Mavroleon family

The Mavroleon family is a Greek family of shipping magnates with strong United Kingdom connections. They also own a large amount of land in Greece. At the height of their wealth their fortune amounted to around £2 billion, and their fleet comprised 32 ships.

Basil Manuel Mavroleon (1901-1979), descended from a long-established shipping family in Greece, moved to England as a member of the merchant shipping business based in the UK and run by his cousins, the Kulukundis family.[1] He later set up the shipping company London and Overseas Freighters (LOF).[2][3] Along with the Kulukundis, he set up the Greek merchant navy.

He married an English wife, Violet Withers, by whom he had two sons, Nicolas Mavroleon and Manuel Basil Mavroleon, generally known by his nickname "Bluey" (1927/1932–2009), who was educated in England and served in the Grenadier Guards. Bluey went on to run the firm but moved to Switzerland when the 1974–1979 Labour Government nationalised Austin and Pickersgill shipbuilders in which LOF was the largest shareholder. Bluey was particularly known for his generosity and parties. He was married four times (among whom in 1963 Camilla Paravicini, granddaughter of British writer W. Somerset Maugham, through Mary Elizabeth Maugham) and left four children and six grandchildren.[3]

His son Nicholas Mark Mavroleon was married to Nicaraguan-American actress Barbara Carrera.[4] Another son Basil "Carlos" Mavroleon (1958–1998) was educated at Eton and Harvard. Carlos later became a member of the Mujahideen, with whom he fought against the Red Army in Afghanistan. A professional journalist, he died in Peshawar while on assignment for CBS reporting on Operation Infinite Reach.[5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Mavroleon and Kulukundis fleet". MerchantNavyOfficers.com. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  2. ↑ "Kulukundis and Mavroleon families". LOF News. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  3. 1 2 "Bluey Mavroleon". The Daily Telegraph. 17 March 2009. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  4. ↑ "Bluey Mavroleon". The Telegraph. 17 March 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
  5. ↑ Burke, Jason (20 August 2000). "Carlos Kulukundis". The Observer. Retrieved 28 June 2010.

Further reading

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