Paul Doumer

Originated from a poor family; at the age of 12 worked as a messenger, then engraver; attended evening courses at the Conservatoire des Arts et métiers; received degrees in mathematics (1877) and law (1878); taught in a college (1877-1879); edited Courrier de l'Aisne (from 1880); municipal conselor of Saint-Quentin (from 1883); chief of staff of the President of the Chambre des députés (Chamber of Deputies) in 1887; elected to the Chamber of Deputies (1888-1889, 1891-1896, 1902-1910); served as minister of finance (1 Nov 1895 - 29 Apr 1896, 16 Jan 1921 - 15 Jan 1922, 16 Dec 1925 - 9 Mar 1926); governor general of Indochina (appointed 28 Dec 1896, entered office 13 Feb 1897 - Oct 1902); President of the Chamber of Deputies (10 Jan 1905 - 8 Jun 1906); lost presidential elections to Clément-Armand Fallières (17 Jan 1906); elected to the Sénat (1912-1931) as a representative of Corsica; minister of state (12 Sep 1917 - 16 Nov 1917); chairman of the Sénat finance commission (1925); President of the Sénat (14 Jan 1927 - 9 Jun 1931); elected President of the Republic (13 May 1931); continued to work on overcoming the effects of world economic crisis; was fatally shot by the deranged assassin, Russian emigrant, Pavel Gorgulov, in a public ceremony (6 May 1932). Biography source: [2]