This controversial, but no doubt charismatic European leader has both an army of opponents and supporters, which has allowed him to stay in power for almost 20 years. He owns the Milan football club, owns a controlling stake in the Fininvest company, is the owner of banks, a huge media holding - it's all about Silvio Berlusconi. The biography of one of the richest people on the planet (118th place according to Forbes magazine) is very controversial, full of ups and downs, resounding successes and high-profile trials, but, of course, very interesting.
The start of a dizzying career
His hometown is Milan, where Silvio was born on September 29, 1936. His father, Luigi Berlusconi, was a bank employee, and his mother, Rosella Bossi, was a housewife. They later had two more children, Maria and Paolo. The family had rather modest incomes, nevertheless, thanks to the efforts of their parents, all children received a decent education. Silvio Berlusconi graduated with honors from the Catholic Lyceum, andlater, the University of Milan, where he studied law. He even received an award for his thesis work. Even as a student, Berlusconi began looking for opportunities to earn a living in a variety of ways - from selling all kinds of goods to performing on cruise ships. He got his first permanent job at a construction company back in 1957. Later, he was so fascinated by this developing field of activity that after 10 years he founded his own construction company called Edilnord. Things were going so well that Silvio devoted almost 20 years of his life to this business. In 1978, he had already founded his holding company Fininvest.
Diverse businessman
But the young entrepreneur was also looking for new promising areas of activity. They opened one of the very first supermarkets in the country. But he became truly successful thanks to the founding of the first commercial television network in Italy in 1980. A successful businessman began to develop this direction, acquiring and opening new TV channels not only in his country, but throughout Europe, and also invested in shares of some print media. His new project was the advertising company Pubitalia'80. At the same time, the tireless entrepreneur was also interested in publishing, which eventually resulted in the creation of the Mandadori Publishing House, which in the 90s grew into the Arnoldo Mandadori Editore Trust. And in 1986, one of the most successful investments of the enterprising Italian was the acquisition of a footballMilan team, which thanks to him took the lead.
New achievements
By the end of the 80s, Berlusconi was already one of the richest people in Italy; in 1988, the network of the largest La Stando department stores was added to his construction holding, media business and football club. A little later, already in the 90s, Berlusconi founded a subsidiary of Fininvest, Mediaset, whose main areas are advertising, multimedia, television and cinema. Few people know about the production activities of Silvio Berlusconi. The films he sponsored in the early 90s are not well known to the general public. these are "Men's Troubles", "Ancestors", "Mediterranean Sea", as well as several series. But the tycoon did not stop there, mastering new areas of entrepreneurial activity, for example, such as insurance. His assets also include various funds.
Forward to politics
In 1994, a new figure appeared on the world stage - Silvio Berlusconi. Party "Forward, Italy!" was originally a political movement rapidly gaining popularity due to its innovative ideas and attractive leader figure. Its main ideology was the fusion of various concepts such as liberal socialism and democratic populism. The party won nationwide love thanks to its adherence to traditional and Catholic values. Silvio Berlusconi became Prime Minister of Italy, winning the elections in March 1994, and his center-right Forward Italy! got more than 40%votes and formed a coalition with other parties. One of the priorities in his policy was the control of migration flows, mainly from Africa. But his government did not last even a year, the coalition fell apart due to disagreements, and Berlusconi resigned and after new elections in 1996 went into opposition.
Two terms in a row
In 2001, Silvio Berlusconi again decided to run for prime minister with an extensive electoral program, including again migration issues, numerous reforms and an increase in the standard of living of the population. In the parliamentary elections of the same year, the Freedom House coalition won a decisive victory, and Silvio was again at the head of the government. But already in 2002, due to the introduction of the euro in Italy, the standard of living of citizens decreased, despite the pre-election promises of the prime minister. In his second term, Berlusconi took a course towards rapprochement with the United States and supported the entry of troops into Iraq. In support of the allies, Italy also sent its military contingent there. Silvio Berlusconi's government lasted from June 2001 to April 2005 and, despite the collapse of the coalition and subsequent resignation, turned out to be one of the longest-lived in Italian history. Due to a government crisis, the chairman of the council of ministers returned to his post at the end of April 2005, and his newly formed government worked for another year.
Disgracedpolitician
In the spring of 2006 elections were held again. Thanks to his own Calderoli law, which automatically leaves more than half of the seats in parliament to the winning party, Silvio Berlusconi and his government only slightly conceded to the left, but this was enough to lose. As a result, "Forward, Italy!" and its ideological inspirer went into opposition and in 2007 joined the federal party "People of Freedom". In the elections in 2008, Berlusconi was charged with bribery and pressure on the press, but, despite everything, the charismatic Italian leader was in the chair of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers for the fourth time. However, all sorts of scandals accompanied the entire term of Silvio Berlusconi's rule. He was even assassinated in 2009. The situation was heating up, especially against the backdrop of the deteriorating economic situation in Italy, the last straw was the criminal case opened against the prime minister, so in November 2011 he resigned again. Having de alt with a high-profile scandal, the disgraced politician even decided to return in 2012, but lost the elections to the Democrats and again ended up in opposition. In 2014, he was convicted of tax evasion, receiving a year of community service and a ban from government activities.
Private life
Silvio Berlusconi and his women have always been at the center of public and media attention. Against the background of many novels and rumors, both of his marriages do not even stand out, because they are also associated with various kindsproceedings. With the first wife, Kara Elvira Dell'Oglio, everything is pretty calm. They married in 1965 and have two children, Maria Elvira and Piersilvio. The couple divorced after Silvio fell in love with Veronica Lario in the 80s, who later became his wife. After 30 years of marriage and the birth of three children - Barbara, Eleanor and Luigi, as well as many scandals involving infidelity, the couple finally divorced in 2014. But without trial, it would not be Silvio Berlusconi. The wife demanded the alimony due to her by law, and the politician tried by all possible means to reduce the amount. The former prime minister was accused of sexual offenses involving minors but was fully acquitted in 2011. Silvio's new lover appeared in the same year. She became the model Francesca Pascali. As for the interesting facts of Berlusconi's biography: he received many awards and orders from different countries, released three solo albums, had plastic surgery, is a member of the Masonic lodge, and is also a friend of Vladimir Putin.
