The French like to think that since the Revolution they have moved on from such archaic constructs as political families, hereditary dynasties and the whole notion of aristocratic rule.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
French politics, just like French arts and French business, is littered with well-known names that repeat themselves through the generations. Take the Mitterrands.
The Mitterrands are from the Cognac area of south-western France, where the original patriarch Joseph was a prosperous vinegar-maker in the early part of the last century.
