18. This French President’s Death Mid Romance Blew That of the British Prime Minister Away
The French would probably be mortified if the British outdid them in any sphere of romance. It is thus unsurprising that a French politician had to die mid romance in a spectacular manner that wholly eclipsed the demise of Lord Palmerston. Such was the fate of Felix Faure (1841 – 1899), who was President of France from 1895 until his death four years later, when his coitus was interrupted by a massive seizure. He basically came and went (to meet his Maker) at the same time.
A self-made man, Faure was the son of a small furniture maker. In his youth, he worked as a tanner, then became a successful and very wealthy industrialist and merchant in Le Havre. He was elected that city’s mayor, and at age 40, he was elected to the National Assembly as a member of the Left. He focused his attentions on economics, the French Navy, and railways, held a series of undersecretary positions in the 1880s, and became a cabinet minister in 1894.