# MacMahon becomes president (1873)

URL: https://history-france.com/timeline/1873-macmahon-becomes-president
Location: France
Categories: ruler-change

The monarchist marshal replaced Thiers while the form of the regime remained unsettled. Within the broader Third Republic period, The Third Republic survived war, the Commune, constitutional crises and fierce ideological conflict. It expanded mass schooling and empire, faced the Dreyfus Affair, fought World War I and entered the troubled interwar era. At this point in the timeline, the relevant governing authority is Patrice de MacMahon (President of the French Republic). MacMahon becomes president mattered because succession and legitimacy shaped alliances, institutions and the direction of state policy. The event is positioned here so visitors can read it alongside changes in government, warfare, society, religion, culture and France’s wider international setting.

## Why it matters
MacMahon becomes president mattered because succession and legitimacy shaped alliances, institutions and the direction of state policy.

Ruler at the time: [Patrice de MacMahon](https://history-france.com/rulers/patrice-de-macmahon)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia topic lookup — MacMahon becomes president](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=MacMahon+becomes+president&go=Go)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — MacMahon becomes president](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=MacMahon+becomes+president)
- [Vie-publique — French institutions and history](https://www.vie-publique.fr/)