The Minister of War () was the leader and most senior official of the French Ministry of War. It was a position in the Government of France from 1791 to 1947, replacing the position of Secretary of State for War and later being merged with the offices of Minister of the Navy and Minister of Air to form a new Minister of the Armed Forces.
History In 1791, during the French Revolution, the Secretary of State for War became titled Minister of War.
For most of its existence and until the beginning of the 20th century, ministers had always been Marshals or Generals. The Third Republic saw the gradual replacement of the military by civilian politicians to the office. It was also subject to the governmental instability of the regime, leading to ministers seating only for few days.
Powers and functions On 27 April 1791, the National Constituent Assembly issued a decree organizing the six ministries of Justice, Interior, Finances, War, Navy and Foreign Affairs. The decree was signed into law on 25 May 1791 by King Louis XVI. This law determined the responsibilities of the minister, giving him full authority on the French Army and the sole provost duties of the National Gendarmerie. It also resolved that the minister would be responsible for the administration and finances of his department.
Officeholders Kingdom of France Portrait Name Term Cabinet King Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 1 Louis Lebègue Duportail Louis XVI Louis XVI 2 Louis de Narbonne-Lara 3 Pierre Marie de Grave 4 Joseph Servan 5 Charles François Dumouriez 6 Pierre de Lajard 7 Charles d'Abancourt 8 Joseph Servan
First Republic Portrait Name Term Cabinet Head of State Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 8 Joseph Servan National Convention National Convention Interim by Pierre Lebrun-Tondu, Minister of Foreign Affairs, from 3 October 1792 to 24 January 1793. 9 Jean-Nicolas Pache National Convention National Convention 10 Pierre Riel de Beurnonville 11 Jean Bouchotte All ministries suspended and replaced by the Executive Commissions between 20 April 1794 and 3 November 1795. 12 Jean-Baptiste Aubert du Bayet Directory Directory 13 Claude Petiet 14 Barthélemy Schérer 15 Louis de Milet de Mureau 16 Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte 17 Edmond Dubois-Crancé 18 Louis-Alexandre Berthier Consulate Napoléon Bonaparte 19 Lazare Carnot Interim by Jean-Gérard Lacuée, Councillor of State, from 5 May to 8 October 1800. 20 Louis-Alexandre Berthier Consulate Napoléon Bonaparte
First Empire Portrait Name Term Cabinet Emperor Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 20 Louis-Alexandre BerthierPrince de Neuchâtel Napoléon Napoleon 21 Henri Guillaume ClarkeDuc de Feltre 22 Pierre DaruComte Daru
Restoration Portrait Name Term Cabinet King Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 23 Pierre AntoineComte Dupont de l'Étang Provisional Government Louis XVIII Restoration 24 Jean-de-Dieu SoultDuc de Dalmatie 25 Henri Guillaume ClarkeDuc de Feltre
Hundred Days Portrait Name Term Cabinet Emperor Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 26 Louis Nicolas d'AvoutDuc d'Auerstaedt, Prince d'Eckmühl Hundred Days Napoleon I Executive Commission Napoleon II
Kingdom of France Portrait Name Term Cabinet King Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 27 Laurent de GouvionMarquis de Saint-Cyr Talleyrand Louis XVIII 28 Henri Guillaume ClarkeDuc de Feltre de Richelieu I 29 Laurent de GouvionMarquis de Saint-Cyr de Richelieu IDessolles 30 Victor de FaÿMarquis de La Tour-Maubourg Decazesde Richelieu II 31 Claude Victor PerrinDuc de Bellune de Villèle Interim by Alexandre Elisabeth Michel, Vicomte Digeon, from 23 March to 15 April 1823. 32 Claude Victor PerrinDuc de Bellune de Villèle Louis XVIII 33 Ange Hyacinthe MaxenceBaron de Damas 34 Aimé Marie GaspardComte de Clermont-Tonnerre Charles X 35 Louis Victor de CauxVicomte de Blacquetot de Martignac 36 Louis Auguste VictorComte de Ghaisnes de Bourmont de Polignac 37 Étienne MauriceComte Gérard de Rochechouart de MortemartParis Municipal Commission CabinetProvisional cabinetFirst cabinet Louis Philippe I 38 Jean-de-Dieu SoultDuc de Dalmatie LaffitteCasimir-PérierSoult I 39 Étienne MauriceComte Gérard Gérard 40 Simon BernardGénéral-Baron Maret 41 Édouard MortierDuc de Trévise Mortier Interim by Henri de Rigny, Minister without portfolio, from 12 March to 30 April 1835. 42 Nicolas JosephMarquis Maison de BroglieThiers I Louis Philippe I Interim by Claude du Campe de Rosamel, Minister of Navy, from 6 September to 19 September 1836. 43 Simon BernardGénéral-Baron Molé I – II Louis Philippe I 44 Amédée Despans-Cubières Transitional cabinet 45 Antoine Schneider Soult II 46 Amédée Despans-Cubières Thiers II 47 Jean-de-Dieu SoultDuc de Dalmatie Soult III 48 Alexandre Moline de Saint-Yon 49 Camille Trézel Soult IIIGuizot
Second Republic Portrait Name Term Cabinet President Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 50 Alphonse Bedeau Provisional Government Provisional Government 51 Jacques Subervie Interim by François Arago, Minister of Navy, from 19 March to 20 March 1848. 52 Louis-Eugène Cavaignac Provisional Government Provisional Government 53 François Arago Executive Commission Executive Commission Interim by Jean-Baptiste Charras, Under Secretary of State of War, from 11 May to 17 May 1848. 54 Louis-Eugène Cavaignac Executive Commission Executive Commission 55 Louis Juchault de Lamoricière Cavaignac Louis-Eugène Cavaignac 56 Joseph Rullière Barrot I – II Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte 57 Alphonse d'Hautpoul d'Hautpoul 58 Jean-Paul de Schramm 59 Auguste Regnaud de Saint-Jean d'Angély 60 Jacques Randon RouherFaucher 61 Jacques Leroy de Saint-Arnaud Last cabinetNapoléon I – II
Second Empire Portrait Name Term Cabinet Emperor Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 61 Jacques Leroyde Saint-Arnaud Napoléon III Napoleon III 62 Jean-Baptiste PhilibertComte Vaillant 63 Jacques Louis César AlexandreComte Randon 64 Adolphe Niel Interim by Charles Rigault de Genouilly, Minister of Navy, from 13 August to 21 August 1869. 65 Edmond Le Bœuf Napoléon IVOllivier Napoleon III Interim by Charles Dejean, Councillor of State, from 19 July to 9 August 1870. 66 Charles Cousin-MontaubanComte de Palikao Cousin-Montauban Napoleon III
Third Republic Portrait Name Term Cabinet President Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 67 Adolphe Le Flô National DefenceDufaure I Jules Trochu Adolphe Thiers 68 Ernest de Cissey Dufaure I – II 69 François du Barail de Broglie I – II Patrice de MacMahon 70 Ernest de Cissey de CisseyBuffetDufaure III – IV 71 Jean Berthaut Dufaure IVSimonde Broglie III 72 Gaëtan de Rochebouët de Rochebouët 73 Jean-Louis Borel Dufaure V 74 Henri Gresley Dufaure VWaddington Jules Grévy 75 Jean-Joseph Farre Waddingtonde Freycinet IFerry I 76 Jean-Baptiste Campenon Gambetta 77 Jean-Baptiste Billot de Freycinet IIDuclerc 78 Jean Thibaudin FallièresFerry II 79 Jean-Baptiste Campenon Ferry II 80 Jules Lewal 81 Jean-Baptiste Campenon Brisson I 82 Georges Boulanger de Freycinet IIIGoblet 83 Théophile Ferron Rouvier I 84 François Logerot Tirard I Sadi Carnot 85 Charles de Freycinet FloquetTirard IIde Freycinet IVLoubetRibot I 86 Julien Loizillon Ribot IIDupuy I 87 Auguste Mercier Casimir-PerierDupuy II – III Jean Casimir-Perier 88 Émile Zurlinden Ribot III 89 Jacques Cavaignac Bourgeois Félix Faure 90 Jean-Baptiste Billot Méline 91 Jacques Cavaignac Brisson II 92 Émile Zurlinden 93 Charles Chanoine Interim by Édouard Lockroy, Minister of Navy, from 25 October to 1 November 1898. 94 Charles de Freycinet Dupuy IV – V Félix Faure Émile Loubet 95 Camille Krantz Dupuy V 96 Gaston de Galliffet Waldeck-Rousseau 97 Louis André Waldeck-RousseauCombes 98 Henri Berteaux CombesRouvier II 99 Eugène Étienne Rouvier II – IIISarrien Armand Fallières 100 Georges Picquart Clemenceau I 101 Jean Brun Briand I – II Interim by Aristide Briand, President of the Council of Ministers, from 23 February to 2 March 1911. 102 Henri Berteaux Monis Armand Fallières Interim by Jean Cruppi, Minister of Foreign Affairs, from 21 May to 27 May 1911. 103 François Goiran Monis Armand Fallières 104 Adolphe Messimy Caillaux 105 Alexandre Millerand Poincaré I 106 Albert Lebrun 107 Eugène Étienne Briand III – IVBarthou Raymond Poincaré 108 Joseph Noulens Doumergue I 109 Théophile Delcassé Ribot IV 110 Adolphe Messimy Viviani I 111 Alexandre Millerand Viviani II 112 Joseph Gallieni Briand V 113 Pierre Roques 114 Hubert Lyautey Briand VI Interim by Lucien Lacaze, Minister of Navy, from 15 March to 20 March 1917. 115 Paul Painlevé Ribot VPainlevé I Raymond Poincaré 116 Georges Clemenceau Clemenceau II 117 André Lefèvre Millerand I – IILeygues Paul Deschanel Alexandre Millerand 118 Flaminius Raiberti Leygues 119 Louis Barthou Briand VII 120 André Maginot Poincaré II – IIIFrançois-Marsal 121 Charles Nollet Herriot I Gaston Doumergue 122 Paul Painlevé Painlevé II 123 Édouard Daladier Painlevé III 124 Paul Painlevé Briand VIII – IX 125 Adolphe Guillaumat Briand X 126 Paul Painlevé Herriot IIPoincaré IV–VBriand XI 127 André Maginot Tardieu I 128 René Besnard Chautemps I 129 André Maginot Tardieu II 130 Louis Barthou Steeg 131 André Maginot Laval I – II Paul Doumer Interim by Charles Dumont, Minister of Navy, from 7 January to 14 January 1932. - 132 André Tardieu Laval III Paul Doumer 133 François Piétri Tardieu III 134 Joseph Paul-Boncour Herriot III Albert Lebrun 135 Édouard Daladier Paul-BoncourDaladier ISarraut IChautemps II 136 Jean Fabry Daladier II 137 Joseph Paul-Boncour 138 Philippe Pétain Doumergue II 139 Louis Maurin Flandin IBouisson 140 Jean Fabry Laval IV 141 Louis Maurin Sarraut II 142 Édouard Daladier Blum IChautemps III – IVBlum IIDaladier III – IV – VReynaud 143 Paul Reynaud Reynaud 144 Louis Colson Pétain
Vichy France Portrait Name Term Cabinet Chief of State Ref. Took office Left office Time in office - Louis Colson Laval V Philippe Pétain - Charles Huntziger Laval VFlandin IIDarlan - François Darlan Darlan - Eugène Bridoux Laval VI
Free France Portrait Name Term Cabinet Leader Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 145 Paul Legentilhomme CNF Charles de Gaulle CFLN 146 André Le Troquer 147 André Diethelm
Provisional Government Portrait Name Term Cabinet President Ref. Took office Left office Time in office (147) André Diethelm de Gaulle I Charles de Gaulle
Fourth Republic Portrait Name Term Government President Ref. Took office Left office Time in office 148 Paul Coste-Floretserving withDefence Minister François Billoux Ramadier I Vincent Auriol
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