Bettino Craxi

Bettino Craxi
Official portrait, 1983
Prime Minister of Italy
In office
4 August 1983 – 18 April 1987
PresidentSandro Pertini
Francesco Cossiga
DeputyArnaldo Forlani
Preceded byAmintore Fanfani
Succeeded byAmintore Fanfani
Secretary of the Italian Socialist Party
In office
15 July 1976 – 12 February 1993
Preceded byFrancesco De Martino
Succeeded byGiorgio Benvenuto
Parliamentary offices
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office
5 June 1968 – 15 April 1994
ConstituencyMilan (1968–83; 1992–94)
Naples (1983–92)
Member of the European Parliament
In office
25 July 1989 – 30 June 1992
ConstituencyNorth-West Italy
In office
17 July 1979 – 4 August 1983
ConstituencyNorth-West Italy
Personal details
Born
Benedetto Craxi

(1934-02-24)24 February 1934
Milan, Kingdom of Italy
Died19 January 2000(2000-01-19) (aged 65)
Hammamet, Tunisia
Political partyItalian Socialist Party
Spouse
Anna Maria Moncini
​
(m. 1959)​
ChildrenBobo Craxi
Stefania Craxi
Signature

Benedetto "Bettino" Craxi (UK: /ˈkræksi/ KRAK-see,[1] Italian: [betˈtiːno ˈkraksi], Sicilian: [ˈkɾaʃʃɪ];[2] 24 February 1934 – 19 January 2000)[3] was an Italian politician and statesman, leader of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) from 1976 to 1993, and the 45th prime minister of Italy from 1983 to 1987. He was the first PSI member to become prime minister and the second from a socialist party to hold the office. He led the third-longest government in the Italian Republic and he is considered one of the most powerful and prominent politicians of the First Italian Republic.[4]

Craxi was involved in investigations conducted by Mani pulite judges in Milan, eventually being convicted for political corruption and illicit financing of the PSI.[5] He always rejected the charges of corruption while admitting to the illegal funding that permitted costly political activity, the PSI being less financially powerful than the two larger parties, Christian Democracy (DC) and the Italian Communist Party (PCI).[6] Craxi's government and party were also supported by future Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, a media magnate and personal friend of Craxi.[7][8]

Craxi maintained strong links with many leaders of the Western European left, including François Mitterrand, Felipe González, Andreas Papandreou, and Mário Soares, and was one of the main representatives of Western European socialism.[9][10][11] Craxi's supporters especially praised his foreign policy, which was assertive and often led to confrontations with the United States, on issues such as Palestinian territories, terrorism, and Craxi's close relations with Arab socialist governments.[12]

Craxi was often nicknamed by his detractors il Cinghialone ('The Big Boar') due to his physical size.[13][14] This name was given him by his long-time ally and rival at the same time, DC leader Giulio Andreotti.[15]

  1. ^ "Craxi". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  2. ^ "Craxi". Dizionario d'Ortografia e di Pronuncia. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  3. ^ Profile of Bettino Craxi
  4. ^ I tre più potenti? Agnelli, Craxi e De Mita
  5. ^ Craxi, tutti i processi e le condanne
  6. ^ Bettino Craxi, discorso sul finanziamento politico, Camera dei Deputati, 3 luglio 1992
  7. ^ Scarano, Angelo (19 January 2017). "Craxi, il ricordo di Berlusconi: "Mi manca, simbolo di dignità"". il Giorniale (in Italian). Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  8. ^ Berlusconi, 20 anni fa la discesa in campo. Con la regia di Craxi e Dell'Utri
  9. ^ Tobias Apse, "Italy: A New Agenda" in "Mapping the West European Left", edited by Perry Anderson and Patrick Camiller, 1994, pp. 189-233
  10. ^ "Craxi, González y Soares coinciden en que la incorporación de España y Portugal supone un nuevo impulso para la CEE". El País (in Spanish). 10 April 1985. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  11. ^ La politica estera di Bettino Craxi nel Mediterraneo: dalla segreteria al governo.
  12. ^ "Craxi, Benedetto (Bettino)" in Mark Gilbert, Robert K. Nilsson, "The A to Z of Modern Italy", pp. 119-120, 2010
  13. ^ E Feltri esaltava Di Pietro contro il Cinghialone
  14. ^ Io che azzannai il Cinghialone e non vidi gli orrori dei giudici
  15. ^ "Le lettere inedite di Craxi, così pregavano "il Cinghialone"". Archived from the original on 18 August 2020. Retrieved 10 May 2017.