European Monetary System Launch
France entered the European Monetary System, designed to stabilise exchange rates among participating Community currencies.
Permanent historical records · Updated 2026-11-03
1979 in France
Explore 10 historical events and records for France in 1979.
Historical records for France in 1979
Sorted by month and day. Records with no month are shown last. Showing 10 of 10 unique records.
10Unique records
1 of 1Page
7Named events on this page
6Named people on this page
3Places on this page
March
May
Treaty of Accession
Bernard-Reymond joins the French delegation signing the treaty that will make Greece the tenth member.
Treaty of Accession
Nanteuil signs for France in his capacity as Permanent Representative to the European Communities.
Treaty of Accession
Poncet signs for France as Foreign Minister while France presides over the Community institutions.
July
First Elected Parliament Presidency
Members chose Veil to lead the newly directly elected Parliament, giving a French politician a prominent role in the Community's democratic institutions.
President of European Parliament
Simone Veil was elected the first President of the directly elected European Parliament and the first woman to hold the office.
Other events (month unknown)
Action Directe
Helps found the terrorist organisation Action Directe
Direct European Elections
French voters participated in the first direct elections to the European Parliament, and Simone Veil headed a successful pro-European list.
Election
The European Parliament held its first direct elections by universal suffrage. 410 members were elected, who then elected the first female President of the European Parliament, Simone Veil
President of European Parliament
The European Parliament held its first direct elections by universal suffrage. 410 members were elected, who then elected the first female President of the European Parliament, Simone Veil
How these records were prepared
Generated from the World History Database historical_events table. Identical display records are collapsed; descriptions otherwise retain the stored text. Coverage and source quality vary. Check primary and specialist sources before citing individual historical claims.