French Fifth Republic of the election on 9 January 1959. The new president began his office on that date, appointing Michel Debré as Prime Minister. The 1958 constitution also replaced the French Union with the French Community, which allowed fourteen member territories (these did not include Algeria) to assert their independence. 1960 became known as the "Year of Africa" because of this wave of newly independent states. Algeria became independent on 5 July 1962. The president was initially elected by an electoral college, but in 1962 de Gaulle proposed that the president be directly elected by the citizens, and held a referendum on
Chief of the Military Staff of the President of the Republic Chief of the Military Staff of the President of the Republic The Chief of the Military Staff of the President of the Republic ("Chef d'état-major particulier du président de la République") is a role in the military and government of France, heading the president's military staff until the French Fifth Republic. The President's 'military household' ("maison militaire") was formed by president Mac-Mahon but not insititutionalised until 1880. This group of officers advised the president on army matters, especially (under the French Third Republic) matters of ceremony. Such an allocation was useful since it allowed its officers to nourish political contacts