Gustave Ador (23 December 1845 – 31 March 1928) was a

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

politician. In 1919, he became President of the Confederation.

Biography

Origins

Ador was born in

Cologny Cologny () is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. History Cologny is first mentioned in 1208 as ''Colognier''. The oldest trace of a settlement in the area is a Neolithic lake side village which ...

, a municipality of Geneva. He was the grandson of Jean Pierre Ador, an immigrant from Vaud, who obtained his Genevan citizenship in 1814. Ador studied law at the academy (now the university) of Geneva, and in 1868 became a lawyer.

Early political career

In 1871, Ador started his political career as a member of the communal council of

, and was twice mayor, in 1878-9 and 1883-5. He was a member of the

cantonal parliament This is a list of cantonal legislatures of Switzerland. Each canton has a democratically elected cantonal legislature, as well as elected members to the Federal Assembly. The cantonal legislatures are elected for four years, except in Fribou ...

1874-6, and continuously from 1878 to 1915 save for a short break in 1902. In 1878-9 he represented Geneva in the Swiss Conseil des États. Then he became a member of the executive of the canton of Geneva, being put in charge of the Department of Justice and Police. He resigned after an unfavourable election in 1880, but once more became a member of the cantonal executive in 1885, and for 12 years had charge of the cantonal finances.

National Council

In 1889, he became a member of the Swiss Conseil National (Swiss National Council), and remained so until 1917, being elected President of the Swiss National Council in 1901. He was president of the cantonal executive in 1890, 1892, and 1896. In 1894, he became lieutenant-colonel in the

Swiss Army The Swiss Armed Forces (german: Schweizer Armee, french: Armée suisse, it, Esercito svizzero, rm, Armada svizra; ) operates on land and in the air, serving as the primary armed forces of Switzerland. Under the country's militia system, re ...

. Ador served as the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross from 1910 to 1928. In 1914, he founded in Geneva the association for facilitating communications between prisoners of war and the central Geneva agency, and succeeded in giving this enterprise great importance and a widespread extension.

Federal Council

After the enforced resignation of

Arthur Hoffmann Arthur Hoffmann may refer to: *Arthur Hoffmann (politician) (1857–1927), Swiss politician *Arthur Hoffmann (athlete) (1887–1931), German athlete *Arthur Hoffmann (resistance fighter) (1900–1945), German resistance fighter against Nazi Germany ...

, Ador, in order to soothe the

Entente Entente, meaning a diplomatic "understanding", may refer to a number of agreements: History * Entente (alliance), a type of treaty or military alliance where the signatories promise to consult each other or to cooperate with each other in case o ...

, became a federal councilor (a member of the Federal Executive) on 26 June 1917. He was entrusted with the Department of Foreign Affairs. Towards the end of 1918, he was elected by Parliament to be the

Swiss President The president of the Swiss Confederation, also known as the president of the Confederation or colloquially as the president of Switzerland, is the head of Switzerland's seven-member Federal Council (Switzerland), Federal Council, the country's ...

for 1919, but retired from the Federal Executive at the end of his year of office, on 31 December 1919. During his time as councilor, along with being in the Department of Foreign Affairs (1917), he was later in the Department of Home Affairs (1918 - 1919). He was affiliated with the Liberal Party.

Notes

References

External links

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Fondation Gustave Ador
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ador, Gustave 1845 births 1928 deaths People from the canton of Geneva Swiss Calvinist and Reformed Christians Liberal Party of Switzerland politicians Foreign ministers of Switzerland Members of the Federal Council (Switzerland) category:Members of the Council of States (Switzerland) Members of the National Council (Switzerland) Presidents of the National Council (Switzerland) Swiss military officers University of Geneva alumni 19th-century Swiss military personnel