Marcelino Oreja, 1st Marquis of Oreja


Marcelino Oreja y Aguirre, 1st Marquis of Oreja is a Spanish lawyer, diplomat and politician of the People's Party. He served as Foreign Minister of Spain between 1976 and 1980. Between 1984 and 1989 he was Secretary General of the Council of Europe. In 1989 he became member of the European Parliament and he served until 1993. In 1994 he was appointed European Commissioner for Transport and Energy and then European Commissioner for Institutional Relations and Communication Strategy.

Career

Oreja was born on 13 February 1935 in Madrid, his father was Marcelino Oreja Elósegui.
He served as Spanish minister of foreign affairs from 1976 to 1980, during which time he signed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the United Nations and was responsible for Spain joining the Council of Europe.
He was Secretary General of the Council of Europe from 1984 to 1989.
He was elected to the European Parliament in 1989. His membership ended on 28 June 1993.
In 1994 he was appointed European Commissioner for Transport and Energy and then European Commissioner for Institutional Relations and Communication Strategy.
At the end of his mandate, he retired from political life, returning to Spain. He continued to be active in many fields, being appointed Head of the Institute for European Studies at the CEU San Pablo University Foundation, Vice-Chair of the BBV Foundation and Doctor Honoris Causa at Zaragoza and Seville Universities.
He is a member of the Spanish Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences and the Spanish Royal Academy of Jurisprudence and Legislation.
On 8 April 2010 he was made Marquis of Oreja.