Mortality data collected from 1968 to 1982 were screened in order to identify all death certificates listing stroke as underlying cause of death. Annual age- and sex-specific death rates were calculated using population data obtained from the 1968, 1975 and 1982 census of the French population. Data showed that stroke mortality has been declining by more than 30%, in most age groups both in men and women. There was a slight trend for this decline to be greater between 50 and 75 years of age in both sexes. A small increase was observed in women under 40 years of age. Large and stable variations in stroke mortality were found within France.