1.
French Senate
–
The Senate is the upper house of the Parliament of France, presided over by a president. Indirectly elected by elected officials, it represents territorial collectivities of the Republic, the Senate enjoys less prominence than the lower house, the directly elected National Assembly, debates in the Senate tend to be less tense and generally receive less media coverage. Frances first experience with a house was under the Directory from 1795 to 1799. With the Restoration in 1814, a new Chamber of Peers was created, at first it contained hereditary peers, but following the July Revolution of 1830, it became a body to which one was appointed for life. The Second Republic returned to a system after 1848, but soon after the establishment of the Second French Empire in 1852. In the Fourth Republic, the Senate was replaced by the Council of the Republic, with the new constitution of the Fifth Republic enforced on 4 October 1958, the older name of Senate was restored. In 2011, the Socialist Party won control of the French Senate for the first time since the foundation of the French Fifth Republic, in 2014, the centre-right Gaullists and its allies won back the control of the Senate. Until September 2004, the Senate had 321 senators, each elected to a nine-year term and that month, the term was reduced to six years, while the number of senators progressively increased to 348 in 2011, in order to reflect the countrys population growth. Senators were elected in every three years, this was also changed to one-half of their number every three years. Senators are elected indirectly by approximately 150,000 officials, including regional councilors, department councilors, mayors, city councilors in large towns, however, 90% of the electors are delegates appointed by councilors. This system introduces a bias in the composition of the Senate favoring rural areas, the Senate has also been accused of being a refuge for politicians that have lost their seats in the National Assembly. The senators elect a President from among their members, the current incumbent is Gérard Larcher. This happened twice for Alain Poher—once at the resignation of Charles de Gaulle, under the Constitution, the Senate has nearly the same powers as the National Assembly. Bills may be submitted by the administration or by either house of Parliament, because both houses may amend the bill, it may take several readings to reach an agreement between the National Assembly and the Senate. This does not happen frequently, usually the two eventually agree on the bill, or the administration decides to withdraw it. The power to pass a vote of censure, or vote of no confidence, is limited, as was the case in the Fourth Republics constitution, new cabinets do not have to receive a vote of confidence. Also, a vote of censure can occur only after 10 percent of the sign a petition, if rejected. If the petition gets the support, a vote of censure must gain an absolute majority of all members
French Senate
French Senate
–
Senate Sénat
French Senate
–
The Palais du Luxembourg
2.
Vienne
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Vienne is a department in the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It takes its name from the river Vienne, established on March 4,1790 during the French Revolution, Vienne is one of the original 83 departments. It was created from parts of the provinces of Poitou, Touraine, and Berry. The original Acadians, who settled in and around what is now Nova Scotia, kennedy argues that the emigrants carried to Canada their customs and social structure. They were frontier peoples, who dispersed their settlements based on kinship and they optimized use of farmland and emphasized trading for a profit. They were hierarchical and politically active, Édith Cresson, Frances first woman Prime Minister from 1991-1992, was a deputy for the department. It has three arrondissements, Poitiers, the prefecture, and the subprefectures Châtellerault and Montmorillon, the capital Poitiers is the see of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Poitiers, which pastorally serves the department. Goat cheese making is an important industry of Vienne
Vienne
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Prefecture building of the Vienne department, in Poitiers
Vienne
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Notre-Dame of
Poitiers
Vienne
–
Saint-Martin-l'Ars
Vienne
–
Romagne
3.
Prime Minister of France
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The French Prime Minister in the Fifth Republic is the head of government and of the Council of Ministers of France. During the Third and Fourth Republics, the head of government position was called President of the Council of Ministers, the Prime Minister proposes a list of ministers to the President of the Republic. Decrees and decisions of the Prime Minister, like almost all decisions, are subject to the oversight of the administrative court system. Few decrees are taken after advice from the Council of State, all prime ministers defend the programs of their ministry, and make budgetary choices. The extent to which those decisions lie with the Prime Minister or President depends upon whether they are of the same party, manuel Valls was appointed to lead the government in a cabinet reshuffle in March 2014, after the ruling Socialists suffered a bruising defeat in local elections. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President of the Republic, the President can choose whomever they want. On the other hand, because the National Assembly does have the power to force the resignation of the government, for example, right after the legislative election of 1986, President François Mitterrand appointed Jacques Chirac prime minister. Chirac was a member of the RPR and an opponent of Mitterrand. Despite the fact that Mitterrands own Socialist Party was the largest party in the Assembly, the RPR had an alliance with the UDF, which gave them a majority. Such a situation, where the President is forced to work with a minister who is an opponent, is called a cohabitation. So far, Édith Cresson is the woman to have ever held the position of prime minister. Aristide Briand holds the record for most nomination as Prime Minister with 11 between 1909 and 1929 with some terms as short as 26 days, other members of Government are appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister can engage the responsibility of his or her Government before the National Assembly and this process consists of placing a bill before the Assembly, and either the Assembly overthrows the Government, or the bill is passed automatically. In addition to ensuring that the Government still has support in the House, the Prime Minister may also submit a bill that has not been yet signed into law to the Constitutional Council. Before he is allowed to dissolve the Assembly, the President has to consult the Prime Minister, the office of the prime minister, in its current form, dates from the formation of the French Third Republic. Under the French Constitutional Laws of 1875, he was imbued with the powers as his British counterpart. In practice, however, the minister was a fairly weak figure. Most notably, the legislature had the power to force the cabinet out of office by a vote of censure
Prime Minister of France
–
Incumbent
Manuel Valls since 31 March 2014
Prime Minister of France
–
Official reception at
Hôtel Matignon.
4.
Jacques Chirac
–
Jacques René Chirac is a French politician, who served as the President of France and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra from 1995 to 2007. Chirac served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976, from 1986 to 1988, Chirac occupied various senior positions, including Minister of Agriculture, Minister of the Interior, Prime Minister, Mayor of Paris, and President of the French Republic. Chiracs internal policies initially included lower tax rates, the removal of controls, strong punishment for crime and terrorism. After pursuing these policies as Prime Minister, Chirac changed his method, Jacques Chirac has emerged as an improbable icon of retro taste and a figure of public affection. On 15 December 2011, the Paris court declared him guilty of diverting public funds and abusing public confidence, and gave Chirac a two-year suspended prison sentence. Chirac, born in the Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire clinic, is the son of Abel François Marie Chirac, an executive for an aircraft company, and Marie-Louise Valette. His great grandparents on both sides were peasants, but his two grandfathers were teachers from Sainte-Féréole in Corrèze, according to Chirac, his name originates from the langue doc, that of the troubadours, therefore that of poetry. He was educated in Paris at the Cours Hattemer, a private school and he then attended the Lycée Carnot and at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand. After his baccalauréat, he served for three months as a sailor on a coal-transporter, Chirac played rugby union for Brives youth team, and also played at university level. He played no.8 and second row, in 1956, he married Bernadette Chodron de Courcel, with whom he had two daughters, Laurence and Claude. Chirac is the grandfather of Martin Rey-Chirac by the relationship of Claude with French judoka Thierry Rey, Jacques and Bernadette Chirac also have a foster daughter, Anh Dao Traxel. Inspired by General Charles de Gaulle, Chirac started to pursue a civil career in the 1950s. During this period, he joined the French Communist Party, sold copies of LHumanité, in 1950, he signed the Soviet-inspired Stockholm Appeal for the abolition of nuclear weapons – which led him to be questioned when he applied for his first visa to the United States. Chirac trained as a military officer in armoured cavalry at Saumur. He then volunteered to fight in the Algerian War, using connections to be sent despite the reservations of his superiors. His superiors did not want to make him an officer because they suspected he had communist leanings, after leaving the ENA in 1959, he became a civil servant in the Court of Auditors. In April 1962, Chirac was appointed head of the staff of Prime Minister Georges Pompidou. This appointment launched Chiracs political career, Pompidou considered Chirac his protégé, and referred to him as my bulldozer for his skill at getting things done
Jacques Chirac
–
Chirac at the
Élysée Palace in June 1999
Jacques Chirac
–
Chirac during his second term as Prime Minister
Jacques Chirac
–
Chirac with
Bill Clinton outside the
Élysée Palace in Paris, June 1999
Jacques Chirac
–
Chirac with German Federal Chancellor
Gerhard Schröder.
5.
Lionel Jospin
–
Lionel Jospin is a French politician, who served as Prime Minister of France from 1997 to 2002. Jospin was the Socialist Party candidate for President of France in the elections of 1995 and 2002 and he was narrowly defeated in the final runoff election by Jacques Chirac in 1995. Lionel Jospin was born to a Protestant family in Meudon, a suburb of Paris and he is the son of Robert Jospin. He attended the Lycée Janson-de-Sailly before studying at the Institut détudes politiques de Paris and he was active in the UNEF students union, protesting against the war in Algeria. He completed his service as an officer in charge of armoured training in Trier. After his graduation from the ENA in 1965, he entered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as secretary of Foreign Affairs and he became in charge of economic cooperation there, and worked with Ernest-Antoine Seillière, future leader of the MEDEF employers union. Integrating François Mitterrands circle, he became the second highest-ranking member of the party in 1979, in 1984, when Laurent Fabius was chosen as Prime minister, a rivalry appeared between these two political heirs of Mitterrand. It broke out when they competed for the leadership of the 1986 legislative campaign, in 1988, after Mitterrands re-election, he left the PS leadership, and, though the President considered naming him Prime Minister, he was nominated Minister of Education. His rivalry with Fabius intensified and caused a crisis, notably during the Rennes Congress. Indeed, the mitterrandist group in the party split because Jospin followers allied with the factions to prevent the election of Fabius as First Secretary. As a member of the National Assembly, Jospin served first as a representative of Paris, Jospin lost his seat in the National Assembly in the Socialists landslide defeat in the 1993 legislative election and announced his political retirement. In 1993, Lionel Jospin was appointed ministre plénipotentiaire, 2nd class and he was, however, not appointed to any embassy. Finally, he came back and claimed the necessity to take stock of the mitterrandist inheritance so as to restore the credibility of the Socialist Party, in this, he was selected to be the Socialist candidate for President in 1995, against the PS leader Henri Emmanuelli. Following the Socialists landslide defeats of 1992–1994, Jospin was considered to have little chance of victory, but he did surprisingly well, leading the first round and losing only very narrowly to Jacques Chirac in the final runnoff election. Despite defeat, his performance was seen to mark a revival of the Socialists as a force in French politics. He built a new coalition with the other left-wing parties, the French Communist Party, the Greens, the Left Radical Party, two years later, Chirac decided to call an early election for the National Assembly, hoping for a personal endorsement. But the move backfired as the Plural Left obtained a parliamentary majority, Jospin is a Member of the Club of Madrid. Jospin served as Prime Minister during Frances third cohabitation government under President Jacques Chirac from 1997 to 2002, despite his previous image as a rigid socialist, Jospin went on selling state-owned enterprises, lowered the VAT rate, income tax and company tax
Lionel Jospin
–
Lionel Jospin
Lionel Jospin
–
Signature
Lionel Jospin
–
President of the council
6.
Dominique de Villepin
–
Dominique Marie François René Galouzeau de Villepin is a French politician who served as the Prime Minister of France from 31 May 2005 to 17 May 2007. A career diplomat, Villepin rose through the ranks of the French right as one of Jacques Chiracs protégés and he came into the international spotlight as foreign minister with his opposition to the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which culminated with a speech to the UN. Villepin has enjoyed a modest return to public favour for his critique of President Sarkozys style of imperial rule. He has written poetry, a book about poetry, and several historical and political essays, Villepin is an honorary member of the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation. Villepin was born in Rabat, Morocco, and spent some time in Venezuela and he graduated from the Lycée Français de New York in 1971. He has three children, Marie, Arthur, and Victoire, contrary to what his surname suggests, Villepin is not from an aristocratic background but from a middle class family. His ancestors added the particle de to the family name and his great-grandfather was a colonel in the French army, his grandfather was a board member for several companies, and his father Xavier de Villepin was a diplomat and a member of the Senate. Villepin speaks French, English and Spanish, Villepin studied at the Institut dÉtudes Politiques de Paris and went on to the École nationale dadministration, Frances highly selective post-graduate school which trains its top civil servants. Villepin also holds degrees in Civil law and French literature from the universities of Panthéon-Assas, at the end of his studies he completed his military service as a naval officer on board the Aircraft Carrier Clemenceau, Villepin then entered a career in diplomacy. His assignments were, Advising Committee on African affairs The French embassy in Washington, in 1993 he became chief of staff of Alain Juppé, the Foreign Minister in Édouard Balladurs cabinet, who was Chiracs political heir apparent. He advised the president to hold a general election in 1997. This was a gamble, and Chiracs party went on to lose the elections. Villepin offered Chirac his resignation afterwards, but it was turned down, Villepin has had an uneasy relationship with the members of his own political side. He has in the past made a number of demeaning remarks about members of parliament from his own party, in addition, the mutual distaste between Villepin and Nicolas Sarkozy, head of the Union for a Popular Movement majority party, is well known. He was appointed minister by Chirac in the cabinet of Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin at the beginning of Chiracs second term in 2002. During the 2004 coup détat in Haiti, Villepin obtained the backing of the United States Secretary of State, Colin Powell, the speech he gave to the UN to block a second resolution allowing the use of force against Saddam Husseins regime received loud applause. During mid-2003 Villepin organized the Opération 14 juillet that attempted to rescue his former student, Ingrid Betancourt, the operation failed, and because he had neither informed Colombia, Brazil, nor President Chirac of the mission, it resulted in a political scandal. During the cabinet reshuffle that made Nicolas Sarkozy Finance Minister, Villepin was appointed to him as interior minister on 31 March 2004
Dominique de Villepin
–
Dominique de Villepin
7.
Alain Madelin
–
Alain Madelin is a French politician and a former minister of that country. Following the election, he became a member of the Union for a Popular Movement and he resigned after only four months, citing economic policy differences with Alain Juppé. He was a member of the National Assembly from 1978 to 2007 as representative for Ille-et-Vilaines fourth circumscription, the district includes the town of Redon, where he was mayor from 1995 until 2001. Madelin unsuccessfully ran in 1996 for president of the Union for French Democracy and he was elected as leader of the Parti Républicain, a part of the UDF coalition, which he renamed Démocratie Libérale. In 1998, Démocratie Libérale split from the UDF, Madelins obtained slightly less than 4% of the vote in the 2002 presidential election and merged his party into the UMP. After 2002, although his former supporter Jean-Pierre Raffarin became Prime minister, Madelin is the French major politician the most in favor of the international policies of the United States, and supported the United States-led 2003 invasion of Iraq. Because of this, he has, in the past, generally been considered with favor by the US press. In July 2005, Alain Madelin rumors reported in the Canard Enchaîné stated that he would run for the OCDE and he did not run and Angel Gurria of Mexico was chosen. Alain Madelin did not seek reelection in the 2007 elections, ending his involvement in partisan politics, governmental functions Minister of Industry and Tourism, 1986–1988. Minister of Enterprise and Economic Development, small and medium enterprises, Trade and Crafts, Minister of Economy and Finance, May–August 1995. Electoral mandates European Parliament Member of European Parliament, June–November 1989 / 1999–2002, elected in 1989, reelected in 1999. National Assembly of France Member of the National Assembly of France for Ille-et-Vilaine, elected in 1978, reelected in 1981,1986,1988,1993,1997,2002. Regional Council Vice-president of the Regional Council of Brittany, 1992–1998, General Council General councillor of Ille-et-Vilaine, 1994–1995. Municipal Council Mayor of Redon, 1995–2001, political functions President of Liberal Democracy, 1997–2002. Vice-president of the Union for French Democracy, 1991–1996, Vice-president of the Republican Party, 1986–1997. Politics of France Alain Madelin official site
Alain Madelin
–
Alain Madelin in 2008.
8.
Marylise Lebranchu
–
Marylise Lebranchu is a French politician. She serves as Minister of the Reform of the State and of Decentralisation under Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault and she is a member of the Socialist Party and of the Socialiste, radical, citoyen et divers gauche parliamentary group. She served in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Lionel Jospin from 1997 to 2002, from 2000 to 2002, she served as Minister of Justice. She then served as a member of the National Assembly of France of the Finistère department
Marylise Lebranchu
–
Marylise Lebranchu in 2015
9.
Poitiers
–
Poitiers is a city on the Clain river in west-central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department, Poitiers is a major university centre. The centre of town is picturesque and its streets include predominant historical architecture, especially religious architecture and this battles consequences partly provoked the Jacquerie. The city of Poitiers is strategically situated on the Seuil du Poitou, the Seuil du Poitou connects the Aquitaine Basin to the South to the Paris Basin to the North. This area is an important geographic crossroads in France and Western Europe, poitierss primary site sits on a vast promontory between the valleys of the Boivre and the Clain. The old town occupies the slopes and the summit of a plateau which rises 130 feet above the streams which surround it on three sides, thus Poitiers benefits from a very strong tactical situation. This was an important factor before and throughout the Middle Ages. Inhabitants of Poitiers are referred to as Poitevins or Poitevines, although this denomination can be used for anyone from the Poitou province, as of 2015, the population of Poitiers was 298,339. One out of three people in Poitiers is under the age of 30 and one out of four residents in Poitiers is a student, the climate in the Poitiers area is mild with mild temperature amplitudes, and adequate rainfall throughout the year. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this type of climate is Cfb, Poitiers was founded by the Celtic tribe of the Pictones and was known as the oppidum Lemonum before Roman influence. The name is said to have come from the Celtic word for elm, after Roman influence took over, the town became known as Pictavium, or later Pictavis, after the original Pictones inhabitants themselves. There is a history of archeological finds from the Roman era in Poitiers. In fact until 1857 Poitiers hosted the ruins of a vast Roman amphitheatre, remains of Roman baths, built in the 1st century and demolished in the 3rd century, were uncovered in 1877. In 1879 a burial-place and tombs of a number of Christian martyrs were discovered on the heights to the south-east of the town, the names of some of the Christians had been preserved in paintings and inscriptions. Not far from these tombs is a dolmen, which is 6.7 metres long,4.9 metres broad and 2.1 metres high. The Romans also built at least three aqueducts and this extensive ensemble of Roman constructions suggests Poitiers was a town of first importance, possibly even the capital of the Roman province of Gallia Aquitania during the 2nd century. The first foundations of the Baptistère Saint-Jean can be traced to that era of open Christian evangelization and he was named Doctor of The Church by Pope Pius IX. In the 4th century, a thick wall 6m wide and 10m high was built around the town and it was 2.5 km long and stood lower on the naturally defended east side and at the top of the promontory
Poitiers
–
Historic centre of Poitiers with
Church of Saint-Radegund,
Cathedral of Saint-Pierre and
Palace of Justice in the background
Poitiers
–
Charles-de-Gaulle place and its medieval heritage
Poitiers
–
Church of St. Hilary le Grand
Poitiers
–
Church of Notre-Dame la Grande
10.
France
–
France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
France
–
One of the
Lascaux paintings: a horse –
Dordogne, approximately 18,000 BC
France
–
Flag
France
–
The
Maison Carrée was a temple of the
Gallo-Roman city of Nemausus (present-day
Nîmes) and is one of the best preserved vestiges of the
Roman Empire.
France
–
With
Clovis ' conversion to Catholicism in 498, the
Frankish monarchy,
elective and
secular until then, became
hereditary and of
divine right.
11.
Liberal Democracy (France)
–
Liberal Democracy was a conservative-liberal political party in France existing between 1997 and 2002. Headed by Alain Madelin, the party replaced the Republican Party, after Madelin won the leadership of the Republican Party on 24 June 1997 with 59. 9% of the vote, he renamed the organisation Liberal Democracy, and moved the party further towards economic liberalism. This followed the formation of the Democratic Force by the centrist, Christian democratic component of the Union for French Democracy, Liberal Democracy became independent in 1998, after a split from the UDF. The immediate cause of departure was Liberal Democracys refusal to condemn the election of four UDF president of Regional Councils with the votes of the National Front. However, the party had already feared that a tighter UDF would be dominated by economic centrists, thus, Liberal Democracy voted on 16 May 1998 to become a separate party, with Madelin launching the Ten Tough Choices programme advocating transforming the political debate in France. The economic liberals that refused to break ranks with the UDF launched the Independent Republican and Liberal Pole, which merged with FD. In the 1999 EU elections DL ran with the RPR list led by Nicolas Sarkozy, however, the pro-European tone of the RPR-DL campaign deceived and the list was placed in third, behind the eurosceptic RPF list led by Charles Pasqua and Philippe de Villiers. DL obtained four MEPs, Alain Madelin, Françoise Grossetête, Thierry Jean-Pierre, in the 2002 presidential election, the party split, while Alain Madelin obtained only 3. 91% of the votes, partys Vice-President Jean-Pierre Raffarin endorsed incumbent Jacques Chirac. After Chirac won, he appointed Raffarin as Prime Minister on 6 May 2002, at the June 2002 legislative election, DL competed in alliance with the Rally for the Republic and other Chirac supporters as the Union for the Presidential Majority. On 21 September 2002, DL voted by 15,770 votes to 2,930 to merge with the RPR, the merger was completed on 17 November 2002, creating the Union for a Popular Movement. The party advocated liberalism, promoting less government intervention as the solution to both economic and social problems. In René Rémonds schematic of the French right, it represented the Orléanist strain, in contrast to the advanced liberalism of Valéry Giscard dEstaing, which still involved social conservatism, Madelins was more consistently classical liberal and economically similar to Thatcherism. On economics, DL was systematically more free-market than the UDF, in 1998, the party advocated cutting spending from 50% to 45% within five years, along with reducing the top income tax rate to 35%. Madelin had been fired as Minister of the Economy and Finances in Alain Juppés government for proposing cutting public sector pay, as a presidential candidate in 2002, he renewed these calls, along with widespread public sector competition and privatisation. It was also more secular than the UDFs centrist, Christian democratic elements from which it split, reflecting this Catholicism, the party was morally conservative, if not always conservative in social policy, and also emphasised anti-corruption, thanks particularly to judge Thierry Jean-Pierre. The party strongly opposed the dominance of École nationale dadministration in public life, in foreign policy, Liberal Democracy was strongly pro-American. Madelin set himself apart from the rest of the right after September 11 attacks by advocating total support for the United States, after its split, Liberal Democracy gained about one-third of the UDFs supporters. The party had significant support in rural areas, DLs supporters were overall wealthy, highly educated, and from a high socio-economic class, even compared to the New UDF. 42% of DL voters earned over €22,500 a year, compared to 33% of New UDF
Liberal Democracy (France)
–
The
classical liberal platform adopted by Liberal Democracy mirrored the personal views of its founder and President, Alain Madelin.
Liberal Democracy (France)
–
Liberal Democracy Démocratie libérale
12.
Union for a Popular Movement
–
The Union for a Popular Movement was a centre-right political party in France that was one of the two major contemporary political parties in France along with the centre-left Socialist Party. The UMP was formed in 2002 as a merger of several parties under the leadership of President Jacques Chirac. In May 2015, the party was renamed and succeeded by the Republicans, Nicolas Sarkozy, then the president of the UMP, was elected President of France in the 2007 presidential election, but was defeated by PS candidate François Hollande in a run-off five years later. After the November 2012 party congress, the UMP experienced internal fractioning and was plagued by scandals which forced its president, Jean-François Copé. After his re-election as UMP president in November 2014, Sarkozy put forward an amendment to change the name of the party into The Republicans, since the 1980s, the political groups of the parliamentary right have joined forces around the values of economic liberalism and the building of Europe. Their rivalries had contributed to their defeat in the 1981 and 1988 legislative elections, before the 1993 legislative election, the Gaullist Rally for the Republic and the centrist Union for French Democracy formed an electoral alliance, the Union for France. However, in the 1995 presidential campaign they were divided between followers of Jacques Chirac, who was eventually elected, and supporters of Prime Minister Edouard Balladur. After their defeat in the 1997 legislative election, the RPR, before the 2002 presidential campaign, the supporters of President Jacques Chirac, divided in three centre-right parliamentary parties, founded an association named Union on the Move. After Chiracs re-election, in order to contest the election jointly. It was renamed Union for a Popular Movement and as established as a permanent organisation. In the UMP four major French political families were represented, Gaullism, republicanism, Christian democracy. Chiracs close ally Alain Juppé became the partys first president at the founding congress at the Bourget in November 2002. Juppé won 79. 42% of the vote, defeating Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, the leader of the partys Eurosceptic Arise the Republic faction, and three other candidates. During the partys earlier years, it was marked by tensions, in the 2004 European Parliament election on 13 June 2004, the UMP also suffered another heavy blow, winning 16. 6% of the vote, far behind the Socialist Party, and only 16 seats. Juppé resigned the presidency on 15 July 2004 after being found guilty in a corruption scandal in January of the same year. Nicolas Sarkozy rapidly announced that he would take over the presidency of the UMP and resign his position as finance minister, ending months of speculation. On 28 November 2004, Sarkozy was elected to the presidency with 85. 09% of the votes against 9. 1% for Dupont-Aignan and 5. 82% for Christine Boutin. Having gained control of what had been Chiracs party, Sarkozy focused the party machinery, however, during this time, the UMP under Sarkozy gained a record number of new members and rejuvenated itself in preparation of the 2007 election
Union for a Popular Movement
–
Nicolas Sarkozy speaking at a UMP party congress in 2004
Union for a Popular Movement
–
Union for a Popular Movement Union pour un mouvement populaire
Union for a Popular Movement
Union for a Popular Movement
13.
The Republicans (France)
–
The Republicans is a centre-right political party in France. The party was formed on 30 May 2015 by renaming the Union for a Popular Movement party, the party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France along with the centre-left Socialist Party. The Republicans are a member of the European Peoples Party, Centrist Democrat International, with the name already chosen, vice-president of the UMP Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet presented Sarkozy and the partys political bureau the proposed new statutes. The new name was adopted by the party bureau on 5 May 2015, the new party statutes were adopted by 96. 3% of voters and the composition of the new political bureau by 94. 8%. The change to the name The Republicans was confirmed at the founding congress on 30 May 2015 at the Paris Event Centre in Paris. Angela Merkel, chairwoman of the conservative CDU, sent a message to the congress. The Republicans thus became the successor of the UMP and the leading centre-right party in France. The organisation has been declared in the préfecture de Saône-et-Loire on 9 April 2015 and this party foundation was published in the Journal officiel de la République française on 25 April 2015. On 3 July 2016, Sarkozy announced that he would resign as leader that year in order to compete to be the candidate in the 2017 presidential election. On 27 November 2016, Francois Fillon, the former Prime Minister of France, politics of France List of political parties in France Official web site of Les Républicains
The Republicans (France)
–
The Republicans Les Républicains
14.
Alma mater
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Alma mater is an allegorical Latin phrase for a university or college. In modern usage, it is a school or university which an individual has attended, the phrase is variously translated as nourishing mother, nursing mother, or fostering mother, suggesting that a school provides intellectual nourishment to its students. Before its modern usage, Alma mater was a title in Latin for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele. The source of its current use is the motto, Alma Mater Studiorum, of the oldest university in continuous operation in the Western world and it is related to the term alumnus, denoting a university graduate, which literally means a nursling or one who is nourished. The phrase can also denote a song or hymn associated with a school, although alma was a common epithet for Ceres, Cybele, Venus, and other mother goddesses, it was not frequently used in conjunction with mater in classical Latin. Alma Redemptoris Mater is a well-known 11th century antiphon devoted to Mary, the earliest documented English use of the term to refer to a university is in 1600, when University of Cambridge printer John Legate began using an emblem for the universitys press. In English etymological reference works, the first university-related usage is often cited in 1710, many historic European universities have adopted Alma Mater as part of the Latin translation of their official name. The University of Bologna Latin name, Alma Mater Studiorum, refers to its status as the oldest continuously operating university in the world. At least one, the Alma Mater Europaea in Salzburg, Austria, the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, has been called the Alma Mater of the Nation because of its ties to the founding of the United States. At Queens University in Kingston, Ontario, and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia, the ancient Roman world had many statues of the Alma Mater, some still extant. Modern sculptures are found in prominent locations on several American university campuses, outside the United States, there is an Alma Mater sculpture on the steps of the monumental entrance to the Universidad de La Habana, in Havana, Cuba. Media related to Alma mater at Wikimedia Commons The dictionary definition of alma mater at Wiktionary Alma Mater Europaea website
Alma mater
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The Alma Mater statue by
Mario Korbel, at the entrance of the
University of Havana in
Cuba.
Alma mater
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John Legate's Alma Mater for Cambridge in 1600
Alma mater
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Alma Mater (1929, Lorado Taft),
University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign
15.
ESCP Europe
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ESCP Europe is a pan-European business school which has campuses in Berlin, London, Madrid, Paris, Turin, and Warsaw. ESCP Europe is one of the most selective French Grandes écoles and it is highly selective and aims to prepare high-level students for top executive functions. The ESCP Master in Management is consistently regarded by the Financial Times as one of the best in the world, in addition, the Financial Times rankings placed ESCPs Master in Finance 2nd and its Executive MBA 12th worldwide. Accredited by the Paris Chamber of Commerce, ESCP Europe is one of the 64 schools in the world that has the accreditation of AACSB, EQUIS. It gradually gained in stature and importance during the 19th century, in 1828, the project to put the school under the authority of the French Ministry of Commerce and Industry failed. The school remained independent by the intervention of Jérôme-Adolphe Blanqui who took it over, from 1838, the French state began to give scholarships to ESCP Europes students and in 1852 it accredited ESCP Europes programs. Finally, in 1869 the Paris Chamber of Commerce bought the school to train future leaders to modern commercial methods. It is worth noting that until 1870 there was one business school in France. In 1892, ESCP Europe set up selective admission processes which take the form of competitive exams. On April 5,1973 the concept of a business school was founded with the consecutive inaugurations of campuses in the United Kingdom. In 1988, a campus is opened in Madrid. In 1999, ESCP merges with its sister school EAP, in 2001, the Master in Management programme of ESCP Europe is validated by City University London. In 2004, a campus in Torino, Italy is founded. Validated by the University of Turin, Master in Management students can obtain the Italian degree Laurea Magistrale, in 2005, the School inaugurates its London campus having moved from Oxford. In 2015, the School establishes its sixth European campus via an alliance with the Warsaw-based Kozminski University. In 2016, the School decides to strengthen its footprint in Paris by adding a second located in the Montparnasse quarter. ESCP Europe students have the opportunity to study in campuses in France, in the UK, Spain, Germany, Italy and they can spend either 6 months or 1 year on each campus according to their study choices. Each campus has its own specificities and develops programs with academic institutions
ESCP Europe
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ESCP Europe
ESCP Europe
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ESCP Europe original buildings in Paris
ESCP Europe
ESCP Europe
16.
French referendum on the European Constitution
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The French referendum on the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe was held on 29 May 2005 to decide whether France should ratify the proposed Constitution of the European Union. The result was a victory for the No campaign, with 55% of voters rejecting the treaty on a turnout of 69%, the question put to voters was, Approuvez-vous le projet de loi qui autorise la ratification du traité établissant une Constitution pour lEurope. Do you approve the bill authorising the ratification of the treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, Frances rejection of the Constitution left the treaty with an uncertain future, with other EU member states pledging to continue with their own arrangements for ratification. Moreover, it would do much to cement his legacy as a French statesman and it would also have a divisive effect on the opposition Socialist Party. The date was announced on 4 March 2005, opinion polling had shown the Yes and No campaigns in the lead at various times, but in the weeks leading up the referendum the No campaign consistently held the lead. This led many, even some on the Yes side, to predict openly that France would reject the Constitution, on 1 December 2004, the opposition Socialist Party held a vote among its members to determine the stance it would take. The Yes side was led by party leader François Hollande while the No side was led by deputy leader Laurent Fabius. A former prime minister of France, Laurent Fabius traditionally on the right of the Socialist Party opted for the No to the Constitution. For many commentators, this move was a gamble to get the upper hand within the party before the next presidential elections. Within the Socialist Party, out of 127,027 members eligible to vote, 59% voted Yes, out of 102 Socialist Party regional federations,26 voted No. The Constitutional Council of France ruled that the European Constitution could not legally coexist with the current Constitution of France, for that reason, a vote was taken to amend the Constitution of France to make the two documents compatible. This amendment passed in a joint session of deputies and senators at the Palace of Versailles on 28 February 2005, with 730 votes in favour and 66 votes against. Both the ruling party and the Socialists supported the constitutional amendment, communist Party members were the only ones to vote against it. Initial opinion polls showed a majority in favour of the Constitution. By May, the Yes campaigns lead was smaller than the opinion pollsters margin of error, the three major political forces in France supported the proposed Constitution, as did president Chirac. Supporters of the Constitution from the left sought to emphasise that the treaty incorporates a Charter of Fundamental Rights, somewhat surprisingly considering his usual political orientation, Jacques Chirac defended it as a possible barrier against neoliberal economic policies. Objections to the Constitution in France can be divided into two camps. On the left, many expressed the view that the Constitution would enforce an economic model
French referendum on the European Constitution
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The text of the
European Constitution, as distributed to each French voter
French referendum on the European Constitution
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Olivier Besancenot,
José Bové and
Jean-Luc Mélenchon at a meeting supporting the "No" vote.
French referendum on the European Constitution
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Ballots for the referendum.
17.
Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe
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The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe was an unratified international treaty intended to create a consolidated constitution for the European Union. The Treaty was signed on 29 October 2004 by representatives of the then 25 member states of the European Union and it was later ratified by 18 member states, which included referendums endorsing it in Spain and Luxembourg. However the rejection of the document by French and Dutch voters in May, following a period of reflection, the Treaty of Lisbon was created to replace the Constitutional Treaty. This contained many of the changes that were placed in the Constitutional Treaty but was formulated as amendments to the existing treaties. Signed on 13 December 2007, the Lisbon Treaty entered into force on 1 December 2009, the drafting for European Constitution began in a call for a new debate on the future of Europe at the Laeken European Council in December 2001. Giscard dEstaing proposed to draft a Constitution, romano Prodi, the President of the European Commission backed a draft text, called the Penelope Project, which contained a deeper integration of the countries and a clearer institutional model. The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe was signed in Rome on 29 October 2004 by 53 senior political figures from the 25 member states of the European Union. In most cases heads of state designated plenipotentiaries to sign the treaty, most designated plenipotentiaries were prime ministers and foreign ministers. On 12 January 2005 the European Parliament voted a legally non-binding resolution in support of the Constitution by 500 votes in favour to 137 votes against, before an EU treaty can enter into force, it must be ratified by all member states. Ratification takes different forms in each country, depending on its traditions, constitutional arrangements, most member states ratify EU treaties following parliamentary votes, while some — notably Ireland and Denmark — sometimes hold referendums. As a reaction to what was seen as the nature of the Constitution, many advocates. On 20 April 2004 then British prime minister Tony Blair unexpectedly announced an intention to hold a referendum, Spain was the first country to hold a referendum on the Constitution. On 20 February 2005, Spanish voters backed the treaty with 76% voting in favour to 24% against, on 29 May 2005 the French public rejected the Constitution by margin of 55% to 45% on a turnout of 69%. Just three days later, the Dutch rejected the constitution by a margin of 61% to 39% on a turnout of 62%, notwithstanding the rejection in France and the Netherlands, Luxembourg held a referendum on 10 July 2005 approving the Constitution by 57% to 43%. It was the last referendum to be held on the Constitution as all of the member states that had proposed to hold referendums cancelled them. After the French and Dutch referendum results European leaders decided to hold a period of reflection on what to do next, as part of this reflection period a group of wise men was set up to consider possible courses of action. This group of high-level European politicians – former prime ministers, ministers and members of the European Commission – first met on 30 September 2006 in Rome, on 4 June 2007, this group, known as the Amato Group, presented its report. The new treaty would be based on the first and fourth parts of the Constitution, in the June 2007 European summit meeting, Member States agreed to abandon the constitution and to amend the existing treaties, which would remain in force
Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe
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Draft of the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, 17 June 2004
18.
French Fifth Republic
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The Fifth Republic, Frances current republican system of government, was established by Charles de Gaulle under the Constitution of the Fifth Republic on 4 October 1958. De Gaulle, who was the first president elected under the Fifth Republic in December 1958, believed in a head of state. The Fifth Republic is Frances third-longest political regime, after the hereditary and feudal monarchies of the Ancien Régime, the trigger for the collapse of the French Fourth Republic was the Algiers crisis of 1958. France was still a power, although conflict and revolt had begun the process of decolonization. French West Africa, French Indochina, and French Algeria still sent representatives to the French parliament under systems of limited suffrage in the French Union, Algeria in particular, despite being the colony with the largest French population, saw rising pressure for separation from the Metropole. The situation was complicated by those in Algeria, such as white settlers, the Algerian War was not just a separatist movement but had elements of a civil war. Further complications came when a section of the French Army rebelled, Charles de Gaulle, who had retired from politics a decade before, placed himself in the midst of the crisis, calling on the nation to suspend the government and create a new constitutional system. The Fourth Republic suffered from a lack of consensus, a weak executive. With no party or coalition able to sustain a parliamentary majority, De Gaulle and his supporters proposed a system of strong presidents elected for seven-year terms. The President under the constitution would have executive powers to run the country in consultation with a prime minister whom he would appoint. These plans were approved by more than 80% of those who voted in the referendum of 28 September 1958, the new constitution was signed into law on 4 October 1958. Since each new constitution established a new republic, France moved from the Fourth to the Fifth Republic, the new constitution contained transitional clauses extending the period of rule by decree until the new institutions were operating. René Coty remained President of the Republic until the new president was proclaimed, on 21 December 1958, Charles de Gaulle was elected President of France by an electoral college. The provisional constitutional commission, acting in lieu of the Constitutional Council, the new president began his office on that date, appointing Michel Debré as Prime Minister. The 1958 constitution also replaced the French Union with the French Community,1960 became known as the Year of Africa because of this wave of newly independent states. Algeria became independent on 5 July 1962, the president was initially elected by an electoral college, but in 1962 de Gaulle proposed that the president be directly elected by the citizens, and held a referendum on the change. Although the method and intent of de Gaulle in that referendum were contested by most political groups except for the Gaullists, the Constitutional Council declined to rule on the constitutionality of the referendum. Two major changes occurred in the 1970s regarding constitutional checks and balances, traditionally, France operated according to parliamentary supremacy, no authority was empowered to rule on whether statutes passed by Parliament respected the constitutional rights of the citizens
French Fifth Republic
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Charles de Gaulle 1890–1970 served 1959–1969
French Fifth Republic
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Flag
French Fifth Republic
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Alain Poher 1909–1996 served 1969, 1974 (as interim)
French Fifth Republic
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Georges Pompidou 1911–1974 served 1969–1974
19.
List of Presidents of the Senate of France
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The French Senate is the Upper House of the French Parliament. It is presided over by a President, although there had been Senates in both the First and Second Empires, these had not technically been legislative bodies, but rather advisory bodies on the model of the Roman Senate. Frances first experience with a house was under the Directory from 1795 to 1799. With the Restoration in 1814, a new Chamber of Peers was created, at first it contained hereditary peers, but following the July Revolution of 1830, it became a body to which one was appointed for life. The Second Republic returned to a system after 1848, but soon after the establishment of the Second French Empire in 1852. In the Fourth Republic, the Senate was renamed the Council of the Republic, with the new constitution of the Fifth Republic in 1959, the older name of Senate was restored. Alain Poher, the President of the French Senate, served as Acting President of France from 28 April until 20 June 1969, Political Party, MRP Rad-Soc Political Party, Rad-Soc CD, CDS, FD RPR, UMP, LR PS
List of Presidents of the Senate of France
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Charles-Henri, chevalier Dambray
List of Presidents of the Senate of France
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Jérôme Bonaparte, only King of Westphilia and first President of the French Senate
List of Presidents of the Senate of France
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Claude-Emmanuel, marquis de Pastoret
List of Presidents of the Senate of France
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Étienne-Denis Pasquier
20.
Union for French Democracy
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The Union for French Democracy was a centrist political party in France. It was founded in 1978 as an alliance to support President Valéry Giscard dEstaing in order to counterbalance the Gaullist preponderance over the political right in France. This name was due to the title of Giscard dEstaings 1976 book. The UDF effectively ceased to exist by the end of 2007, and its membership and assets were transferred to its successor party, the Democratic Movement. The founding parties of the UDF were Giscards Republican Party, the Centre of Social Democrats, the Radical Party, the Social Democratic Party and the Perspectives and Realities Clubs. The UDF was most frequently a junior partner in coalitions with the Gaullist Rally for the Republic and its successor party, the Union for a Popular Movement. Prior to its dissolution, the UDF became an entity, due to the defection of Republicans, Radicals and most Christian Democrats to the UMP. The partys last leader was François Bayrou, who transferred his leadership to MoDem, in 1974, Valéry Giscard dEstaing was elected President of France. Two years later, his Gaullist Prime Minister Jacques Chirac resigned and created the Rally for the Republic in order to restore the Gaullist domination over the republican institutions and he therefore sought to formally organise a political grouping which would represent the position of his followers. Consequently, the UDF confederation was born, indeed, RPR leader Jacques Chirac criticized the market-oriented and pro-European policy of the executive duo. During the 1979 European electoral campaign, Chirac published the Call of Cochin where the UDF was accused of being the foreign party, after the election of François Mitterrand as president, the two centre-right parliamentary parties reconciled. Little by little, the RPR abandoned Gaullist doctrine and joined the market-oriented, although, they presented a common list at the 1984 European Parliament election, their leaders Chirac and Barre competed for the leadership of the French centre-right. Focused on winning the 1986 legislative election, Chirac, unlike Barre, furthermore, some UDF politicians covertly supported Chirac. Consequently, he became Prime Minister, from 1986 to 1988, Barre was a candidate in the 1988 presidential election, yet, despite his popularity, he was not supported by all UDF personalities. Giscard dEstaing himself refused to choose clearly and publicly between his two former Prime Ministers, eliminated in the first round, Barre called on his supporters to vote for Chirac in the second round, but despite this, Chirac was defeated by Mitterrand. After the re-election of Mitterrand, some UDF members participated as ministers in the cabinets of Prime Minister Michel Rocard. Others created a new group, the Centrist Union, which occasionally voted with the Socialist Party or with the RPR. For Giscard dEstaing, Barres failure to strengthen the UDF, allowed him retake the leadership of the UDF, in 1991, the dismissal of Rocard caused the departure of the centrist ministers from the government
Union for French Democracy
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Union for French Democracy Union pour la Démocratie Française
21.
Poitou-Charentes
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Poitou-Charentes is a former administrative region in south-western France. It is part of the new region Nouvelle-Aquitaine and it comprises four departments, Charente, Charente-Maritime, Deux-Sèvres and Vienne. Historical provinces are Angoumois, Aunis, Saintonge and Poitou, other important cities are La Rochelle, Niort, Angoulême, Châtellerault, Saintes, Rochefort and Royan. The regional council is composed of 56 members, the region is the home of Frances losing presidential candidate Socialist Ségolène Royal in the election of 2007. In French its residents are known as Picto-Charentais, in 2003, the region ranked 15th out of 26 in population. In area it ranked 12th in size, three regional languages, Poitevin, Saintongeais and Occitan are spoken by a minority of people in the region. Poitou is believed to be the region of origin of most of the Acadian and their ancestors emigrated from the region in the 17th and 18th centuries. At first, these French immigrants from Poitou settled in eastern Canada and this area of the New World was dubbed Acadia by the French, after the Greek Arcadia - the idyllic part of the Peloponnesian peninsula in Greece. It was renamed Nova Scotia in the aftermath of the 1755 expulsion of most of the Acadians by the English, Poitou is a historic region in west central France. Poitiers, the capital of the region, is its city, although the port of La Rochelle, capital of the province of Aunis. Farming is important to the economy, wheat, corn and cattle are farmed, industries produce machinery, chemicals and dairy products. The regions first known inhabitants, the Pictavi, a Gallic tribe, were conquered in 56 BC by the Romans, the Visigoths seized the region in 418 AD, but it passed to the Franks in 507. In 732 or 733, Charles Martel brought the Muslim invasion of Western Europe to a standstill by his victory in the Battle of Poitiers. From the 10th to the century, the counts of Poitou were also the dukes of Aquitaine. In 1152, Poitou came under English control through the marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine to Henry II. The region was reunited with the French crown in 1416 and was a province of France until the Revolution, françoise-Athénaïs, marquise de Montespan was born in the area in 1640. She was the mistress to Louis XIV, Some of their descendants are still alive today
Poitou-Charentes
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Marais Poitevin, Poitou-Charentes
Poitou-Charentes
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Flag
Poitou-Charentes
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Poitiers
22.
European Parliament
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The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union. Together with the Council of the European Union and the European Commission, the Parliament is composed of 751 members, who represent the second-largest democratic electorate in the world and the largest trans-national democratic electorate in the world. It has been elected every five years by universal suffrage since 1979. However, voter turnout at European Parliament elections has fallen consecutively at each election since that date, voter turnout in 2014 stood at 42. 54% of all European voters. The Parliament is the first institution of the EU, and shares equal legislative and it likewise has equal control over the EU budget. Finally, the European Commission, the body of the EU, is accountable to Parliament. In particular, Parliament elects the President of the Commission, and it can subsequently force the Commission as a body to resign by adopting a motion of censure. The President of the European Parliament is Antonio Tajani, elected in January 2017 and he presides over a multi-party chamber, the two largest groups being the Group of the European Peoples Party and the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats. The last union-wide elections were the 2014 elections, the European Parliament has three places of work – Brussels, the city of Luxembourg and Strasbourg. Luxembourg is home to the administrative offices, meetings of the whole Parliament take place in Strasbourg and in Brussels. Committee meetings are held in Brussels, the Parliament, like the other institutions, was not designed in its current form when it first met on 10 September 1952. One of the oldest common institutions, it began as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and it was a consultative assembly of 78 appointed parliamentarians drawn from the national parliaments of member states, having no legislative powers. Its development since its foundation shows how the European Unions structures have evolved without a master plan. Some, such as Tom Reid of the Washington Post, said of the union, nobody would have designed a government as complex. Even the Parliaments two seats, which have switched several times, are a result of various agreements or lack of agreements, the body was not mentioned in the original Schuman Declaration. It was assumed or hoped that difficulties with the British would be resolved to allow the Council of Europes Assembly to perform the task, a separate Assembly was introduced during negotiations on the Treaty as an institution which would counterbalance and monitor the executive while providing democratic legitimacy. The wording of the ECSC Treaty demonstrated the desire for more than a normal consultative assembly by using the term representatives of the people. Its early importance was highlighted when the Assembly was given the task of drawing up the treaty to establish a European Political Community
European Parliament
European Parliament
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European Parliament
European Parliament
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Session of the Council of Europe's Assembly in the former
House of Europe in Strasbourg in January 1967
European Parliament
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Palace of Europe, Parliament's Strasbourg hemicycle until 1999
23.
Chasseneuil-du-Poitou
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Chasseneuil-du-Poitou is a commune in the Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France. It lies 7 km north of the centre of Poitiers and its inhabitants are called the Chasseneuillais. Chasseneuil-du-Poitou is the home of the Parc du Futuroscope, and the Technopole du Futuroscope, the American company SAFT has a factory in the town, which furnishes a large part of the European battery market. Because of the presence of the park and technopole, a new TGV station and it is served by up to 40 trains per day. The town, then simply the villa Cassinogilum, was a residence of first the Merovingian. The town has a 27-member town council, led by Mayor Claude Eidelstein, the town is part of Viennes 1st constituency, and is represented in the National Assembly by Alain Claeys
Chasseneuil-du-Poitou
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The centre of Chasseneuil-du-Poitou
Chasseneuil-du-Poitou
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La mairie
Chasseneuil-du-Poitou
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Le Clain
24.
French presidential election, 1995
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Presidential elections took place in France on 23 April and 7 May 1995, to elect the fifth president of the Fifth Republic. The Socialist incumbent president, François Mitterrand, who had been in office since 1981 and he was 78, had terminal cancer, and his party had lost the 1993 legislative election in a landslide defeat. Since then, he had been cohabiting with a cabinet led by Prime Minister Edouard Balladur. The competition within the right between Balladur and Chirac was a feature of the campaign. Meanwhile, the left was weakened by scandals and disappointments regarding Mitterrands presidency along with the Unemployment rate hovering around 10%, in June 1994, former Prime Minister Michel Rocard was dismissed as leader of the Socialist Party after the partys poor showing in the European Parliament elections. Then, Jacques Delors decided not to stand as a candidate because he disagreed with the re-alignment on the left orchestrated by new party leader Henri Emmanuelli. Former party leader and education minister Lionel Jospin was chosen by PS members as the candidate in a primary election pitting him against Emmanuelli. He promised to restore the credibility and moral reputation of his party, the economy was also still struggling with a depression which began in mid-1990, and the governments policies were widely blamed for both the recession and its slow recovery. The French Communist Party tried to stop its electoral decline and its new leader Robert Hue campaigned against king money and wanted to represent a renewed communism. He was faced with competition for the far left vote by the Trotskyist candidacy of Arlette Laguiller, both of these candidates had a better result than their parties had in 1988, but came nowhere near being able to participate in the next round. In choosing Dominique Voynet, the Greens opted for their integration with the left, on the far-right, Jean-Marie Le Pen tried to repeat his surprising result that he obtained in the 1988 presidential election. His main rival for the vote was Philippe de Villiers. Both candidates primarily focused over the financial situation, in January 1995, when he announced his candidacy, Balladur was the favourite of the political right. According to the SOFRES polls institute, he held an advantage of 14 points over Chirac and he took advantage of his positive assessment as Prime Minister and advocated a moderately liberal economic policy. Chirac denounced the social fracture and criticised the dominant thought, targeting Balladur, Chirac argued that the pay slip is not the enemy of employment. Indeed, unemployment was the theme of the campaign. From the start of March, Chirac gained ground on Balladur in the polls, another factor that contributed to Balladurs fall in popularity was the revelation of a bugging scandal which had implicated Balladur. Chiracs campaign slogan was La France pour tous, Balladurs Believe in France, Lionel Jospin won the first round, in what appeared to be an electoral recovery for the Socialist Party
French presidential election, 1995
French presidential election, 1995
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Nominee
listen); born 3 August 1948) is a French conservative politician and Senator for Vienne.
