Petro Trad (‎; 1886–1947) was a Lebanese

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

, who served as President of the French Mandate of Lebanon for a brief period (22 July 1943 – 21 September 1943).

Biography

Trad was born to an

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

family in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

and received a law degree from the

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

. He was an executive officer of the "Beirut Reform Movement," along with

Salim Ali Salam Salim Ali Al-Salam (, also known as Abu Ali Salam; 1868–1938) was a prominent figure in Beirut at the turn of the 20th century who held numerous public positions, including deputy from Beirut to the Ottoman Parliament, President of the Munici ...

. He was one of six signatories to a petition presented to the

French Foreign Ministry The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs (, MEAE) is the ministry of the Government of France that handles France's foreign relations. Since 1855, its headquarters have been located at 37 Quai d'Orsay, close to the National Assembly. The ter ...

in 1913 on behalf of Christian sects in Beirut, that demanded an end to Ottoman control of Syria (including

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

and

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

) and called for a separate entity run by "French emissaries." This petition so angered Ottoman military governor

Djemal Pasha Ahmed Djemal (; ; 6 May 1872 – 21 July 1922), also known as Djemal Pasha or Cemâl Pasha, was an Ottoman military leader and one of the Three Pashas that ruled the Ottoman Empire during World War I. As an officer of the II Corps, he was ...

against Lebanese in general and Christians in particular, that he asked the War Council in

Aley Aley () is a major city in Lebanon. It is the capital of the Aley District and fourth largest city in Lebanon. The city is located on Mount Lebanon, 15km uphill from Beirut on the freeway to Damascus. Aley has the nickname "Bride of the Summ ...

for the execution of the six signatories. They all fled Lebanon including Trad. After

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Trad returned to Beirut as an ally of the French and founded the "League of Christian Sects", which comprised the elite of Beirut society and demanded a

French Mandate of Lebanon The State of Greater Lebanon (; ), informally known as French Lebanon, was a state declared on 1 September 1920, which became the Lebanese Republic (; ) in May 1926, and is the predecessor of modern Lebanon. The state was declared on 1 Septembe ...

and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. His law firm attained fame throughout the region, partly because he would defend the poor, who could not afford his fees. He was elected deputy from Beirut in 1925 serving in the

Lebanese Parliament The Lebanese Parliament (, ) is the unicameral national parliament of the Lebanon, Republic of Lebanon. There are 128 members elected to a four-year term in Electoral district, multi-member constituencies, apportioned among Lebanon's divers ...

for much of the 1920s and 1930s, either elected or appointed by the French authorities. He was a member of the parliamentary committee that worked on the French-Lebanese Treaty of 1936. The French supported him as the

Speaker of the Parliament of Lebanon The legislative speaker of Lebanon is the highest office in the legislative body of Lebanon. The current legislative body is the Parliament of Lebanon, headed by the Speaker of the Parliament of Lebanon, officially called the President of the Cham ...

from November 1934 to October 1935 and from October 1937 to September 1939.Republic of Lebanon - House of Representatives History
/ref> Trad could not stay neutral in the fierce political feud between the staunchly pro-French

Émile Eddé Émile Eddé (; 5 May 1886 – 28 September 1949) was a Lebanese lawyer and politician who served twice as the President of Lebanon. Early life and education Émile Eddé was a member of a Maronite Christian family that originated from Beirut w ...

and the independentist

Bechara El Khoury Bechara Khalil El Khoury (; 10 August 1890 – 11 January 1964) was a Lebanese politician who served as the 1st president of Lebanon, holding office from 21 September 1943 to 18 September 1952, apart from an 11-day interruption (11–22 Novembe ...

. In his memoirs Bechara El Khoury accuses Trad of supporting Eddé. In fact, Trad believed that both El Khoury and Eddé were incapable of winning the presidency and he promoted himself as a consensus candidate. Trad became president by default for an interim period. He was briefly appointed by the French government as President, to oversee the election of a new president by members of an appointed parliament. The election of Bechara El Khoury in 1943 made it clear to him that his chances of winning the presidency were nil. He died in Beirut on 5 April 1947.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trad, Petro 1886 births 1947 deaths Politicians from Beirut Greek Orthodox Christians from Lebanon Presidents of Lebanon Prime ministers of Lebanon Legislative speakers of Lebanon Lebanon under French rule University of Paris alumni