Paul Magloire

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Paul Eugène Magloire (July 19, 1907 - July 12, 2001) was a Haïtian military ruler from 1950 to 1956.

Paul Magloire was born a general's son. In 1946 he participated in a successful coup against the president, Élie Lescot. When his successor, President Dumarsais Estimé tried to extend his term of office in 1950, Magloire ousted him with the help of a local elite and retook power.

During Magloire's reign, Haïti became a favorite tourist spot for US and European tourists. His anti-communist position also gained favorable reception from the US government. Notably, he used revenues from the sale of coffee to repair towns, build roads, public buildings, and a dam. He also oversaw the institution of women's suffrage. Magloire was very fond of having a vivid social life, staging a massive number of parties, social events, and ceremonies.

In 1954, when Hurricane Hazel ravaged Haïti and relief funds were stolen, Magloire's popularity fell. In 1956 there was a dispute about when his reign would end; he fled the country amid strikes and demonstrations. When François Duvalier took the presidency, he stripped Magloire of his Haïtian citizenship.

In 1986, when Baby Doc Duvalier lost power, Magloire returned to Haïti from New York. Two years later he became an unofficial army advisor. He died in 2001.