Portrait of Jean-Luc Dehaene

Birthday profile

Jean-Luc Dehaene

Jean-Luc Dehaene, French-Belgian lawyer and politician, 63rd Prime Minister of Belgium (died 2014)

Born
August 7, 1940
Died
May 15, 2014
Zodiac sign
Leo
Birth year
1940

About Jean-Luc Dehaene

Jean Luc Joseph Marie "Jean-Luc" Dehaene (Flemish: [ʑɑ̃ːˈlyɡ dəˈɦaːnə]; 7 August 1940 – 15 May 2014) was a Belgian politician who served as the prime minister of Belgium from 1992 until 1999. During his political career, he was nicknamed "The Plumber", as well as "The Minesweeper", for his ability to negotiate political deadlocks. A member of the Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams (CD&V) party and its antecedents, Dehaene gained his first ministerial appointment in 1981. Dehaene later went on to lead a series of centre-left cabinets from 1992 to 1999. Dehaene's first government (1992–1995) included both Christian and Social Democrats and presided over the creation of a new constitution, effectively transforming Belgium into a federal state. His second government (1995–1999) coincided with a number of crises in Belgium, including the Dutroux scandal. The Dioxin Affair, occurring shortly before the 1999 election, led to a swing against the major parties, and Dehaene's government fell. Following his final term as prime minister, he was active in both Belgian and European politics. He was also on UEFA's financial fair play regulatory body and managed Dexia Bank during the 2008 financial crisis. He was the last prime minister of King Baudouin's reign. Dehaene, who had previously been director of InBev, became chairman of Dexia Bank, a Belgian-French bank, in October 2008.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Jean-Luc Dehaene timeline

  1. A member of the Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams (CD&V) party and its antecedents, Dehaene gained his first ministerial appointment in 1981.
  2. Dehaene's first government (1992–1995) included both Christian and Social Democrats and presided over the creation of a new constitution, effectively transforming Belgium into a federal state.
  3. Dehaene, who had previously been director of InBev, became chairman of Dexia Bank, a Belgian-French bank, in October 2008.

The world when Jean-Luc Dehaene was born

Jean-Luc Dehaene was born in 1940. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1940

  • #1 song"In the Mood" – Glenn Miller
  • Top movieRebecca
  • Best-selling bookFor Whom the Bell Tolls – Ernest Hemingway

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentFirst televised college basketball game
  • Top headlineWinston Churchill becomes British Prime Minister
  • Technology milestoneFirst McDonald's restaurant opens
  • Defining fadSwing music hits its peak
  • Notable inventionJeep (military vehicle)
  • World population2.30 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderFranklin D. Roosevelt
  • Sports championCincinnati Reds (World Series)
  • U.S. population132.2M

1940 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Jean-Luc Dehaene's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19402026
Gas$0.18$3.45/gal
Average home$5,300$435,000
Average income$3,100$67,500
Minimum wage$0.30$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.25$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population132.2M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.