Nicolas Sarkozy 'swore aides to silence over Dominique Strauss-Kahn orgy'

That forecast came true after Mr Strauss-Kahn resigned as IMF chief after being accused of raping a New York hotel maid. He was subsequently cleared of the charge.

As interior minister, Mr Sarkozy was also informed that Mr Strauss-Kahn took no particular precautions not to be spotted entering two swingers’ clubs in Paris, according to the book. He parked his car in front and walked in, instead of entering from a discreet side street.

“DSK liked flirting with danger, he liked dodgy atmospheres,” said Chemin.

Mr Sarkozy never forgot a debate he had with Mr Strauss-Kahn before presidential elections in 1995, the authors said. Mr Strauss-Kahn spent the whole time staring fixedly at his Right-wing rival’s young blonde press attaché, who was in the studio. The next month, he bombarded her with dozens of text messages whose graphic content were met with howls of laughter.

The book recounts how Mr Strauss-Kahn’s compulsive womanising led him to try his luck with Valérie Trierweiler, President François Hollande’s girlfriend and new First Lady when he was an MP.

“How is the prettiest journalist in Paris?,” he is quoted as asking the attractive Paris Match reporter. “I thought that was Anne Sinclair”, she replied, referring to Mr Strauss-Kahn’s wife.