Office:	President of France
Term in office:	May 10, 1981 - May 17, 1995
Preceded by:	Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
Succeeded by:	Jacques Chirac
Date of birth:	October 26, 1916
Place of birth:	Jarnac
Date of death:	January 8, 1996
Place of death:	Paris
First lady:	Danielle Mitterrand
Party:	Parti Socialiste

François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (October 26, 1916 – January 8, 1996;   pronunciation^?) was a French politician and President of France from May 1981, re-elected in 1988, until 1995. François Mitterrand This work is copyrighted. ... The President of France, known officially as the President of the Republic (Président de la République in French), is Frances elected Head of State. ... May 10 is the 130th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (131st in leap years). ... 1981 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 17 is the 137th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (138th in leap years). ... 1995 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard dEstaing (born February 2, 1926 in Koblenz, Germany) is a French politician who was President of the Republic from 1974 until 1981. ... Jacques René Chirac (born November 29, 1932) is a French politician. ... October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 66 days remaining. ... 1916 is a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar) // Events January-February January 1 -The first successful blood transfusion using blood that had been stored and cooled. ... Jarnac is a city and commune in France in the Charente département. ... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Socialist Party is the name of several different socialist political parties around the world. ... October 26 is the 299th day of the year (300th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 66 days remaining. ... 1916 is a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar) // Events January-February January 1 -The first successful blood transfusion using blood that had been stored and cooled. ... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1996 is a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... To play the audio file do not click on the -image. ... Image File history File links Fr-François Mitterrand. ... A politician is an individual involved in politics. ... The President of France, known officially as the President of the Republic (Président de la République in French), is Frances elected Head of State. ... 1981 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1995 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Early career

Mitterrand was born in Jarnac, Charente. In his youth he was a staunch conservative and an ardent Catholic. His first political act was to join the ultranationalist Croix de Feu, which he did in preference to the larger but equally conservative Action Française due to the proscription of the latter organisation by the Vatican. Jarnac is a city and commune in France in the Charente département. ... Charente is a département in central France named after the Charente River. ... Ultra-nationalists are extreme nationalists or patriots. ... Croix de Feu was a French nationalist group of the Interwar period. ... The Action Française is a French Monarchist movement and periodical founded by Maurice Pujo and Henri Vaugeois and whose principal ideologist was Charles Maurras. ...

Enrolled during WWII, he was made prisoner in 1940 and escaped in 1941. He reached the so-called free zone and joined the Vichy government as a junior minister. Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (over 11 miles) into the air, August 9, 1945 after the Allied atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. ... 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1941 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Vichy France, or the Vichy regime (in French, now called: Régime de Vichy or Vichy; at the time, called itself: État Français, or French State) was the de facto French government of 1940-1944 during the Nazi Germany occupation of World War II. The Vichy position that it was the...

In December 1942, Mitterrand wrote in the official Vichy journal France, revue de l'État nouveau:

"If France doesn't want to die in the mud, the last French people worthy of this name must declare a merciless war against all who, here or abroad, are preparing to open floodgates against it: Jews, Freemasons, Communists... always the same, and all of them Gaulists."

"Si la France ne veut pas mourir dans cette boue là, il faut que les derniers français dignes de ce nom déclarent une guerre sans merci à tous ceux qui, à l'intérieur comme à l'extérieur, se préparent à lui ouvrir les écluses : juifs, maçons, communistes...toujours les mêmes et tous gaullistes".

Later he worked with the French Resistance in a group including several Vichy officials, while still holding his ministerial job. Almost until his death, Mitterrand would lay a wreath every year on the grave of Pétain, the head of the Vichy government and a French hero of the First World War; in 1943 he received the Francisque, the honorific distinction of the Vichy regime. When Mitterrand's Vichy past was exposed in the 1950s, he initially denied having received the Francisque. The French Resistance is the name used for resistance movements that fought military occupation of France by Nazi Germany and the Vichy France undemocratic regime during World War II after the government and the high command of France surrendered in 1940. ... Philippe Pétain Marshal Henri Philippe Pétain (April 24, 1856 - July 23, 1951), generally known as Philippe Pétain or Marshal Pétain, was a French soldier and leader of Vichy France. ... WWI redirects here. ... 1943 is a common year starting on Friday. ... Millennia: 1st millennium - 2nd millennium - 3rd millennium // Events and trends The 1950s in Western society was marked with a sharp rise in the economy for the first time in almost 30 years and return to the 1920s-type consumer society built on credit and boom-times, as well as the...

After the war he quickly moved back into politics, joined a center-left resistance party and was elected as representative for the Nièvre département in 1946. He held various offices in the Fourth Republic before resigning in 1957 over the French policies during the Algerian war of independence. Mitterrand is said to have covered up, as justice minister, various illegal acts, including torture, during the repression of the independence movement. Politics is the process and method of making decisions for groups. ... Nièvre is a département in the center of France named after the Nièvre River. ... The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties and are now grouped into 22 metropolitan and four overseas régions. ... 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... The Fourth Republic existed in France between 1946 and 1958. ... 1957 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Algerian War of Independence (1954–62) was a period of guerrilla strikes, maquis fighting, terrorism against civilians on both sides, and riots between the French army and colonists, or the colons as they were called, in Algeria and the FLN (Front de Libération Nationale) and other pro-independence...

In 1958, he was one of the few to object to the nomination of Charles de Gaulle as head of government, and lost his seat in the 1958 elections, beginning a long "crossing of the desert". In 1959, on the avenue de l'Observatoire in Paris, Mitterrand escaped an assassin's bullet by diving behind a hedge. The incident brought him a great deal of publicity, boosting his political ambitions. Some of his critics claim that he had staged the incident himself. Prosecution was initiated on the issue, but was later dropped. 1958 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (   listen?) (November 22, 1890 – November 9, 1970), in France commonly referred to as le général de Gaulle, was a French military leader and statesman. ... 1959 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ...

In the Fifth Republic he stood in the Presidential elections against Charles de Gaulle in 1965 but was defeated. President of the Left Federation (coalition of socialists and liberals) from 1965 to 1968, he turned to the French Socialist Party (PS), becoming leader of the party by 1971, following the Congress of Epinay. He stood again in 1974 opposite Valéry Giscard d'Estaing and was again defeated. The Fifth Republic is the fifth and current republican constitution of France, which was introduced on October 5, 1958. ... Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (   listen?) (November 22, 1890 – November 9, 1970), in France commonly referred to as le général de Gaulle, was a French military leader and statesman. ... 1965 was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1965 calendar). ... The emblem of the French Socialist Party The Socialist Party (Parti Socialiste or PS), founded in 1969, is the main opposition party in France. ... 1971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard dEstaing (born February 2, 1926 in Koblenz, Germany) is a French politician who was President of the Republic from 1974 until 1981. ...

Presidency

In the French Presidential Election of 1981 he became the first socialist President of the Fifth Republic, and his government the first left-wing government in 23 years. One of his first decisions was to ask Parliament to abolish the death penalty; Parliament also voted in a wealth tax in the first year of his first term as President. This article needs cleanup. ... Capital punishment, also referred to as the death penalty, is the judicially ordered execution of a prisoner as a punishment for a serious crime, often called a capital offense or a capital crime. ... Because of the broad term wealth, property tax, capital transfer taxes (inheritance tax, gift tax) and capital gains taxes are sometimes referred to as wealth taxes. Net worth tax Some countrys governments will require declaration of the tax payers balance sheet (assets and liabilities), and from that ask for...

Domestically, his aims were blunted first by a series of financial crises, and then by a conservative parliament (from 1986 to 1988, and 1993 to 1995), although he worked well with Prime Minister Jacques Chirac. Various "great projects" were completed during his Presidency, including the Channel Tunnel, the pyramid at the Louvre (1988), the Grande Arche at La Défense (1989), and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France (1995). Mitterrand also presided over the celebrations of the bicentenary of the French Revolution in 1989. Conservatism or political conservatism is any of several historically related political philosophies or political ideologies. ... 1986 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... 1995 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Prime Minister of France (Premier ministre de la France) is the functional head of the Cabinet of France. ... Jacques René Chirac (born November 29, 1932) is a French politician. ... Channel Tunnel The English terminal at Cheriton, from the Pilgrims Way The Channel Tunnel, (French: le tunnel sous la Manche; once popularly nicknamed the Chunnel in English) is a 50-km-long rail tunnel beneath the English Channel at the Straits of Dover, connecting Cheriton in Kent, England and Sangatte... Geometric shape created by connecting a polygonal base to an apex A pyramid is a geometric shape formed by connecting a polygonal base and a point, called the apex, by triangular faces. ... The main courtyard of the Louvre at night. ... The Grande Arche de la Fraternité is a monument in the business district of La Défense to the west of Paris. ... La Défense, the new skyline of Paris La Défense is a district of high-rise offices, apartment blocks and shopping complexes over part of the communes of Nanterre, Courbevoie and Puteaux (all in the Hauts-de-Seine département), to the west of Paris. ... The new buildings of the library. ... The period of the French Revolution is very important in the history of France and the world. ...

His major achievements came internationally, especially in the European Economic Community. He supported the extension of the Community to Spain and Portugal (who both joined in January 1986) and in February 1986 he helped the Single European Act come into effect. He worked well with Helmut Kohl and improved Franco-German relations measurably. Together they fathered the Maastricht Treaty, which was signed on February 7, 1992. The European Community (EC), most important of three European Communities, was originally founded on March 25, 1957 by the signing of the Treaty of Rome under the name of European Economic Community. ... 1986 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Single European Act (SEA) was the first major revision of the Treaty of Rome. ... Dr. Helmut Kohl (full name Helmut Josef Michael Kohl) (born April 3, 1930) is a German conservative politician and statesman. ... The Maastricht treaty (formally, the Treaty on European Union) was signed on 7 February 1992 in Maastricht between the members of the European Community and entered into force on 1 November 1993. ... February 7 is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1992 is a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Because the Left had had a series of defeats in national elections since 1958 when Mitterrand was elected in 1981, he was largely regarded as the savior of the Left and for this reason was highly regarded by many Socialists, perhaps to the point of ridicule (the so-called tontonmania, from tonton, or "uncle", Mitterrand's nickname). Critics contend that this led to complacency and tolerance for Mitterrand's shortcomings: a monarchic style of presidency reminiscent of that of Charles de Gaulle, lack of transparency regarding his early career and his ties to Vichy, and other scandals (see below).

His term as President ended in May 1995. He was succeeded by Jacques Chirac and died of cancer six months later. 1995 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Jacques René Chirac (born November 29, 1932) is a French politician. ... When normal cells are damaged or old they undergo apoptosis; cancer cells, however, avoid apoptosis. ...

His wife, Danielle Mitterrand, is a left-wing militant, with whom he had two sons: Jean-Christophe and Gilbert Mitterrand. He also had a daughter, Mazarine Pingeot; see below. His nephew Frédéric Mitterrand is a journalist, and his brother in law Roger Hanin a well-known actor. In politics, left-wing, political left, leftism, or simply the left, are terms which refer (with no particular precision) to the segment of the political spectrum typically associated with any of several strains of socialism, social democracy, or liberalism (especially in the American sense of the word), or with opposition... The word militant can refer to any individual engaged in warfare, a fight, combat, or generally serving as a soldier. ... Mazarine Pingeot (born December 1974) is the daughter of former French president François Mitterrand and Anne Pingeot. ... Roger Hanin (real name Roger Lévy, born October 20, 1925 in Algiers) is a French actor (and film director). ...

Scandals and controversies of Mitterrand's presidency and death

Following his death, a controversy erupted when his former physician, Dr Claude Gubler, wrote a book called Le Grand Secret ("The Great Secret") explaining that Mitterrand had had false health reports published since November 1981, hiding his cancer. Mitterrand's family then prosecuted Gubler and his publisher for violating medical secrecy. A physician is a person who practices medicine. ... 1981 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Mitterrand, a married man, had numerous affairs, among which one with Anne Pingeot, out of which a daughter, Mazarine, was born. Mitterrand sought secrecy on that issue, which lasted until November 1994, when Mitterrand's failing health and impending retirement meant he could no longer count on the fear and respect he had once engendered among French journalists. Also, Mazarine, a college student, had reached an age where she could no longer be protected as a minor. 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ...

From 1982 to 1986, Mitterrand established an "anti-terror cell" installed as a service of the president of the republic. This was a fairly unusual setup, since such law enforcement missions against terrorism are normally left to the French National Police and French Gendarmerie, run under the cabinet and the Prime Minister, and under the supervision of the judiciary. The cell was largely made from members of these services, but it bypassed the normal line of command and safeguards. 1982 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1986 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The word terrorism is controversial and has many definitions, none of which are universally accepted. ... The National Police (Police Nationale) is the main civil law enforcement agency of France, with primary jurisdiction in cities and large towns. ... Gendarmes guarding the Paris Hall of Justice Gendarmerie motorcyclists police the roads and autoroutes of rural France. ...

Most markedly, it appears that the cell, under illegal presidential orders, obtained wiretaps on journalists, politicians and other personalities who may have been an impediment for Mitterrand's personal affairs, especially those who may have revealed the situation of Mazarine and her mother. The illegal wiretapping was revealed in 1993 by Libération; the case against members of the cells went to trial in November 2004. [1] [2] Telephone tapping or Wire tapping/ Wiretapping (in US) describes the monitoring of telephone conversations by a third party, often by covert means. ... A journalist is a person who practices journalism, the gathering and dissemination of information about current events, trends, issues and people. ... A politician is an individual involved in politics. ... 1993 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... Libération (affectionately known as Libé) is a French newspaper founded in Paris in 1973 by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968. ...

Admiral Pierre Lacoste, the former head of the DGSE spy agency in France, confirmed in July 2005 that Mitterrand had personally authorized the bombing of a Greenpeace boat called the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland harbour, New Zealand, on July 10, 1985. The vessel was preparing to protest against French nuclear testing in the South Pacific when the explosion sank the ship, killing photographer Fernando Pereira. The New Zealand government called the bombing the country's first terror attack. [3] The Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure (generally known as DGSE) is Frances external intelligence agency. ... Greenpeace protest in Brasília (Brazil). ... The Rainbow Warrior Rainbow Warrior is a schooner (sailing ship) operated by the Greenpeace organization. ... Auckland, in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest urban area in New Zealand. ... 1985 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A nuclear test explosion is an experiment involving the detonation of a nuclear weapon. ... South Pacific is a musical play by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, which opened on Broadway on April 7, 1949. ... Fernando Pereira was a Portuguese photographer and Greenpeace activist who died when French intelligence (DGSE) blew up the ship Rainbow Warrior on July 10, 1985. ...

External links

• "Mitterrand's Legacy" (1996) in The Nation
• François Mitterrand institute
• Source of quoted article

The Nation - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Daniel Mayer (1909-1996) was a member of the French Socialist Party. ... Daniel Mayer (1909-1996) was a member of the French Socialist Party. ... Louis Jacquinot (16 September 1898, Gondrecourt-le-Château (Meuse) - 14 June 1993, Paris) was a French lawyer and politician, chief of Prime Minister Raymond Poincarés office. ... Queuilles First Government, 11 September 1948 - 28 October 1949 Henri Queuille - President of the Council and Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs André Marie - Vice President of the Council and Minister of Justice Robert Schuman - Minister of Foreign Affairs Paul Ramadier - Minister of National Defense Jules Moch - Minister of... Minister of State is a title borne by officials in certain countries governed under the parliamentary system. ... The entrance to the Ministry in Place Beauvau is guarded by one gendarme (to the left) and one policewoman (to the right). ... Maurice Bourgès-Maunoury, French prime minister Maurice Bourgès-Maunoury (August 19, 1914 - February 10, 1993) was a French Radical politician who served as Prime Minister in the Fourth Republic during 1957. ... For the German composer, see Robert Schumann Robert Schuman in 1958, receiving Karlspreis in the city of Aachen Robert Schuman (29 June 1886-4 September 1963) was a noted German-born French politician who is regarded as one of the founders of the European Union. ... Categories: French government | Stub ... The emblem of the French Socialist Party The Socialist Party (Parti Socialiste or PS), founded in 1969, is the main opposition party in France. ... Lionel Jospin has white, curly hair and wears glasses. ... Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard dEstaing (born February 2, 1926 in Koblenz, Germany) is a French politician who was President of the Republic from 1974 until 1981. ... The President of France, known officially as the President of the Republic (Président de la République in French), is Frances elected Head of State. ... Jacques René Chirac (born November 29, 1932) is a French politician. ... Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard dEstaing (born February 2, 1926 in Koblenz, Germany) is a French politician who was President of the Republic from 1974 until 1981. ... Joan Martí Alanis (born 29 November 1928) is a former Bishop of Urgell and hence former co-Prince of Andorra. ... This is a list of Co-Princes of Andorra. ... Joan Martí Alanis (born 29 November 1928) is a former Bishop of Urgell and hence former co-Prince of Andorra. ... Jacques René Chirac (born November 29, 1932) is a French politician. ... Joan Martí Alanis (born 29 November 1928) is a former Bishop of Urgell and hence former co-Prince of Andorra. ...