Michail Stasinopoulos ( el, Μιχαήλ Στασινόπουλος; 27 July 1903 – 31 October 2002) was a Greek jurist and politician who served as

President of Greece The president of Greece, officially the President of the Hellenic Republic ( el, Πρόεδρος της Ελληνικής Δημοκρατίας, Próedros tis Ellinikís Dimokratías), commonly referred to in Greek as the President of the Rep ...

from 18 December 1974 to 19 July 1975. A member of

New Democracy New Democracy, or the New Democratic Revolution, is a concept based on Mao Zedong's Bloc of Four Social Classes theory in post-revolutionary China which argued originally that democracy in China would take a path that was decisively distinc ...

, he was the first officeholder under the

Third Hellenic Republic The Third Hellenic Republic ( el, Γ΄ Ελληνική Δημοκρατία, Triti Elliniki Dimokratia) is the period in modern Greek history that stretches from 1974, with the fall of the Greek military junta and the final abolition of the Gree ...

.Presidency of Hellenic Republic: ''Former Presidents''
Retrieved 6 February 2016

Biography

He studied law at the

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...

and was awarded a Ph.D. in Law in 1934. In 1937 he was appointed Associate Professor of Administrative Law at Athens University and in 1943 became a Professor at the

Panteion University The Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences ( el, Πάντειον Πανεπιστήμιο Κοινωνικών και Πολιτικών Επιστημών), usually referred to simply as the Panteion University, is a university loc ...

, where he served as rector from 1951 to 1958. From 1951 to 1953, he was President of the

Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation The Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation ( el, Ελληνική Ραδιοφωνία Τηλεόραση AE, Ellinikí Radiofonía Tileórasi SA) or ERT () is the state-owned public radio and television broadcaster of Greece. History Overview ERT b ...

. In 1952 he served as caretaker Minister to the Prime Minister's Office and Labour Minister in the

caretaker government A caretaker government is a temporary ''ad hoc'' government that performs some governmental duties and functions in a country until a regular government is elected or formed. Depending on specific practice, it usually consists of either randomly se ...

Dimitrios Kiousopoulos Dimitrios Kiousopoulos ( el, Δημήτριος Κιουσόπουλος) was an important Greek jurist, politician, and the caretaker Prime Minister of Greece in 1952. He was born on November 17, 1892 in the town of Andritsaina, Elis (regional un ...

and in 1958 he was Minister for the Presidency in the caretaker government of

Konstantinos Georgakopoulos Konstantinos Georgakopoulos ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Γεωργακόπουλος; 26 December 1890 – 26 July 1973) was a Greek lawyer, politician and Prime Minister of Greece. He was born in Tripoli, Greece, he studied law at the Univers ...

. In 1929, he was accepted into the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

, having come first in the entrance examination, and served as President of this body between 1966 and 1969. In the

1974 Greek legislative election Parliamentary elections were held in Greece on 17 November 1974.Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) ''Elections in Europe: A data handbook'', p830 They were the first after the end of the military junta of 1967–1974, and took place during the ...

, Stasinopoulos became a Member of Parliament in the nationwide ticket of the

party. When a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a Representative democr ...

(8 December 1974) established Greece as a Republic, Stasinopoulos was elected as President of the Republic by a majority in the

Hellenic Parliament The Hellenic Parliament ( el, Ελληνικό Κοινοβούλιο, Elliniko Kinovoulio; formally titled el, Βουλή των Ελλήνων, Voulí ton Ellínon, Boule of the Hellenes, label=none), also known as the Parliament of the He ...

. He served as Head of State from 18 December 1974 until 19 July 1975, that is, until the finalization of the new political institutions by the revisionary national assembly through the promulgation of the new

Constitution of Greece The Constitution of Greece ( el, Σύνταγμα της Ελλάδας, Syntagma tis Elladas) was created by the Fifth Revisionary Parliament of the Hellenes in 1974, after the fall of the Greek military junta and the start of the Third Helle ...

. Michail Stasinopoulos died on 31 October 2002, aged 99.

Writings

Stasinopoulos was a prolific writer. His literary work first appeared in the magazine "The Muse" (1920-1923). He published many scientific articles and literary works, as well as translations of French poetry and prose. In 1968 he was elected to the

Athens Academy The Academy of Athens ( el, Ακαδημία Αθηνών, ''Akadimía Athinón'') is Greece's national academy, and the highest research establishment in the country. It was established in 1926, with its founding principle traces back to the ...

as a full member and in 1969 and 1970 he was put forward by the President of the French Council of State,

René Cassin René Samuel Cassin (5 October 1887 – 20 February 1976) was a French jurist known for co-authoring the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and receiving the Nobel Peace Prize. Born in Bayonne, Cassin served as a soldier in the First Wo ...

, as a candidate for the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolo ...

. Foundation of Administrative Law 'Stasinopoulos'
Retrieved 12 February 2016

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Stasinopoulos, Michail 1903 births 2002 deaths 20th-century translators 20th-century presidents of Greece Greek jurists Greek MPs 1974–1977 Greek translators Members of the Academy of Athens (modern) National and Kapodistrian University of Athens alumni National and Kapodistrian University of Athens faculty New Democracy (Greece) politicians Panteion University faculty Politicians from Kalamata Presidents of Greece Presidents of the Council of State (Greece)