations and style of governance. Faced the COVID-19 pandemic.

Timeline[]

Notes:
¹Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was proclaimed Emperor on 2 December 1852, ending the French Second Republic, and his presidency.^{[citation needed]
2}Adolphe Thiers previously served in the executive position of Chief of the Executive Power from 17 February 1871 until 30 August 1871, his presidency then beginning the following day on 31 August 1871.^{[citation needed]
3}Philippe Pétain used the title Chief of the French State as opposed to President of France.^{[citation needed]
4-6}The heads of state of the Provisional Government of the French Republic (1944-1946), with the exception of Léon Blum and Vincent Auriol, used the title Chairman rather than President. De Gaulle would later assume the title President as the head of state of the French Fifth Republic.^{[citation needed]
7-8}Vincent Auriol served as the constituent head of state of France as President of the National Assembly from 31 January 1946 until 21 January 1947, but the title was superseded in its executive authority by that of Léon Blum as President of the Provisional Government on 16 December 1946. Auriol was soon after elected President of France himself on 16 January 1947.^{[citation needed]}

See also[]

• List of presidents of France by longevity
• List of presidents of France by age
• List of presidents of France by tenure

References[]