Alexandre Chauveau, edited by Romain Rouillard 06:08, September 09, 2022
Queen Elizabeth II of England died at the age of 96 on Thursday.
Since 1952, the sovereign has known a total of 10 presidents, including all those of the Fifth Republic.
Between the queen and the tricolor heads of state, it is a long relationship of friendship that has prevailed, despite some disagreements.
Queen Elizabeth II is no more.
The sovereign died on Thursday at the age of 96 at her residence in Balmoral, Scotland.
Throughout her 70 years of reign, she was able to rub shoulders with all the presidents of the Fifth French Republic.
Between them and the queen, it is a long relationship of friendship which started in 1948 under Vincent Auriol when she was still only heiress to the crown.
We have to wait until 1957 to attend the first official visit of Elizabeth II to France where she spoke in French to President René Coty.
"Mr. President, I am deeply moved, as well as my husband, by your generous welcome," she said, then 31 years old.
"I drink to the prosperity of the United Kingdom"
Three years later, Elizabeth II welcomes General de Gaulle to London.
The founder of the Fifth Republic was greeted at the station by the entire royal family and went by carriage to a party organized at Buckingham Palace.
"Mr. President, I raise my glass to the greatness and happiness of France", then proclaimed the queen.
“Madame, I drink to the prosperity of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth,” answered De Gaulle.
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However, the general has always opposed the entry of the United Kingdom into the European common market.
The French veto was however lifted in 1972 by Georges Pompidou, to whom the Queen, on a visit to Paris, addressed this sentence: "We are not driving on the same side of the road, but we are going in the same direction".
A true friendship with François Mitterrand
If relations were less warm with Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, a real friendship was born with François Mitterrand.
In 1992, in France, the queen summed up the relationship between England and Europe in her own way: "The Anglo-Saxon tradition is a bit like the Latin tradition in Europe, what oil is to vinegar: you have to both to make the sauce, otherwise the salad is badly seasoned".
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Elizabeth II is then seduced by the humor of Jacques Chirac, despite his regular distancing from protocol.
Nicolas Sarkozy distinguished himself by a visit to London in 2008, where the elegance of the First Lady Carla Bruni was hailed by the English press.
Finally, François Hollande and Emmanuel Macron also met the queen, and testified, like all their predecessors, to the affection and deep respect of France, for the one who reigned the longest on the British throne.