Lebanese National Bloc , is a Lebanese conservative political party founded in 1936.


The party's founder, Émile Eddé

Emile Edde

Émile Eddé was a Maronite Lebanese political figure. He served as Prime Minister of Lebanon from 11 October 1929 to 25 March 1930. He served as the President of Lebanon from 1936 to 1941. He also founded the Lebanese National Bloc party....

 became president the same year under French protectorate. His son, Raymond Eddé

Raymond Edde

Raymond Eddé was a Lebanese statesman who served his country for many years as a legislator and cabinet minister. He led the Lebanese National Bloc, an influential political party. The son of former President Émile Eddé, Raymond Eddé was himself a candidate for the presidency in 1958, and was...

, succeeded him as head of the party.


In 1968, the National Bloc joined the Helf Alliance

Helf Alliance

The Helf Alliance or Tripartite Alliance , was a right-wing coalition formed in 1968 by the big three mainly Christian parties in Lebanon: The Pierre Gemayel's Kataeb, the National Liberal Party of former President Camille Chamoun, and National Bloc of Raymond Eddé. The coalition called for a...

, a coalition which included former President Camille Chamoun's

Camille Chamoun

Camille Nimr Chamoun was President of Lebanon from 1952 to 1958, and one of the country's main Christian leaders during most of the Lebanese Civil War ....

 National Liberal Party

National Liberal Party (Lebanon)

The National Liberal Party is a center-right political party in Lebanon, established by President Camille Chamoun in 1958...

 and Pierre Gemayel's

Pierre Gemayel

Sheikh Pierre Gemayel , was a Lebanese political leader...

 Kataeb Party. The alliance was relatively successful in Parliamentary elections held the same year, winning 30 seats (out of 99). Nevertheless, in 1969, the Bloc left the alliance after the Cairo Agreement

Cairo agreement

The Cairo agreement or Cairo accord was an agreement reached on 2 November 1969 during talks between Yassir Arafat and the Lebanese army commander General Emile Bustani...

.


During the Lebanese civil war

Civil war

A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....

, although mainly Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

, the party refused to rejoin the Lebanese Front

Lebanese Front

The Lebanese Front or Front libanais in French, also known as the "Kufur Front", was a coalition of mainly Christian parties formed in 1976, during the Lebanese Civil War...

, formed by his former allies. During the war years, the party refused to arm a militia and kept a moderate line consisting mainly in defending the independence and unity of Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

 aligning itself with the positions of the Sunni bourgeoisie, represented by Rashid Karami

Rashid Karami

Rashid Abdul Hamid Karami was a Lebanese statesman. He was one of the most important political figures in Lebanon for more than 30 years, including during much of Lebanese Civil War , and he served as Prime Minister eight times.- Background :Rashid Karami was born in Tripoli, into one of...

 and Saeb Salam

Saeb Salam

Saeb Salam was a Lebanese politician, who served as Prime Minister four times between 1952 and 1973.Salam was the son of Salim Salam, the scion of a prominent Sunni Muslim family who was a prominent politician both under Ottoman rule and then during the French Mandate...

.


The exile (in 1976) and the death (in 2000) of its leader, combined with the rise of the Lebanese Forces

Lebanese Forces

The Lebanese Forces is a Lebanese political party. Founded as a militia by Bachir Gemayel during the Lebanese Civil War, the movement fought as the main militia within the Christian-dominated Lebanese Front...

 and Aounist current

Free Patriotic Movement

The Free Patriotic Movement , also known as the "Aounist Movement" , is a Lebanese political party, led by Michel Aoun and allied with Hezbollah, The movement was officially declared a political party on September 18, 2005Though most of the party's support comes from Lebanon's...

, contributed to the decline of the party. At present, the party is now a portion of an anti-Syrian coalition, March 14 Alliance

March 14 Alliance

The March 14 alliance , named after the date of the Cedar Revolution, is a coalition of political parties and independents in Lebanon that call for sovereignty over all Lebanese territories, led by MP Saad Hariri, younger son of Rafik Hariri, the assassinated former prime minister of Lebanon, as...

.

The party's current leader is Carlos Eddé

Carlos Eddé

Carlos Eddé , is a Lebanese politician. He is since 2000 the president of Lebanese National Bloc succeeding at his uncle Raymond Eddé. In 2004 he participated actively in the 14 March Alliance and was among those who formulated the strategy to unify the opposition, leading to the departure of the...

.