Former President of France (21 May 1981 – 17 May 1995)
Political Party: Socialist Party
Date of birth: 26 October 1916
Died: 8 January 1996

Mitterand was born in Jarnac, France.  While serving in the army, he was wounded and captured by the Germans in 1940. He later escaped and was given a position in the Vichy government. But he split with the Vichy in 1943 and joined the French Resistance. 

Mitterand was elected Deputy in the French National Assembly in 1946 and held ministerial positions from 1947-1958. A critic of de Gaulle, Mitterand became leader of the Socialist Party in 1971 and was elected President in 1981, a position he help for 14 years. He was a strong proponent of the Maastricht Treaty, which established the European Union in 1993.