List of prime ministers of France facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

In France, the person who leads the government is called the Prime Minister of France (in French, Premier ministre). This important title has been used since 1959. Before that, the leader of the government had different names, like "President of the Council of Ministers." It's important not to confuse the Prime Minister with the President of France, who is the head of state and chooses the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister helps the President run the country and makes sure the government works well.

France's Early Leaders: Kings and Their Advisors (1500s-1700s)
Changes in Government: Republics and Empires (Late 1700s-1800s)
Modern French Government: Republics and Prime Ministers (Late 1800s-Mid 1900s)
France's Current Leaders: The Fifth Republic (Since 1958)
- Prime Ministers
Living Former Prime Ministers
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France's Early Leaders: Kings and Their Advisors (1500s-1700s)

For a long time, France was a kingdom ruled by kings. These kings had a lot of power. Sometimes, they chose special advisors or "chief ministers" to help them manage the country. These ministers didn't have an official title like "Prime Minister" but they were very important in running the government.

Cardinal Richelieu and Cardinal Mazarin were two very famous chief ministers who helped powerful kings like Louis XIII and Louis XIV govern France. They made many important decisions for the country.

Changes in Government: Republics and Empires (Late 1700s-1800s)

After the time of kings, France went through many big changes. It became a republic, then an empire, and then a kingdom again, several times! During these periods, the way the government was led also changed a lot.

The First French Republic (1792–1804)

During the First Republic, there wasn't one single leader of the government. Different groups and councils took turns managing the country. For example, the National Convention and later the Directory and Consulate were in charge. Napoleon Bonaparte became the First Consul, holding a lot of power.

The French Empires (1804–1815 and 1852–1870)

When Napoleon became Emperor, he was both the head of state and the head of government. This meant he had all the power. Later, his nephew Napoleon III also ruled as Emperor, holding similar power. During these times, there wasn't a separate "Prime Minister" role.

Restoring the Monarchy (1814–1848)

After Napoleon, France brought back its kings for a while. During the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy, the leader of the government was often called the President of the Council of Ministers. These leaders worked with the king to run the country.

The Second French Republic (1848–1852)

France became a republic again for a short time. During this period, there were also Presidents of the Council of Ministers who led the government.

Modern French Government: Republics and Prime Ministers (Late 1800s-Mid 1900s)

France continued to evolve its government structure, moving towards the system we see today.

The Third French Republic (1870–1940)

During the Third Republic, the leader of the government was still called the President of the Council of Ministers. This was a long period where France was a republic, and these presidents played a key role in leading the country.

The French State (1940–1944)

During World War II, France had a different government known as the French State. Marshal Philippe Pétain was the Chief of State. For some of this time, there was a Vice-President of the Council of Ministers, and later a Chief of the Government, like Pierre Laval, who worked under Pétain.

Provisional Government (1944–1946)

After World War II, France was led by a Provisional Government. The leader was called the Chairman of the Provisional Government. General Charles de Gaulle was a very important leader during this time.

The Fourth French Republic (1946–1958)

The Fourth Republic also had a President of the Council of Ministers as its head of government. This period helped set the stage for the modern French government.

France's Current Leaders: The Fifth Republic (Since 1958)

Since 1958, France has been under its Fifth Republic. This is the system of government France uses today. In this system, the head of government is officially called the Prime Minister.

Prime Ministers

S. No.	Portrait	Prime Minister (Lifespan)	Term of office			Political party (Political coalition)		Government	Legislature (Election)	President (Term)
S. No.	Portrait	Prime Minister (Lifespan)	Term of office		Time in office	Political party (Political coalition)		Government	Legislature (Election)	President (Term)
77		Michel Debré (1912–1996)	8 January 1959	14 April 1962	3 years, 96 days		Union for the New Republic	Debré [fr]	I (1958)	18	Charles de Gaulle (1959–1969)
78		Georges Pompidou (1911–1974)	14 April 1962	7 December 1962	6 years, 87 days		Union for the New Republic	Pompidou I [fr]	I (1958)
			7 December 1962	8 January 1966				Pompidou II [fr]	II (1962)
			8 January 1966	7 April 1967				Pompidou III [fr]	II (1962)
			7 April 1967	10 July 1968				Pompidou IV [fr]	III (1967)
79		Maurice Couve de Murville (1907–1999)	10 July 1968	20 June 1969	345 days		Union of Democrats for the Republic	Couve de Murville [fr]	IV (1968)
80		Jacques Chaban-Delmas (1915–2000)	20 June 1969	5 July 1972	3 years, 15 days		Union of Democrats for the Republic	Chaban-Delmas [fr]		19	Georges Pompidou (1969–1974)
81		Pierre Messmer (1916–2007)	5 July 1972	5 April 1973	1 year, 326 days		Union of Democrats for the Republic	Messmer I [fr]
			5 April 1973	1 March 1974				Messmer II [fr]	V (1973)
			1 March 1974	27 May 1974				Messmer III [fr]
82		Jacques Chirac (1932–2019)	27 May 1974	25 August 1976	2 years, 90 days		Union of Democrats for the Republic	Chirac I [fr]		20	Valéry Giscard d'Estaing (1974–1981)
83		Raymond Barre (1924–2007)	25 August 1976	30 March 1977	4 years, 269 days		Miscellaneous right (Union for French Democracy)	Barre I [fr]
			30 March 1977	5 April 1978				Barre II [fr]
			5 April 1978	21 May 1981				Barre III [fr]	VI (1978)
84		Pierre Mauroy (1928–2013)	21 May 1981	23 June 1981	3 years, 57 days		Socialist Party	Mauroy I [fr]	VI (1978)	21	François Mitterrand (1981–1995)
			23 June 1981	22 March 1983				Mauroy II [fr]	VII (1981)
			22 March 1983	17 July 1984				Mauroy III [fr]
85		Laurent Fabius (b. 1946)	17 July 1984	20 March 1986	1 year, 246 days		Socialist Party	Fabius [fr]
(82)		Jacques Chirac (1932–2019)	20 March 1986	10 May 1988	2 years, 51 days		Rally for the Republic	Chirac II [fr]	VIII (1986)
86		Michel Rocard (1930–2016)	10 May 1988	28 June 1988	3 years, 5 days		Socialist Party	Rocard I	VIII (1986)
86		Michel Rocard (1930–2016)	28 June 1988	15 May 1991	3 years, 5 days		Socialist Party	Rocard II	IX (1988)
87		Édith Cresson (b. 1934)	15 May 1991	2 April 1992	323 days		Socialist Party	Cresson [fr]
88		Pierre Bérégovoy (1925–1993)	2 April 1992	29 March 1993	361 days		Socialist Party	Bérégovoy [fr]
89		Édouard Balladur (b. 1929)	29 March 1993	17 May 1995	2 years, 49 days		Rally for the Republic	Balladur [fr]	X (1993)
90		Alain Juppé (b. 1945)	17 May 1995	7 November 1995	2 years, 16 days		Rally for the Republic	Juppé I [fr]		22	Jacques Chirac (1995–2007)
90		Alain Juppé (b. 1945)	7 November 1995	2 June 1997	2 years, 16 days		Rally for the Republic	Juppé II [fr]
91		Lionel Jospin (b. 1937)	2 June 1997	6 May 2002	4 years, 338 days		Socialist Party	Jospin	XI (1997)
92		Jean-Pierre Raffarin (b. 1948)	6 May 2002	17 June 2002	3 years, 25 days		Liberal Democracy, later Union for a Popular Movement	Raffarin I [fr]	XI (1997)
			17 June 2002	31 March 2004				Raffarin II [fr]	XII (2002)
			31 March 2004	31 May 2005				Raffarin III [fr]
93		Dominique de Villepin (b. 1953)	31 May 2005	17 May 2007	1 year, 351 days		Union for a Popular Movement	Villepin [fr]
94		François Fillon (b. 1954)	17 May 2007	19 June 2007	4 years, 364 days		Union for a Popular Movement	Fillon I [fr]		23	Nicolas Sarkozy (2007–2012)
			19 June 2007	14 November 2010				Fillon II [fr]	XIII (2007)
			14 November 2010	15 May 2012				Fillon III
95		Jean-Marc Ayrault (b. 1950)	15 May 2012	21 June 2012	1 year, 320 days		Socialist Party	Ayrault I		24	François Hollande (2012–2017)
95		Jean-Marc Ayrault (b. 1950)	21 June 2012	31 March 2014	1 year, 320 days		Socialist Party	Ayrault II	XIV (2012)
96		Manuel Valls (b. 1962)	31 March 2014	26 August 2014	2 years, 250 days		Socialist Party	Valls I
96		Manuel Valls (b. 1962)	26 August 2014	6 December 2016	2 years, 250 days		Socialist Party	Valls II
97		Bernard Cazeneuve (b. 1963)	6 December 2016	15 May 2017	160 days		Socialist Party	Cazeneuve
98		Édouard Philippe (b. 1970)	15 May 2017	21 June 2017	3 years, 49 days		The Republicans, later Independent	Philippe I		25	Emmanuel Macron (2017–present)
98		Édouard Philippe (b. 1970)	21 June 2017	3 July 2020	3 years, 49 days		The Republicans, later Independent	Philippe II	XV (2017)
99		Jean Castex (b. 1965)	3 July 2020	16 May 2022	1 year, 317 days		Independent	Castex
100		Élisabeth Borne (b. 1961)	16 May 2022	4 July 2022	1 year, 238 days		Renaissance	Borne I
100		Élisabeth Borne (b. 1961)	4 July 2022	9 January 2024	1 year, 238 days		Renaissance	Borne II	XVI (2022)
101		Gabriel Attal (b. 1989)	9 January 2024	5 September 2024	240 days		Renaissance	Attal	XVI (2022)
102		Michel Barnier (b. 1951)	5 September 2024	13 December 2024	99 days		The Republicans	Barnier	XVII (2024)
103		François Bayrou (b. 1951)	13 December 2024	9 September 2025	270 days		Democratic Movement	Bayrou
104		Sébastien Lecornu (b. 1986)	9 September 2025	Incumbent	4 days		Renaissance	Lecornu

Living Former Prime Ministers

Here are some of the people who have served as Prime Minister of France and are still alive today:

Name	Mandate	Date of birth
Laurent Fabius	1984 – 1986	(1946-08-20) August 20, 1946 (age 79)
Édith Cresson	1991 – 1992	(1934-01-27) January 27, 1934 (age 91)
Édouard Balladur	1993 – 1995	(1929-05-02) May 2, 1929 (age 96)
Alain Juppé	1995-1997	(1945-08-15) August 15, 1945 (age 80)
Lionel Jospin	1997 – 2002	(1937-07-12) July 12, 1937 (age 88)
Jean-Pierre Raffarin	2002 – 2005	(1948-08-03) August 3, 1948 (age 77)
Dominique de Villepin	2005 – 2007	(1953-11-14) November 14, 1953 (age 71)
François Fillon	2007 – 2012	(1954-03-04) March 4, 1954 (age 71)
Jean-Marc Ayrault	2012 – 2014	(1950-01-25) January 25, 1950 (age 75)
Manuel Valls	2014 – 2016	(1962-08-13) August 13, 1962 (age 63)
Bernard Cazeneuve	2016 – 2017	(1963-06-02) June 2, 1963 (age 62)
Édouard Philippe	2017 – 2020	(1970-11-28) November 28, 1970 (age 54)
Jean Castex	2020 – 2022	(1965-06-25) June 25, 1965 (age 60)
Élisabeth Borne	2022 – 2024	(1961-04-18) April 18, 1961 (age 64)
Gabriel Attal	2024	(1989-03-16) March 16, 1989 (age 36)
Michel Barnier	2024	(1951-01-09) January 9, 1951 (age 74)
François Bayrou	2024 – 2025	(1951-05-25) May 25, 1951 (age 74)
Sébastien Lecornu	2025	(1986-06-11) June 11, 1986 (age 39)

The most recent death of a former prime minister was that of Jacques Chirac (who served from 1974–1976 and 1986–1988), who passed away on September 26, 2019, at the age of 86.