Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo

Leopoldo Calvo-Sotelo was born on April 14, 1926 in Madrid, Spain. He was the son of a naval officer and a pianist mother. He graduated as a civil engineer from the Technical University of Madrid and obtained a Master of Arts from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in the United States. He worked as a legal adviser for the Council of State and a professor of law at the CEU San Pablo University. He was also the president of Renfe (the Spanish national railroad network) between 1967 and 1968. He entered politics in 1971 as a solicitor (deputy) of Franco's Cortes, representing industrialists in the Union of Chemical Industries. He was a monarchist and one of the founders of an association of politicians that helped Spain's peaceful transition to democracy after Franco's death in 1975. He joined the Union of the Democratic Centre (UCD) party and held various ministerial positions under Adolfo Suárez's governments. He was appointed Minister of Commerce in 1975, Minister of Public Works in 1976, Minister for Relations with the European Communities in 1978 and Minister of Economy and Vice President in 1980. He became the Prime Minister of Spain in 1981 after Suárez's resignation. He faced a major challenge when a group of armed officers attempted a coup d'état on February 23, 1981. He managed to resolve the crisis peacefully with the support of King Juan Carlos I and other political parties. He led a minority government that had to deal with economic difficulties, social unrest and terrorism. He achieved some important accomplishments, such as joining NATO, granting autonomy to Catalonia and the Basque Country, reforming the judicial system and the civil code, supporting parliamentary democracy and promoting European integration and cooperation. He also faced criticism from some sectors of his own party and the opposition for his policies and his leadership style. He lost the general elections in 1982 to Felipe González's Socialist Party (PSOE) and resigned as Prime Minister. He left the UCD party in 1983 and became an independent politician. He was elected as a member of the European Parliament in 1986 and served until 1987. He was also a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and the Real Academia de Ciencias Morales y Políticas (Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences). He died on May 3, 2008 in Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid at the age of 82