Nikos Sampson (also Nicos; ; 16 December 1935 – 9 May 2001) was the de facto president of Cyprus who succeeded Archbishop Makarios, after a coup d'état, as President of Cyprus, in 1974. Sampson was a journalist and a member of EOKA, which rose against the British colonial administration, seeking Enosis (Union) of the island of Cyprus with Greece. He was eventually arrested, and sentenced to death, but was imprisoned in Britain after the sentence was commuted, returning after Cyprus gained independence.