Silvio Berlusconi was born in Milan in 1936. Having graduated from a prestigious law school, he decided to seek his fortune in real estate business.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi salutes the media after a common press declaration with Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc.
Berlusconi's endeavors in the real estate sector allowed him to amass considerable wealth by the 1970s.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi waits for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
In 1974, Berlusconi established cable broadcaster Telemilano, the future core of his media empire.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi attends the RAI 1 television program "Porta a Porta" on April 24, 2014, in Rome.
Berlusconi's media empire started to grow and in the 1990s his name was already on the Forbes list, with his Fininvest becoming probably the largest media holding in Europe.
In January 1994, Berlusconi departed from the Fininvest management and founded the Forza Italia (Forward Italy) political party.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi attends the presentation of Antonio Razzi's book "Le mie mani pulite" (My clean hands) about political corruption.
In March 1994, a political coalition formed by Berlusconi prevails in the general election and in May that year he becomes Italy's prime minister.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi on G20 summit in 2011.
Berlusconi's triumph was short-lived, however, as his government collapsed by the end of the year due to frictions within the coalition.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi at a rally of a right-wing party coalition Fratelli d'Italia - Brothers of Italy.
Despite this setback, Berlusconi managed to return to power during the next decade, with his cabinet leading Italy during 2001-2005 and 2005-2006.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi on stage on September 23, 2022 at the Manzoni theater in Milan)
For the fourth and final time, Berlusconi was elected as prime minister in 2008 and remained in power until 2011.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi as an MEP on a voting session to elect the new president of the European Parliament.
In November 2011, a series of political scandals and the ensuing investigations prompted Berlusconi to resign.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi with G20 leaders including then Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.
Silvio Berlusconi was Italy's prime minister for 3,340 days in total and presided over the country's two "long-lived" cabinets.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, 2019.
Berlusconi's latter years were marred by convictions for tax fraud and for an alleged liaison with an underaged prostitute.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi visits Massandra Winery in Crimea - with largest collection of wines in the world.
Despite his problems with the law and his health issues - in 2016 he had to be hospitalized and subjected to heart surgery - Berlusconi displayed incredible tenacity, managing to get elected into European Parliament in 2019 when he was 82.
On June 9, 2023, Berlusconi was hospitalized and a few days later, on June 12, he passed away at San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, at the age of 86.
Above: Silvio Berlusconi talks to citizens of Crimea.