Jean Paul Pierre Casimir-Perier (; 8 November 1847 – 11 March 1907) was a French politician who served as

President of France The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency is the supreme magistracy of the country, the po ...

from June 1894 to January 1895.

Biography

Jean Casimir-Perier was born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

on 8 November 1847, the son of

Auguste Casimir-Perier Auguste Victor Laurent Casimir-Perier (20 August 1811, in Paris – 6 June 1876) was a French diplomat and political leader. He was the son of Prime Minister of France , Prime Minister Casimir Pierre Perier and the father of President of France, ...

, the grandson of Casimir Pierre Perier, premier of

Louis Philippe Louis Philippe I (6 October 1773 – 26 August 1850), nicknamed the Citizen King, was King of the French from 1830 to 1848, the penultimate monarch of France, and the last French monarch to bear the title "King". He abdicated from his throne ...

, and the great grandson of Claude Périer, one of the founders of the

Bank of France The Bank of France ( ) is the national central bank for France within the Eurosystem. It was the French central bank between 1800 and 1998, issuing the French franc. It does not translate its name to English, and thus calls itself ''Banque de F ...

. He entered public life as secretary to his father, who was

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

under the presidency of Thiers. In 1874 he was elected General Councillor of the

Aube Aube ( ) is a French departments of France, department in the Grand Est region of northeastern France. As with sixty departments in France, this department is named after a river: the Aube (river), Aube. With 310,242 inhabitants (2019),

''département'', and was sent by the same ''département'' to the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...

in the general elections of 1876, and he was always re-elected until his presidency. In spite of the traditions of his family, Casimir-Perier joined the group of

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

on the

Left Left may refer to: Music * ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006 * ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016 * ''Left'' (Helmet album), 2023 * "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album ''Curb'', 1996 Direction * Left (direction), the relativ ...

, and was one of the 363 on the Seize-Mai (1877). He refused to vote the "expulsion of the Princes" in 1883, and resigned as Deputy upon the enactment of the law (26 June 1886) because of his personal connections with the family of Orléans. On 17 August 1883 he became Under-Secretary of State for War, a post he retained until 7 January 1885. From 1890 to 1892 he was Vice President of the Chamber, then in 1893 President. On 3 December he became President of the council, holding the

department of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral re ...

, resigned in May 1894, and was re-elected President of the Chamber. On 24 June 1894, after the assassination of President Carnot, he was elected President of the Republic by 451 votes against 195 for

Henri Brisson Eugène Henri Brisson (; 31 July 1835 – 14 April 1912) was a French statesman, Prime Minister of France for a period in 1885-1886 and again in 1898. Biography He was born at Bourges (Cher), and followed his father's profession of advocate. ...

and 97 for

Charles Dupuy Charles Alexandre Dupuy (; 5 November 1851 – 23 July 1923) was a French statesman, three times prime minister. Biography He was born in Le Puy-en-Velay, Haute-Loire, Auvergne, where his father was a minor official. After a period as a prof ...

. His presidency lasted only six months. The resignation of the Dupuy ministry on 14 January 1895 was followed the next day by that of the President. Casimir-Perier explained his action by the fact that he found himself ignored by the ministers, who did not consult him before taking decisions, and did not keep him informed upon political events, especially in foreign affairs. From that time he completely abandoned politics, and devoted himself to business – especially mining. At the trial of

Alfred Dreyfus Alfred Dreyfus (9 October 1859 – 12 July 1935) was a French Army officer best known for his central role in the Dreyfus affair. In 1894, Dreyfus fell victim to a judicial conspiracy that eventually sparked a major political crisis in the Fre ...

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

, Casimir-Perier's evidence, as opposed to that of General Mercier, was of great value to the cause of Dreyfus. Casimir-Perier died on 11 March 1907 in Paris of

angina pectoris Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of part ...

. As of 2024, of all Presidents of France through its history, Casimir-Perier had the shortest presidency.

Casimir-Perier's Ministry, 3 December 1893 – 30 May 1894

*Jean Casimir-Perier – President of the Council and Minister of Foreign Affairs *

Auguste Mercier Auguste Mercier (8 December 1833 – 3 March 1921) was a French general and Minister of War at the time when the political scandal that became known as the Dreyfus Affair began. Military career Auguste Mercier was born in Arras. He entered ...

– Minister of War * David Raynal – Minister of the Interior *

Auguste Burdeau Auguste-Laurent Burdeau (; 10 September 185112 December 1894) was a French politician. He was the son of a laborer at Lyon. Forced from childhood to earn his own living, he was enabled to secure an education by bursarships at the Lycée at Lyon ...

– Minister of Finance * Antonin Dubost – Minister of Justice * Jean Marty – Minister of Commerce, Industry, and Colonies * Auguste Alfred Lefèvre – Minister of Marine *

Eugène Spuller Eugène Spuller (8 December 183523 July 1896) was a French politician and writer. He was born at Seurre (Côte-d'Or), his father being a German who had married and settled in France. After studying law at Dijon, he went to Paris, where he was c ...

– Minister of Public Instruction, Fine Arts, and Worship * Albert Viger – Minister of Agriculture *

Charles Jonnart Charles Célestin Auguste Jonnart (27 December 1857 – 30 December 1927) was a French politician. Early years Born into a bourgeois family in Fléchin, Pas-de-Calais, Charles Jonnart was educated at Saint-Omer, then in Paris. Interested in th ...

– Minister of Public Works Changes *20 March 1894 – Jean Marty becomes Minister of Posts and Telegraphs as well as Minister of Commerce and Industry. Ernest Boulanger succeeds Marty as Minister of Colonies.

References

Attribution: *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Casimir-Perier, Jean 1847 births 1907 deaths Politicians from Paris French republicans 19th-century presidents of France 19th-century princes of Andorra Prime ministers of France Foreign ministers of France Presidents of the Chamber of Deputies (France) Members of the 1st Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 2nd Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 3rd Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 4th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 5th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic Members of the 6th Chamber of Deputies of the French Third Republic People associated with the Dreyfus affair Deaths from angina pectoris