Stavros Niarchos
| Stavros Niarchos | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Stavros Spyros Niarchos 3 July 1909 Athens, Greece |
| Died | 16 April 1996 (aged 86) Zürich, Switzerland |
| Alma mater | University of Athens |
| Occupation | Shipping tycoon |
| Spouse(s) |
Helen Sporides (m. 1930–31) Melpomene Capparis (m. 1939–47) Eugenia Livanos (m. 1947–65) Charlotte Ford (m. 1965–67) Athina Livanos Onassis (m. 1971–74) |
| Children | Maria Niarchos Philip Niarchos Spyros Niarchos Konstantin Niarchos Elena Ford |
| Parent(s) | Spyros Niarchos, Eugenie Koumantaros |
Stavros Spyros Niarchos (Greek: Σταύρος Σπύρος Νιάρχος, pronounced [ˈstavros ˈspiros 'ɲarxos]; 3 July 1909 – 16 April 1996) was a multi-billionaire Greek shipping tycoon. Starting in 1952, he had the world's biggest supertankers built for his fleet. Propelled by both the Suez Crisis and an increasing demand for oil, he and rival Aristotle Onassis became giants in global petroleum shipping.
Niarchos was also a noted thoroughbred horse breeder and racer, several times the leading owner and number one on the French breed list.
Stavros was born in Athens to a wealthy family, son of Spyros Niarchos and his wife, Eugenie Koumantaros, a rich heiress. His great great grand father, Philippos Niarchos, a Greek shipping agent in Valletta, had married a daughter from a noble family in Malta, whose younger offspring had moved to Greece to base themselves in a merchant business from Malta.
His parents were naturalized Americans who had owned a department store in Buffalo, New York before returning to Greece, three months prior to his birth. He studied in the city's best private school before starting university. He studied law at the University of Athens, after which he went to work for his maternal uncles in the Koumantaros family's grain business. During this period, he became involved in shipping by convincing his uncles their firm would be more profitable if it owned its own ships.
Niarchos was a naval officer in World War II, during which time part of the trade fleet he had developed with his uncle was destroyed. He used about two million dollars in insurance settlement to build a new fleet. His most famous asset was the yacht Atlantis, currently known as Issham Al Baher after having been gifted to King Fahd of Saudi Arabia.
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