Enrico Mizzi
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| Enrico Mizzi | |
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| In office 1950 – 1950 |
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| Preceded by | Paul Boffa |
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| Succeeded by | George Borg Olivier |
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| Born | September 20, 1885 Valletta, Malta |
| Died | 20 December 1950 Paola, Malta |
| Political party | Nationalist Party |
Enrico ('Nerik') Mizzi (20 September 1885 - 20 December 1950) was a Maltese politician, leader of the Nationalist Party and Prime Minister of Malta for three months in 1950 when he died. He is the only Maltese Prime Minister to have died in office.
[edit] Personal life
Mizzi was born in Valletta on 20 September 1885. He was educated at the Gozo Seminary, Flores College, and in 1903 he started his studies in literature and science. In 1906 he started reading law at the Universities of Rome and Urbino.
Son of Fortunato Mizzi, the founder of the Nationalist Party, Nerik Mizzi hardly practiced his legal profession, as he felt more drawn to the political and journalistic occupations. In November 1915, Nerik Mizzi, supported by the Comitato Patriottico, contested for the first time as a candidate for Gozo. He achieved a resounding success.
On the 7 May 1917 he was arrested at his residence. Although Italy was fighting World War I on the Allied side, Mizzi was arrested and court martialled for possession of seditious writings. He was sentenced to a year's imprisonment, without hard labour, but Governor Methuen changed his sentence of imprisonment into a serious warning.
[edit] Politics
During the first meeting of the National Assembly, which was held in the Giovine Malta, Nerik Mizzi was nominated and elected, by unanimous vote, Secretary of the Assembly.
In 1921 Nerik Mizzi formed the Partito Democratico Nazionalista. In the election of the 1 November 1921, Mizzi's party elected four candidates in Gozo. After the 1924 elections, Mizzi's party formed a coalition government with the Unione Politica Maltese. Nerik Mizzi was appointed Minister for Agriculture and Posts. In 1926 the two parties, UPM and PDN, merged to become the Partito Nazionalista with Nerik Mizzi as co-leader together with Sir Ugo Mifsud. He retained this position for 24 years.
Once Britain declared war on Germany in 1939, Malta was drawn into the conflict. Enrico Mizzi had expressed a consistent call for closer ties with Italy, a Fascist state at the time. Understandably, as a precaution against a possible Italian invasion and the establishment of a puppet Fascist regime (such as that of Vichy in France) under Enrico Mizzi, a number of Italian sympathisers were arrested. On the 30 May 1940, while Mizzi was at the Malta Printing Press, he was arrested and interned in the Fortizza tas-Salvatur. In February 1942, Governor Dobbie issued a warrant for the deportation of 47 Maltese, amongst which was Nerik Mizzi, who were exiled to Uganda. Together with the group of deportees he was repatriated from Uganda on 8 March 1945 and he immediately embarked on his political activity by attending the Council Sitting on the 15 March.
The Nationalist Party won the 1950 elections and Nerik Mizzi was appointed Prime Minister. He died at his residence, in Valletta, and received a state funeral.
| Prime Ministers of Malta |  |
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| Joseph Howard • Francesco Buhagiar • Ugo Pasquale Mifsud • Gerald Strickland • Ugo Pasquale Mifsud • office abolished • Paul Boffa • Enrico Mizzi • Giorgio Borg Olivier • Dom Mintoff • office abolished • Giorgio Borg Olivier • Dom Mintoff • Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici • Eddie Fenech Adami • Alfred Sant • Eddie Fenech Adami • Lawrence Gonzi |
