At an elaborate ceremony before about 300 guests, officials and family members gathered at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Emmanuel Macron was sworn in earlier today as France president.
The 39-year-old Macron is the youngest president in the country’s history and the eighth president of France’s Fifth Republic, which was created in 1958 and the the first who doesn’t originate from the country’s two mainstream parties.
Before the ceremony, he met for an hour with his predecessor, Francois Hollande, for about an hour to discuss the most sensitive issues facing France, including the country’s nuclear codes.
Macron accompanied Hollande to his car in the palace’s courtyard for his final exit from the Elysee Palace. He was presented with a necklace once worn by Napoleon I, as a symbol of his position as Grand Master of the Legion of Honour (a title usually given to the leader of France).
After Macron was formally declared president, 21 cannon shots were fired from across the Seine River at the Invalides monument, where Napoleon is entombed.
Macron later solemnly paid tribute at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier beneath the Arc de Triomphe, greeting veterans and military officers in formation beneath the imposing arch.
In his inauguration speech Sunday, Macron said he will do everything necessary to fight terrorism and authoritarianism and to resolve the world’s migration crisis. He also listed “the excesses of capitalism in the world” and climate change among his future challenges.
The necklace presented to Mr Macron is a replica of one made for Napoleon
“We will take all our responsibilities to provide, every time it’s needed, a relevant response to big contemporary crises,” He said.
Macron announced his determination to push ahead with reforms to free up France’s economy and pledged to press for a “more efficient, more democratic” EU. France is a founding member of the 28-nation bloc.
“The division and fractures in our society must be overcome.” “The world and Europe need more than ever France, and a strong France, which speaks out loudly for freedom and solidarity.”
He said he would convince the people that “the power of France is not declining – that we are on the brink of a great renaissance”.
Macron himself wore a dark suit from French brand Jonas and Cie, a tailor based in Paris, that cost 450 euros ($491) and his wife, Brigitte, wore a lavender blue dress by French designer Nicolas Ghesquiere for Louis Vuitton.
