Debre, Michel-Jean-Pierre

▪ 1997

      French politician (b. Jan. 15, 1912, Paris, Fr.—d. Aug. 2, 1996, Montlouis-sur-Loire, Fr.), during his career in public service was closely associated with Charles de Gaulle. Debré was the primary author of the constitution of the Fifth Republic and served (1959-62) as its first premier. After graduating from the University of Paris law school, Debré entered the civil service as an aide to Paul Reynaud, the finance minister. He joined the army at the beginning of World War II, was captured by the Germans in 1940, and in 1941 escaped and went to Morocco. There he joined the Resistance and then returned to work in the underground in German-occupied France. After Allied troops liberated France (1944), Debré became commissioner for the Angers region, and in 1945 he joined the provisional government headed by de Gaulle. By creating the National School of Administration, he brought about a new efficiency in the civil service. Debré served in the Senate from 1948 to 1958. When de Gaulle became premier in 1958, Debré was appointed minister of justice and helped fashion a new constitution. When de Gaulle assumed the presidency early the next year, he named Debré premier. Though Debré strongly favoured the French presence in Algeria, he supported de Gaulle's disengagement policy. Nevertheless, he left office in 1962 following the French withdrawal from Algeria. Debré was a member of the National Assembly from 1963 until 1986 and served in the posts of minister of economics and finance (1966-68), foreign minister (1968-69), and minister of defense (1969-73). In 1981 he was a Gaullist candidate for the presidency, but he won less than 2% of the vote. Debré wrote a number of political works, including three volumes of memoirs, and in 1988 was elected to the French Academy.

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