Chaban-delmas, Jacques

Related Category: French History: Biographies

(zhäk shäbäN´-dĕlmä´), 1915–2000, French political leader, born Jacques Delmas. He joined (1940) the resistance, using the nom de guerre “Chaban,” which he later adopted legally, and was a key figure in the Allied liberation of Paris. He entered (1946) the chamber of deputies as a Radical Socialist but soon joined de Gaulle's party. From 1947 to 1995 he was mayor of Bordeaux, and he served in several cabinets. He was president of the national assembly from 1958 to 1969, when President Pompidou appointed him premier. He was charged with evading personal income tax laws but received a vote of confidence in May, 1972. Many Gaullists nonetheless considered him too liberal, and Pompidou forced him to resign in July. He was replaced by Pierre Messmer. In 1974 he ran unsuccessfully for the presidency. He again served as president of the national assembly (1978–81, 1986–88). Chaban-Delmas also wrote a number of books including L'Ardeur (1975), Charles de Gaulle (1980), La Dame d'Aquitaine (1987), Montaigne (1992), and a volume of memoirs (1997).