Camille Chamoun

This article is about the former president of Lebanon. For his grandson, see Camille Dory Chamoun. For the stadium in Beirut, see Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium.

In this Lebanese name, the father's name is Nimr and the family name is Chamoun.

Camille Chamoun OM ONC
كميل شمعون
Official portrait, 1952
2nd President of Lebanon
In office 23 September 1952 – 22 September 1958
Prime Minister	See list Abdallah El-Yafi Khaled Chehab Saeb Salam Abdallah El-Yafi Sami as-Solh Rashid Karami Abdallah El-Yafi Sami as-Solh Khalil al-Hibri (Acting)
Preceded by	Bechara El Khoury
Succeeded by	Fouad Chehab
Member of the Lebanese Parliament
In office 1934–1952
In office 1960–1964
In office 1968–1987
Leader of National Liberal Party
In office 10 September 1958 – 1985
Preceded by	Post established
Succeeded by	Dany Chamoun
Personal details
Born	(1900-04-03)3 April 1900 Deir el Qamar, Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate, Ottoman Empire
Died	7 August 1987(1987-08-07) (aged 87) Beirut, Lebanon
Party	Constitutional Bloc (1934–?) Independent (1951–1958) National Liberal Party (1958–1987)
Spouse	Zelpha Tabet ​ ​ (m. 1930; died 1971)​
Children	Dory, Dany
Relatives	Camille Dory Chamoun (grandson) Tracy Chamoun (granddaughter) Auguste Adib Pacha (uncle)
Education	Saint Joseph University
Religion	Maronite Catholic Christian

Camille Nimr Chamoun OM, ONC (Arabic: كميل نمر شمعون, romanized: Kamīl Nimr Shamʿūn, pronounced [kaˈmiːl ʃamˈʕuːn]; 3 April 1900 – 7 August 1987) was a Lebanese politician and statesman who served as the 2nd president of Lebanon from 1952 to 1958. He was one of the country's main Christian leaders during most of the Lebanese Civil War and considered a za'im (political hegemon) in Lebanon.

Born in Deir al-Qamar, into the Maronite Chamoun family, Camille Chamoun was a nephew of Lebanese Prime Minister Auguste Adib Pacha. He studied at Saint Joseph University and initially pursued a career in law and journalism before being elected to the Parliament of Lebanon. He served as finance minister in 1938 and then as interior minister and minister of telegraph and post from 1943 to 1944 during Lebanon's first post-independence government. Chamoun was elected to the presidency of Lebanon in 1952.

During his presidency, Lebanon experienced an economic boom, with Chamoun promoting the banking and tourism sectors and pursuing trade deals with Arab neighbors and the United States. He initially sought to balance relations with the West and the Arab states, but sectarian divides increased during his rule, and he concentrated power around the presidency. He attempted to seek an unconstitutional second term, which culminated in the 1958 Lebanon crisis between Chamoun's supporters and Muslim-dominated Nasserites, during which Chamoun attained American military intervention. American mediation ended the crisis, with Chamoun finishing his term and being succeeded by General Fouad Chehab.

Chamoun remained politically active following the end of his presidency, forming the National Liberal Party, and continuing to serve in parliament and several future cabinets. During the Lebanese Civil War, he was one of the country's main Christian leaders, helping to create and lead the Lebanese Front. He initially supported the Syrian occupation of Lebanon but later switched to endorsing a tactical alliance with Israel instead. During the war, he survived several assassination attempts, finally dying in Beirut of a heart attack in 1987. He founded a political dynasty, which includes his sons Dory and Dany, as well as his grandchildren Camille and Tracy.