Hugo Chavez: A life in pictures

inShare Feedback

BERTRAND PARRES/AFP/Getty Images In 1992, Army Lieutenant Colonel Hugo Chavez led a failed coup against Venezuelan President Carlos Andres Perez. Chavez was released from jail in March 1994 after receiving a pardon from then-president Rafael Caldera. BERTRAND PARRES/AFP/Getty Images Chavez was first elected president of Venezuela in 1998. Above, his former wife Maria Isabel Rodriguez waves to cheering supporters after his inauguration ceremony at the Congress in downtown Caracas. JUAN BARRETO/AFP/Getty Images In 2002, a coup led by Chavez's right-wing opponents briefly forced the president out of office. He returned to power only three days later. Above, an emotional Chavez holds a crucifix as he addresses the nation from the Miraflores presidential palace. Marcelo Garcia/MIRAFLORES PRESS OFFICE Chavez had three children by his first wife, including Rosa Virginia, left, and Maria Gabriela. He also had one daughter by his second wife, Marisabel Rodriguez. RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP/Getty Images Chavez maintained strong ties with other leftist leaders in Latin America such as Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega (left). He was also close with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (right). JUAN BARRETO/AFP/Getty Images In 2011, Chavez announced that he had cancer and was receiving treatment in Cuba. He said he had fully recovered in July 2012, ahead of the Venezuelan presidential elections in October, but after the election returned to Cuba for further treatment. JUAN BARRETO/AFP/Getty Images Above, members of the Venezuelan national police attend a mass for Chavez's health on December 13, 2012. Carlos Garcia Rawlins/REUTERS Chavez has named Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela's 50-year-old vice president, as his successor.