Georgios Rallis
GreeceBiography of Georgios Rallis
Georgios Rallis was a Greek political figure who served as the Prime Minister of Greece from 1980 to 1981. He came from the Rallis family, one of the oldest political dynasties in Greece. Originally, they were a wealthy family of Phanariots, descendants of the Constantinople district of Phanar, representing the city's intelligentsia.
The founder of the dynasty, Dimitrios Rallis (1844-1921), served as the Prime Minister of Greece on five occasions. His son, Ioannis Rallis (1878-1946), was also a descendant and the son-in-law of another head of government, Georgios Theotokis. Ioannis Rallis held the position of Prime Minister in the collaborationist government of Greece from 1943 to 1944. After the country's liberation from the Nazis, he was sentenced to life imprisonment and died in prison.
In contrast, Georgios Rallis, Ioannis' son, became a symbol of modern Greek democracy. In 1947, he published his father's memoirs, expressing regret for his collaboration with the Nazis. From 1954 to 1956, he served as a State Minister in the government of Marshal Papagos. From 1956 to 1958, he was the Minister of Public Works and Communications, and from 1961 to 1963, he served as the Minister of Internal Affairs.
Rallis was a close associate of Konstantinos Karamanlis, serving in ministerial positions in his cabinets. However, he was arrested and later expelled by the "Black Colonels." From 1974 to 1977, he held the position of Minister of Education, where he resolved the long-standing "language question" by introducing the demotic language into schools instead of the elevated Katharevousa.
From 1978 to 1980, Rallis served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs. In this capacity, he visited the Soviet Union and conducted negotiations for Greece's accession to the European Economic Community (EEC). In 1980, Georgios Rallis became the leader of the conservative party New Democracy and the Prime Minister of Greece. During his premiership, Greece rejoined the NATO alliance, from which it had previously withdrawn. However, in 1981, he was defeated in the elections by socialist Andreas Papandreou.
Georgios Rallis passed away on March 15, 2006. He was respected by both his political supporters and opponents.
