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Chavez: A Life in Pictures

From his humble beginnings in rural Barinas, Hugo Chavez rose from dissatisfied military officer to revolutionary icon.

By Photos: Various, Text: Venezuelanalysis.com
Mar 22nd 2013 at 7.14pm
  • chaveznino1reuters_centr.jpeg

    Chavez (centre) with school friends. Born in Sabaneta, Barinas on July 28, 1954, Chavez spent his early years in a small village outside Sabaneta, where his parents encouraged him to study to escape poverty. His mother hoped he would become a priest, though he was more interested in baseball. (Reuters)
  • march1971fernando_llanoap_photo.jpg

    Chavez in March, 1971. After graduating from Daniel Florencio O'Leary School that year, Chavez joined the military. By this time, he had not only developed an appreciation of Simon Bolivar, the 19th Century Venezuelan liberator, but had also been introduced to socialist literature by friends. (Fernando Llano/AP Photo)
  • s4.reutersmedia.net__2.jpg

    During his early military years, Chavez became increasingly frustrated by the army's corruption, and use of torture. In 1977, he founded the Venezuelan People's Liberation Army (ELPV),  a small group of soldiers that secretly met with civilian leftist revolutionaries. Five years later, he would form the Revolutionary Bolivarian Movement- 200 (MBR-200). (Reuters/Ministry of Information and Communication)
  • hugo-chavez-in-prison-wit-001_0.jpg

    After the massacre of up to 3000 Caracas citizens by the Perez administration in 1989, Chavez (left) and the MBR-200 began to seriously consider overthrowing the government. Chavez saw the austerity measures that led to widespread protests and the subsequent government crackdown (now known as El Caracazo) as products of a corrupt, undemocratic system. On February 4, 1992, Chavez launched his coup, which was quickly suppressed. After becoming isolated from his network of supporters, Chavez and a small group of fellow soldiers were surrounded by government forces in the Military Museum in Caracas. Chavez surrendered, but on the condition that he be permitted to address the nation on television. He famously conceded defeat with the words, “por ahora” (for now). Overnight, he became a national hero. (Reuters/Corbis)
  • 20121231111052887503_8.jpg

    When he was released in 1994, Chavez first toured Venezuela, and later visited neighbouring Latin American nations. Although he drew little mainstream media attention in Venezuela, his popularity rose quickly, especially amongst the poor and middle classes. (Bertrand Parres/AFP/Getty Images)
  • chavez1999_fernando_llano_ap_photo.jpg

    Chavez won the 1998 presidential elections by a landslide. His new political party, the Fifth Republic Movement's promise to end corruption, redistribute wealth and overhaul the constitution resonated with the majority of Venezuelans, who had seen a decline in living conditions since the 1980's. (Fernando Llano/AP)
  • aftercoupreuters.jpg

    On April 11, 2002, Chavez was briefly ousted by a coup. Led by the wealthy businessman Pedro Carmona, the plotters seized the presidential palace, kidnapped Chavez and abolished the new constitution. A small committee was established to run the country, with Carmona declaring himself interim president. The coup received US backing, but enjoyed very little support amongst the Venezuelan population. On April 14, Chavez was rescued by loyal soldiers, and returned to power. (Reuters)
  • 2004egilda_gomezap.jpg

    Venezuelans overwhelmingly voted that Chavez remain in office when he put himself up for recall by referendum in 2004. In 2006, he again won presidency. His second term proved more radical than the first, with a greater focus on wealth redistribution and poverty eradication. (Egilda Gomez/AP)
  • un_headquarters_in_new_york_city_on_sept._16_2005_justin_lane_epa.jpg

    While garnering considerable support from the Latin American left, by 2006 US-Venezuelan relations had deteriorated. While it wasn't the first time Chavez's anti-imperialist stance made world headlines, his September 20 speech to the United Nations was perhaps one of his most famous moments. During the speech, he described then US President George Bush as “the devil”. (Justin Lane/EPA)
  • daughtersmarcelo_garciamiraflores_press_office_0.jpg

    Two of his daughters, Rosa Virginia (left) and María Gabriela. Chavez's first marriage with Nancy Colmenares fell apart shortly after the 1992 coup. He and his second wife, Marisabel Rodriguez, divorced in 2000. (Marcelo Garcia/Miraflores Press Office)
  • 2011recoveredjuly2012juan_barretoafpgetty_images_0.jpg

    In 2011, Chavez first publicly stated he had cancer. By July 2012 the government had announced he had a clean bill of health, and he went on to win that year's presidential elections in October. (Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images)
  • 2012juan_barretoafpgetty_images_0.jpg

    On October 7, 2012, Chavez delivered his victory speech to crowds from a balcony at Miraflores Palace, Caracas. Two months later, he departed for Havana, Cuba, to undergo more cancer treatment. (Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images)
  • timthumb.php_.jpg

    After more than two months in a Havana hospital, images were released of Chavez and his daughters on February 15, sparking celebrations across Venezuela. However, these would be some of the last images of the president that reshaped Venezuela. (Prensa Presidencial)
  • vtv_1.jpg

    In Venezuela, the image of Chavez can be seen on every street. To his opponents he was often seen as an authoritarian, but to his millions of supporters, Chavez represented the hope of a better world. However, if there's one thing everyone agrees on, it's that he will be remembered as one of the most important figures in Latin American history.

Below, more photos of a president who was first and foremost a human being and a revolutionary, and one who was happy to tell Obama he needed to read up on history (agencies and archive)
  • chavez-obama-y-libro_1.jpg

  • chavez_guitarra_efe.jpg

  • hugo-chavez-en-colombia_1.jpg

  • chavez-amor.jpg

  • foto-chavez-conversa-personalmente-venezolano-entregado-calle_1_1425984_1.jpg

  • hugo-chavez-mision-amor.jpg

  • chavez_trabajando.jpg

  • -_hugo_chavez_en_videos.jpg_2033098437.jpg

From his humble beginnings in rural Barinas, Hugo Chavez rose from dissatisfied military officer to revolutionary icon.

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