François Mitterrand

President of the Republic · 1981-1995 · born on 26 October 1916, died on 8 January 1996

A socialist, François Mitterrand was elected president of the Republic in 1981, the first left-wing president of the Fifth Republic. He immediately launched a programme of reforms: abolition of the death penalty (1981), retirement at 60, decentralisation laws, the 39-hour week.

After the turn to austerity (1983), he imposed the European anchor (Single Act, Maastricht in 1992) and promoted great works: the Louvre pyramid, the Grande Arche, the TGV and the Bastille opera house. He governed twice with cohabitation governments.

Re-elected in 1988, he completed his second term marked by scandals and his illness. He died in January 1996, a few months after the end of his term. He remains one of the central figures of 20th-century French political life.

In the tree of power

Further reading