Today in Francophone History

Learn about important dates in French and francophone history: famous birthdays, holidays and celebrations, and other milestones. If the above does not match today's date or you wish to choose a specific date, please click here

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Birthdays

1713 - Charles Batteux (French philosopher)

1758 - André Masséna (French marshal)

1758 - Maximilien de Robespierre (French revolutionary)

1769 - Jean Nicolas Pierre Hachette (French mathematician)

1868 - Gaston Leroux (French writer)

1952 - Christian Clavier (French actor)

1972 - Martin Brodeur (Canadian ice hockey player)


Deaths

1638 - Cornelius Jansen (French bishop and religious reformer)

1708 - François de Laval (first bishop of New France)

1949 - Maurice Maeterlinck (Belgian writer)

1951 - Élie Cartan (French mathematician)


Milestones/Events

1682 - Louis XIV of France moved his court to Versailles

1889 - Paris: Eiffel Tower was officially opened to the public at the Universal Exposition

1931 - First broadcast of Radio France Internationale

1967 - Bordeaux, France: Inauguration of Pont d'Aquitaine

1994 - Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and French President François Mitterrand officiated at the opening of the Channel Tunnel

2002 - Jean-Pierre Raffarin became Prime Minister of France

2007 - Nicolas Sarkozy was elected President of France

2012 - François Hollande was elected President of France


Errors and Omissions

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