Charles Helou

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Fuad Chehab
Succeeded bySuleiman Frangieh
Personal details
Born(1913-09-25)25 September 1913
Beirut, Ottoman Empire
Died7 January 2001(2001-01-07) (aged 87)
Beirut, Lebanon
NationalityLebanese
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1952; died 1989)​
Saint Joseph University
ProfessionDiplomat, politician
ReligionMaronites

Charles Helou (

President of Lebanon
from 1964 to 1970.

Early life and education

Early image of Helou in the 1940s

Born in

Kataeb (Phalangist) Party
. Differences with Gemayel later led Helou to quit the party, however.

Career

Helou's first governmental appointment was as ambassador to the

National Assembly in 1964.[3]

Helou (left) with Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser during the 1964 Arab League summit in Alexandria

The alliance between

Arab nationalist, soon left Karami in effective control of the Lebanese government.[4] Helou founded and launched the Institute for Palestine Studies in 1963.[citation needed] The most pressing issue that was first to cause problems for Helou was the Israeli diversion of the Jordan River.[5]

The impressive economic growth that characterized Helou's presidency translated into a cultural and lifestyle belle époque in Lebanon (perhaps this gained the name for Beirut as the 'Paris of the Orient' and Lebanon as the 'Switzerland of the East'). However this period was also partly marred by the Intra Bank crisis of 1966 and Lebanon's increasing inability to avoid involvement in the Arab–Israeli conflict. The Six-Day War of 1967, strained sectarian relations in Lebanon. Many Muslims wanted Lebanon to join the Arab war effort, while many Christians wished to eschew participation. Helou managed to keep Lebanon from entanglement, apart from a brief air strike, but found it impossible to put the lid on the tensions that had been raised. Parliamentary elections in 1968 revealed an increasing polarization in the country, with two major coalitions, one pro-Arab Nationalism, led by Rashid Karami and the other pro-Western, led jointly by former President Camille Chamoun, Pierre Gemayel and Raymond Eddé, both made major gains and won 30 of the 99 seats each.

In addition, government authority was challenged by the presence of armed

army and the Palestine Liberation Organization
(PLO) became increasingly frequent. For a long time, Helou resisted their demands, but in 1969, after failing to end the rebellion militarily, he finally gave in, hoping that the Palestinian guerrillas would confine their operations to cross-border attacks against Israel and would stop challenging the Lebanese government. As it turned out, the clashes only intensified.

In 1970, Helou endorsed

Elias Sarkis as his chosen successor,[6] but the latter lost the election in the National Assembly by one vote to Suleiman Frangieh
. Unlike other former presidents, who remained politically active after retirement, Helou faded from the scene. He was involved in a philanthropic venture, founding a number of restaurants to provide free hot meals to elderly people.

Personal life

In 1952, he married

Nina Trad, niece of Petro Trad, who served as President of the French Mandate of Lebanon and under whom he had studied law. Trad was one of the first women lawyers in Lebanon.[7][8]

Death

Helou died of a heart attack on 7 January 2001.[9] He was 87.

See also

References

  1. ^ "CHARLES HELOU - Prestige Magazine". Prestige Magazine. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  2. ISBN 1-903900-68-9
    , p. 164
  3. ISBN 981-02-1219-4
    , p. 223
  4. ISBN 0-313-26213-6
    , pp. 298–299
  5. ISBN 0-595-30132-0
    , p. 129
  6. ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  7. ^ درويش (Darwish), حسن (Hassan) (2017). "نينا طراد.. المحامية الأولى" [Nina Trad ... First Lawyer]. Al Raqeeb (in Arabic). Beirut, Lebanon. Archived from the original on 9 February 2019. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
  8. ^ Fayad, Elie (8 January 2001). "Décès – La mort du président Charles Hélou – Un fin lettré dans la tourmente de l'histoire" [Death – The death of President Charles Helou – A literate end in the turmoil of history]. L'Orient-Le Jour (in French). Beirut, Lebanon. Archived from the original on 5 September 2019. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
  9. ^ January 2001 Rulers. Retrieved 30 August 2014.
Preceded by
Fuad Chehab
 President of Lebanon
1964–1970 		Succeeded by
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