List of heads of state of France

Monarchs ruled the Kingdom of France from the establishment of Francia in 509 to 1870, except for certain periods from 1792 to 1852. Since 1870, the head of state has been the President of France. Below is a list of all French heads of state. It includes the monarchs of the Kingdom of France, emperors of the First and Second Empire and leaders of the five Republics.

Merovingian dynasty (509–751)

The Merovingians were a Salian Frankish dynasty that ruled the Franks for nearly 300 years in a region known as Francia in Latin, beginning in the middle of the 5th century CE. Their territory largely corresponded to ancient Gaul as well as the Roman provinces of Raetia, Germania Superior and the southern part of Germania. The Merovingian dynasty was founded by Childeric I (c. 457  481 CE), the son of Merovech, leader of the Salian Franks, but it was his famous son Clovis I (481–511 CE) who united all of Gaul under Merovingian rule.[1][2]

Portrait Name From Until Death Relationship with his predecessors Title
Clovis I
(Clovis Ier)
509 511 Likely died of natural causes aged 46. Buried at Abbey of St Genevieve until 18th century. Remains relocated to Basilica of St Denis.   Son of Childeric I King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Childebert I
(Childebert Ier)
511 13 December 558 Died aged 64. Buried at Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.   Son of Clovis I King of Paris
(Roi de Paris)
Chlothar I the Old
(Clotaire Ier le Vieux)
13 December 558 29 November 561 Died aged 64. Buried at Abbey of St. Medard, Soissons.   Son of Clovis I
  Younger brother of Childebert I
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Charibert I
(Caribert Ier)
29 November 561 567 Died aged 50. Buried at Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.   Son of Chlothar I King of Paris
(Roi de Paris)
Chilperic I
(Chilpéric Ier)
567 584 Died aged 45. Buried at Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.   Son of Chlothar I
  Younger brother of Charibert I
King of Paris
(Roi de Paris)

King of Neustria
(Roi de Neustrie)
Chlothar II the Great, the Young
(Clotaire II le Grand, le Jeune)
584 18 October 629 Died aged 45. Buried at Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.   Son of Chilperic I King of Neustria
(Roi de Neustrie)

King of Paris
(Roi de Paris)
(595–629)

King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
(613–629)
Dagobert I
(Dagobert Ier)
18 October 629 19 January 639 Died aged 36. Buried at Basilica of St Denis.   Son of Chlothar II King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Clovis II the Lazy
(Clovis II le Fainéant)
19 January 639 31 October 657 Died aged 20. Buried at Basilica of St Denis.   Son of Dagobert I King of Neustria and Burgundy
(Roi de Neustrie et de Bourgogne)
Chlothar III
(Clotaire III)
31 October 657 673 Died aged 21. Buried at Basilica of St Denis.   Son of Clovis II King of Neustria and Burgundy
(Roi de Neustrie et de Bourgogne)

King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
(657–663)
Childeric II
(Childéric II)
673 675 Died aged 22. Buried at Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés.   Son of Clovis II
  Younger brother of Chlothar III
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Theuderic III
(Thierry III)
675 691 Died aged 37.   Son of Clovis II
  Younger brother of Childeric II
King of Neustria
(Roi de Neustrie)

King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
(687–691)
Clovis IV
(Clovis IV)
691 695 Died aged 13.   Son of Theuderic III King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Childebert III the Just
(Childebert III le Juste)
695 23 April 711 Died aged 41. Buried at Church of St Stephen at Choisy-au-Bac, near Compiègne.   Son of Theuderic III
  Younger brother of Clovis IV
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Dagobert III 23 April 711 715 Died aged 14.   Son of Childebert III King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Chilperic II
(Chilpéric II)
715 13 February 721 Died aged 49. Buried at Noyon.   Probably son of Childeric II King of Neustria and Burgundy
(Roi de Neustrie et de Bourgogne)

King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
(719–721)
Theuderic IV 721 737 Died aged 25.   Son of Dagobert III King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

The last Merovingian kings, known as the "lazy kings" (rois fainéants), did not hold any real political power, while the Mayor of the Palace governed instead. When Theuderic IV died in 737, Mayor of the Palace Charles Martel left the throne vacant and continued to rule until his own death in 741. His sons Pepin and Carloman briefly restored the Merovingian dynasty by raising Childeric III to the throne in 743. In 751, Pepin deposed Childerich and acceded to the throne.

Portrait Name From Until Death Relationship with his predecessors Title
Childeric III
(Childéric III)
743 November 751 Died aged 37.   Son of Chilperic II or of Theuderic IV King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Carolingian dynasty (751–888)

The Carolingian dynasty was a Frankish noble family with origins in the Arnulfing and Pippinid clans of the 7th century AD. The family consolidated its power in the late 8th century, eventually making the offices of Mayor of the Palace and dux et princeps Francorum hereditary and becoming the de facto rulers of the Franks as the real powers behind the throne. By 751, the Merovingian dynasty, which until then had ruled the Germanic Franks by right, was deprived of this right with the consent of the Papacy and the aristocracy, and a Carolingian, Pepin the Short, was crowned King of the Franks.[3][2]

Portrait Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Pepin the Younger, the Short
(Pépin le Bref)
751 24 September 768   Son of Charles Martel King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Carloman I 24 September 768 4 December 771   Son of Pepin the Short King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Charlemagne (Charles I, the Great) 24 September 768 28 January 814   Son of Pepin the Short King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Emperor of the Romans
(Imperator Romanorum)
(800–814)
Louis I the Pious, the Debonaire
(Louis Ier le Pieux, le Débonnaire)
28 January 814 20 June 840   Son of Charlemagne King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Emperor of the Romans
(Imperator Romanorum)
Charles II the Bald
(Charles II le Chauve)
20 June 840 6 October 877   Son of Louis I King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Emperor of the Romans
(Imperator Romanorum)
(875–877)
Louis II the Stammerer
(Louis II le Bègue)
6 October 877 10 April 879   Son of Charles II King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Louis III 10 April 879 5 August 882   Son of Louis II King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Carloman II 5 August 882 6 December 884   Son of Louis II King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Charles III the Fat
(Charles le Gros)
20 May 885 13 January 888   Son of Louis the German
  Cousin of Louis II and Carloman II
  Grandson of Louis I the Pious
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Emperor of the Romans
(Imperator Romanorum)
(881–887)

Robertian dynasty (888–898)

The Robertians were Frankish noblemen owing fealty to the Carolingians, and ancestors of the subsequent Capetian dynasty. Odo, Count of Paris was chosen by the western Franks to be their king following the removal of emperor Charles the Fat. He was crowned at Compiègne in February 888 by Walter, Archbishop of Sens.[4][2]

Portrait Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Odo of Paris
(Eudes de Paris)
29 February 888 1 January 898   Son of Robert the Strong (Robertians)
  Elected king against young Charles III.
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Carolingian dynasty (893–922)

Charles, the posthumous son of Louis II, was crowned by a faction opposed to the Robertian Odo at Reims Cathedral, though he only became the effectual monarch with the death of Odo in 898.[5][2]

Portrait Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Charles III the Simple
(Charles III le Simple)
28 January 898 30 June 922   Posthumous son of Louis II
  Younger half-brother of Louis III and Carloman II
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Robertian dynasty (922–923)

Portrait Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Robert I
(Robert Ier)
30 June 922 15 June 923   Son of Robert the Strong (Robertians)[2]
  Younger brother of Odo
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Bosonid dynasty (923–936)

The Bosonids were a noble family descended from Boso the Elder, their member, Rudolph (Raoul), was elected "King of the Franks" in 923.

Portrait Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Rudolph
(Raoul de France)
13 July 923 14 January 936   Son of Richard, Duke of Burgundy (Bosonids)
  Son-in-law of Robert I
King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Carolingian dynasty (936–987)

Portrait Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Louis IV of Outremer
(Louis IV d'Outremer)
19 June 936 10 September 954   Son of Charles III[2] King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Lothair
(Lothaire de France)
12 November 954 2 March 986   Son of Louis IV King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Louis V the Lazy
(Louis V le Fainéant)
8 June 986 22 May 987   Son of Lothair King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)

Capetian dynasty (987–1792)

After the death of Louis V, the son of Hugh the Great and grandson of Robert I, Hugh Capet, was elected by the nobility as king of France. The Capetian Dynasty, the male-line descendants of Hugh Capet, ruled France continuously from 987 to 1792 and again from 1814 to 1848. They were direct descendants of the Robertian kings. The cadet branches of the dynasty which ruled after 1328, however, are generally given the specific branch names of Valois and Bourbon.

Not listed below are Hugh Magnus, eldest son of Robert II, and Philip of France, eldest son of Louis VI; both were co-Kings with their fathers (in accordance with the early Capetian practice whereby kings would crown their heirs in their own lifetimes and share power with the co-king), but predeceased them. Because neither Hugh nor Philip were sole or senior king in their own lifetimes, they are not traditionally listed as Kings of France, and are not given ordinals.

Henry VI of England, son of Catherine of Valois, became titular King of France upon his grandfather Charles VI's death in accordance with the Treaty of Troyes of 1420 however this was disputed and he is not always regarded as a legitimate king of France.

From 21 January 1793 to 8 June 1795, Louis XVI's son Louis-Charles was the titular King of France as Louis XVII; in reality, however, he was imprisoned in the Temple throughout this duration, and power was held by the leaders of the Republic. Upon Louis XVII's death, his uncle (Louis XVI's brother) Louis-Stanislas claimed the throne, as Louis XVIII, but only became de facto King of France in 1814.

House of Capet (987–1328)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Hugh Capet
(Hugues Capet)
3 July 98724 October 996  Grandson of Robert I[2] King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Robert II the Pious, the Wise
(Robert II le Pieux, le Sage)
24 October 99620 July 1031  Son of Hugh Capet King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Henry I
(Henri Ier)
20 July 10314 August 1060  Son of Robert II King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Philip I the Amorous
(Philippe Ier l' Amoureux)
4 August 106029 July 1108  Son of Henry I King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Louis VI the Fat
(Louis VI le Gros)
29 July 11081 August 1137  Son of Philip I King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Louis VII the Young
(Louis VII le Jeune)
1 August 113718 September 1180  Son of Louis VI King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
Philip II Augustus
(Philippe II Auguste)
18 September 118014 July 1223  Son of Louis VII King of the Franks
(Roi des Francs)
first monarch to use the title of King of France
(Roi de France)
Louis VIII the Lion
(Louis VIII le Lion)
14 July 12238 November 1226  Son of Philip II Augustus King of France
(Roi de France)
Louis IX the Saint
(Saint Louis)
8 November 122625 August 1270  Son of Louis VIII King of France
(Roi de France)
Philip III the Bold
(Philippe III le Hardi)
25 August 12705 October 1285  Son of Louis IX King of France
(Roi de France)
Philip IV the Fair, the Iron King
(Philippe IV le Bel)
5 October 128529 November 1314  Son of Philip III King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Louis X the Quarreller
(Louis X le Hutin)
29 November 13145 June 1316  Son of Philip IV King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
John I the Posthumous
(Jean Ier le Posthume)
15 November 131620 November 1316  Son of Louis X King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Philip V the Tall
(Philippe V le Long)
20 November 13163 January 1322  Son of Philip IV
  Younger brother of Louis X
King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Charles IV the Fair
(Charles IV le Bel)
3 January 13221 February 1328  Son of Philip IV
  Younger brother of Louis X and Philip V
King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)

House of Valois (1328–1589)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Philip VI of Valois, the Fortunate
(Philippe VI de Valois, le Fortuné)
1 April 132822 August 1350  Grandson of Philip III of France[6] King of France
(Roi de France)
John II the Good
(Jean II le Bon)
22 August 13508 April 1364  Son of Philip VI King of France
(Roi de France)
Charles V the Wise
(Charles V le Sage)
8 April 136416 September 1380  Son of John II King of France
(Roi de France)
Charles VI the Beloved, the Mad
(Charles VI le Bienaimé, le Fol)
16 September 138021 October 1422  Son of Charles V King of France
(Roi de France)

House of Lancaster (1422–1453), disputed

From 1340 to 1801 (but not from 1360 to 1369), the Kings of England and Great Britain claimed the title of King of France. Under the terms of the 1420 Treaty of Troyes, Charles VI had recognized his son-in-law Henry V of England as regent and heir. Henry V predeceased Charles VI and so Henry V's son, Henry VI, succeeded his grandfather Charles VI as King of France. Most of Northern France was under English control until 1435, but by 1453, the English had been expelled from all of France save Calais (and the Channel Islands), and Calais itself fell in 1558. Nevertheless, English and then British monarchs continued to claim the title for themselves until the creation of the United Kingdom in 1801.

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Claim Title
Henry VI of England
(Henri VI d'Angleterre)
21 October 142219 October 1453  By right of his father Henry V of England by the Treaty of Troyes become heir and regent to the French throneKing of France
(Roi de France)

House of Valois (1328–1589)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Charles VII the Victorious, the Well-Served
(Charles VII le Victorieux, le Bien-Servi)
21 October 142222 July 1461  Son of Charles VI[6] King of France
(Roi de France)
Louis XI the Prudent, the Cunning, the Universal Spider
(Louis XI le Prudent, le Rusé, l'Universelle Aragne)
22 July 146130 August 1483  Son of Charles VII King of France
(Roi de France)
Charles VIII the Affable
(Charles VIII l'Affable)
30 August 14837 April 1498  Son of Louis XI King of France
(Roi de France)

Orléans branch (1498–1515)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Louis XII Father of the People
(Louis XII le Père du Peuple)
7 April 14981 January 1515[2]  Great-grandson of Charles V
  Second cousin, and by first marriage son-in-law of Louis XI
  By second marriage husband of Anne of Brittany, widow of Charles VIII
King of France
(Roi de France)

Orléans–Angoulême Branch (1515–1589)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Francis I the Father and Restorer of Letters
(François Ier le Père et Restaurateur des Lettres)
1 January 151531 March 1547[2]  Great-great-grandson of Charles V
  First cousin once removed, and by
first marriage son-in-law of Louis XII
King of France
(Roi de France)
Henry II
(Henri II)
31 March 154710 July 1559  Son of Francis I/Maternal grandson of Louis XII King of France
(Roi de France)
Francis II
(François II)
10 July 15595 December 1560  Son of Henry II King of France
(Roi de France)

King of Scots
(1558–1560)
Charles IX5 December 156030 May 1574  Son of Henry II King of France
(Roi de France)
Henry III
(Henri III)
30 May 15742 August 1589  Son of Henry II King of France
(Roi de France)

King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania
(1573–1575)

House of Bourbon (1589–1792)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Henry IV, Good King Henry, the Green Gallant
(Henri IV, le Bon Roi Henri, le Vert-Galant)
2 August 158914 May 1610  Tenth generation descendant of Louis IX in the male line
  By first marriage son in law of Henry II, Brother in law of Francis II, Charles IX and Henry III
King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Louis XIII the Just
(Louis XIII le Juste)
14 May 161014 May 1643  Son of Henry IV King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Louis XIV the Great, the Sun King
(Louis XIV le Grand, le Roi Soleil)
14 May 16431 September 1715  Son of Louis XIII King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Louis XV the Beloved
(Louis XV le Bien-Aimé)
1 September 171510 May 1774  Great-grandson of Louis XIV King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Louis XVI the Restorer of French Liberty
(Louis XVI le Restaurateur de la Liberté Française)
10 May 177421 September 1792  Grandson of Louis XV King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
(1774–1791)

King of the French
(Roi des Français)
(1791–1792)
Louis XVII (Claimant)21 January 17938 June 1795  Son of Louis XVI King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)

French First Republic (1792–1804)

National Convention

Convention nationale
French First Republic
Coat of arms or logo
Autel de la Convention nationale or
Autel républicain
François-Léon Sicard
Panthéon de Paris, France, 1913
Type
Type
History
Established20 September 1792
Disbanded2 November 1795
Preceded byLegislative Assembly
Succeeded byDirectory Executive branch
Council of Ancients (upper house)
Council of Five Hundred (lower house)
Structure
Seats749
Political groups
  •   The Marsh (389)
  •   The Mountain (200)
  •   The Gironde (160)
Meeting place
Tuileries Palace, Paris

Presidents of the National Convention

The first President of France is considered to be Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (later Napoleon III), who was elected in the 1848 election, under the French Second Republic.

From 22 September 1792 to 2 November 1795, the French Republic was governed by the National Convention, whose president (elected from within for a 14-day term) may be considered as France's legitimate Head of State during this period. Historians generally divide the Convention's activities into three periods, moderate, radical, and reaction, and the policies of presidents of the Convention reflect these distinctions. During the radical and reaction phases, some of the presidents were executed, most by guillotine, committed suicide, or were deported. In addition, some of the presidents were later deported during the Bourbon Restoration in 1815.

Establishment of the Convention

The National Convention governed France from 20 September 1792 until 26 October 1795 during the most critical period of the French Revolution. The election of the National Convention took place in September 1792 after the election of the electoral colleges by primary regional assemblies on 26 August. Owing to the abstention of aristocrats and the anti-republicans, and the general fear of victimization, the voter turnout in the departments was low – as little as 7.5 percent or as much as 11.9% of the electorate, compared to 10.2% in the 1791 elections, despite the doubling of the number of eligible voters.[7]

Initially elected to provide a new constitution after the overthrow of the monarchy on 10 August 1792, the Convention included 749 deputies drawn from businesses and trades, and from such professions as law, journalism, medicine, and the clergy. Among its earliest acts was the formal abolition of the monarchy, through Proclamation, on 21 September, and the subsequent establishment of the Republic on 22 September. The French Republican Calendar discarded all Christian reference points and calculated time from the Republic's first full day after the monarchy – 22 September 1792, the first day of Year One.[8][9]

According to its own rules, the Convention elected its President every fortnight (two weeks). He was eligible for re-election after the lapse of a fortnight. Ordinarily the sessions were held in the morning, but evening sessions also occurred frequently, often extending late into the night. In exceptional circumstances, the Convention declared itself in permanent session and sat for several days without interruption. For both legislative and administrative deliberations, the Convention used committees, with powers more or less widely extended and regulated by successive laws.[10] The most famous of these committees included the Committee of Public Safety and the Committee of General Security.[9]

The Convention held both legislative and executive powers during the first years of the French First Republic and had three distinct periods: Girondins (moderate), Montagnard (radical) and Thermidorian (reaction). The Montagnards favored granting the poorer classes more political power; the Girondins favored a bourgeois republic and wanted to reduce the power and influence of Paris over the course of the revolution. A popular uprising in Paris helped to purge the Convention of the Girondins between 31 May and 2 June 1793;[9] the last of the Girondins served as presidents in late July.[11]

In its second phase, the Montagnards controlled the convention (June 1793 to July 1794). War and an internal rebellion convinced the revolutionary government to establish a Committee of Public Safety which exercised near dictatorial power. Consequently, the democratic constitution, approved by the convention on 24 June 1793, did not go into effect and the Convention lost its legislative initiative.[9] The rise of Mountaineers (Montagnards) corresponded with the decline of the Girondins. The Girondin party had hesitated on the correct course of action to take with Louis XVI after his attempt to flee France on 20 June 1791. Some elements of the Girondin party believed they could use the king as figurehead. While the Girondins hesitated, the Montagnards took a united stand during the trial in December 1792 – January 1793 and favored the king's execution.[12] Riding on this victory, the Montagnards then sought to discredit the Girondins using tactics previously used against themselves, denouncing the Girondins as liars and enemies of the Revolution.[13] The last quarter of the year was marked by the Reign of Terror (5 September 1793 – 28 July 1794),[14] also known as The Terror (French: la Terreur), a period of violence incited by conflict between these rival political factions, the Girondins and the Jacobins, and marked by mass executions of "enemies of the revolution". The death toll ranged in the tens of thousands, with 16,594 executed by guillotine (2,639 in Paris),[13] and another 25,000 in summary executions across France.[15] Most of the Parisian victims of the guillotine filled the Madeleine, Mosseaux (also called Errancis), and Picpus cemeteries.[16]

In the third phase, called Thermidor after the month in which it began, many of the members of the Convention overthrew the most prominent member of the committee, Maximilien Robespierre. This reaction to the radical influence of the Committee of Public Safety reestablished the balance of power in the hands of the moderate deputies. The Girondins who had survived the 1793 purge were recalled and the leading Montagnards were themselves purged, and many executed. In August 1795, the Convention approved the Constitution for the regime that replaced it, the bourgeois-dominated Directory, which exercised power from 1795 to 1799, when a coup d'etat by Napoleon Bonaparte overthrew it.[9]

Moderate Phase: September 1792 – June 1793

Initially, La Marais, or The Plain, a moderate, amorphous group, controlled the Convention. At the first session, held on 20 September 1792, the elder statesman Philippe Rühl presided over the session. The following day, amidst profound silence, the proposition was put to the assembly, "That royalty be abolished in France"; it carried, with cheers. On the 22nd came the news of the Republic's victory at the Battle of Valmy. On the same day, the Convention decreed that "in future, the acts of the assembly shall be dated First Year of the French Republic". Three days later, the Convention added the corollary of "the French republic is one and indivisible", to guard against federalism.[17]

The following men were elected for two-week terms as Presidents, or executives, of the Convention.[18]

Image Dates Name Fate
20 September 1792Philippe Rühl Suicide, 29/30 May 1795
20 September 1792   4 October 1792Jérôme Pétion de Villeneuve Botched suicide, guillotined 18 June 1794
4 October 1792   18 October 1792Jean-François Delacroix Guillotined with Georges Danton, 5 April 1794
18 October 1792   1 November 1792Marguerite-Élie Guadet Guillotined 17 June 1794
1 November 1792   15 November 1792Marie-Jean Hérault de Séchelles Guillotined with Georges Danton, 5 April 1794
15 November 1792   29 November 1792Henri Grégoire Died 28 May 1831
29 November 1792 – 13 December 1792Bertrand Barère de Vieuzac Died 13 January 1841
portrait of Jacques defermon 13 December 1792   27 December 1792Jacques Defermon des Chapelieres 20 June 1831
27 December 1792   10 January 1793Jean-Baptiste Treilhard Died 1 December 1810
10 January 1793   24 January 1793Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud 31 October 1793, guillotined.
24 January 1793   7 February 1793Jean-Paul Rabaut Saint-Étienne 5 December 1793, guillotined
7 February 1793   21 February 1793Jean-Jacques Bréard, dit Bréard-Duplessis 2 January 1840
21 February 1793   7 March 1793Edmond Louis Alexis Dubois-Crancé 29 June 1814
7 March 1793   21 March 1793Armand Gensonné 31 October 1793, guillotined
21 March 1793   4 April 1793Jean Antoine Joseph Debry 6 January 1834, Paris
4 April 1793   18 April 1793Jean-François-Bertrand Delmas Disappeared 19 August 1798[Notes 1]
18 April 1793   2 May 1793Marc David Alba Lasource 31 October 1793, guillotined with the Girondists
2 May 1793   16 May 1793Jean-Baptiste Boyer-Fonfrède 31 October 1793, guillotined
16 May 1793   30 May 1793Maximin Isnard 12 March 1825
30 May 1793   13 June 1793François-René-Auguste Mallarmé 25 July 1835

At the end of May 1793, an uprising of the Parisian sans culottes, the day-laborers and working class, undermined much of the authority of the moderate Girondins.[19] At this point, although Danton and Hérault de Séchelles both served one more term each as Presidents of the Convention, the Girondins had lost control of the Convention: in June and July compromise after compromise changed the course of the revolution from a bourgeois event to a radical, working class event. Price controls were introduced and a minimum wage guaranteed to workers and soldiers. Over the course of the summer, the government became truly revolutionary.[20]

Radical phase: June 1793 – July 1794

After the insurrection, any attempted resistance to revolutionary ideals was crushed. The insurrection of 31 May – 2 June 1793 marked a significant milestone in the history of the French Revolution. The days of 31 May – 2 June (French: journées) resulted in the fall of the Girondin party under pressure of the Parisian sans-culottes, Jacobins of the clubs, and Montagnards in the National Convention. The following men were elected as presidents of the Convention during its transition from its moderate to radical phase.[11]

Portrait Dates Name Death
13 June 1793   27 June 1793Jean-Marie Collot d'Herbois 8 June 1796, deported to French Guiana, died of yellow fever
27 June 1793   11 July 1793Jacques Alexis Thuriot de la Rosière 20 June 1829, died in exile
11 July 1793   25 July 1793Andre Jeanbon Saint Andre 10 December 1813
25 July 1793   8 August 1793Georges Jacques Danton A moderate guillotined by the radicals, 5 April 1794
8 August 1793   22 August 1793Marie-Jean Hérault de Séchelles Guillotined with Georges Danton, 5 April 1794

After 1793, President of the National Convention became a puppet office under the Committee of Public Safety The following men were elected as presidents of the Convention during its radical phase.[11]

Portrait Dates Name Death
22 August 1793   5 September 1793Maximilien Robespierre 28 July 1794, guillotined during the Reaction
5 September 1793   19 September 1793Jacques Nicolas Billaud-Varenne 3 June 1819
19 September 1793   3 October 1793Pierre Joseph Cambon 15 February 1820
3 October 1793   22 October 1793Louis-Joseph Charlier 23 February 1797
22 October 1793   6 November 1793Moïse Antoine Pierre Jean Bayle 1812 or 1815
6 November 1793   21 November 1793Pierre-Antoine Lalloy 16 March 1846
21 November 1793   6 December 1793Charles-Gilbert Romme 17 June 1795, suicide prior to guillotine
6 December 1793   21 December 1793Jean-Henri Voulland 23 February 1801
21 December 1793 – 5 January 1794Georges Auguste Couthon 28 July 1794, guillotined during the Reaction
One of the few members of La Marais to be elected President
5 January 1794   20 January 1794Jacques-Louis David 29 December 1825
20 January 1794   4 February 1794Marc Guillaume Alexis Vadier 14 December 1828
4 February 1794   19 February 1794Joseph-Nicolas Barbeau du Barran 16 May 1816, exiled in Switzerland during Bourbon Restoration
19 February 1794   6 March 1794Louis Antoine de Saint-Just 28 July 1794, guillotine during Reaction
7 March 1794   21 March 1794Philippe Rühl 29/30 May 1795, suicide
21 March 1794   5 April 1794Jean-Lambert Tallien 16 November 1820
5 April 1794   20 April 1794Jean-Baptiste-André Amar 21 December 1816
20 April 1794   5 May 1794Robert Lindet 17 February 1825
5 May 1794   20 May 1794Lazare Carnot 2 August 1823
20 May 1794   4 June 1794Claude-Antoine Prieur-Duvernois 11 August 1832
4 June 1794   19 June 1794Maximilien Robespierre 28 July 1794, guillotined during the Reaction
19 June 1794   5 July 1794Élie Lacoste 26 November 1806
5 July 1794   19 July 1794Jean-Antoine Louis, also called Louis du Bas-Rhin

Reaction: July 1794–1795

In 1794, Maximilien Robespierre continued to consolidate his power over the Montagnards with the use of the Committee of Public Safety.[21] By late spring, the moderate members of the Convention had had enough. They began to conspire secretly against Robespierre and his allies. The Thermidorian Reaction was a revolt within the Convention against the leadership of the Jacobin Club over the Committee of Public Safety. The National Convention voted to remove Maximilien Robespierre, Louis Antoine de Saint-Just, and several other leading members of the revolutionary government, and they were executed the following day. This ended the most radical phase of the French Revolution.[22][Notes 2]

The following men were Presidents of the Convention until its end.[11]

Portrait Dates Name Death
19 July 1794   3 August 1794Jean-Marie Collot d'Herbois 8 June 1796
3 August 1794   18 August 1794Philippe Antoine Merlin, dit Merlin de Douai 26 December 1838
18 August 1794   2 September 1794Antoine Merlin de Thionville 14 September 1833
2 September 1794   22 September 1794André Antoine Bernard, dit Bernard de Saintes 19 October 1818
22 September 1794   7 October 1794André Dumont 19 October 1838
7 October 1794   22 October 1794Jean-Jacques-Régis de Cambacérès 8 March 1824
One of the few members of La Marais to be elected President
Authored Napoleon's Civil Code
22 October 1794   6 November 1794Pierre-Louis Prieur, dit Prieur de la Marne 31 May 1827
6 November 1794   24 November 1794Louis Legendre 13 December 1797, died of natural causes (dementia)
24 November 1794   6 December 1794Jean-Baptiste Clauzel 2 July 1803
6 December 1794   21 December 1794Jean-François Reubell 23 November 1807
21 December 1794   6 January 1795Pierre-Louis Bentabole 1797
6 January 1795   20 January 1795Étienne-François Le Tourneur 4 October 1817
20 January 1795   4 February 1795Stanislas Joseph François Xavier Rovère died in 1798 in French Guiana
4 February 1795   19 February 1795Paul Barras 29 January 1829
19 February 1795   6 March 1795François Louis Bourdon 22 June 1798, after being deported to French Guiana
6 March 1795   24 March 1795Antoine Claire Thibaudeau 8 March 1854
24 March 1795   5 April 1795Jean Pelet, also Pelet de la Lozère 26 January 1842
5 April 1795   20 April 1795François-Antoine de Boissy d'Anglas 1828
One of the few members of La Marais to be elected President
20 April 1795   5 May 1795Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès 20 June 1836
One of the few members of La Marais to be elected President
5 May 1795   26 May 1795Théodore Vernier
26 May 1795   4 June 1795Jean-Baptiste Charles Matthieu
4 June 1795   19 June 1795Jean Denis, comte Lanjuinais died in 1828 in Paris
19 June 1795   4 July 1795Jean-Baptiste Louvet de Couvray 25 August 1797
4 July 1795   19 July 1795Louis-Gustave Doulcet de Pontécoulant 17 November 1764 – 3 April 1853
19 July 1795   3 August 1795Louis-Marie de La Révellière-Lépeaux 24 March 1824
3 August 1795   19 August 1795Pierre Claude François Daunou 20 June 1840
19 August 1795   2 September 1795Marie-Joseph Chénier 10 January 1811
2 September 1795   23 September 1795Théophile Berlier 12 September 1844
23 September 1795   8 October 1795Pierre-Charles-Louis Baudin 1799
8 October 1795   26 October 1795Jean Joseph Victor Génissieu 27 October 1804

Presidents of the Committee of Public Safety

Political parties

  Montagnard
  Thermidorian
  Marais

No. Portrait Name
(birth and death)
Term of office Political party Ref.
1 Georges Danton
(1759–1794)
6 April 1793 27 July 1793 Montagnard [23]
When all executive power was conferred upon a Committee of Public Safety, Danton had been one of the nine original members of that body. He was dispatched on frequent missions from the Convention to the republican armies in Belgium, and wherever he went he infused new energy into the army. He pressed forward the new national system of education, and he was one of the legislative committee charged with the construction of a new system of government.
2 Maximilien Robespierre
(1758–1794)
27 July 1793 27 July 1794 Montagnard [24]
When Robespierre took the power, the "Reign of Terror" was established. Monarchists, Girondists, Modérés but also commonly citizens were guillotined. The Roman Catholicism was replaced by the Cult of the Supreme Being. After one year of absolute power, Robespierre was deposed by the Thermidorian Reaction and executed.
3 Jacques Nicolas Billaud-Varenne
(1756–1819)
31 July 1794 1 September 1794 Montagnard [25]
After the Robespierre's execution, Billaud-Varenne, that was one of traitors, became the acting chief of the Committee of Public Safety. He was then attacked himself in the Convention for his ruthlessness, and a commission was appointed to examine his conduct and that of some other members of the former Committee of Public Safety and decreed his immediate deportation to French Guiana.
4 Philippe-Antoine Merlin de Douai
(1754–1838)
5 March 1795 5 April 1795 Thermidorian
After the Thermidorian Reaction, he became president of the Convention and a member of the Committee of Public Safety. Merlin de Douai convinced the Committee of Public Safety to agree with the closing of the Jacobin Club, on the ground that it was an administrative rather than a legislative measure. Merlin de Douai recommended the readmission of the survivors of the Girondists to the Convention, and drew up a law limiting the right of insurrection.
5 Jean Jacques Régis de Cambacérès
(1753–1824)
5 April 1795 2 August 1795 Marais
Cambacérès was considered too conservative to be one of the five Directors who took power in the coup of 1795, and finding himself in opposition to the nascent Executive Directory he retired from politics.
6 Philippe-Antoine Merlin de Douai
(1754–1838)
2 August 1795 1 September 1795 Thermidorian
-
7 Jean Jacques Régis de Cambacérès
(1753–1824)
1 September 1795 27 October 1795 Marais

The Directory

The Directory (French: Directoire) was the government of France following the collapse of the National Convention in late 1795. Administered by a collective leadership of five directors, it preceded the Consulate established in a coup d'etat by Napoleon. It lasted from 2 November 1795 until 10 November 1799, a period commonly known as the "Directory era". The directory operated with a bicameral structure. A Council of the Ancients, selected by lot, named the directors. For its own security, the Left (whose members dominated the Council) resolved that all five must be old members of the Convention and regicides who had voted to execute King Louis XVI. The Ancients chose Jean-François Rewbell; Paul François Jean Nicolas, vicomte de Barras; Louis Marie de La Révellière-Lépeaux; Lazare Nicolas Marguerite Carnot; and Étienne-François Le Tourneur.[11]

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.[26] The last president was Gohier.[27]

The key 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
Letourneur drawn by lot to be replaced
1 Prairial year V (20 May 1797).

François Barthélemy
Barthélemy & Carnot proscribed and replaced after
Coup of 18 Fructidor year V (4 Sept. 1797).

Philippe-Antoine Merlin de Douai

François de Neufchâteau
Neufchâteau drawn by lot to be replaced
26 Floréal year VI (15 May 1798).

Jean-Baptiste Treilhard
Rewbell 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).
Treilhard's 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 & Sieyès resigned.
Moulin & Gohier, refusing to resign, were arrested by General Moreau.

The Consulate

The provisional Consuls (10 November – 12 December 1799)
With the Coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799, the Directory was abolished, and a provisional committee of three Consuls took power.
Napoleon Bonaparte Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès Roger Ducos
The Consuls (12 December 1799 – 18 May 1804)
With the Constitution of the Year VIII (December 1799), Bonaparte became First Consul for ten years, with two consuls appointed by him who had consultative voices only.
With the Constitution of the Year X (August 1802), Bonaparte became First Consul for life, establishing a de facto dictatorship.
Napoleon Bonaparte
First Consul
J.J.R. de Cambacérès
Second Consul
Charles-François Lebrun
Third Consul
Napoleon took the title Emperor of the French on 18 May 1804, ending the Consulate and establishing the First French Empire.

House of Bonaparte, First Empire (1804–1814)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Title
Napoleon I, the Great
(Napoléon Ier, le Grand)
18 May 180411 April 1814[2] Emperor of the French
(Empereur des Français)

Napoleon Bonaparte became Emperor in 1804 following a referendum. He received the title Emperor of the French to differentiate himself from the previous monarchs. His rule saw the domination of France as it crushed the Prussians, Russians, Austrians and British alike. Napoleon's rule lasted from 1804 to 1814 when after many coalitions against him he was defeated by the combined might of the other powers of Europe. He would then be exiled to the Island of Elba off the coast of Italy. However he was given the island to run as the Emperor of Elba.

Capetian Dynasty (1814–1815)

House of Bourbon, Bourbon Restoration (1814–1815)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Louis XVIII11 April 181420 March 1815  Grandson of Louis XV   Younger brother of Louis XVI[2] King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)

House of Bonaparte, First Empire (Hundred Days, 1815)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessor Title
Napoleon I
(Napoléon Ier)
20 March 181522 June 1815[2] None Emperor of the French
(Empereur des Français)
Napoleon II
(Napoléon II)
[n 1]
22 June 18157 July 1815   Son of Napoleon I Emperor of the French
(Empereur des Français)

Capetian Dynasty (1815–1848)

House of Bourbon (1815–1830)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessor Title
Louis XVIII7 July 181516 September 1824[2]  Grandson of Louis XV   Younger brother of Louis XVI King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)
Charles X16 September 18242 August 1830  Grandson of Louis XV   Younger Brother of Louis XVI and Louis XVIII King of France and of Navarre
(Roi de France et de Navarre)

Revolution of 1830

For a few days during the July Revolution, Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette held executive power and was offered the presidency of a Republic. He refused.

Louis XIX was technically king for 20 minutes on 2 August 1830, and his nephew Henri V for ten days after that.

House of Orléans, July Monarchy (1830–1848)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Louis-Philippe I the Citizen King
(Louis Philippe, le Roi Bourgeois)
9 August 183024 February 1848  Sixth generation descendant of Louis XIII in the male line
  Fifth cousin of Louis XVI, Louis XVIII and Charles X
King of the French
(Roi des Français)

French Second Republic (1848–1852)

De facto heads of state of regimes of 1848

Political parties

  Moderate Republican

No. Portrait Name
(birth and death)
Term of office Political party Ref.
Provisional Government of the Republic
Jacques-Charles Dupont de l'Eure
(President of the Provisional Government)
(1767–1855)
24 February 1848 9 May 1848 Moderate Republican
His prestige and popularity prevented the heterogeneous republican coalition from having to immediately agree upon a common leader. Due to his great age (upon entering office, he was just a few days short of his 81st birthday), Dupont de l'Eure effectively delegated part of his duties to Minister of Foreign Affairs Alphonse de Lamartine. On 4 May, he resigned in order to make way for the Executive Commission, which he declined to join.
Executive Commission
Executive Commission: 9 May 1848 24 June 1848 Moderate Republican
In May 1848 the National Assembly decided to establish the Executive Commission as a form of collective presidency, similar to that of Year III in the first French Revolution. The members were chosen from prominent members of the former Provisional Government. These members acted jointly as head of state. The experiment was a failure and lasted slightly more than a month before chaos rocked Paris and much of the country.
Cavaignac Martial Law
Louis-Eugène Cavaignac
(Chief of the Executive Power)
(1802–1857)
28 June 1848 20 December 1848 Moderate Republican
On 24 June, the Executive Commission was defeated by a vote of no confidence and Cavaignac was granted full powers, making him France's de facto head of state and dictator. After laying down his dictatorial powers, he continued to preside over the Executive Committee till the election of a regular President of the Republic.

President of the Republic

Political parties

  Bonapartiste

No. Portrait Name
(birth and death)
Term of office
(election year)
Political party Ref.
1 Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte
(1808–1873)
20 December 1848 2 December 1852 Bonapartiste [28]
1848
Nephew of Napoléon I. Elected first President of the French Republic, in the 1848 election against Louis-Eugène Cavaignac. He provoked the French coup of 1851, and proclaimed himself Emperor of the French in 1852.

House of Bonaparte, Second Empire (1852–1870)

Portrait Coat of arms Name From Until Relationship with his predecessors Title
Napoleon III
(Napoléon III)
2 December 18524 September 1870  Nephew of Napoleon I[2] Emperor of the French
(Empereur des Français)

French Third Republic (1870–1940)

President of the Government of National Defense

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

  Independent
  Moderate Monarchist
  Opportunist Republican
  Democratic Republican Alliance
  Radical-Socialist Party

No. Portrait Name
(birth and death)
Term of office Political party Ref.
2 Adolphe Thiers
(1797–1877)
31 August 1871 24 May 1873 Independent [29]
Initially a moderate monarchist, named President following the adoption of the Rivet law. He became a Republican during his term, and resigned in the face of hostility from the Assemblée nationale, largely in favour of a return to monarchy.
3 Patrice de Mac-Mahon,
duc de Magenta

(1808–1893)
24 May 1873 30 January 1879 Moderate Monarchist [30]
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 1877 legislative elections, following his decision to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies. During his term, the French Constitutional Laws of 1875 that served as the Constitution of the Third Republic were passed, and he therefore became the first president under the constitutional settlement that would last until 1940.
4 Jules Grévy
(1807–1891)
30 January 1879 2 December 1887 Opportunist Republican [31]
The first president to complete a full term, he was easily re-elected in December 1885. He was nonetheless forced to resign, following an honours scandal in which his son-in-law was implicated.
5 Marie François Sadi Carnot
(1837–1894)
3 December 1887 25 June 1894 Opportunist Republican [32]
His term was marked by boulangist unrest and the Panama scandals, and by diplomacy with Russia. †Assassinated (stabbed) by Sante Geronimo Caserio a few months before the end of his mandate, he is interred at the Panthéon, Paris.
6 Jean Casimir-Perier
(1847–1907)
27 June 1894 16 January 1895 Opportunist Republican [33]
Perier's was the shortest Presidential term: he resigned after six months and 20 days.
7 Félix Faure
(1841–1899)
17 January 1895 16 February 1899 Opportunist Republican;
Progressive Republican
[34]
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 in flagrante.
8 Émile Loubet
(1838–1929)
18 February 1899 18 February 1906 Democratic Republican Alliance [35]
During his seven-year term, the 1905 French law on the Separation of the Churches and the State was adopted, and only four Presidents of the Council succeeded to the Hôtel Matignon. He did not seek re-election at the end of his term.
9 Armand Fallières
(1841–1931)
18 February 1906 18 February 1913 Democratic Republican Party [36]
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 re-election.
10 Raymond Poincaré
(1860–1934)
18 February 1913 18 February 1920 Democratic Republican Party [37]
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 and Social Party [38]
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 mental health problems.
12 Alexandre Millerand
(1859–1943)
23 September 1920 11 June 1924 Independent [39]
An "Independent Socialist" increasingly drawn to the right wing, he resigned after four years following the victory of the Cartel des Gauches in the 1924 legislative elections.
13 Gaston Doumergue
(1863–1937)
13 June 1924 13 June 1931 Radical-Socialist Party [40]
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 Radical-Socialist Party [41]
Elected in the second round of the 1931 election, having displaced the pacifist Aristide Briand. †Assassinated (shot) by the mentally unstable Paul Gorguloff.
15 Albert Lebrun
(1871–1950)
10 May 1932 11 July 1940
(de facto)
Democratic Alliance [42]
Re-elected in 1939, his second term was interrupted de facto by the rise to power of Marshal Philippe Pétain.

Acting Presidents

Under the Third Republic, the President of the Council served as acting president whenever the office of president was vacant.

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

French State (1940–1944)

Chief of State

  Vichy collaborationist

No. Portrait Name
(birth and death)
Term of office Political party Ref.
Philippe Pétain
(1856–1951)
11 July 1940 19 August 1944 Independent
Pétain was Chief of the French State from 1940 to 1944. An elder authoritarian military leader, Pétain issued fascist, clerical and antisemitic laws under Nazi Germany's supervisions. After the liberation of France in 1944, Pétain was imprisoned for life.

Provisional Government of the French Republic (1944–1947)

Portrait Name
(Birth–Death)
Term of office Political Party
(Political Coalition)
Legislature
(Election)
59 Charles de Gaulle
(1890–1970)
1 20 August 1944 26 January 1946 Independent Provisional
2 I (1945)
60 Félix Gouin
(1884–1977)
26 January 1946 24 June 1946 French Section of the Workers' International
(Tripartisme)
61 Georges Bidault
(1899–1983)
1 24 June 1946 28 November 1946 Popular Republican Movement
(Tripartisme)
II (June 1946)
Vincent Auriol
(1884–1966)
(interim)
28 November 1946 16 December 1946 French Section of the Workers' International
(Tripartisme)
IV Rep.
I (Nov.1946)
62 Léon Blum
(1872–1950)
3 16 December 1946 22 January 1947 French Section of the Workers' International
(Tripartisme)

French Fourth Republic (1947–1958)

Presidents

Political parties:   Socialist (SFIO)   Centre-right (CNIP)

No. Portrait Name
(birth and death)
Term of office
(election year)
Political party Ref.
16 Vincent Auriol
(1884–1966)
16 January 194716 January 1954 French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) [43]
1947
First President of the Fourth Republic; his term was marked by the First Indochina War.
17 René Coty
(1882–1962)
16 January 19548 January 1959 National Centre of Independents and Peasants (CNIP) [44]
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, giving way to De Gaulle. Technically, he is the first President of the Fifth Republic since he resigned after its establishment.

Fifth French Republic (1958–present)

Presidents

Political parties:   Socialist (PS)   Christian-Centrist (CD)   Republican (FNRI; PR)   Gaullist (UNR; UDR; RPR)   Neo-Gaullist (UMP)   Centrist (REM)

No. Portrait Name
(birth and death)
Term of office
(election year)
Political party Ref.
18 Charles de Gaulle
(1890–1970)
8 January 195928 April 1969 Union for the New Republic (UNR) until 1967
Union of Democrats for the Fifth Republic (UDR) from 1967
[45]
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. He adopted a new Constitution, thus founding the Fifth Republic. Easily elected president in the 1958 election by electoral college, he took office the following month; he was re-elected by universal suffrage in the 1965 election. In 1966, he withdrew France from NATO integrated military command, and expelled the American bases on French soil. Having refused to step down during the crisis of May 1968, resigned following the failure of the 1969 referendum on regionalisation.
Alain Poher (interim)
(1909–1996)
28 April 196920 June 1969 Democratic Centre (CD) [46]
Interim President, as President of the Senate. Defeated by Georges Pompidou in the second round of the 1969 election.
19 Georges Pompidou
(1911–1974)
20 June 19692 April 1974 Union of Democrats for the Republic (UDR) [47]
1969
Prime Minister under Charles de Gaulle (1962–1968). Elected President in the 1969 election against the centrist Alain Poher. Favoured European integration. Supported economic modernisation and industrialisation. Faced the 1973 oil crisis. †Died in office of Waldenström's macroglobulinemia, two years before the end of his mandate.
Alain Poher (interim)
(1909–1996)
2 April 197427 May 1974 Democratic Centre (CD) [46]
Interim President 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 197421 May 1981 Independent Republicans (RI) until 1977
Republican Party (PR) from 1977
[48]
1974
Founder of the FNRI and later the UDF 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 the 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 the disunion within the right wing.
21 François Mitterrand
(1916–1996)
21 May 198117 May 1995 Socialist Party (PS) [49]
1981, 1988
Candidate of a united left-wing ticket in the 1965 election, he founded the Socialist Party in 1971. Having narrowly lost the 1974 election, he was finally elected in the 1981 election. He instigated several reforms (abolition of the death penalty, a fifth week of paid leave for employees). After the right-wing victory in the 1986 legislative elections, he named Jacques Chirac Prime Minister, thus beginning the first cohabitation. Re-elected in the 1988 election against Chirac, he was again forced to cohabit with Édouard Balladur following the 1993 legislative elections. He retired in 1995 after the conclusion of his second term. He was the first president elected twice by universal suffrage, he was the first left-wing President of the Fifth Republic, and his presidential tenure was the longest of the Fifth Republic.
22 Jacques Chirac
(1932–2019)
17 May 199516 May 2007 Rally for the Republic (RPR) until 2002
Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) from 2002
[50]
1995, 2002
Prime Minister (1974–1976); on resignation, founded the RPR. Eliminated in the first round of the 1981 election, he again served as Prime Minister (1986–1988). Beaten in the 1988 election, he was elected in the 1995 election. He engaged in social reforms to counter "social fracture". In 1997, he dissolved the Assemblée nationale; a left-wing victory in the 1997 legislative elections, forced him to name Lionel Jospin Prime Minister for a five-year cohabitation. Presidential terms reduced from seven to five years. In 2002, he was re-elected against the leader of the extreme right-wing Jean-Marie Le Pen. Opposed the Iraq War. He did not run in 2007, he retired from political life and returned to the Conseil constitutionnel.
23 Nicolas Sarkozy
(1955–)
16 May 200715 May 2012 Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) [51]
2007
Served in numerous ministerial posts 1993–1995 and 2002–2007. Leader of the UMP since 2004. In the 2007 election, he topped the first round poll, and was elected in the second round against Ségolène Royal. Soon after taking office, he introduced the French fiscal package of 2007 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 South Ossetia War; at national level, he had to deal with the financial crisis and its consequences. Following the 2008 constitutional reform, he became the first president since Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte to address the Versailles Congress on 22 June 2009. President of the G8 and the G20 in 2011. Defeated in the 2012 election.
24 François Hollande
(1954–)
15 May 201214 May 2017 Socialist Party (PS) [52]
2012
Served as a member of the National Assembly for Corrèze's 1st constituency (1988–1993; 1997) and as First Secretary of the Socialist Party (1997–2008). He was Mayor of Tulle (2001–2008), and President of the Corrèze General Council (2008–2012). The second left-wing President of the Fifth Republic. Elected in the 2012 election, defeating Nicolas Sarkozy. Chose not to run for reelection in the 2017 election due to historically low approval ratings brought on by high unemployment and other economic factors.
25 Emmanuel Macron
(1977–)
14 May 2017Incumbent La République En Marche! (REM)
2017, 2022
Served as Deputy Secretary General of the Élysée (2012–2014), Minister of the Economy, Industry and Digital Affairs (2014–2016). Elected in the 2017 election, defeating Marine Le Pen (FN).

Later pretenders

Various pretenders descended from the preceding monarchs have claimed to be the legitimate monarch of France, rejecting the claims of the President of France, and of each other. These groups are:

Timeline

509 - 1795

Louis XVII of FranceLouis XVI of FranceLouis XV of FranceLouis XIV of FranceLouis XIII of FranceHenry IV of FranceHenry III of FranceCharles IX of FranceFrancis II of FranceHenry II of FranceFrancis I of FranceLouis XII of FranceCharles VIII of FranceLouis XI of FranceHenry VI of EnglandCharles VII of FranceCharles VI of FranceCharles V of FranceJohn II of FrancePhilip VI of FranceCharles IV of FrancePhilip V of FranceJohn I of FranceLouis X of FrancePhilip IV of FrancePhilip III of FranceLouis IX of FranceLouis VIII of FrancePhilip II of FranceLouis VII of FranceLouis VI of FrancePhilip I of FranceHenry I of FranceRobert II of FranceHugh CapetLouis V of FranceLothair of FranceLouis IV of FranceRudolph of FranceRobert I of FranceCharles the SimpleOdo of FranceCharles the FatCarloman IILouis III of FranceLouis the StammererCharles the BaldLouis the PiousCharlemagneCarloman IPepin the GreatChilderic IIITheuderic IVChilperic IIDagobert IIIChildebert IIIClovis IVTheuderic IIIClovis IIIChilderic IIChlothar IIIClovis IIDagobert IChlothar IIChilperic ICharibert IChlothar IChildebert IClovis I

1792 - Present

Emmanuel MacronFrançois HollandeNicolas SarkozyJacques ChiracFrançois MitterrandValéry Giscard d'EstaingGeorges PompidouRené CotyLéon BlumVincent AuriolGeorges BidaultFélix GouinCharles de GaullePhilippe PétainAlbert LebrunPaul DoumerGaston DoumergueAlexandre MillerandPaul DeschanelRaymond PoincaréArmand FallièresÉmile LoubetFélix FaureJean Casimir-PerierSadi Carnot (statesman)Jules GrévyPatrice de MacMahonAdolphe ThiersLouis-Jules TrochuNapoleon III of FranceLouis-Eugène CavaignacFrench Executive Commission (1848)Jacques-Charles Dupont de l'EureLouis Philippe IHenri, Count of ChambordLouis Antoine, Duke of AngoulêmeCharles X of FranceNapoleon IILouis XVIIINapoleonFrench ConsulateFrench DirectoryLouis XVII of France

See also

Notes, citations and sources

Notes

  1. From 22 June to 7 July 1815, Bonapartists considered Napoleon II as the legitimate heir to the throne, his father having abdicated in his favor. However, throughout this period he resided in Austria, with his mother. Louis XVIII was reinstalled as king on 7 July
  1. From 9 Apr 1793 to 18 Apr 1793 the functions of president were exercised by vice-president Jacques-Alexis Thuriot de la Rosière. He was elected president in his own right for the fortnight 27 June 1793   11 July 1793
  2. The name Thermidorian refers to 9 Thermidor Year II (27 July 1794), the date according to the French Revolutionary Calendar when Robespierre and other radical revolutionaries came under concerted attack in the National Convention. Thermidorian Reaction also refers to the remaining period until the National Convention was superseded by the Directory; this is also sometimes called the era of the Thermidorian Convention. Prominent figures of Thermidor include Paul Barras, Jean-Lambert Tallien, and Joseph Fouché. Neely, pp. 225–227.

References

  1. Brown, Peter (2003). The Rise of Western Christendom. Malden, MA, USA: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. p. 137.
  2. Hansen, M.H., ed. (1967). Kings, Rulers, and Statesmen. NY, USA: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. pp. 103–107.
  3. Babcock, Philip (1993). Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged. MA, USA: Merriam-Webster. p. 341.
  4. Gwatking, H. M.; Whitney, J. P.; et al. (1930). Cambridge Medieval History: Germany and the Western Empire. Vol. III. London: Cambridge University Press.
  5. Parisse, Michael (2005). "Lotharingia". In Reuter, T. (ed.). The New Cambridge Medieval History: c. 900–c. 1024. Vol. III. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. pp. 313–315.
  6. Knecht, Robert (2004). The Valois: Kings of France 1328–1422. NY, USA: Hambledon Continuum. pp. ix–xii. ISBN 1852854200.
  7. William Doyle, The Oxford History of the French Revolution, 2nd edition, Oxford University Press, 1990, here. See also Frank E. Smitha, Macrohistory: Fear, Overreaction and War (1792–93). 2009–2015 version. Accessed 21 April 2015.
  8. Doyle, p. 194.
  9. Editors, National Convention, Britannica.com, 2015, Accessed 22 April 2014.
  10. Roger Dupuy, La République jacobine. Terreur, guerre et gouvernement révolutionnaire (1792—1794). Paris, Le Seuil, 2005, pp. 28–34.
  11. Pierre-Dominique Cheynet, France: Members of the Executive Directory: 1793–1795, Archontology.org 2013, Accessed 19 February 2015.
  12. Jeremy D. Popkin, A Short History of the French Revolution, 5th ed. Pearson, 2009, pp. 72–77.
  13. Marisa Linton, Choosing Terror: Virtue, Friendship, and Authenticity in the French Revolution. (Oxford U.P., 2013), 174–75.
  14. Terror, Reign of; Britannica.com
  15. Donald Greer, The Incidence of the Terror during the French Revolution: A Statistical Interpretation, Cambridge (United States C.A), Harvard University Press, 1935
  16. Hector Fleischmann, Behind the Scenes in the Terror, Brentano's, 1915, pp. 129. and (in French) Garnier, Jean-Claude Garnier; Jean-Pierre Mohen. Cimetières autour du monde : Un désir d'éternité. Editions Errance. 2003, p. 191.
  17. J.M.Thompson, The French Revolution. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1959, p. 315.
  18. Pierre-Dominique Cheynet, France: Members of the Executive Directory: 1791–1792, Archontology.org 2013, Accessed 19 February 2015.
  19. François Furet, The French Revolution: 1770–1814, Oxford, Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 1996, p. 127.
  20. Thompson, p. 370.
  21. Robert J. Alderson, This Bright Era of Happy Revolutions: French Consul Michel-Ange-Bernard Mangourit and International Republicanism in Charleston, 1792–1794. U. of South Carolina Press, 2008, pp. 9–10.
  22. Sylvia Neely, A Concise History of the French Revolution, NY, Rowman & Littlefield, 2008, pp. 225–227.
  23. President of the Committee of Public Safety
  24. Informal President of the Committee of Public Safety, but also leading person in the National Convention. De facto, dictator in 1793–1794.
  25. Anchel, Robert (1911). "Billaud-Varenne, Jacques Nicolas" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 03 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 933–934.
  26. Cheynet, Pierre-Dominique (2013). "France: Presidents of the Executive Directory: 1795-1799". Archontology.org. Retrieved 16 November 2013.
  27. Lefebvre & Soboul, p. 199.
  28. "Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (1808–1873)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  29. "Adolphe Thiers (1797–1877)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  30. "Patrice de Mac-Mahon (1808–1893)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  31. "Jules Grévy (1807–1891)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  32. "Marie-François-Sadi Carnot (1837–1894)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  33. "Jean Casimir-Perier (1847–1907)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  34. "Félix Faure (1841–1899)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  35. "Emile Loubet (1836–1929)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  36. "Armand Fallières (1841–1931)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  37. "Raymond Poincaré (1860–1934)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  38. "Paul Deschanel (1855–1922)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  39. "Alexandre Millerand (1859–1943)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  40. "Gaston Doumergue (1863–1937)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  41. "Paul Doumer (1857–1932)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  42. "Albert Lebrun (1871–1950)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  43. "Vincent Auriol (1884–1966)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  44. "René Coty (1882–1962)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  45. "Charles de Gaulle (1890–1970)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  46. "Alain Poher (1909–1996)" (in French). Official website of the French Presidency. 14 January 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  47. "Georges Pompidou (1911–1974)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  48. "Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (1926)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  49. "François Mitterrand (1916–1996)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  50. "Jacques Chirac (1932)". Official website of the French Presidency. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  51. "Nicolas Sarkozy (1955)". Official website of the French Presidency. 21 January 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  52. "Biographie officielle de François Hollande" [Official biography of François Hollande]. Official website of the French Presidency. 22 November 2018. Retrieved 5 October 2022.

Sources

  • Alderson, Robert. This Bright Era of Happy Revolutions: French Consul. U. of South Carolina Press, 2008. OCLC 192109705
  • Anchel, Robert (1911). "Convention, The National" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 07 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 46.
  • Doyle, William. The Oxford History of the French Revolution. 2nd edition. Oxford University Press, 2002. OCLC 490913480
  • Cheynet, Pierre-Dominique. France: Members of the Executive Directory: 1792–1793, and 1793–1795. Archontology.org 2013, Accessed 19 February 2015.
  • (in French) Dupuy, Roger. La République jacobine. Terreur, guerre et gouvernement révolutionnaire (1792—1794). Paris, Le Seuil, 2005. ISBN 2-02-039818-4
  • Furet, François. The French Revolution: 1770–1814. Oxford, Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 1996. OCLC 25094935
  • Fleischmann, Hector, Behind the Scenes in the Terror, NY, Brentano's, 1915. OCLC 499613
  • (in French) Garnier, Jean-Claude; Jean-Pierre Mohen. Cimetières autour du monde: Un désir d'éternité. Paris, Editions Errance. 2003. OCLC 417420035
  • Greer, Donald. The Incidence of the Terror during the French Revolution: A Statistical Interpretation. Cambridge (United States C.A), Harvard University Press, 1951. OCLC 403511
  • Linton, Marisa. Choosing Terror: Virtue, Friendship, and Authenticity in the French Revolution Oxford U.P., 2013. OCLC 829055558
  • Neeley, Sylvia. A Concise History of the French Revolution, Lanham, Rowman & Littlefield, 2008. OCLC 156874791
  • Popkin, Jeremy D. A Short History of the French Revolution. 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, Pearson, 2009. OCLC 36739547
  • Smitha, Frank E. Macrohistory: Fear, Overreaction and War (1792–93). 2009–2015 version. Accessed 21 April 2015.
  • Thompson, J.M. The French Revolution. Oxford, Basil Blackwell, 1959. OCLC 1052771
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