FREY, ROGER

born June 11, 1913, Nouma, New Caledonia French Gaullist politician, considered a brilliant administrator with a flair for reform. Frey was reared in New Caledonia. When World War II broke out, he rallied to Charles de Gaulle in 1940 and served in the Italian, French, and German campaigns. He was a key member (194752) of the Rally of the French People (RPF), which was the fledgling Gaullist party. Frey was a critical component of the movement in the Fourth Republic to restore de Gaulle to power. He managed, with consummate skill, to merge different and sometimes contentious pro-de Gaulle groups and fuse them into the Union for the New Republic (UNR). After serving as secretary-general of the UNR (195859) when de Gaulle came to power, Frey served in nearly every cabinet under de Gaulle and his successor, Georges Pompidou. He was minister of information (1959), minister of the interior (196167), and minister of state (196772). Elected deputy successively from 1962 on, Frey left his seat in the National Assembly in 1974 to serve as president of the Constitutional Council (until 1983).