Willem Drees

Willem Drees (Dutch pronunciation ; July 5, 1886 – May 14, 1988) was a Dutch politician of the Labour Party (PvdA) and its predecessor the SDAP. He served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from August 7, 1948 until December 22, 1958.

Willem Drees
Prime Minister of the Netherlands
In office August 7, 1948 – December 22, 1958
Monarch	Wilhelmina Juliana
Preceded by	Louis Beel
Succeeded by	Louis Beel
Member of the House of Representatives
In office July 3, 1956 – October 3, 1956
Member of the House of Representatives
In office July 15, 1952 – September 2, 1952
Minister of Finance
In office July 1, 1952 – September 2, 1952
Prime Minister	Willem Drees
Preceded by	Piet Lieftinck
Succeeded by	Johan van de Kieft
Minister of Colonial Affairs
In office March 15, 1951 – March 31, 1951
Prime Minister	Willem Drees
Preceded by	Johannes Henricus van Maarseveen
Succeeded by	Leonard Antoon Hubert Peters
Member of the House of Representatives
In office July 27, 1948 – August 10, 1948
Minister of Social Affairs
In office June 24, 1945 – August 7, 1948
Prime Minister	Wim Schermerhorn (1945–1946) Louis Beel (1948-1948)
Preceded by	Dolf Joekes
Succeeded by	Frans Wijffels
Deputy Prime Minister
In office June 24, 1945 – August 7, 1948
Prime Minister	Wim Schermerhorn (1945–1946) Louis Beel (1948-1948)
Succeeded by	Josef van Schaik
Member of the House of Representatives
In office June 4, 1946 – July 4, 1946
Parliamentary leader - Social Democratic Workers' Party House of Representatives
In office August 19, 1939 – June 24, 1945
Preceded by	Willem Albarda
Succeeded by	Party Disbanded
Member of the House of Representatives
In office May 9, 1933 – June 24, 1945
Personal details
Born	Willem Drees (1886-07-05)July 5, 1886 Amsterdam, Netherlands
Died	May 14, 1988(1988-05-14) (aged 101) The Hague, Netherlands
Nationality	Dutch
Political party	Social Democratic Workers' Party (1904-1946) Labour Party (1946-1971)
Spouse(s)	Catharina Hent (1888-1974)
Alma mater	Erasmus University Rotterdam (Dr.h.c.) University of Maryland (Dr.h.c.)
Occupation	Politician Civil servant Author Accountant Stenographer
Nickname(s)	Little Father Drees

Before entering national politics Drees was a member of the municipal council and also an alderman of The Hague. During this time he was also a member of the Provincial States of South Holland.

Drees was an active performer of Esperanto.

Other websites

Media related to Willem Drees at Wikimedia Commons

• (in Dutch) Biography at Parlement.com