Georges Pompidou (July 5, 1911 - April 2, 1974) was President of France from 1969 until his death in 1974.
He was born in Montboudif, Cantal, France. After his khâgne at Lycée Louis-le-Grand, where he befriended Senegalese poet and statesman Leopold Sedar Senghor, he graduated from the École Normale Supérieure with a degree of Agrégation in literature.
He first worked as a literature lycée teacher, then served at the Banque Rothschild & Cie. Later, he was hired by Charles de Gaulle to manage the Anne De Gaulle Foundation for Down's Syndrome (de Gaulle's daughter Anne had the disease). He served as Prime Minister under De Gaulle after Michel Debré resigned, from April 16, 1962 to July 13, 1968. Prime Minister Pompidou was widely regarded as having been responsible for the peaceful resolution of the student demonstrations of May 1968. This led to his dismissal by a jealous de Gaulle.
After de Gaulle's resignation in 1969, Pompidou was elected President of France, defeating Acting President Alain Poher. Though a Gaullist, President Pompidou, was more moderate than de Gaulle, notably allowing the United Kingdom to join the European Community in 1973.
He died from Kahler's disease in 1974 while in office, which shocked most of the public.
Georges Pompidou had one foster son, Alain Pompidou, now president of the European Patent Office.
