Papandreou, George (1888-1968)

Greek politician, prime minister 1944 and 1963-65. After escaping from Greece in 1942 during the German occupation, he returned in 1944 to head a coalition government. However, his socialist credentials were suspected by the army, and he held office for only a few weeks. In 1961 he founded the Centre Union Party, and returned as prime minister in 1963 and 1964. A disagreement with King Constantine II in 1965 led to his resignation, and in 1967, when a coup established a military regime, he was placed under house arrest. His son Andreas Papandreou carried forward his political beliefs.

Born in Salonika, George Papandreou became a lawyer and moved into politics in the early 1920s. A left-of-centre republican, he held office in several administrations of the 1920s and 1930s, including the period when the monarchy was removed in 1923 and reinstated by the army in 1925.