Sofoklis Venizelos (; 3 November 1894 – 7 February 1964) was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

politician who served three times as

Prime Minister of Greece The prime minister of the Hellenic Republic (), usually referred to as the prime minister of Greece (), is the head of government of the Greece, Hellenic Republic and the leader of the Cabinet of Greece, Greek Cabinet. The officeholder's of ...

: in 1944 (in exile), 1950 and 1950–1951.

Life and career

Venizelos was born on 3 November 1894 in

Chania Chania (, , ), also sometimes romanization of Greek, romanized as Hania, is a city in Greece and the capital of the Chania (regional unit), Chania regional unit. It lies along the north west coast of the island Crete, about west of Rethymno ...

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

(then a part of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

; it became an autonomous state under Ottoman suzerainty and the protection of Russia, Britain, France, and Italy in 1898). He was the second-born son of the politician

Eleftherios Venizelos Eleftherios Kyriakou Venizelos (, ; – 18 March 1936) was a Cretan State, Cretan Greeks, Greek statesman and prominent leader of the Greek national liberation movement. As the leader of the Liberal Party (Greece), Liberal Party, Venizelos ser ...

During World War I, he served with distinction in the

Hellenic Army The Hellenic Army (, sometimes abbreviated as ΕΣ), formed in 1828, is the army, land force of Greece. The term Names of the Greeks, '' Hellenic'' is the endogenous synonym for ''Greek''. The Hellenic Army is the largest of the three branches ...

and the initial phases of the

Asia Minor campaign Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

, reaching the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

Infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

. He resigned from the Army and was elected as an MP with his father's

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

in the 1920 elections. In 1941, after the

Axis occupation of Greece The occupation of Greece by the Axis Powers () began in April 1941 after Nazi Germany Battle of Greece, invaded the Kingdom of Greece in order to assist its ally, Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Italy, in their Greco-Italian War, ongoing war that w ...

, he became ambassador to the United States, representing the

Greek government in exile The Greek government-in-exile was formed in 1941, in the aftermath of the Battle of Greece and the subsequent occupation of Greece by Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. The government-in-exile was based first in South Africa, then London, then, fi ...

based in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. He became a minister of that government in 1943 under Prime Minister Emmanuel Tsuderos and briefly became its prime minister in 1944 (April 13–26). After the end of the war, he returned to Greece, where he became Vice President of the Liberal Party (led by

Themistoklis Sofoulis Themistoklis Sofoulis or Sophoulis (; 24 November 1860 – 24 June 1949) was a prominent centrist and liberal Greek politician from Samos Island, who served three times as Prime Minister of Greece, with the Liberal Party, which he led for many ...

) and a minister in the first post-war government led by

Georgios Papandreou Georgios Papandreou (, ''Geórgios Papandréou''; 13 February 1888 – 1 November 1968) was a Greek politician, the founder of the Papandreou political dynasty. He served three terms as the prime minister of Greece (1944–1945, 1963, 1964 ...

. In 1948, he assumed the party's leadership and became a minister in several short-lived liberal governments led by Papandreou and

Nikolaos Plastiras Nikolaos Plastiras (; 4 November 1883 – 26 July 1953) was a Greek general and politician, who served three times as Prime Minister of Greece. A distinguished soldier known for his personal bravery, he became famous as "The Black Rider" d ...

; he was also the Prime Minister of three such governments. In 1954, his longtime friendship with Georgios Papandreou was shaken, and he formed the rival coalition. The rift was bridged in 1958, and in 1961, he became a founding member of Papandreou's

Center Union The Centre Union () was a major centrist political party in Greece, created in 1961 by Georgios Papandreou.Clogg, 1987, pp. 39–40 History The Centre Union was a political party in Greece in the 1960s which held office from 1963 to 1965 and wa ...

party, which he served until he died in 1964. On 6th February 1964, in the evening, he gave a pre-election speech in

. There, he had felt unwell, which he overcame. Later, he boarded the passenger ship '' Hellas'' in the

Aegean Sea The Aegean Sea is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some . In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea, which in turn con ...

, en route from Chania to

Piraeus Piraeus ( ; ; , Ancient: , Katharevousa: ) is a port city within the Athens urban area ("Greater Athens"), in the Attica region of Greece. It is located southwest of Athens city centre along the east coast of the Saronic Gulf in the Ath ...

Syros Syros ( ), also known as Siros or Syra, is a Greece, Greek island in the Cyclades, in the Aegean Sea. It is south-east of Athens. The area of the island is and at the 2021 census it had 21,124 inhabitants. The largest towns are Ermoupoli, Ano S ...

. In the cabin, he felt discomfort and had shortness of breath. His attending physician diagnosed acute

pulmonary edema Pulmonary edema (British English: oedema), also known as pulmonary congestion, is excessive fluid accumulation in the tissue or air spaces (usually alveoli) of the lungs. This leads to impaired gas exchange, most often leading to shortness ...

. Venizelos died at 01:05 on 7 February. The ship returned to

Souda Souda () is a town and former municipality in the Chania regional unit, Crete, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Chania, of which it is a municipal unit. The municipal unit has an area of . It is an imp ...

. His funeral took place on Sunday February 9, in Chania, in the presence of Crown Prince Constantine (who represented the ailing King Paul), Prime Minister

Ioannis Paraskevopoulos Ioannis Paraskevopoulos (; 25 December 1900 – 8 April 1984) was a Greek banker and politician who served twice as interim Prime Minister of Greece during the 1960s. He was born in Lavda, Elis Elis also known as Ellis or Ilia (, ''Eleia'') i ...

Panagiotis Kanellopoulos Panagiotis Kanellopoulos or Panayotis Kanellopoulos (; 13 December 1902 – 11 September 1986) was a Greek writer, politician and Prime Minister of Greece. He was the Prime Minister of Greece deposed by the Greek military junta of 1967–1974. ...

Spyros Markezinis Spyridon "Spyros" Markezinis (or Markesinis; ; 22 April 1909 – 4 January 2000) was a Greek politician, longtime member of the Hellenic Parliament, and briefly the Prime Minister of Greece during the aborted attempt at metapolitefsi (democrati ...

, and

Nicolas Kitsikis Nicolas Kitsikis (; August 14, 1887 – July 26, 1978) was a Greek civil engineer and politician. He was a top civil engineer of 20th century Greece, and father of Beata Maria Kitsikis Panagopoulos, and Dimitri Kitsikis. He served as professor an ...

. Venizelos was buried next to his father,

. His wife Kathleen died in 1983, aged 86. In his honor, the shipping company

ANEK Lines ANEK Lines (Ανώνυμη Ναυτιλιακή Εταιρεία Κρήτης, ''Anonymi Naftiliaki Eteria Kritis'', Anonymous Shipping Company of Crete) is one of the largest passenger shipping companies in Greece. It was founded in 1967 by nu ...

named one of its ferries after him.

Bridge

Venizelos was a

contract bridge Contract bridge, or simply bridge, is a trick-taking game, trick-taking card game using a standard 52-card deck. In its basic format, it is played by four players in two Team game, competing partnerships, with partners sitting opposite each othe ...

player "of international stature" during the 1930s as a voluntary exile in France. He played for France in the European IBL Championships (later incorporated into the history of present-day

European Bridge League The European Bridge League is a confederation of National Bridge Federations (NBFs) that organize the card game of contract bridge in European nations. In turn the EBL organizes bridge competition at the European level. It is a member of the Europ ...

championships). France won the 1935 tournament and a version of the team traveled to New York City late that year for a match against the Four Aces, which was "an unofficial world championship match" that the Aces won. Venizelos was second in skill to

Pierre Albarran Pierre Albarran (18 May 1893 – 24 February 1960) was a French people, French auction bridge, auction and contract bridge player and theorist, and a tennis player. It has been reported that he was born in the West Indies, and also in Chaville ...

among contemporary French players, according to

Alan Truscott Alan Fraser Truscott (16 April 1925 – 4 September 2005) was a British-American bridge player, writer, and editor. He wrote the daily bridge column for ''The New York Times'' for 41 years, from 1964 to 2005, and served as Executive Editor for th ...

. Besides the national teams at contract bridge, they both played on a 1933 team that hosted an American foursome led by

Ely Culbertson Elie Almon Culbertson (July 22, 1891 – December 27, 1955), known as Ely Culbertson, was an American contract bridge entrepreneur and personality dominant during the 1930s. He played a major role in the popularization of the new game and was wide ...

in a long match at "plafond, the French parent of contract bridge, which differed only in the scoring details." The two teams played 102 deals to a draw; Albarran and Venizelos cooperated on a book reporting and analysing the match: * ''Les 102 donnes d'un grand match'', by Pierre Albarran, Adrien Aron, and Venizelos, preface by Ely Culbertson (

Éditions Grasset Éditions Grasset () is a French publishing house founded in 1907 by (1881–1955). Grasset publishes French and foreign literature, essays, novels and children's books, among others. Bernard Grasset sold ownership of the company to Hachette ...

, 1933), 188 pp., Albarran, Aron, and Venizelos were three of six players on the 1935 European champion team."Team Members"
(France open team). 4th European Team Championships: Brussels, Belgium, 1935. EBL. Retrieved 2014-11-14.

Venizelos/Mitsotakis family tree

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Venizelos, Sofoklis 1894 births 1964 deaths Politicians from Chania People from Ottoman Crete Sofoklis Liberal Party (Greece) politicians National Political Union (1946) politicians Liberal Democratic Union (Greece) politicians Centre Union politicians Foreign ministers of Greece Ministers of national defence of Greece Greek MPs 1920–1922 Greek MPs 1946–1950 Greek MPs 1950–1951 Greek MPs 1951–1952 Greek MPs 1952–1956 Greek MPs 1956–1958 Ambassadors of Greece to the United States 20th-century prime ministers of Greece Greek anti-communists French contract bridge players 1950s in Greek politics Children of prime ministers of Greece Sofoklis Military personnel from Chania Greek people of World War II Greek military personnel of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922) Greek military personnel of World War I People of the Korean War People who died at sea Greek military attachés