Pierre Joseph Auguste Messmer (French pronunciation: ?[pj?? m?sm??]; 20 March 1916 – 29 August 2007) was a French Gaullist politician. He served as Minister of Armies under Charles de Gaulle from 1960 to 1969 – the longest serving since Étienne François, duc de Choiseul under Louis XV – and then as Prime Minister under Georges Pompidou from 1972 to 1974. A member of the French Foreign Legion, he was considered as one of the historical Gaullists, and died aged 91 in the military hospital of the Val-de-Grâce. He was elected a member of the Académie française in 1999.
French Minister of Armies (February 5, 1960 to June 22, 1969).
2
He became a member of the French Resistance in 1940. He participated in major campaigns in North Africa, and took part in the D-Day invasion of Normandy.
3
After the war, he entered politics. He was appointed prime minister in 1972 by president Georges Pompidou. Following Pompidou's death in 1974, Messmer was considered a potential successor. However, he was out-maneuvered by his rivals, and he never held another major political office.