Joseph Bech
| Joseph Bech | |
|---|---|
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|
| Prime Minister of Luxembourg | |
|
In office 29 September 1953 – 29 March 1958 |
|
| Monarch | Charlotte |
| Preceded by | Pierre Dupong |
| Succeeded by | Pierre Frieden |
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In office 16 July 1926 – 5 November 1937 |
|
| Monarch | Charlotte |
| Preceded by | Pierre Prüm |
| Succeeded by | Pierre Dupong |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 17 February 1887 Diekirch, Luxembourg |
| Died | 8 March 1975 (aged 88) Luxembourg, Luxembourg |
| Political party |
Right (1914–1944) Christian Social People's (1944–1975) |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Joseph Bech (17 February 1887 – 8 March 1975) was a Luxembourgian politician. He was the 15th Prime Minister of Luxembourg, serving for eleven years, from 16 July 1926 until 5 November 1937. He returned to the position after World War II, becoming the 17th Prime Minister, serving for another four years, from 29 December 1953 until 29 March 1958. The 1982–1983 academic year at the College of Europe was named in his honour.
Bech studied Law at Fribourg and Paris, before receiving his doctorate in law in 1912, and qualifying as a lawyer in 1914. The same year, on 30 June, he was elected to the Luxembourgian Chamber of Deputies for the newly founded Party of the Right, representing the Canton of Grevenmacher.
On 15 April 1921, Bech was appointed to Émile Reuter's cabinet, holding the positions of Director-General for the Interior and Director-General for Education. In 1925, Bech lost these positions, as the Party of the Right was edged out of government by a coalition of all other parties, who formed the government under Pierre Prüm.
When Prüm's coalition collapsed, in 1926, Bech became Prime Minister, as well as Minister for Foreign Affairs, Education and Wine-growing. He was to remain Foreign and Wine-growing Minister until 1954. His term as Prime Minister, on the other hand, lasted until 1937, when he resigned over the outcome in the referendum on the Maulkuerfgesetz. At various points he also held the portfolios of Agriculture, Arts and Sciences, and the Interior.
In World War II Bech was the Foreign Minister of the Luxembourg government-in-exile in London. In this capacity he signed the Benelux Treaty in 1944.
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