Gaston Eyskens


Eyskens, Gaston

 

Born Apr. 1, 1905, in Lierre, Antwerp Province. Belgian state and political figure; doctor of economic, political, and social sciences.

Eyskens studied at the University of Louvain and Columbia University. He became a professor at the University of Louvain in 1931. In 1939, Eyskens was elected to Parliament, where he was one of the leaders of the Christian Social Party. In 1945 and again from 1947 to 1949, he served as minister of finance; during the second term he served concurrently as deputy prime minister. He was prime minister in 1949 and 1950, from 1958 to 1961, and from 1968 to 1972. Eyskens served as minister of economic affairs in 1950 and as minister of finance in 1965 and 1966.