Shanghai French Concession
De Margerie studied at the École Libre des Sciences Politiques, and began his diplomatic career as the Secretary of the French Embassy in London before World War II, in the office of Paul Reynaud. He attended the Briare conference on 11 June 1940 between the French and British leaders, and wrote the official account. He was then governor of the Shanghai French Concession, and left in 1943 to the French legation in Beijing.