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Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's former Prime Minister and sitting senator, passed away at the age of 86 on Monday, June 12. As per media reports, no cause of death has been revealed as of yet, however, the politician was admitted to a hospital last week for routine checkups for his chronic leukemia.
Over the years, he has also suffered from multiple health problems, including prostate cancer, and was also hospitalized in 2020 due to COVID-19. Italy's longest-serving premier, Silvio Berlusconi established the country's largest media company and used his popularity and money to launch a career in politics, where he led three times.
Berlusconi, a natural performer, boasted that his professional journey commenced as a singer on board cruise ships. After switching to the construction and real estate industries, he went on to establish a vast empire that included television networks, newspapers, publishing houses, a prominent soccer team, and several other ventures.
"Thanks for everything presidente": Twitterati reacts to Silvio Berlusconi's death
After the news of Silvio Berlusconi's sudden demise went viral, Twitterati paid tribute to the deceased. Several users shared his old clips and pictures, celebrating his contributions to Italian politics and pop culture. Others sent out condolence messages to his friends and family. Check out some of these tweets below:
Silvio Berlusconi's political career, in brief
Born on September 29, 1936, Silvio Berlusconi was a native of Milan, Italy. He was the son of a middle-class banker and once used to work as a singer on a cruise ship.
He became well-known as a real estate mogul and owner of the famous soccer team A.C. Milan, but it was his media business that made him rich and built his brand. Berlusconi became the prime minister three times during his lifetime, first from 1994 to 1995, second, from 2001 to 2006, and lastly from 2008 to 2011.
However, his career was laced with controversies surrounding his private life, s*x-fueled parties, and allegations of corruption, due to which he spent almost 30 years entangled in court battles. He also faced 35 criminal court cases, with only one of them for tax fraud.
Berlusconi was known far and wide for his famed bunga-bunga parties and dinners that supposedly held shows led by young guests. In February 2023, the deceased politician faced accusations that he paid witnesses to tell false stories in a case involving underage prostitution that Silvio had been avoiding for over 10 years.
Despite facing n-number of scandals, Silvio Berlusconi remained popular and an active politician up until his death.
He was a Senate in the Italian parliament and sparked controversy in the recent month by slamming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. He did not have any role in his Forza Italia Party but was a member of the European Parliament.
On the personal front, Berlusconi first tied the knot to Carla Dall’Oglio in 1965. The duo shared two kids Marina and Piersilvio, who serve in top positions in his business empire.
In 1990, he married his second wife, Veronica Lario. They shared three kids Luigi, Barbara, and Eleonora.
