The head of the government of France has been called the prime minister of France (French: Premier ministre) since 1959, when Michel Debré became the first officeholder appointed under the Fifth Republic. During earlier periods of history, the head of government of France was known by different titles. As was common in European democracies of the 1815–1958 period (the Bourbon Restoration and July Monarchy, the Second, Third, and Fourth Republic, as well as the Vichy regime), the head of government was called President of the Council of Ministers (Président du Conseil des ministres), generally shortened to President of the council (Président du Conseil). This should not be confused with the elected office of president of the French Republic, who appoints the prime minister as head of state.
Kingdom of France (843–1792)
Under the Kingdom of France, there was no official title for the leader of the government. The chief ministers (principal ministres) of certain kings of France nonetheless led the government de facto.
Chief minister | Term | King | |
---|---|---|---|
Anne de Montmorency | 1 January 1515 – 14 June 1541 (26 years, 164 days) |
Francis I (r. 1515–1547) | |
Claude d'Annebault | 1541 – 31 March 1547 (c. 6 years) | ||
Anne de Montmorency | 1 April 1547 – 10 August 1557 (10 years, 131 days) |
Henry II (r. 1547–1559) | |
Position vacant (absolute rule by Henry II) |
11 August 1557 – 10 July 1559 (1 year, 333 days) | ||
Francis, Duke of Guise | 10 July 1559 – 5 December 1560 (1 year, 148 days) |
Francis II (r. 1559–1560) | |
Michel de l'Hôpital | 5 December 1560 – 13 March 1573 (12 years, 98 days: died in office) |
Charles IX (r. 1560–1574) | |
René de Birague | 30 May 1574 – 24 November 1583 (9 years, 178 days: died in office) |
Henry III (r. 1574–1589) | |
Philippe Hurault de Cheverny | 24 November 1583 – 12 May 1588 (4 years, 170 days) | ||
Position vacant (absolute rule by Henry III) |
12 May 1588 – 2 August 1589 (1 year, 82 days) | ||
Maximilien de Béthune, Duke of Sully | 2 August 1589 – 29 January 1611 (21 years, 180 days) |
Henry IV (r. 1589–1610) | |
Nicolas de Neufville, seigneur de Villeroy | 30 January 1611 – 9 August 1616 (5 years, 192 days) |
Louis XIII (r. 1610–1643) | |
Concino Concini | 9 August 1616 – 9 August 1616 (0 days: died in office) | ||
Charles d'Albert, duc de Luynes | 24 April 1617 – 15 December 1621 (4 years, 235 days: died in office) | ||
Position vacant (absolute rule by Louis XIII) |
15 December 1621 – 12 August 1624 (2 years, 241 days) | ||
Cardinal Richelieu | 12 August 1624 – 4 December 1642 (18 years, 114 days: died in office) | ||
Cardinal Mazarin | 5 December 1642 – 9 March 1661 (18 years, 94 days: died in office) |
Louis XIV (r. 1643–1715) | |
Position vacant (absolute rule by Louis XIV) |
9 March 1661 – 1 September 1715 (54 years, 176 days) | ||
Guillaume Dubois | 12 September 1715 – 10 August 1723 (7 years, 332 days: died in office) |
Louis XV (r. 1715–1774) | |
Philippe II, Duke of Orléans | 10 August 1723 – 2 December 1723 (114 days: died in office) | ||
Louis Henri, Duke of Bourbon | 2 December 1723 – 11 June 1726 (2 years, 191 days) | ||
André-Hercule de Fleury | 11 June 1726 – 29 January 1743 (16 years, 232 days: died in office) | ||
Position vacant (absolute rule by Louis XV) |
29 January 1743 – 3 December 1758 (15 years, 308 days) | ||
Étienne François de Choiseul, Duke of Choiseul | 3 December 1758 – 24 December 1770 (12 years, 21 days) | ||
René Nicolas Charles Augustin de Maupeou | 25 December 1770 – 23 August 1774 (3 years, 241 days) | ||
Jacques Turgot | 24 August 1774 – 12 May 1776 (1 year, 262 days) |
Louis XVI (r. 1774–1792) | |
Jean-Frédéric Phélypeaux, comte de Maurepas | 14 May 1776 – 21 November 1781 (5 years, 191 days: died in office) | ||
Charles Gravier, comte de Vergennes | 21 November 1781 – 13 February 1787 (5 years, 84 days: died in office) | ||
Étienne Charles de Loménie de Brienne | 1 May 1787 – 25 August 1788 (1 year, 116 days) | ||
Jacques Necker | 25 August 1788 – 11 July 1789 (320 days) | ||
Louis Auguste Le Tonnelier de Breteuil | 11 July 1789 – 16 July 1789 (5 days) | ||
Jacques Necker | 16 July 1789 – 3 September 1790 (1 year, 49 days) | ||
Armand Marc, comte de Montmorin | 3 September 1790 – 3 September 1791 (1 year, 0 days) | ||
Constitutional cabinet (supervisioned by Legislative Assembly) |
3 September 1791 – 21 September 1792 (1 year, 18 days) |
French First Republic (1792–1804)
During the First Republic, the arrangements for governance changed frequently:
- National Convention (20 September 1792 – 2 November 1795)
- with Jérôme Pétion de Villeneuve as President of the National Convention (22 September 1792 – 2 June 1793)
- with Maximilien Robespierre as President of the National Convention (4 June 1793 – 27 July 1794)
- with Jean Jacques Régis de Cambacérès as President of the National Convention (7 October 1794 – 20 April 1795)
- with Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès as President of the National Convention (20 April 1795 – 26 October 1795)
- Directory (2 November 1795 – 10 November 1799), with Paul Barras as President of the Directory
- Consulate (10 November 1799 – 18 May 1804), with Napoleon Bonaparte as First Consul of France
There was no individual head of government.
French First Empire (1804–1815)
As Emperor, Napoleon was both head of state and head of government.
Chief minister | Term | Political party | Ministry | Emperor | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position vacant (absolute rule by Napoleon) |
18 May 1804 – 1 April 1814 (9 years, 318 days) |
Vacant | First Cabinet of Napoleon I | Napoleon (r. 1804–1814) |
First Restoration (1814–1815)
Chief minister | Term | Political party | Ministry | King | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (as President of the Council) |
1 April 1814 – 2 May 1814 (31 days) |
Independent | Provisional Government of 1814 | Louis XVIII (r. 1814–1815) | ||
Pierre Louis Jean Casimir de Blacas | 2 May 1814 – 8 July 1815 (1 year, 67 days) |
Independent | Government of the first Bourbon restoration |
Hundred Days (1815)
As Emperor, Napoleon was both head of state and head of government. Upon Napoleon's abdication, his son Napoleon II was named Emperor. This rule was nominal, and Napoleon II remained in Austria throughout his nominal reign.
Chief Minister | Term | Political party | Government | Emperor | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position vacant (absolute rule by Napoleon I) |
20 March 1815 – 22 June 1815 (94 days) |
Vacant | Government of the Hundred Days | Napoleon I (r. 1815) | ||
Joseph Fouché (as President of the Executive Commission) |
22 June 1815 – 7 July 1815 (15 days) |
Bonapartist | Provisional Government of 1815 | Napoleon II (r. 1815) |
Bourbon Restoration (1815–1830)
Presidents of the Council of Ministers
President of the Council of Ministers | Term | Political party | Legislature (Election) |
Ministry | King | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord | 9 July 1815 – 26 September 1815 (79 days) |
Independent | I (Chambre introuvable) (1815) |
Talleyrand Ministry | Louis XVIII (r. 1815–1824) | ||
Armand-Emmanuel de Vignerot du Plessis, Duc de Richelieu | 26 September 1815 – 29 December 1818 (3 years, 94 days) |
Independent | 1st Richelieu ministry | ||||
Jean-Joseph, Marquis Dessolles | 29 December 1818 – 19 November 1819 (325 days) |
Doctrinaires | II (1816) |
Dessolles Ministry | |||
Élie Decazes, duc de Glücksbierg and Decazes | 19 November 1819 – 20 February 1820 (93 days) |
Doctrinaires | Decazes Ministry | ||||
Armand-Emmanuel de Vignerot du Plessis, Duc de Richelieu | 20 February 1820 – 14 December 1821 (1 year, 297 days) |
Doctrinaires | III (1820) |
2nd Richelieu ministry | |||
Jean-Baptiste de Villèle | 14 December 1821 – 4 January 1828 (6 years, 21 days) |
Ultra-royalist | Villèle Ministry | ||||
IV (1824) |
Charles X (r. 1824–1830) | ||||||
Jean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac | 4 January 1828 – 8 August 1829 (1 year, 216 days) |
Doctrinaires | V (1827) |
Martignac Ministry | |||
Jules de Polignac, duc de Polignac | 8 August 1829 – 29 July 1830 (355 days) |
Ultra-royalist | Polignac Ministry | ||||
Casimir de Rochechouart, duc de Mortemart | 29 July 1830 (0 days) |
Ultra-royalist | Mortemart Ministry |
July Monarchy (1830–1848)
Presidents of the Council of Ministers
President of the Council of Ministers | Term of office | Political party | Legislature (Election) |
Cabinet | King | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position vacant (government led by Louis Philippe I) |
1 August 1830 – 2 November 1830 (93 days) |
(Orléanist) | I (1830) |
Provisional Ministry of 1830 | Louis Philippe I (r. 1830–1848) | ||
1st Louis-Philippe ministry | |||||||
Jacques Laffitte | 2 November 1830 – 13 March 1831 (131 days) |
Orléanist | Laffitte cabinet | ||||
Casimir Pierre Périer | 13 March 1831 – 16 May 1832 (1 year, 64 days) |
Resistance Party | II (1831) |
Périer cabinet | |||
Jean-de-Dieu Soult | 11 October 1832 – 18 July 1834 (1 year, 280 days) |
Orléanist | 1st Soult cabinet | ||||
Étienne Maurice Gérard | 18 July 1834 – 10 November 1834 (115 days) |
Independent | III (1834) |
Gérard cabinet | |||
Hugues-Bernard Maret | 10 November 1834 – 18 November 1834 (8 days) |
Independent | Maret cabinet | ||||
Édouard Mortier | 18 November 1834 – 12 March 1835 (114 days) |
Resistance Party | Mortier cabinet | ||||
Victor de Broglie | 12 March 1835 – 22 February 1836 (347 days) |
Resistance Party | Broglie cabinet | ||||
Adolphe Thiers | 22 February 1836 – 6 September 1836 (197 days) |
Movement Party | 1st Thiers cabinet | ||||
Louis-Mathieu Molé | 6 September 1836 – 31 March 1839 (2 years, 206 days) |
Resistance Party | 1st Molé cabinet | ||||
IV (1837) |
2nd Molé cabinet | ||||||
Position vacant (government led by Louis Philippe I) |
31 March 1839 – 12 May 1839 (42 days) |
(Orléanist) | Transitional cabinet of 1839 | ||||
Jean-de-Dieu Soult | 12 May 1839 – 1 March 1840 (294 days) |
Resistance Party | V (1839) |
2nd Soult cabinet | |||
Adolphe Thiers | 1 March 1840 – 29 October 1840 (242 days) |
Movement Party | 2nd Thiers cabinet | ||||
Jean-de-Dieu Soult | 29 October 1840 – 19 September 1847 (6 years, 325 days) |
Resistance Party | VI (1842) |
3rd Soult cabinet | |||
François Guizot | 19 September 1847 – 23 February 1848 (157 days) |
Resistance Party | VII (1846) |
Guizot cabinet | |||
Louis-Mathieu Molé | 23 February 1848 – 24 February 1848 (1 day) |
Resistance Party |
Second French Republic (1848–1852)
Presidents of the Council of Ministers
President of the Council of Ministers | Term | Political party | Legislature (Election) |
Ministry | President | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jacques-Charles Dupont de l'Eure | 24 February 1848 – 9 May 1848 (75 days) |
Moderate Republican | Const. (1848) |
Provisional Government of 1848 | Himself de facto (Provisional) | ||||
François Arago | 10 May 1848 – 24 June 1848 (45 days) |
Moderate Republican | Executive Commission of 1848 | ||||||
Louis-Eugène Cavaignac | 28 June 1848 – 20 December 1848 (175 days) |
Moderate Republican | Cavaignac cabinet | Himself de facto (Martial Law) | |||||
Odilon Barrot | 20 December 1848 – 31 October 1849 (315 days) |
Party of Order | 1st Barrot cabinet | Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (term: 1848–1852) | |||||
Leg. (1849) |
2nd Barrot cabinet | ||||||||
Alphonse Henri, comte d'Hautpoul | 31 October 1849 – 24 January 1851 (1 year, 85 days) |
Party of Order | Hautpoul cabinet | ||||||
Position vacant (government led by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) |
24 January 1851 – 10 April 1851 (76 days) |
Vacant | Petit ministère of 1851 | ||||||
Léon Faucher | 10 April 1851 – 26 October 1851 (199 days) |
Party of Order | Faucher cabinet | ||||||
Position vacant (government led by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) |
26 October 1851 – 2 December 1852 (1 year, 37 days) |
Vacant | Last cabinet of the Second Republic | ||||||
1st cabinet of Louis Napoleon | |||||||||
2nd cabinet of Louis Napoleon |
Second French Empire (1852–1870)
Cabinet Chiefs
Cabinet Chief | Term | Political party | Legislature (Election) |
Cabinet | Emperor | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Position vacant (absolute rule by Napoleon III) |
2 December 1852 – 27 December 1869 (17 years, 25 days) |
Vacant | I (1852) |
3rd Napoleon III cabinet | Napoleon III (r. 1852–1870) | ||
II (1857) | |||||||
III (1863) | |||||||
Prosper de Chasseloup-Laubat | 27 December 1869– 2 January 1870 (6 days) |
Party of Order | IV (1869) |
4th Napoleon III cabinet | |||
Émile Ollivier | 2 January 1870– 9 August 1870 (219 days) |
Bonapartist | Ollivier cabinet | ||||
Charles Cousin-Montauban | 9 August 1870 – 4 September 1870 (26 days) |
Independent | Cousin-Montauban cabinet |
French Third Republic (1870–1940)
President of the Government of National Defense
President of the Government of National Defense | Term | Political party | Legislature (Election) |
Government | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Louis-Jules Trochu | 4 September 1870 – 22 January 1871 (140 days) |
Military government | None | Government of National Defense |
Presidents of the Council of Ministers
President of the Council of Ministers | Term | Political party (Political coalition) |
Legislature (Election) |
Cabinet | President | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jules Armand Dufaure | 19 February 1871 – 24 May 1873 (2 years, 94 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | National Assembly (1871) | 1st Dufaure cabinet | Adolphe Thiers (term: 1871–1873) | |||
2nd cabinet | ||||||||
Albert, duc de Broglie | 25 May 1873 – 22 May 1874 (362 days) |
Monarchist | 1st Broglie cabinet | Patrice de MacMahon (term: 1873–1879) | ||||
2nd Broglie cabinet | ||||||||
Ernest Courtot de Cissey | 22 May 1874 – 10 March 1875 (292 days) |
Monarchist | Cissey cabinet | |||||
Louis Buffet | 10 March 1875 – 23 February 1876 (350 days) |
Monarchist | Buffet cabinet | |||||
Jules Armand Dufaure | 23 February 1876 – 12 December 1876 (293 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 3rd Dufaure cabinet | |||||
4th Dufaure cabinet | ||||||||
Jules Simon | 12 December 1876 – 17 May 1877 (156 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | I (1876) | Simon cabinet | ||||
Albert, duc de Broglie | 17 May 1877 – 23 November 1877 (190 days) |
Monarchist | 3rd Broglie cabinet | |||||
Gaëtan de Rochebouët | 23 November 1877 – 13 December 1877 (20 days) |
Monarchist | II (1877) | Rochebouët cabinet | ||||
Jules Armand Dufaure | 13 December 1877 – 4 February 1879 (1 year, 53 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 5th Dufaure cabinet | |||||
William Waddington | 4 February 1879 – 28 December 1879 (327 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | Waddington cabinet | Jules Grévy (term: 1879–1887) | ||||
Charles de Freycinet | 28 December 1879 – 23 September 1880 (270 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 1st Freycinet cabinet | |||||
Jules Ferry | 23 September 1880 – 14 November 1881 (1 year, 52 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 1st Ferry cabinet | |||||
Léon Gambetta | 14 November 1881 – 30 January 1882 (77 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | III (1881) | Gambetta cabinet | ||||
Charles de Freycinet | 30 January 1882 – 7 August 1882 (189 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 2nd Freycinet cabinet | |||||
Charles Duclerc | 7 August 1882 – 29 January 1883 (175 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | Duclerc cabinet | |||||
Armand Fallières | 29 January 1883 – 21 February 1883 (23 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | Fallières cabinet | |||||
Jules Ferry | 21 February 1883 – 6 April 1885 (2 years, 44 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 2nd Ferry cabinet | |||||
Henri Brisson | 6 April 1885 – 7 January 1886 (276 days) |
Radical Republicans | 1st Brisson cabinet | |||||
Charles de Freycinet | 7 January 1886 – 16 December 1886 (343 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | IV (1885) | 3rd Freycinet cabinet | ||||
René Goblet | 16 December 1886 – 30 May 1887 (165 days) |
Radical Republicans | Goblet cabinet | |||||
Maurice Rouvier | 30 May 1887 – 12 December 1887 (196 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 1st Rouvier cabinet | |||||
Pierre Tirard | 12 December 1887 – 3 April 1888 (113 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 1st Tirard cabinet | Sadi Carnot (term: 1887–1894) | ||||
Charles Floquet | 3 April 1888 – 22 February 1889 (325 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | Floquet cabinet | |||||
Pierre Tirard | 22 February 1889 – 17 March 1890 (1 year, 23 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 2nd Tirard cabinet | |||||
Charles de Freycinet | 17 March 1890 – 27 February 1892 (1 year, 347 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | V (1889) | 4th Freycinet cabinet | ||||
Émile Loubet | 27 February 1892 – 6 December 1892 (283 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | Loubet cabinet | |||||
Alexandre Ribot | 6 December 1892 – 4 April 1893 (119 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 1st Ribot cabinet | |||||
2nd Ribot cabinet | ||||||||
Charles Dupuy | 4 April 1893 – 3 December 1893 (243 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 1st Dupuy cabinet | |||||
Jean Casimir-Perier | 3 December 1893 – 30 May 1894 (178 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | VI (1893) | Casimir-Perier cabinet | ||||
Charles Dupuy | 30 May 1894 – 26 January 1895 (241 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 2nd Dupuy cabinet | |||||
3rd Dupuy cabinet | Jean Casimir-Perier (term: 1894–1895) | |||||||
Alexandre Ribot | 26 January 1895 – 1 November 1895 (279 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 3rd Ribot cabinet | Félix Faure (term: 1895–1899) | ||||
Léon Bourgeois | 1 November 1895 – 29 April 1896 (180 days) |
Radical Republicans | Bourgeois cabinet | |||||
Jules Méline | 29 April 1896 – 28 June 1898 (2 years, 60 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | Méline cabinet | |||||
Henri Brisson | 28 June 1898 – 1 November 1898 (126 days) |
Radical Republicans | VII (1898) | 2nd Brisson cabinet | ||||
Charles Dupuy | 1 November 1898 – 22 June 1899 (233 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | 4th Dupuy cabinet | |||||
5th Dupuy cabinet | Émile Loubet (term: 1899–1906) | |||||||
Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau | 22 June 1899 – 7 June 1902 (2 years, 350 days) |
Opportunist Republicans | Waldeck-Rousseau cabinet | |||||
Émile Combes | 7 June 1902 – 24 January 1905 (2 years, 231 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Bloc des gauches) |
VIII (1902) | Combes cabinet | ||||
Maurice Rouvier | 24 January 1905 – 12 March 1906 (1 year, 47 days) |
Democratic Republican Alliance | 2nd Rouvier cabinet | |||||
3rd Rouvier cabinet | Armand Fallières (term: 1906–1913) | |||||||
Ferdinand Sarrien | 12 March 1906 – 25 October 1906 (227 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | Sarrien cabinet | |||||
Georges Clemenceau | 25 October 1906 – 24 July 1909 (2 years, 272 days) |
Independent | IX (1906) | 1st Clemenceau cabinet | ||||
Aristide Briand | 24 July 1909 – 2 March 1911 (1 year, 221 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party | 1st Briand cabinet | |||||
2nd Briand cabinet | ||||||||
Ernest Monis | 2 March 1911 – 27 June 1911 (117 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | X (1910) | Monis cabinet | ||||
Joseph Caillaux | 27 June 1911 – 21 January 1912 (208 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | Caillaux cabinet | |||||
Raymond Poincaré | 21 January 1912 – 21 January 1913 (1 year, 0 days) |
Republican Democratic Party | 1st Poincaré cabinet | |||||
Aristide Briand | 21 January 1913 – 22 March 1913 (60 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party | 3rd Briand cabinet | |||||
4th Poincaré cabinet | Raymond Poincaré (term: 1913–1920) | |||||||
Louis Barthou | 22 March 1913 – 9 December 1913 (262 days) |
Republican Democratic Party | Barthou cabinet | |||||
Gaston Doumergue | 9 December 1913 – 9 June 1914 (182 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | 1st Doumergue cabinet | |||||
Alexandre Ribot | 9 June 1914 – 13 June 1914 (4 days) |
Republican Federation | XI (1914) | 4th Ribot cabinet | ||||
René Viviani | 13 June 1914 – 29 October 1915 (1 year, 138 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party | 1st Viviani cabinet | |||||
2nd Viviani cabinet | ||||||||
Aristide Briand | 29 October 1915 – 20 March 1917 (1 year, 142 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party | 5th Briand cabinet | |||||
6th Briand cabinet | ||||||||
Alexandre Ribot | 20 March 1917 – 12 September 1917 (176 days) |
Republican Federation | 5th Ribot cabinet | |||||
Paul Painlevé | 12 September 1917 – 16 November 1917 (65 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party | 1st Painlevé cabinet | |||||
Georges Clemenceau | 16 November 1917 – 20 January 1920 (2 years, 65 days) |
Independent | 2nd Clemenceau cabinet | |||||
Alexandre Millerand | 20 January 1920 – 24 September 1920 (248 days) |
Independent (National Bloc) |
XII (1919) | 1st Millerand cabinet | ||||
2nd Millerand cabinet | Paul Deschanel (1920) | |||||||
Georges Leygues | 24 September 1920 – 16 January 1921 (114 days) |
Republican, Democratic and Social Party (National Bloc) |
Leygues cabinet | Alexandre Millerand (term: 1920–1924) | ||||
Aristide Briand | 16 January 1921 – 15 January 1922 (364 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party | 7th Briand cabinet | |||||
Raymond Poincaré | 15 January 1922 – 8 June 1924 (2 years, 145 days) |
Republican, Democratic and Social Party (National Bloc) |
2nd Poincaré cabinet | |||||
3rd Poincaré cabinet | ||||||||
Frédéric François-Marsal | 8 June 1924 – 15 June 1924 (7 days) |
Republican Federation (National Bloc) |
XIII (1924) | François-Marsal cabinet | ||||
Édouard Herriot | 15 June 1924 – 17 April 1925 (306 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
1st Herriot cabinet | Gaston Doumergue (term: 1924–1931) | ||||
Paul Painlevé | 17 April 1925 – 28 November 1925 (225 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
2nd Painlevé cabinet | |||||
3rd Painlevé cabinet | ||||||||
Aristide Briand | 28 November 1925 – 20 July 1926 (234 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
8th Briand cabinet | |||||
9th Briand cabinet | ||||||||
10th Briand cabinet | ||||||||
Édouard Herriot | 20 July 1926 – 23 July 1926 (3 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
2nd Herriot cabinet | |||||
Raymond Poincaré | 23 July 1926 – 29 July 1929 (3 years, 6 days) |
Democratic Alliance (National Union) |
4th Poincaré cabinet | |||||
5th Poincaré cabinet | ||||||||
Aristide Briand | 29 July 1929 – 2 November 1929 (96 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party | XIV (1928) | 11th Briand cabinet | ||||
André Tardieu | 2 November 1929 – 21 February 1930 (111 days) |
Democratic Alliance | 1st Tardieu cabinet | |||||
Camille Chautemps | 21 February 1930 – 2 March 1930 (9 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | 1st Chautemps cabinet | |||||
André Tardieu | 2 March 1930 – 13 December 1930 (286 days) |
Democratic Alliance | 2nd Tardieu cabinet | |||||
Théodore Steeg | 13 December 1930 – 27 January 1931 (45 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | Steeg cabinet | |||||
Pierre Laval | 27 January 1931 – 20 February 1932 (1 year, 24 days) |
Independent | 1st Laval cabinet | |||||
2nd Laval cabinet | Paul Doumer (term: 1931–1932) | |||||||
3rd cabinet | ||||||||
André Tardieu | 20 February 1932 – 3 June 1932 (104 days) |
Democratic Alliance | 3rd Tardieu cabinet | |||||
Édouard Herriot | 3 June 1932 – 18 December 1932 (198 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
XV (1932) | 3rd Herriot cabinet | Albert Lebrun (term: 1932–1940) | |||
Joseph Paul-Boncour | 18 December 1932 – 31 January 1933 (44 days) |
Republican-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
Paul-Boncour cabinet | |||||
Édouard Daladier | 31 January 1933 – 26 October 1933 (268 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
1st Daladier cabinet | |||||
Albert Sarraut | 26 October 1933 – 26 November 1933 (31 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
1st Sarraut cabinet | |||||
Camille Chautemps | 26 November 1933 – 30 January 1934 (65 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
2nd Chautemps cabinet | |||||
Édouard Daladier | 30 January 1934 – 9 February 1934 (10 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Cartel des Gauches) |
2nd Daladier cabinet | |||||
Gaston Doumergue | 9 February 1934 – 8 November 1934 (272 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | 2nd Doumergue cabinet | |||||
Pierre-Étienne Flandin | 8 November 1934 – 1 June 1935 (205 days) |
Democratic Alliance | 1st Flandin cabinet | |||||
Fernand Bouisson | 1 June 1935 – 7 June 1935 (6 days) |
Independent | Bouisson cabinet | |||||
Pierre Laval | 7 June 1935 – 24 January 1936 (231 days) |
Independent | 4th Laval cabinet | |||||
Albert Sarraut | 24 January 1936 – 4 June 1936 (132 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | 2nd Sarraut cabinet | |||||
Léon Blum | 4 June 1936 – 22 June 1937 (1 year, 18 days) |
French Section of the Workers' International (Popular Front) |
XVI (1936) | 1st Blum cabinet | ||||
Camille Chautemps | 22 June 1937 – 13 March 1938 (264 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party (Popular Front) |
3rd Chautemps cabinet | |||||
4th Chautemps cabinet | ||||||||
Léon Blum | 13 March 1938 – 10 April 1938 (28 days) |
French Section of the Workers' International (Popular Front) |
2nd Blum cabinet | |||||
Édouard Daladier | 10 April 1938 – 21 March 1940 (1 year, 346 days) |
Radical-Socialist Party | 3rd Daladier cabinet | |||||
4th Daladier cabinet | ||||||||
5th Daladier cabinet | ||||||||
Paul Reynaud | 21 March 1940 – 16 June 1940 (87 days) |
Democratic Alliance | Reynaud cabinet | |||||
Philippe Pétain | 16 June 1940 – 11 July 1940 (25 days) |
Independent | Pétain cabinet |
French State (1940–1944)
Until 1942, Marshal Philippe Pétain served as Chief of State and nominal President of the Council of Ministers: the vice-president of the Council of Ministers was the de facto head of government. From 1942, Pétain remained Chief of State, but Pierre Laval was named Chief of the Government.
Vice-Presidents of the Council of Ministers
Vice-president of the Council of Ministers | Term | Political party | Legislature (Election) |
Cabinet | Chief of State | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pierre Laval | 11 July 1940 – 13 December 1940 (155 days) |
Révolution nationale | None | 5th Laval cabinet | Philippe Pétain (term: 1940–1944) | |||
Pierre-Étienne Flandin | 13 December 1940 – 9 February 1941 (58 days) |
2nd Flandin cabinet | ||||||
François Darlan | 9 February 1941 – 18 April 1942 (1 year, 68 days) |
Darlan cabinet | ||||||
Pierre Laval (as Chief of the Government) |
18 April 1942 – 19 August 1944 (2 years, 123 days) |
6th Laval cabinet |
Provisional Government of the French Republic (1944–1946)
Chairmen of the Provisional Government
Chairman of the Provisional Government | Term | Political party (Political coalition) |
Legislature (Election) |
Cabinet | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Charles de Gaulle | 3 June 1944 – 26 January 1946 (1 year, 237 days) |
Independent | Provisional | 1st de Gaulle cabinet | ||
I (1945) |
2nd de Gaulle cabinet | |||||
Félix Gouin | 26 January 1946 – 24 June 1946 (149 days) |
French Section of the Workers' International (Tripartisme) |
Gouin cabinet | |||
Georges Bidault | 24 June 1946 – 16 December 1946 (175 days) |
Popular Republican Movement (Tripartisme) |
II (June 1946) |
1st Bidault cabinet | ||
Vincent Auriol (interim) |
28 November 1946 – 16 December 1946 (18 days) |
French Section of the Workers' International (Tripartisme) |
IV Rep. I (Nov 1946) |
– | ||
Léon Blum | 16 December 1946 – 22 January 1947 (37 days) |
French Section of the Workers' International (Tripartisme) |
3rd Blum cabinet |
Fourth French Republic (1946–1958)
Presidents of the Council of Ministers
President of the Council of Ministers | Term | Political party (Political coalition) |
Legislature (Election) |
Government | President | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Paul Ramadier | 22 January 1947 – 24 November 1947 (306 days) |
French Section of the Workers' International (Tripartisme) |
I (Nov.1946) | 1st Ramadier cabinet | Vincent Auriol (term: 1947–1954) | |||
2nd Ramadier cabinet | ||||||||
Robert Schuman | 24 November 1947 – 24 July 1948 (243 days) |
Popular Republican Movement (Third Force) |
1st Schuman cabinet | |||||
André Marie | 24 July 1948 – 2 September 1948 (40 days) |
Radical Party (Third Force) |
Marie cabinet | |||||
Robert Schuman | 2 September 1948 – 11 September 1948 (9 days) |
Popular Republican Movement (Third Force) |
2nd Schuman cabinet | |||||
Henri Queuille | 11 September 1948 – 28 October 1949 (1 year, 47 days) |
Radical Party (Third Force) |
1st Queuille cabinet | |||||
Georges Bidault | 28 October 1949 – 2 July 1950 (247 days) |
Popular Republican Movement (Third Force) |
2nd Bidault cabinet | |||||
3rd Bidault cabinet | ||||||||
Henri Queuille | 2 July 1950 – 12 July 1950 (10 days) |
Radical Party (Third Force) |
2nd Queuille cabinet | |||||
René Pleven | 12 July 1950 – 10 March 1951 (241 days) |
Democratic and Socialist Union of the Resistance (Third Force) |
1st Pleven cabinet | |||||
Henri Queuille | 10 March 1951 – 11 August 1951 (154 days) |
Radical Party (Third Force) |
3rd Queuille cabinet | |||||
René Pleven | 11 August 1951 – 20 January 1952 (162 days) |
Democratic and Socialist Union of the Resistance (Third Force) |
II (1951) | 2nd Pleven cabinet | ||||
Edgar Faure | 20 January 1952 – 8 March 1952 (48 days) |
Radical Party | 1st Faure cabinet | |||||
Antoine Pinay | 8 March 1952 – 8 January 1953 (306 days) |
National Centre of Independents and Peasants | Pinay cabinet | |||||
René Mayer | 8 January 1953 – 28 June 1953 (171 days) |
Radical Party | Mayer cabinet | |||||
Joseph Laniel | 28 June 1953 – 19 June 1954 (356 days) |
National Centre of Independents and Peasants | 1st Laniel cabinet | |||||
2nd Laniel cabinet | René Coty (term: 1954–1959) | |||||||
Pierre Mendès France | 19 June 1954 – 17 February 1955 (243 days) |
Radical Party | Mendès France cabinet | |||||
Edgar Faure | 17 February 1955 – 1 February 1956 (349 days) |
Radical Party | 2nd Faure cabinet | |||||
Guy Mollet | 1 February 1956 – 13 June 1957 (1 year, 132 days) |
French Section of the Workers' International (Republican Front) |
III (1956) | Mollet cabinet | ||||
Maurice Bourgès-Maunoury | 13 June 1957 – 6 November 1957 (146 days) |
Radical Party (Republican Front) |
Bourgès-Maunoury cabinet | |||||
Félix Gaillard | 6 November 1957 – 14 May 1958 (189 days) |
Radical Party (Republican Front) |
Gaillard cabinet | |||||
Pierre Pflimlin | 14 May 1958 – 1 June 1958 (18 days) |
Popular Republican Movement | Pflimlin cabinet | |||||
Charles de Gaulle | 1 June 1958 – 8 January 1959 (221 days) |
Union for the New Republic | 3rd de Gaulle cabinet |
Fifth French Republic (since 1958)
Prime Ministers
Portrait | Prime Minister | Term | Political party (Political coalition) |
Legislature (Election) |
Government | President | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Term | Tenure | ||||||||
Michel Debré | 8 January 1959 – 14 April 1962 |
(3 years, 96 days) | Union for the New Republic | I (1958) |
Debré government | Charles de Gaulle (term: 1959–1969) | |||
Georges Pompidou | 14 April 1962 – 7 December 1962 |
(6 years, 87 days) | Union for the New Republic | 1st First Pompidou government | |||||
7 December 1962 – 8 January 1966 |
II (1962) |
2nd Pompidou government | |||||||
8 January 1966 – 7 April 1967 |
3rd Pompidou government | ||||||||
7 April 1967 – 10 July 1968 |
III (1967) |
4th Pompidou government | |||||||
Maurice Couve de Murville | 10 July 1968 – 20 June 1969 |
(345 days) | Union of Democrats for the Republic | IV (1968) |
Couve de Murville | ||||
Jacques Chaban-Delmas | 20 June 1969 – 5 July 1972 |
(3 years, 15 days) | Union of Democrats for the Republic | Chaban-Delmas | Georges Pompidou
| ||||
Pierre Messmer | 5 July 1972 – 5 April 1973 |
(1 year, 326 days) | Union of Democrats for the Republic | 1st Messmer government | |||||
5 April 1973 – 1 March 1974 |
V (1973) |
2nd Messmer government | |||||||
1 March 1974 – 27 May 1974 |
3rd Messmer government | ||||||||
Jacques Chirac | 27 May 1974 – 25 August 1976 |
(2 years, 90 days) | Union of Democrats for the Republic | 1st Chirac government | Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (term: 1974–1981) | ||||
Raymond Barre | 25 August 1976 – 30 March 1977 |
(4 years, 269 days) | Miscellaneous right (Union for French Democracy) |
1st Barre government | |||||
30 March 1977 – 5 April 1978 |
2nd Barre government | ||||||||
5 April 1978 – 21 May 1981 |
VI (1978) |
3rd Barre government | |||||||
Pierre Mauroy | 21 May 1981 – 23 June 1981 |
(3 years, 57 days) | Socialist Party | 1st Mauroy government | François Mitterrand (term: 1981–1995) | ||||
23 June 1981 – 22 March 1983 |
VII (1981) |
2nd Mauroy government | |||||||
22 March 1983 – 17 July 1984 |
3rd Mauroy government | ||||||||
Laurent Fabius | 17 July 1984 – 20 March 1986 |
(1 year, 246 days) | Socialist Party | Fabius government | |||||
Jacques Chirac | 20 March 1986 – 10 May 1988 |
(2 years, 51 days) | Rally for the Republic | VIII (1986) |
2nd Chirac government | ||||
Michel Rocard | 10 May 1988 – 28 June 1988 |
(3 years, 5 days) | Socialist Party | 1st Rocard government | |||||
28 June 1988 – 15 May 1991 |
IX (1988) |
2nd Rocard government | |||||||
Édith Cresson | 15 May 1991 – 2 April 1992 |
(323 days) | Socialist Party | Cresson government | |||||
Pierre Bérégovoy | 2 April 1992 – 29 March 1993 |
(361 days) | Socialist Party | Bérégovoy government | |||||
Édouard Balladur | 29 March 1993 – 17 May 1995 |
(2 years, 49 days) | Rally for the Republic | X (1993) |
Balladur government | ||||
Alain Juppé | 17 May 1995 – 7 November 1995 |
(2 years, 16 days) | Rally for the Republic | 1st Juppé government | Jacques Chirac (term: 1995–2007) | ||||
7 November 1995 – 2 June 1997 |
2nd Juppé government | ||||||||
Lionel Jospin | 2 June 1997 – 6 May 2002 |
(4 years, 338 days) | Socialist Party | XI (1997) |
Jospin government | ||||
Jean-Pierre Raffarin | 6 May 2002 – 17 June 2002 |
(3 years, 25 days) | Liberal Democracy, later Union for a Popular Movement |
1st Raffarin government | |||||
17 June 2002 – 31 March 2004 |
XII (2002) |
2nd Raffarin government | |||||||
31 March 2004 – 31 May 2005 |
3rd Raffarin government | ||||||||
Dominique de Villepin | 31 May 2005 – 17 May 2007 |
(1 year, 351 days) | Union for a Popular Movement | Villepin government | |||||
François Fillon | 17 May 2007 – 19 June 2007 |
(4 years, 364 days) | Union for a Popular Movement | 1st Fillon government | Nicolas Sarkozy (term: 2007–2012) | ||||
19 June 2007 – 14 November 2010 |
XIII (2007) |
2nd Fillon government | |||||||
14 November 2010 – 15 May 2012 |
3rd Fillon government | ||||||||
Jean-Marc Ayrault | 15 May 2012 – 21 June 2012 |
(1 year, 320 days) | Socialist Party | 1st Ayrault government | François Hollande (term: 2012–2017) | ||||
21 June 2012 – 31 March 2014 |
XIV (2012) |
2nd Ayrault government | |||||||
Manuel Valls | 31 March 2014 – 26 August 2014 |
(2 years, 250 days) | Socialist Party | 1st Valls government | |||||
26 August 2014 – 6 December 2016 |
2nd Valls government | ||||||||
Bernard Cazeneuve | 6 December 2016 – 15 May 2017 |
(160 days) | Socialist Party | Cazeneuve government | |||||
Édouard Philippe | 15 May 2017 – 21 June 2017 |
(3 years, 49 days) | The Republicans, later Independent |
1st Philippe government | Emmanuel Macron (2017–present) | ||||
21 June 2017 – 3 July 2020 |
XV (2017) |
2nd Philippe government | |||||||
Jean Castex | 3 July 2020 – 16 May 2022 |
(1 year, 317 days) | Independent | Castex government | |||||
Élisabeth Borne | 16 May 2022 – 4 July 2022 |
(1 year, 238 days) | La République En Marche!, later Renaissance[lower-alpha 1] |
1st Borne government | |||||
4 July 2022 – 9 January 2024 |
XVI (2022) |
2nd Borne government | |||||||
Gabriel Attal | 9 January 2024 – present |
(7 days) | Renaissance | Attal government |
See also
Notes
- ↑ renamed from La République En Marche! in September 2022
External links
- List on the website of the French Prime Minister (in French)