Vincent Auriol

Vincent Auriol married Michelle Aucouturier on 1 June 1912. The couple had a son named Paul on 15 September 1918.

Vincent died 1 January 1966 in Paris. He was later buried at Muret, Haute-Garonne.

Vincent Auriol was born on 27 August 1884 at Revel in France. He was the only child of baker Jacques Antoine Auriol and his wife Angélique Virginie Durand.

After his preliminary studies, he went on to graduate with a law degree from the Collège de Revel that was affiliated to the University of Toulouse in 1904.

After completing his graduation in law, Vincent Auriol began his career as a practicing lawyer at Toulouse. He was a dedicated socialist and the charter member of the socialist party SFIO. In 1908, he jointly established the newspaper ‘Le Midi Socialiste’. He was also heading the Association of Journalists at Toulouse during this time.

He entered into politics in 1914 by winning a seat in the Chamber of Deputies from Muret as a Socialist Deputy. He retained this position until 1942.

In 1920, with the disintegration of the SFIO party, a new group SFIC was created. However, he did not join the new party and was among the few leaders who worked in the new SFIO party.

Soon after his entry in politics, he emerged as a prominent figure in the party and was the primary spokesperson on various issues. Beginning in 1924, for two years, he headed the Finance Committee at the Chamber of Deputies.

In 1925, he was elected as the Mayor of Toulouse, which he continued till 1942. Between 1928 and 1947, he was also a member of the Departmental councils of Haute-Garonne.

His presidency was marked by attempts to reconcile political factions within France and warm relations between France and its allies. As Minister of Finance, he took the controversial decision to devalue te French franc 30% against the U.S. dollar.