FACTBOX: Key details on Jacques Chirac

(Reuters) - French President Jacques Chirac announced on Sunday he would not run for a third term in office.

Here are some key facts about Chirac:

* BEGINNINGS:

-- Born the son of a company director on November 29, 1932, Chirac studied at the Ecole Nationale d'Administration, which has traditionally educated France's political elite.

* HIS RECORD:

-- He became president in 1995 after two spells as prime minister and 18 years as Paris mayor established him as the major force of France's right wing.

-- His record in office is hard to assess, consisting as much of symbolic gestures as concrete policies and marred in later years by political corruption scandals.

-- He ended compulsory military service in France, stood firm against the increasingly popular far right, played an important role in ending war in Yugoslavia in the 1990s and put France back into the integrated NATO command.

-- One of his biggest mistakes was to dissolve parliament in 1997 to try to win support for his conservative economic program. The Socialists won and he was forced to share power.

-- Another huge setback was the voters' rejection of the European Union constitution in May 2005 which severely weakened him on the international and domestic political stages.

* WHO IS CHIRAC?

-- Chirac has been an enigma over the years. Some call him Houdini because of his ability to find a way out of difficult situations. Former French President Georges Pompidou referred to him as "bulldozer" for his ability to get things done. Other nicknames were Chameleon Bonaparte and La Girouette (weathervane), references to his changing political views.

-- Once an anti-European Gaullist, he became one of Europe's main standard-bearers. Once a lover of all things American, he led France's opposition to the U.S.-led Iraq war in 2003 which chilled relations with Washington.

-- Chirac's persona is also a puzzle. His devotion to ancient Japanese and Chinese history was long kept hidden and he likes to play down his intellectual abilities.