List of presidents of France by longevity

Last updated

This is a list of presidents of France by age. This table can be sorted to display the presidents by name, order of office, date of birth, age at inauguration, length of retirement, or lifespan.

Contents

Two measures of longevity are given; this is to allow for the differing number of leap days occurring within the life of each President. The first figure is the number of days between date of birth and date of death, allowing for leap days; in parentheses the same period given in years and days, with the years being the number of whole years the President lived, and the days being the remaining number of days after his last birthday. Where the president in question is still living, the longevity is calculated up to 28 September 2021.

Overview

The median age of accession is roughly 60 years and 257 days, which falls between Albert Lebrun and Gaston Doumergue. The youngest person to assume office was Emmanuel Macron (age 39 years, 144 days). The oldest person to assume office was Adolphe Thiers (age 74 years, 135 days).

The oldest living former president is François Hollande, born 12 August 1954 (aged 67 years, 47 days). The youngest living former president is Nicolas Sarkozy, born 28 January 1955 (aged 66 years, 243 days). The youngest living president is the incumbent, Emmanuel Macron, born 21 December 1977 (aged 43 years, 281 days).

The longest-lived president was Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, who died at the age of 94 years and 304 days. Émile Loubet was the second longest-lived president, who lived to the age of 90 years and 356 days, 3 years and 313 days short of Giscard d'Estaing. Giscard d'Estaing surpassed Loubet's lifespan on 21 January 2017. The oldest living president François Hollande will tie Loubet if he lives to 3 August 2045, and tie Giscard d'Estaing if he lives to 21 June 2049 The shortest-lived president was Sadi Carnot, who was killed in office at the age of 56 years, 318 days.

The president with the longest retirement is Valéry Giscard d'Estaing. He left office on 21 May 1981 and died 39 years and 195 days later on 2 December 2020. He surpassed the previous record, held by Émile Loubet (23 years, 305 days) on 22 March 2005. The president with the shortest retirement is François Mitterrand, who died on 8 January 1996, 236 days after he left office on 17 May 1995.

French presidents

#
President
Date of birth
Date of
inauguration		Age at
inauguration		End of termAge at
end date		Length of
retirement		Date of death
Lifespan
1 Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte 20 April 180820 December 184840 years, 244 days2 December 1852 [1] 44 years, 226 days20 years, 38 days [2] 9 January 187323,640 days (64 years, 264 days)
2 Adolphe Thiers 18 April 179731 August 187174 years, 135 days24 May 187376 years, 36 days4 years, 102 days3 September 187729,357 days (80 years, 138 days)
3 Patrice de Mac-Mahon 13 June 180824 May 187364 years, 345 days30 January 187970 years, 231 days14 years, 259 days16 October 189331,171 days (85 years, 125 days)
4 Jules Grévy 15 August 180730 January 187971 years, 168 days2 December 188780 years, 109 days3 years, 281 days9 September 189130,706 days (84 years, 25 days)
5 Sadi Carnot 11 August 18373 December 188750 years, 114 days25 June 189456 years, 318 days25 June 189420,772 days (56 years, 318 days)
6 Jean Casimir-Perier 8 November 184727 June 189446 years, 231 days16 January 1895 [4] 47 years, 69 days12 years, 54 days11 March 190721,672 days (59 years, 123 days)
7 Félix Faure 30 January 184117 January 189553 years, 352 days16 February 189958 years, 17 days16 February 189921,201 days (58 years, 17 days)
8 Émile Loubet 31 December 183818 February 189960 years, 49 days18 February 190667 years, 49 days23 years, 305 days20 December 192933,226 days (90 years, 354 days)
9 Armand Fallières 6 November 184118 February 190664 years, 104 days18 February 191371 years, 104 days18 years, 124 days22 June 193132,734 days (89 years, 228 days)
10 Raymond Poincaré 20 August 186018 February 191352 years, 182 days18 February 192059 years, 182 days14 years, 239 days15 October 193427,083 days (74 years, 56 days)
11 Paul Deschanel 13 February 185518 February 192065 years, 5 days21 September 1920 [4] 65 years, 221 days1 year, 219 days28 April 192224,545 days (67 years, 74 days)
12 Alexandre Millerand 10 February 185923 September 192061 years, 226 days11 June 1924 [4] 65 years, 122 days18 years, 300 days7 April 194330,736 days (84 years, 56 days)
13 Gaston Doumergue 1 August 186313 June 192460 years, 317 days13 June 193167 years, 316 days6 years, 5 days18 June 193726,984 days (73 years, 321 days)
14 Paul Doumer 22 March 185713 June 193174 years, 83 days7 May 193275 years, 46 days7 May 193227,439 days (75 years, 46 days)
15 Albert Lebrun 29 August 187110 May 193260 years, 255 days10 July 1940 [6] 68 years, 316 days9 years, 239 days6 March 195028,678 days (78 years, 189 days)
16 Vincent Auriol 27 August 188416 January 194762 years, 142 days16 January 195469 years, 142 days11 years, 350 days1 January 196629,711 days (81 years, 127 days)
17 René Coty 20 March 188216 January 195471 years, 302 days8 January 195976 years, 294 days3 years, 318 days22 November 196229,466 days (80 years, 247 days)
18 Charles de Gaulle 22 November 18908 January 195968 years, 47 days28 April 1969 [4] 78 years, 157 days1 year, 195 days9 November 197029,206 days (79 years, 352 days)
19 Georges Pompidou 5 July 191120 June 196957 years, 349 days2 April 197462 years, 271 days2 April 197422,917 days (62 years, 271 days)
20 Valéry Giscard d'Estaing 2 February 192627 May 197448 years, 114 days21 May 198155 years, 108 days39 years, 195 days2 December 202034,637 days(94 years, 304 days)
21 François Mitterrand 26 October 191621 May 198164 years, 207 days17 May 199578 years, 203 days236 days8 January 199628,928 days (79 years, 74 days)
22 Jacques Chirac 29 November 193217 May 199562 years, 169 days16 May 200774 years, 168 days12 years, 133 days26 September 201931,712 days (86 years, 301 days)
23 Nicolas Sarkozy 28 January 195516 May 200752 years, 108 days15 May 201257 years, 108 days9 years, 136 days24,350 days(66 years, 243 days)
24 François Hollande 12 August 195415 May 201257 years, 277 days14 May 201762 years, 275 days4 years, 137 days24,519 days(67 years, 47 days)
25 Emmanuel Macron 21 December 197714 May 201739 years, 144 daysIncumbentIncumbentIncumbent15,987 days(43 years, 281 days)
#PresidentDate of birthDate of
inauguration		Age at
inauguration		End of termAge at
end date		Length of
retirement		Date of deathLifespan
  1. ↑ Became Emperor of the French on this date.
  2. ↑ Including time spent as Emperor.
  3. 1 2 Assassinated.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Resigned.
  5. 1 2 Died in office (not assassinated).
  6. ↑ Deposed.

This List contains:

Presidents 25
Living 3
Deceased 22

Graphical representations

This is a graphical lifespan timeline of the presidents of the France listed in order of office.

List of presidents of France by longevity


List of presidents of France by longevity

Months and zodiacs

OrderPresidentDate of birthZodiac sign
1 Nicolas Sarkozy 28 January Aquarius Aquarius.svg
2 Félix Faure 30 January
3 Valéry Giscard d’Estaing 2 February
4 Alexandre Millerand 10 February
5 Paul Deschanel 13 February
6 René Coty 20 March Pisces Pisces.svg
7 Paul Doumer 22 March Aries Aries.svg
8 Adolphe Thiers 16 April
9 Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte 20 April
10 Patrice de Mac-Mahon 13 June Gemini Gemini.svg
11 Georges Pompidou 5 July Cancer Cancer.svg
12 Gaston Doumergue 1 August Leo Leo.svg
13 Sadi Carnot 11 August
14 François Hollande 12 August
15 Jules Grévy 15 August
16 Raymond Poincaré 20 August
17 Vincent Auriol 27 August Virgo Virgo.svg
18 Albert Lebrun 29 August
19 François Mitterrand 26 October Scorpio Scorpio.svg
20 Armand Fallières 6 November
21 Jean Casimir-Perier 8 November
22 Charles de Gaulle 22 November Sagittarius Sagittarius.svg
23 Jacques Chirac 29 November
24 Emmanuel Macron 21 December Capricorn Capricorn.svg
25 Émile Loubet 31 December
  • Births by century
    • 18th century: 1st (and only), Adolphe Thiers
    • 19th century: 1st, Jules Grevy; last, Charles de Gaulle
    • 20th century: 1st, Georges Pompidou; most recent, Emmanuel Macron
  • Deaths by century
    • 19th century: 1st, Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte; last, Felix Faure
    • 20th century: 1st, Jean Casimir-Perier; last, François Mitterrand
    • 21st century: 1st, Jacques Chirac; most recent, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing.
  • Between the births of Adolphe Thiers in 1797 and Emmanuel Macron in 1977, a President has been born in every decade except for the 1810s, 1820s, 1900s, 1940s and 1960s.
  • Between the deaths of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte in 1873 and Valéry Giscard d’Estaing in 2020, a President has died in every decade except for the 1880s, 1910s, 1980s and 2000s.
  • The months with the most presidential births – seven – in August.
  • No president as of yet, has been born in May, or September.
  • The months with the most presidential deaths – three – each in January, April, June, and September.
  • No president as of yet, has died in July or August

Timeline of living presidents

This is a chronological list of all who served as the President of France and were still living, at different periods in history. There have been 10 time periods when there was only one living president, first with the inauguration of Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte in 1848 and most recently with the inauguration of Valéry Giscard d’Estaing in 1974 following the death of Georges Pompidou.

There have been four time periods when 5 living current or former presidents co-existed. The earliest period was from the September 1920 inauguration of Alexandre Millerand to the April 1922 death of Paul Deschanel. The second and the longest period was a five-year period beginning with the June 1924 inauguration of Gaston Doumergue to the December 1929 death of Émile Loubet. The third period was a nine-day period from the inauguration of Paul Doumer on 13 June 1931 to the 22 June 1931 death of Armand Fallières. The fourth and most recent period was from the May 2017 inauguration of Emmanuel Macron to the September 2019 death of Jacques Chirac.

If one includes future presidents as well as past and current presidents, there has been only one time period when 16 different presidents co-existed. (see Statistics)

Number of presidents alive at each moment in French history
Start dateEnd dateStart eventDurationEnd eventLiving presidents
20 December 184831 August 1871Inauguration of Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte22 years, 254 daysInauguration of Adolphe Thiers1Bonaparte
31 August 18719 January 1873Inauguration of Adolphe Thiers1 year, 131 daysDeath of Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte2Bonaparte
Thiers
9 January 187324 May 1873Death of Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte135 daysInauguration of Patrice de Mac-Mahon1Thiers
24 May 18733 September 1877Inauguration of Patrice de Mac-Mahon4 years, 102 daysDeath of Adolphe Thiers2Thiers
de Mac-Mahon
3 September 187730 January 1879Death of Adolphe Thiers1 year, 149 daysInauguration of Jules Grévy1de Mac-Mahon
30 January 18793 December 1887Inauguration of Jules Grévy8 years, 307 daysInauguration of Sadi Carnot2de Mac-Mahon
Grévy
3 December 18879 September 1891Inauguration of Sadi Carnot3 years, 280 daysDeath of Jules Grévy3de Mac-Mahon
Grévy
Carnot
9 September 189116 October 1893Death of Jules Grévy2 years, 37 daysDeath of Patrice de Mac-Mahon2de Mac-Mahon
Carnot
16 October 189325 June 1894Death of Patrice de Mac-Mahon252 daysDeath of Sadi Carnot1Carnot
25 June 189417 January 1895Inauguration of Jean Casimir-Perier206 daysInauguration of Félix Faure1Casimir-Perier
17 January 189516 February 1899Inauguration of Félix Faure4 years, 30 daysDeath of Félix Faure2Casimir-Perier
Faure
16 February 189918 February 1906Inauguration of Émile Loubet7 years, 2 daysInauguration of Armand Fallières2Casimir-Perier
Loubet
18 February 190611 March 1907Inauguration of Armand Fallières1 year, 21 daysDeath of Jean Casimir-Perier3Casimir-Perier
Loubet
Fallières
11 March 190718 February 1913Death of Jean Casimir-Perier5 years, 344 daysInauguration of Raymond Poincaré2Loubet
Fallières
18 February 191318 February 1920Inauguration of Raymond Poincaré7 years, 0 daysInauguration of Paul Deschanel3Loubet
Fallières
Poincaré
18 February 192023 September 1920Inauguration of Paul Deschanel218 daysInauguration of Alexandre Millerand4Loubet
Fallières
Poincaré
Deschanel
23 September 192028 April 1922Inauguration of Alexandre Millerand1 year, 217 daysDeath of Paul Deschanel5Loubet
Fallières
Poincaré
Deschanel
Millerand
28 April 192213 June 1924Death of Paul Deschanel2 years, 46 daysInauguration of Gaston Doumergue4Loubet
Fallières
Poincaré
Millerand
13 June 192420 December 1929Inauguration of Gaston Doumergue5 years, 190 daysDeath of Émile Loubet5Loubet
Fallières
Poincaré
Millerand
Doumergue
20 December 192913 June 1931Death of Émile Loubet1 year, 175 daysInauguration of Paul Doumer4Fallières
Poincaré
Millerand
Doumergue
13 June 193122 June 1931Inauguration of Paul Doumer9 daysDeath of Armand Fallières5Fallières
Poincaré
Millerand
Doumergue
Doumer
22 June 19317 May 1932Death of Armand Fallières320 daysDeath of Paul Doumer4Poincaré
Millerand
Doumergue
Doumer
10 May 193215 October 1934Inauguration of Albert Lebrun2 years, 158 daysDeath of Raymond Poincaré4Poincaré
Millerand
Doumergue
Lebrun
15 October 193418 June 1937Death of Raymond Poincaré2 years, 246 daysDeath of Gaston Doumergue3Millerand
Doumergue
Lebrun
18 June 19377 April 1943Death of Gaston Doumergue5 years, 293 daysDeath of Alexandre Millerand2Millerand
Lebrun
7 April 194316 January 1947Death of Alexandre Millerand3 years, 284 daysInauguration of Vincent Auriol1Lebrun
16 January 19476 March 1950Inauguration of Vincent Auriol3 years, 49 daysDeath of Albert Lebrun2Lebrun
Auriol
6 March 195016 January 1954Death of Albert Lebrun3 years, 316 daysInauguration of René Coty1Auriol
16 January 19548 January 1959Inauguration of René Coty4 years, 357 daysInauguration of Charles de Gaulle2Auriol
Coty
8 January 195922 November 1962Inauguration of Charles de Gaulle3 years, 318 daysDeath of René Coty3Auriol
Coty
de Gaulle
22 November 19621 January 1966Death of René Coty3 years, 40 daysDeath of Vincent Auriol2Auriol
de Gaulle
1 January 196620 June 1969Death of Vincent Auriol3 years, 170 daysInauguration of Georges Pompidou1de Gaulle
20 June 19699 November 1970Inauguration of Georges Pompidou1 year, 142 daysDeath of Charles de Gaulle2de Gaulle
Pompidou
9 November 19702 April 1974Death of Charles de Gaulle3 years, 144 daysDeath of Georges Pompidou1Pompidou
27 May 197421 May 1981Inauguration of Valéry Giscard d’Estaing6 years, 359 daysInauguration of François Mitterrand1Giscard d’Estaing
21 May 198117 May 1995Inauguration of François Mitterrand13 years, 361 daysInauguration of Jacques Chirac2Giscard d’Estaing
Mitterrand
17 May 19958 January 1996Inauguration of Jacques Chirac236 daysDeath of François Mitterrand3Giscard d’Estaing
Mitterrand
Chirac
8 January 199616 May 2007Death of François Mitterrand11 years, 128 daysInauguration of Nicolas Sarkozy2Giscard d’Estaing
Chirac
16 May 200715 May 2012Inauguration of Nicolas Sarkozy4 years, 365 daysInauguration of François Hollande3Giscard d’Estaing
Chirac
Sarkozy
15 May 201214 May 2017Inauguration of François Hollande4 years, 364 daysInauguration of Emmanuel Macron4Giscard d’Estaing
Chirac
Sarkozy
Hollande
14 May 201726 September 2019Inauguration of Emmanuel Macron2 years, 135 daysDeath of Jacques Chirac5Giscard d’Estaing
Chirac
Sarkozy
Hollande
Macron
26 September 20192 December 2020Death of Jacques Chirac1 year, 67 daysDeath of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing4Giscard d’Estaing
Sarkozy
Hollande
Macron
2 December 2020presentDeath of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing300 dayspresent3Sarkozy
Hollande
Macron

Statistics

Oldest living presidents of France

Not all presidents live to become the oldest of their time. Of the 22 deceased presidents, 18 eventually became the oldest of their time, while 4 did not (Raymond Poincaré, Paul Deschanel, Gaston Doumergue, and Jacques Chirac being the only exceptions). Émile Loubet became the oldest living president when Félix Faure died in 1899 and remained so until his death in 1929, for a record single period of 30 years, 307 days. Valéry Giscard d'Estaing surpassed Loubet's record on 18 November 2019, however because Giscard d'Estaing held this distinction on two separate occasions, Loubet's record for a single period still stands. Jean Casimir-Perier became the oldest living president after the death of Sadi Carnot, but he held this distinction for only 206 days.

On five occasions the oldest living president lost this distinction not by his death, but due to the inauguration of a president who was older. Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte lost this distinction when Adolphe Thiers was inaugurated. Patrice de Mac-Mahon lost this distinction when Jules Grévy was inaugurated, but when Grévy died in 1891, de Mac-Mahon regained it again until his own death in 1893 for a total period of 3 years and 186 days. Jean Casimir-Perier lost this distinction when Félix Faure was inaugurated. Vincent Auriol lost this distinction when René Coty was inaugurated, but when Coty died in 1962, Auriol regained it again until his own death in 1966 for a total period of 6 years, 356 days. Valéry Giscard d'Estaing lost this distinction when François Mitterrand was inaugurated, but regained it again when Mitterrand died. Consequently, Giscard d'Estaing too was the oldest living president twice: first from 1974 to 1981 (from his inauguration after the death of Georges Pompidou), and a second time from Mitterand's death in 1996 until his own death in 2020, for a record total period of 31 years and 323 days.

Armand Fallières was the oldest to acquire this distinction at the age of 88 years, 44 days. Jacques Chirac, who was aged 86 years, 301 days when he died on 26 September 2019, was the oldest and most recent president to die without ever acquiring this distinction.

PresidentBecame oldest living presidentCeased to be oldest living presidentAge at start dateAge at end dateDuration (years, days)
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte 20 December 184831 August 187140 years, 244 days63 years, 133 days22 years, 254 days
Adolphe Thiers 31 August 18713 September 187774 years, 135 days80 years, 138 days6 years, 3 days
Patrice de Mac-Mahon 3 September 187730 January 187969 years, 82 days70 years, 231 days1 year, 149 days
Jules Grévy 30 January 18799 September 189171 years, 168 days84 years, 25 days12 years, 222 days
Patrice de Mac-Mahon 9 September 189116 October 189383 years, 88 days85 years, 125 days2 years, 37 days
Sadi Carnot 16 October 189325 June 189456 years, 66 days56 years, 318 days252 days
Jean Casimir-Perier 25 June 189417 January 189546 years, 229 days47 years, 70 days206 days
Félix Faure 17 January 189516 February 189953 years, 352 days58 years, 17 days4 years, 30 days
Émile Loubet 16 February 189920 December 192960 years, 47 days90 years, 354 days30 years, 307 days
Armand Fallières 20 December 192922 June 193188 years, 44 days89 years, 228 days1 year, 184 days
Paul Doumer 22 June 19317 May 193274 years, 92 days75 years, 46 days320 days
Alexandre Millerand 7 May 19327 April 194373 years, 87 days84 years, 56 days10 years, 335 days
Albert Lebrun 7 April 19436 March 195071 years, 221 days78 years, 189 days6 years, 333 days
Vincent Auriol 6 March 195016 January 195465 years, 191 days69 years, 142 days3 years, 316 days
René Coty 16 January 195422 November 196271 years, 302 days80 years, 247 days8 years, 310 days
Vincent Auriol 22 November 19621 January 196678 years, 87 days81 years, 127 days3 years, 40 days
Charles de Gaulle 1 January 19669 November 197075 years, 33 days79 years, 345 days4 years, 312 days
Georges Pompidou 9 November 19702 April 197459 years, 127 days62 years, 271 days3 years, 144 days
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing 27 May 197421 May 198148 years, 114 days55 years, 108 days6 years, 359 days
François Mitterrand 21 May 19818 January 199664 years, 207 days79 years, 74 days14 years, 232 days
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing 8 January 19962 December 202069 years, 340 days94 years, 304 days24 years, 329 days
François Hollande 2 December 2020Current oldest living president66 years, 112 daysCurrent oldest living president300 days
PresidentBecame oldest living presidentCeased to be oldest living presidentAge at start dateAge at end dateDuration (years, days)

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