Highs and Lows of Silvio Berlusconi's Life Journey

Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi passed away on June 12 at the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, apparently due to complications from leukemia.

He was hospitalized on Friday afternoon, just three weeks after he left hospital following undergoing chemotherapy, with doctors previously stating that their patient was in relatively good condition and his admittance to hospital was no reason for concern.

A former real estate tycoon and media mogul who went on to become probably one of Italy's most flamboyant prime ministers, Silvio Berlusconi left quite a mark on the world.

This photo gallery compiled by Sputnik offers you a brief retrospective of some of the more notable events in Berlusconi's life.

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© AFP 2023 / Daniel Mihailescu

Silvio Berlusconi was born in Milan in 1936. Having graduated from a prestigious law school, he decided to seek his fortune in real estate business.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi salutes the media after a common press declaration with Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc.

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© AFP 2023 / Alberto Pizzoli

Berlusconi's endeavors in the real estate sector allowed him to amass considerable wealth by the 1970s.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi waits for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.

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© AFP 2023 / Tiziana Fabi

In 1974, Berlusconi established cable broadcaster Telemilano, the future core of his media empire.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi attends the RAI 1 television program "Porta a Porta" on April 24, 2014, in Rome.

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© AFP 2023 / Johannes Eisele

Berlusconi's media empire started to grow and in the 1990s his name was already on the Forbes list, with his Fininvest becoming probably the largest media holding in Europe.

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© AFP 2023 / Andreas Solaro

In January 1994, Berlusconi departed from the Fininvest management and founded the Forza Italia (Forward Italy) political party.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi attends the presentation of Antonio Razzi's book "Le mie mani pulite" (My clean hands) about political corruption.

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© Sputnik / Dmitry Astakhov

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In March 1994, a political coalition formed by Berlusconi prevails in the general election and in May that year he becomes Italy's prime minister.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi on G20 summit in 2011.

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© AFP 2023 / Alberto Pizzoli

Berlusconi's triumph was short-lived, however, as his government collapsed by the end of the year due to frictions within the coalition.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi at a rally of a right-wing party coalition Fratelli d'Italia - Brothers of Italy.

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© AFP 2023 / Filippo Monteforte

Despite this setback, Berlusconi managed to return to power during the next decade, with his cabinet leading Italy during 2001-2005 and 2005-2006.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi on stage on September 23, 2022 at the Manzoni theater in Milan)

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© AFP 2023 / Frederick Florin

For the fourth and final time, Berlusconi was elected as prime minister in 2008 and remained in power until 2011.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi as an MEP on a voting session to elect the new president of the European Parliament.

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© AFP 2023 / Eric Feferberg

In November 2011, a series of political scandals and the ensuing investigations prompted Berlusconi to resign.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi with G20 leaders including then Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.

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© Sputnik / Alexei Druzhinin

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Silvio Berlusconi was Italy's prime minister for 3,340 days in total and presided over the country's two "long-lived" cabinets.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, 2019.

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Berlusconi's latter years were marred by convictions for tax fraud and for an alleged liaison with an underaged prostitute.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi visits Massandra Winery in Crimea - with largest collection of wines in the world.

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© AFP 2023 / Livio Anticoli

Despite his problems with the law and his health issues - in 2016 he had to be hospitalized and subjected to heart surgery - Berlusconi displayed incredible tenacity, managing to get elected into European Parliament in 2019 when he was 82.

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© Sputnik / Alexei Druzhinin

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On June 9, 2023, Berlusconi was hospitalized and a few days later, on June 12, he passed away at San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, at the age of 86.

Above: Silvio Berlusconi talks to citizens of Crimea.