Nikos Sampson

Who was Nikos Sampson?

Nikos Sampson was the de facto president of Cyprus who succeeded Archbishop Makarios, after a coup d'état, as President of Cyprus, in 1974. Sampson was a journalist and a member of EOKA, which rose against the British colonial administration, seeking Enosis of the island of Cyprus with Greece. Suspected of the killing of three people he was imprisoned in Britain after a death sentence was commuted, returning after Cyprus's eventual independence.

Upon his return upon the formation of the Republic of Cyprus, he entered politics, becoming a member of Parliament. Following the coup of 1974 by the Greek Junta, he was appointed President, and remained in the position for eight days. Following the Turkish invasion of Cyprus on July 20 he resigned. He was later sentenced to twenty years in prison for abuse of power, the only person convicted vis-à-vis the coup, maintaining there had been a setup and cover up. He served most of his sentence in France due to poor health, where he had gone for medical treatment. He returned to Cyprus in 1990, and was pardoned the remainder of his sentence in 1993. He died of cancer in 2001.