President Rene Coty Succeeded by Charles de Gaulle Religion Roman Catholic Preceded by Felix Gaillard | Name Pierre Pflimlin Children Etienne Pflimlin Role French Politician | |
 | ||
Political party Popular Republican Movement
(1944-1966)
Democratic Centre
(1966-1976)
Centre of Social Democrats
/1976-1995) Other political
affiliations Union for French Democracy
(1978-1995) Died June 27, 2000, Strasbourg, France Party Popular Republican Movement | ||
MEETING OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
Pierre Eugène Jean Pflimlin ([pjɛʁ flimlɛ̃];5 February 1907 – 27 June 2000) was a French Christian democratic politician who served as the Prime Minister of the Fourth Republic for a few weeks in 1958, before being replaced by Charles de Gaulle during the crisis of that year.
Contents
- MEETING OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
- Life
- Prime minister of France
- Subsequent public offices
- Honors
- Government 14 May 1 June 1958
- References
Life
Pflimlin was born in Roubaix in the Nord department.
A lawyer and a member of the Christian democratic Popular Republican Movement (MRP), he was elected deputy of département Bas Rhin in 1945. With his personal roots in Alsace, Pflimlin numbered among his MRP party colleagues the Luxembourg-born Robert Schuman; for both, relations with Germany played an important role in their political thinking.
He held some governmental offices during the Fourth Republic, notably as Minister of Agriculture (1947–1949 and 1950–1951) and as Minister of Economy and Finance (1955–1956 and 1957–1958).
Prime minister of France
On 13 May 1958, the French National Assembly approved his nomination as Prime Minister. But the same day, riots took place in Algiers. The French generals in Algeria feared he would arrange for a negotiated solution with the Algerian nationalists giving them control of Algeria. They refused to recognize his cabinet. At this point the leading politicians deserted him, including Guy Mollet, Vincent Auriol, and Antoine Pinay. The crisis brought Charles de Gaulle as Prime Minister on 1 June.
Subsequent public offices
Pflimlin was Minister of State until 1959. As Minister of Cooperation in 1962, he resigned with the other MRP ministers in order to protest against the euro-scepticism of de Gaulle.
Pflimlin served as the first Catholic mayor of Strasbourg from 1959 to 1983.
He also was the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 1963 to 1966 and President of the European Parliament from 1984 to 1987.
Honors
The Pierre Pflimlin bridge over the Rhine south of Strasbourg, connecting France to Germany, is named after him and was opened in 2002.
Government (14 May – 1 June 1958)
Changes: