The influence of inter-decadal and secular variability on the annual mean air surface temperature variability over France is characterized for the period 1880--2005, together with a description of their regional distribution. After a descriptive study of temperature linear trends over the century, the oscillatory components of the series are investigated through continuous and discrete wavelet transform. This study reveals the importance of inter-decadal time scales (40--60 and 60--80 years) and particularly the evolution of their phase shift in the latest epoch of the high temperatures rise over France (since 1980).