1978 in France

Incumbents

• President: Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
• Prime Minister: Raymond Barre

  Events

• February - Launch of the Horizon front-wheel drive hatchback by Chrysler Europe, which will be built in France as a Simca and sold in Britain as a Talbot.
• 1 February - Hollywood film director Roman Polanski skips bail and flees to France, after pleading guilty to charges of engaging in sex with a 13-year-old girl.
• 12 March - Legislative Election held.
• 19 March - Legislative Election held.
• April - Launch of the Renault 18 saloon and estates, replacement for the Renault 12.
• 4 May - Communist activist Henri Curiel is murdered in Paris.
• 10 May - Two years after buying Citroën, carmaker Peugeot makes another takeover by purchasing the European operations of American car giant Chrysler, owners of the French Simca and British Chrysler brands.
• 16 May - Amoco Cadiz runs aground off the coast of Brittany, split in two and spilled of oil.
• 18–19 May - Belgian and French paratroopers fly to Zaire to aid the fight against the rebels.
• 27 May - Britanny Ferries inaugurate a regular service between Roscoff and Cork in the Republic of Ireland.
• 26 June - Bombing by Breton nationalists causes destruction in Palace of Versailles.
• December - The Simca Horizon is voted European Car of the Year.

  Births

January to March

• 5 January - Franck Montagny, motor racing driver.
• 6 January - Renaud Dion, cyclist.
• 11 January - Stéphane Morisot, soccer player.
• 14 January - Éric Sitruk, soccer player.
• 17 January - Stéphane Pasquier, jockey.
• 21 January - David Coulibaly, soccer player.
• 30 January - Sébastien Sansoni, soccer player.
• 7 February - Nicolas Ardouin, soccer player.
• 8 February - Loïc Jean-Albert, parachuter.
• 11 February - Aurélien Cologni, rugby league player.
• 16 February - Nicolas Florentin, soccer player.
• 26 February - Stéphane Bonnes, soccer player.
• 5 March - Stéphane Martine, soccer player.
• 13 March - Faustine Merret, windsurfer and Olympic gold medallist.
• 22 March - Arnaud Le Lan, soccer player.
• 26 March - Cédric Mouret, soccer player.
• 27 March - Amélie Cocheteux, tennis player.
• 28 March - Fabien Audard, soccer player.
• 30 March - Édouard Cissé, soccer player.
• 31 March - Jérôme Rothen, international soccer player.

  April to June

• 4 April - Mathieu Assou-Ekotto, soccer player.
• 5 April - Boussad Houche, soccer player.
• 5 April - Arnaud Tournant, cyclist.
• 8 April - Didier Domi, soccer player.
• 11 April - David Ducourtioux, soccer player.
• 5 May - Bruno Cheyrou, soccer player.
• 11 May - Laetitia Casta, supermodel and actress.
• 15 May - Sébastien Chabbert, soccer player.
• 15 May - Yohan Demont, soccer player.
• 27 May - Jacques Abardonado, soccer player.
• 29 May - Sébastien Grosjean, tennis player.
• 2 June - Nicolas Bal, Nordic combined skier and Olympic medallist.
• 6 June - Faudel, singer.
• 11 June - Julien Rodriguez, soccer player.
• 15 June - Jérôme Moïso, basketball player.
• 17 June - Isabelle Delobel, ice dancer.
• 17 June - Véronique Delobel, ice dancer.
• 23 June - Frédéric Leclercq, bassist.
• 28 June - Clarisse Albrecht, singer-songwriter, actress and former model

  July to September

• 17 July - Émilie Simon, singer and composer.
• 18 July - Mélissa Theuriau, journalist and news anchor.
• 20 July - Cédric Heymans, rugby union player.
• 26 July - Matthieu Bataille, judoka.
• 28 July - Yannick Jauzion, rugby union player.
• 29 July - Julien Laharrague, rugby union player.
• 4 August - Emmanuelle Boidron, actress.
• 7 August - Alexandre Aja, film director.
• 9 August - Audrey Tautou, actress.
• 14 August - Pascal Delhommeau, soccer player.
• 19 August - François Modesto, soccer player.
• 19 August - Sebastien Tortelli, twice World Champion motocross racer.
• 27 August - Franck Queudrue, soccer player.
• 29 August - Yves Deroff, soccer player.
• 31 August - Philippe Christanval, soccer player.
• 9 September - Alioune Touré, soccer player.
• 11 September - Laurent Courtois, soccer player.
• 13 September - Sonia Huguet, cyclist.
• 20 September - Julien Bonnaire, rugby union player.
• 23 September - Frédéric Daquin, soccer player.
• 23 September - Ingrid Jacquemod, alpine skier.
• 27 September - Jean-Joël Perrier-Doumbé, soccer player.

  October to December

• 5 October - Fabien Boudarène, soccer player.
• 29 October - Jérôme Guisset, rugby league player.
• 28 November - Denis Flahaut, cyclist.
• November - Mélanie Doutey, actress.
• 7 December - Jean Bouilhou, rugby union player.
• 10 December - Grégory Proment, soccer player.
• 11 December - Eric Borel, spree killer.
• 16 December - Sylvain Distin, soccer player.

  Full date unknown

• Valérie Crunchant, actress.
• Damien Luce, pianist.

  Deaths

January to June

• 8 January - André François-Poncet, politician and diplomat.
• 16 January - Jean Gounot, gymnast and Olympic medallist.
• 22 January - Léon Damas, poet and politician.
• 24 January - Georges Perros, writer.
• 31 January - Marie-Louise Damien, singer and actress.
• 2 March - Alix Combelle, swing jazz tenor saxophonist, clarinetist and bandleader.
• 11 March - Hélène Bouvier, operatic mezzo-soprano.
• 11 March - Claude François, singer and songwriter.
• 15 March - Jacques Forestier, rheumatologist.
• 18 March - François Duprat, negationist writer.
• 19 March - Gaston Julia, mathematician.
• 20 March - Jacques Brugnon, tennis player.
• 23 April - Jacques Rueff, economist and adviser to the French Government.
• 4 May - Henri Curiel, political activist, assassinated.
• 24 June - Robert Charroux, writer.

  July to December

• 14 July - Gaston Ragueneau, athlete and Olympic medallist.
• 22 July - André Chapelon, mechanical engineer and designer of steam locomotives.
• 23 July - Danielle Collobert, author, poet and journalist.
• 26 August - Charles Boyer, actor.
• 6 September - Max Décugis, tennis player.
• 8 September - Jean Nicolas, international soccer player.
• 19 September - Étienne Gilson, Thomistic philosopher and historian of philosophy.
• 16 November - Claude Dauphin, actor.
• 5 December - Bernard Faÿ, historian.
• 21 December - Roger Caillois, writer and intellectual.

  Full date unknown

• Georges Bénézé, philosopher.
• Henri Chapron, automobile coachbuilder.
• Robert Debré, pediatrician.
• Camille Le Mercier d'Erm, poet, historian and Breton nationalist.

  Links