Εμφανίζονται 73 τίτλοι με αναζήτηση: Βιογραφίες στην ευρύτερη περιοχή: "ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ Περιφέρεια ΕΛΛΑΔΑ" .
ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ (Πόλη) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
1803 - 1873
(Ιωάννινα,1803 - Αθήνα,1873)
Αγωνιστής και απομνημονευματογράφος. Κατέβηκε το 1822 στη νότια Ελλάδα
και πολέμησε στο Μοριά και τη Ρούμελη. Ήταν στο Μεσολόγγι
κατά τη διάρκεια της δεύτερης πολιορκίας και μετά την Έξοδο ακολούθησε τον Καραϊσκάκη
και πήρε μέρος σε επιχειρήσεις στην Αττική
και στην Ανατολική Στερεά υπό τον Δ. Υψηλάντη. Στο ανεξάρτητο κράτος υπηρέτησε
στον τακτικό στρατό και ήταν από τους πρωταγωνιστές της αντικαθεστωτικής εξέγερσης
τον Ναυπλίου του 1862. Έγραψε
απομνημονεύματα που αναφέρονται στην πολιορκία και την Έξοδο τον Μεσολογγίου,
αλλά και σε άλλα συμβάντα ως το τέλος του Αγώνα.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Μάιο 2003 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα της Βουλής των Ελλήνων
ΣΟΥΛΙ (Επαρχία) ΘΕΣΠΡΩΤΙΑ
; - 1827
Σουλιώτης αγωνιστής. Μετά την πτώση και τον θάνατο του Αλή Πασά ο
Βέικος έλαβε μέρος στον αγώνα των Ρουμελιωτών. Στη διάρκεια του εμφυλίου ο Βέικος
και άλλοι Ρουμελιώτες με 3000 άνδρες έφτασαν στη Βοστίτσα
(Aίγιο) για να βοηθήσουν την κυβέρνηση Κουντουριώτη. Ενίσχυσε την άμυνα του
Μεσολογγίου και αρνήθηκε τις
προτάσεις του Κιουταχή να μεσολαβήσει για σύναψη συμφωνίας με τους πολιορκημένους.
Mετά την Έξοδο έλαβε μέρος σε όλες γενικώς τις επιχειρήσεις της Αττικής
και σκοτώθηκε στη μάχη του Αναλάτου.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Μάιο 2003 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα της Βουλής των Ελλήνων
Ιστορική οικογένεια που διαδραμάτισε σπουδαίο ρόλο στους σκληρούς αγώνες ενάντια στον Αλή πασά Τεπελενλή.
1793
Αγωνιστής του 1821. Υπηρέτησε υπό τους Μποτσαραίους. Πολέμησε κατά
τη διάρκεια της δεύτερης πολιορκίας του Μεσολογγίου
και συνέχισε μετά την Έξοδο τον αγώνα στην Αράχοβα
και την Αττική υπό τον Καραϊσκάκη.
1790 - 1823
Ηγετική μορφή της Επανάστασης του 1821.
1800 - 1855
(Σούλι, 1800 - Αθήνα, 1855)
Ηγετική μορφή της Ελληνικής Eπανάστασης. Πρωθυπουργός της Ελλάδας
(1847 - 1848). To 1822 πολέμησε στην 1η πολιορκία του Μεσολογγίου
και σε άλλες μάχες, στο πλευρό του Μάρκου Μπότσαρη και στη συνέχεια του Καραϊσκάκη.
Διακρίθηκε σε μάχες εναντίον του Ιμπραήμ (1825 ) και τον Αύγουστο του 1825 μπήκε
στο πολιορκούμενο Μεσολόγγι.
Μετά την πτώση του Μεσολογγίου
εγκαταστάθηκε στο Ναύπλιο.
Πολέμησε στην Αττική και μετά
την άφιξη του Καποδίστρια πήρε μέρος στην εκκαθάριση της Ρούμελης από τους Τούρκους.
Το 1828, ύστερα από πολλές συγκρούσεις με τους Τούρκους, κατόρθωσε να απελευθερώσει
μεγάλο τμήμα της κεντρικής Στερεάς
Ελλάδας. Το 1829 έλαβε μέρος στην εκστρατεία για την κατάληψη του Αντίρριου,
της Ναυπάκτου και του Μεσολογγίου.
Διετέλεσε υπουργός Στρατιωτικών το 1844 και το 1849. Μετά το θάνατο του Ιωάννη
Κωλέττη ανέλαβε Πρωθυπουργός (1847-1848 ). Ονομάστηκε γερουσιαστής και έλαβε μέρος
στην εξέγερση των αλύτρωτων περιοχών το 1854.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Μάιο 2003 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα, με φωτογραφία, της Βουλής των Ελλήνων
ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ (Αρχαία χώρα) ΕΛΛΑΔΑ
Γιος του Αρύββα, πατέρας του Πύρρου
Aeacides (Aiakides), the son of Arymbas, king of Epirus, succeeded to the throne on the death of his cousin Alexander, who was slain in Italy (Liv. viii. 24). Aeacides married Phthia, the daughter of Menon of Pharsalus, by whom he had the celebrated Pyrrhus and two daughters, Deidameia and Troias. In B. C. 317 he assisted Polysperchon in restoring Olympias and the young Alexander, who was then only five years old, to Macedonia. In the following year he marched to the assistance of Olympias, who was hard pressed by Cassander; but the Epirots disliked the service, rose against Aeacides, and drove him from the kingdom. Pyrrhus, who was then only two years old, was with difficulty saved from destruction by some faithful servants. But becoming tired of the Macedonian rule, the Epirots recalled Aeacides in B. C. 313; Cassander immediately sent an army against him under Philip, who conquered him the same year in two battles, in the last of which he was killed (Paus. i. 11; Diod. xix. 11, 36, 74; Plut. Pyrrh. i. 2).
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Sep 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Alcetas (Alketas), king of Epirus, was the son of Tharypus. For some reason or other, which we are not informed of, he was expelled from his kingdom, and took refuge with the elder Dionysius, tyrant of Syracuse, by whom he was reinstated. After his restoration we find him the ally of the Athenians, and of Jason, the Tagus of Thessaly. In B. C. 373, he appeared at Athens with Jason, for the purpose of defending Timotheus, who, through their influence, was acquitted. On his death the kingdom, which till then had been governed by one king, was divided between his two sons, Neoptolemus and Arybbas or Arymbas. Diodorus (xix. 88) calls him Arybils. (Paus. i. 11.3; Dem. Timoth. pp. 1187, 1190 ; Diod. xv. 13. 36)
Alcetas II., king of EPIRUS, was the son of Arymbas, and grandson of Alcctas I. On account of his ungovernable temper, he was banished by his father, who appointed his younger son, Aeacides, to succeed him. On the death of Aeacides, who was killed in a battle fought with Cassander B. C. 313, the Epirots recalled Alcetas. Cassander sent an army against hint under the command of Lyciscus, but soon after entered into an alliance with him (B. C. 312). The Epirots, incensed at the outrages of Alcetas, rose against him and put him to death, together with his two sons; on which Pyrrhus, the son of Aeacides, was placed upon the throne by his protector Glaucias, king of the Illyrians, B. C. 307. (Paus. i. 11.5; Diod. xix. 88, 89 ; Plut Pyrrh. 3)
Alexander (Alexandros) I., king of Epirus, was the son of Neoptolemus and brother
of Olympias, the mother of Alexander the Great. He came at an early age to the
court of Philip of Macedonia, and after the Grecian fashion became the object
of his attachment. Philip in requital made him king of Epirus, after dethroning
his cousin Aeacides. When Olympias was repudiated by her husband, she went to
her brother, and endeavoured to induce him to make war on Philip. Philip, however,
declined the contest, and formed a second alliance with him by giving him his
daughter Cleopatra in marriage (B. C. 336). At the wedding Philip was assassinated
by Pausanias. In B. C. 332, Alexander, at the request of the Tarentines, crossed
over into Italy, to aid them against the Lucanians and Bruttii. After a victory
over the Samnites and Lucanians near Paestum he made a treaty with the Romans.
Success still followed his arms. He took Heraclea and Consentia from the Lucanians,
and Terina and Sipontum from the Bruttii. But in B. C. 326, through the treachery
of some Lucanian exiles, he was compelled to engage under unfavourable circumstances
near Pandosia, on the banks of the Acheron, and fell by the hand of one of the
exiles, as he was crossing the river; thus accomplishing the prophecy of the oracle
of Dodona, which had bidden him beware of Pandosia and the Acheron. He left a
son, Neoptolemus, and a daughter, Cadmea (Justin, viii. 6, ix. 6, 7, xii. 2, xvii.
3, xviii. 1, xxiii. 1 ; Liv. viii. 3, 17, 24; Diod. xvi. 72).
The son of the celebrated Pyrrhus. To avenge the death of his father, who had been slain at Argos, fighting against Antigonus, he seized upon Macedonia, of which the latter was king. He was soon, however, driven out, not only from Macedonia, but also from his own dominions, by Demetrius, son of Antigonus. Taking refuge, on this, among the Acarnanians, he succeeded, by their aid, in regaining the throne of Epirus.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Alexander II. king of Epirus, was the son of Pyrrhus and Lanassa, the daughter of the Sicilian tyrant Agathocles. He succeeded his father in B. C. 272, and continued the war which his father had begun with Antigonus Gonatas, whom he succeeded in driving from the kingdom of Macedon. He was, however, dispossessed of both Macedon and Epirus by Demetrius, the son of Antigonus; upon which he took refuge amongst the Acarnanians. By their assistance and that of his own subjects, who entertained a great attachment for him, he recovered Epirus. It appears that he was in alliance with the Aetolians. He married his sister Olympias, by whom he had two sons, Pyrrhus and Ptolemaeus, and a daughter, Phthia. On the death of Alexander, Olympias assumed the regency on behalf of her sons, and married Phthia to Demetrius. There are extant silver and copper coins of this king. The former bear a youthful head covered with the skin of an elephant's head, as appears in the one figured below. The reverse represents Pallas holding a spear in one hand and a shield in the other, and before her stands an eagle on a thunderbolt. ((Justin, xvii. 1, xxvi. 2, 3, xxviii. 1; Polyb. ii. 45, ix. 34; Plut. Pyrrh. 9.)
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Oct 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Κόρη του βασιλιά των Μολοσσών της Ηπείρου, έβδομη σύζυγος του Βασιλιά Φιλίππου Β΄ της Μακεδονίας, μητέρα του Μεγάλου Αλεξάνδρου.
Daughter of Neoptolemus, king of Epirus,
wife of Philip II of Macedon,
and mother of Alexander the Great.
Her father claimed descent from Pyrrhus, son of Achilles. It is said
that Philip fell in love with her in Samothrace,
where they were both being initiated into the mysteries. The marriage took place
in 359 B.C., shortly after Philip's accession, and Alexander was born in 356.
The fickleness of Philip and the jealous temper of Olympias led to a growing estrangement,
which became complete when Philip married a new wife, Cleopatra, in 337. Alexander,
who sided with his mother, withdrew, along with her, into Epirus,
whence they both returned in the following year, after the assassination of Philip,
which Olympias is said to have countenanced.
During the absence of Alexander, with whom she regularly corresponded
on public as well as domestic affairs, she had great influence, and by her arrogance
and ambition caused such trouble to the regent Antipater that on Alexander's death
(323) she found it prudent to withdraw into Epirus.
Here she remained until 317, when, allying herself with Polyperchon, by whom her
old enemy had been succeeded in 319, she took the field with an Epirote army;
the opposing troops at once declared in her favour, and for a short period Olympias
was mistress of Macedonia.
Cassander, Antipater's son, hastened from Peloponnesus,
and, after an obstinate siege, compelled the surrender of Pydna,
where she had taken refuge. One of the terms of the capitulation had been that
her life should be spared; but in spite of this she was brought to trial for the
numerous and cruel executions of which she had been guilty during her short lease
of power. Condemned without a hearing, she was put to death (316) by the friends
of those whom she had slain, and Cassander is said to have denied her remains
the rites of burial.
This text is cited July 2003 from the Malaspina Great Books URL below, which contains image.
375 - 316
Epirote princess, married to the Macedonian king Philip II, and
mother of Alexander the Great.
The girl who was later to be called Olympias was the daughter of Neoptolemus,
the king of the Molossians, one of the greatest tribes in Epirus.
They lived in the neighborhood of modern Ioannina
in Greece. During Neoptolemus'
reign, the tribe became more sedentary; urbanization started and we hear about
scribes and other administrative officials. In 358, the Molossians became the
allies of the Macedonian king Philip II (359-336); the alliance was strengthened
by a diplomatic marriage. In 357, Olympias became Philip's wife.
Next year, a chariot that Philip had sent to the Olympic games, was
victorious. Therefore, the queen received the name Olympias. In the same summer,
she gave birth to her first child: Alexander. According to the Greek author Plutarch
of Chaeronea (46-c.122),
these events took place on the same day.
In Antiquity, people believed that the birth of a great man was accompanied
by portents. They are mentioned by Plutarch:
The night before the consummation of their marriage, Olympias dreamed
that a thunderbolt fell upon her body, which kindled a great fire, whose divided
flames dispersed themselves all about, and then were extinguished. And Philip,
some time after he was married, dreamt that he sealed up his wife's body with
a seal, whose impression, as be fancied, was the figure of a lion (Plutarch, Alexander
2).
Philip and Olympias also had a daughter Cleopatra, who was to play
an important role in the years after the death of Alexander. The birth of the
crown prince and a princess that could be used in international affairs must have
enhanced Olympias' position, but political influence can not be proven. It is
true, Philip appointed Olympias' brother Alexander -not to be confused with her
more famous son- as king of Molossis (350), but this does not mean that Olympias
was behind the arrangement. After all, the Molossian throne was rightfully Alexander's.
In August 338, Philip defeated the Greeks; next year, he reorganized
the conquered territories in the Corinthian league. At the same time, he married
to a woman named Cleopatra, a relative of a Macedonian aristocrat named Attalus.
This caused great tensions between the king, Olympias and the crown prince.
Olympias went into voluntary exile, staying at the Molossian court
of her brother Alexander. Her son Alexander and his friends (e.g., Ptolemy and
Nearchus) were briefly expelled, but returned soon after. Olympias was further
isolated when Philip married Olympias' own daughter Cleopatra to Alexander of
Molossis (336): she could no longer count on her brother's support.
However, Philip was killed during the wedding in October 336. Many
suspected Olympias and her son Alexander. The fact that (after her return to Macedonia)
she ordered Philip's wife Cleopatra and her child to be murdered, did not improve
her reputation. However, her son was now king, and her position was safe.
During Alexander's campaigns, she kept in touch with him. Our sources
mention their correspondence. She probably confirmed the claim, made by her son
during his visit to Egypt, that Alexander was the son not of Philip, but of the
god Zeus Ammon. It is even possible that she made this claim before Philip's death
(and, consequently, before Alexander's visit to Egypt):
the events of 337-336 offered ample opportunity. Although the relations
with Alexander were cordial, he kept her far away from politics. Macedonia was
ruled by Antipater, one of Philip's most reliable commanders and diplomats and
the man who had helped Alexander become king. It seems that he and Olympias were
not on speaking terms, and the queen-mother must have been glad that she could
go back to Molossis in 330: her brother had died during a campaign in southern
Italy, and she served as regent for her cousin Aeacidas.
On June 11, 323, Alexander died in Babylon,
and the age of the successors or Diadochi began. His wife Roxane was pregnant
of a son, who was born a few months later and was called Alexander. He and Alexander's
brother Philip Arridaeus, who was mentally unfit to rule, were subject to the
regency of Perdiccas, Alexander's vizier. He tried to strengthen his position
by a marriage with Antipater's daughter Nicaea. However, Olympias offered him
the hand of her daughter Cleopatra, a full sister of Alexander the Great (and
the former wife of Alexander of Molossis). Perdiccas accepted this marriage, Antipater
felt insulted, and the result was a civil war in which Antipater was victorious.
He was the new regent of the royal family. However, he died almost immediately
(319).
His successor as regent was an old general named Polyperchon. However,
Antipater's son Cassander, who had taken Philip Arridaeus captive, forced him
out of Macedonia. Polyperchon had to flee to Epirus, taking Roxane and the baby
Alexander with him. Until then, Olympias had refused to support any side in the
conflict, but now she realized that if Cassander were to rule, the crown would
definitely be lost to her grandson. So, she took the army of Aeacidas, joined
the remains of Polyperchon's army and invaded Macedonia (317).
At the border, she captured Philip Arridaeus, who was executed immediately
(October). Many supporters of Cassander were massacred as well. However, Cassander
was approaching and besieged Olympias in Pydna,
a harbor town at the foot of the holy mountain Olympus.
Although both Polyperchon and Aeacidas tried to relieve her, she was forced to
surrender. Cassander promised to save her life, but had her executed (316). Roxane
and the baby Alexander were killed in secret.
The succession of Philip and the last two years of Olympias' life
were full of bloodshed, and many authors -both ancient and modern- have considered
her a cruel woman. This is exaggerated. She was trying to stay alive and see to
the succession of her son and grandson. Of the many Macedonian leaders who took
part in the civil wars after the death of Alexander the Great, she was one of
the few who were not fighting for their own power, but for the legitimate dynasty.
Jona Lendering, ed.
This text is cited July 2003 from the Livius Ancient History Website URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks.
Πατέρας του Αλκέτα, θεωρείται ο εκπολιτιστής της Ηπείρου.
Son of Alcetas (Perseus Encyclopedia)
Lives, by Plutarch
318 - 272
Εξάδελφος του Μεγάλου Αλεξάνδρου, άνδρας μεγάλης μόρφωσης και ονομαστής γενναιότητας με στρατιωτική κατάρτιση, κατέστησε το κράτος της Ηπείρου σε μεγάλη δύναμη για 35 χρόνια με τις νικηφόρες εκστρατείες του στη Ν. Ιταλία.
Pyrrhus (Purros Ι). A king of Epirus, son of Aeacides and Phthia, born
B.C. 318. His ancestors claimed descent from Pyrrhus, the son of Achilles, who
was said to have settled in Epirus after the Trojan War, and to have become the
founder of the race of Molossian kings. On the deposition of his father by the
Epirots, Pyrrhus, who was then a child only two years old, was saved from destruction
by the faithful adherents of the king, who carried him to Glaucias, the king of
the Taulantians, an Illyrian people. Glaucias took the child under his care and
brought him up with his own children. He not only refused to surrender Pyrrhus
to Cassander, but about ten years afterwards he marched into Epirus at the head
of an army, and placed Pyrrhus on the throne, leaving him, however, under the
care of guardians, as he was then only twelve years of age. In the course of four
or five years, however, Cassander, who had gained his supremacy in Greece, prevailed
upon the Epirots to expel their young king. Pyrrhus, who was then only seventeen
years of age, joined Demetrius, who had married his sister Deidamia, accompanied
him to Asia, and was present at the battle of Ipsus (301), in which he gained
great renown for his valour. Antigonus fell in the battle, and Demetrius became
a fugitive; but Pyrrhus did not desert his brother-in-law in his misfortunes,
and shortly afterwards went for him as a hostage into Egypt. Here he was fortunate
enough to win the favour of Berenice, the wife of Ptolemy, and received in marriage
Antigone, her daughter by her first husband. Ptolemy now supplied him with a fleet
and forces, with which he returned to Epirus. Neoptolemus, who had reigned from
the time that Pyrrhus had been driven from the kingdom, agreed to share the sovereignty
with Pyrrhus. But such an arrangement could not last long, and Pyrrhus anticipated
his own destruction by putting his rival to death. This appears to have happened
in 295, in which year Pyrrhus is said to have begun to reign.
He was now twenty-three years old, and he soon became one of
the most popular princes of his time. His daring courage made him a favourite
with his troops, and his affability and generosity secured the love of his people.
He seems at an early age to have taken Alexander as his model, and to have been
fired with the ambition of imitating his exploits and treading in his footsteps.
His eyes were first directed to the conquest of Macedonia. By assisting Alexander,
the son of Cassander, against his brother Antipater, he obtained possession of
the whole of the Macedonian dominions on the western side of Greece. But the Macedonian
throne itself fell into the hands of Demetrius, greatly to the disappointment
of Pyrrhus. The two former friends now became the most deadly enemies, and open
war broke out between them in 291. After the war had been carried on with great
vigour and various vicissitudes for four years, Pyrrhus joined the coalition formed
in 287 by Seleucus, Ptolemy, and Lysimachus against Demetrius. Lysimachus and
Pyrrhus invaded Macedonia; Demetrius was deserted by his troops and obliged to
fly in disguise, and the kingdom was divided between Lysimachus and Pyrrhus. But
the latter did not long retain his portion; the Macedonians preferred the rule
of their old general Lysimachus, and Pyrrhus was accordingly driven out of the
country after a reign of seven months (286).
For the next few years Pyrrhus reigned quietly in Epirus without
embarking in any new enterprise. But a life of inactivity was insupportable to
him, and accordingly he readily accepted the invitation of the Tarentines to assist
them in their war against the Romans. He crossed over to Italy early in 280, in
the thirty-eighth year of his age. He took with him 20,000 foot, 3000 horse, 2000
archers, 500 slingers, and either fifty or twenty elephants, having previously
sent Milo, one of his generals, with a detachment of 3000 men. As soon as he arrived
at Tarentum he began to make vigourous preparations for carrying on the war; and
as the giddy and licentious inhabitants of Tarentum complained of the severity
of his discipline, he forthwith treated them as their master rather than as their
ally, shut up the theatre and all other public places, and compelled their young
men to serve in his ranks. In the first campaign (280) the Roman consul M. Valerius
Laevinus was defeated by Pyrrhus near Heraclea, on the bank of the river Siris.
The battle was long and bravely contested, and it was not till Pyrrhus brought
forward his elephants, which bore down everything before them, that the Romans
took to flight. The loss of Pyrrhus, though inferior to that of the Romans, was
still very considerable. A large proportion of his officers and best troops had
fallen, and he said, as he viewed the field of battle, "Another such victory,
and I must return to Epirus alone." He therefore availed himself of his success
to send his minister Cineas to Rome with proposals of peace, while he himself
marched slowly towards the city. His proposals, however, were rejected by the
Senate. He accordingly continued his march, ravaging the Roman territory as he
went along. He advanced within twenty-four miles of Rome; but as he found it impossible
to compel the Romans to accept the peace, he retraced his steps and withdrew into
winter-quarters at Tarentum. As soon as the armies were quartered for the winter,
the Romans sent an embassy to Pyrrhus to endeavour to obtain the ransom of the
Roman prisoners. The ambassadors were received by Pyrrhus in the most distinguished
manner, and his interviews with C. Fabricius, who was at the head of the embassy,
form one of the most celebrated stories in Roman history.
In the second campaign (279) Pyrrhus gained another victory
near Asculum over the Romans, who were commanded by the consuls P. Decius Mus
and P. Sulpicius Saverrio. The battle, however, was followed by no decisive results,
and the brunt of it had again fallen, as in the previous year, almost exclusively
on the Greek troops of the king. He was therefore unwilling to hazard his surviving
Greeks by another campaign with the Romans, and accordingly he lent a ready ear
to the invitations of the Greeks in Sicily, who begged him to come to their assistance
against the Carthaginians. The Romans were likewise anxious to get rid of so formidable
an opponent, that they might complete the subjugation of Southern Italy without
further interruption. When both parties had the same wishes, it was not difficult
to find a fair pretext for bringing the war to a conclusion. This was afforded
at the beginning of the following year (278) by one of the servants of Pyrrhus
deserting to the Romans and proposing to the consuls to poison his master. The
consuls Fabricius and Aemilius sent back the deserter to the king, stating that
they abhorred a victory gained by treason. Thereupon Pyrrhus, to show his gratitude,
sent Cineas to Rome with all the Roman prisoners without ransom and without conditions;
and the Romans granted him a truce, though not a formal peace, as he had not consented
to evacuate Italy.
Pyrrhus now crossed over into Sicily, where he remained upwards
of two years, from the middle of 278 to the latter end of 276. At first he met
with brilliant success, defeated the Carthaginians and took Eryx; but having failed
in an attempt upon Lilybaeum, he lost his popularity with the Greeks, who began
to form cabals and plots against him. This led to retaliation on the part of Pyrrhus,
and to acts which were deemed both cruel and tyrannical by the Greeks. His position
in Sicily at length became so uncomfortable and dangerous that he soon became
anxious to abandon the island. Accordingly, when his Italian allies again begged
him to come to their assistance, he gladly complied with their request. Pyrrhus
returned to Italy in the autumn of 276. In the following year (275) the war was
brought to a close. Pyrrhus was defeated with great loss near Beneventum by the
Roman consul Curius Dentatus, and was obliged to leave Italy. He brought back
with him to Epirus only 8000 foot and 500 horse, and had not money to maintain
even these without undertaking new wars. Accordingly, in 273, he invaded Macedonia,
of which Antigonus Gonatas, the son of Demetrius, was then king. His only object
at first seems to have been plunder, but his success far exceeded his expectations.
Antigonus was deserted by his own troops, and Pyrrhus thus became king of Macedonia
a second time. But scarcely had he obtained possession of the kingdom before his
restless spirit drove him into new enterprises. On the invitation of Cleonymus
he turned his arms against Sparta, but was repulsed in an attack upon this city.
From Sparta he marched towards Argos in order to support Aristeas, one of the
leading citizens at Argos, against his rival Aristippus, whose cause was espoused
by Antigonus. In the nighttime Aristeas admitted Pyrrhus into the city, but the
alarm having been given, the citadel and all the strong places were seized by
the Argives of the opposite faction. On the dawn of day Pyrrhus saw that it would
be necessary for him to retreat; and as he was fighting his way out of the city,
an Argive woman hurled down from the housetop a ponderous tile, which struck Pyrrhus
on the back of his neck. He fell from his horse stunned with the blow, and being
recognized by some of the soldiers of Antigonus, was quickly despatched.
His head was cut off and carried to Antigonus, who turned away
from the sight, and ordered the body to be interred with becoming honours. Pyrrhus
perished in B.C. 272, in the forty-sixth year of his age and in the twenty-third
of his reign.
He was the greatest warrior and one of the best princes of
his time. With his daring courage, his military skill, and his kingly bearing,
he might have become the most powerful monarch of his day if he had steadily pursued
the immediate object before him. But he never rested satisfied with any acquisition,
and was ever grasping at some fresh object: hence Antigonus compared him to a
gambler, who made many good throws with the dice, but was unable to make the proper
use of the game. Pyrrhus was regarded in subsequent times as one of the greatest
generals that had ever lived. Hannibal said that of all generals Pyrrhus was the
first, Scipio the second, and himself the third; or, according to another version
of the story, Alexander was the first, Pyrrhus the second, and himself the third.
Pyrrhus wrote a work on the art of war, which was read in the time of Cicero;
and his commentaries are quoted both by Dionysius and Plutarch. Pyrrhus married
four wives: (a) Antigone, the daughter of Berenice; (b) a daughter of Audoleon,
king of the Paeonians; (c) Bircenna, a daughter of Bardylis, king of the Illyrians;
(d) Lanassa, a daughter of Agathocles of Syracuse. His children were: (a) Ptolemy,
born 295; killed in battle, 272; (b) Alexander, who succeeded his father as king
of Epirus; (c) Helenus; (d) Nereis, who married Gelon of Syracuse; (e) Olympias,
who married her own brother Alexander; (f) Deidamia or Laodamia. See the Life
by Plutarch.
This text is from: Harry Thurston Peck, Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities. Cited Nov 2002 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Pyrrhus was king of the Hellenistic kingdom of Epirus.
In 281 BC Tarentum
in southern Italy asked his
assisstance against Rome.
Pyrrhus crossed to Italy
with 25,000 men and 20 elephants. He tried to create a kdm of Sicily
and lower Italy, but his
many victories against Rome
were so costly that he had to withdraw from Italy.
His remark “Another such victory and I shall be ruined” gave name
to the term “Pyrrhic victory” for a victory obtained at to great a
cost.
Pyrrhus returned to Epirus, invaded Macedonia
and made an unsuccessful attack on Sparta
where he was killed.
This text is cited July 2003 from the Hyperhistory Online URL below.
King of Epirus and cousin of Alexander the Great, known for his many
battles. Married to Agathocles' daughter Lanassa.
When the Greek colony Tarentum
asked Pyrrhus for help against the Romans, the king gladly accepted. According
to legend, he asked the philosopher Cineas for advice. The philosopher asked the
king what he would do after conquering Italy,
and got the answer “Then I will take Carthage”. Cineas asked what
then, and got the reply “then we will take Macedonia,
Egypt and Asia”. “Then
what”, Cineas asked, “then we will celebrate and enjoy the pleasures
of life”, replied the king. The philosopher then said “why can't we
do that immediately without challenging our destiny?”
At Heraclea Pyrrhus
defeated the Romans with 25000men and 20 elephants in 280BC. The decisive factor
for his victory was the elephants, an animal the Romans had never seen before.
The horses ran away, terrified, and the Roman soldiers lost their courage. A year
later Pyrrhus again defeated the Romans at the battle of Asculum.
The victories cost him so much, though, that the expression Pyrrhic
victory has become an expression for a bitter victory. After this he went to help
the Sicilian Greeks against the Carthaginians, now allies with the Romans, but
became unpopular with them because of his despotic attitude. In 275 BC he was
defeated by the Romans at the battle of Beneventum, and returned to Greece
with only one-third of his original force. Pyrrhus was also involved with battles
in Greece, and extended his
kingdom into parts of Macedonia
and Thessaly.
Lysimachus, king of Thrace
and consequently of Macedonia,
later drove Pyrrhus out of his new lands. Pyrrhus again managed to conquer part
of Macedonia in his defeating
of the Macedonian king Antigonus II Gonatas in 276 BC. He was defeated by the
Spartan army the year after, and fled to Argos
where he was killed in a streetfight.
His tactics and use of elephants were later to influence Hannibal.
This text is cited Sept 2003 from the In2Greece URL below.
Deidameia. Daughter of Aeacides, king of Epeirus, and sister of Pyrrhus. While yet a girl she was betrothed by her father to Alexander, the son of Roxana, and having accompanied that prince and Olympias into Macedonia, was besieged in Pydna together with them. (Plut. Pyrrh. 4; Diod. xix. 35; Justin, xiv. 6.) After the death of Alexander and Roxana, she was married to Demetrius Poliorcetes, at the time when the latter was endeavouring to establish his power in Greece, and thus became a bond of union between him and Pyrrhus. (Plut. Demetr. 25, Pyrrh. 4.) When DIemetrius proceeded to Asia to support his father against the confederate kings, lie left Deidameia at Athens; but after his defeat at Ipsus, the Athenians sent her away to Megara, though still treating her with regal honours. She soon after repaired to Cilicia to join Demetrius, who had just given his daughter Stratonice in marriage to Seleucus, but had not been there long when she fell ill and died, B. C. 300. (Plut. Demetr. 30, 32.) She left one son by Demetrius, named Alexander, who is said by Plutarch to have spent his life in Egypt, probably in an honourable captivity. (Plut Demetr. 53.)
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Oct 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
Helenus, (Helenos), son of Pyrrhus, king of Epeirus, by Lanassa, daughter of Agathocles. He was very young when he accompanied his father on his expedition to Italy, B. C. 280; but Pyrrhus is said to have conceived the project, when elated with his first successes in Sicily, of establishing Helenus there as king of the island, to which as grandson of Agathocles he appeared to have a sort of hereditary claim. (Just. xviii, 1, xxiii. 3.) But the tide of fortune soon turned; and when Pyrrhus saw himself compelled to abandon both Sicily and Italy, he left Helenus at Tarentum, together with Milo, to command the garrison of that city, the place in Italy of which he still retained possession. It was not long before he recalled them both from thence, in consequence of the unexpected views that had opened to his ambition in Macedonia and Greece. Helenus accompanied his father on his expedition into the Peloponnese (B. C. 272), and after the fatal night attack on Argos, in which Pyrrhus himself perished, he fell into the hands of Antigonus Gonatas, who however behaved towards him in the most magnanimous manner, treated him with the utmost distinction, and sent him back in safety to Epeirus, bearing with him the remains of his father. (Just. xxv. 3, 5; Plut. Pyrrhs. 33, 34.) After this we hear no more of him.
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Nov 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΜΟΛΟΣΣΙΑ (Αρχαία περιοχή) ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ
370 - 331
King of Molossis (350-331), uncle of Alexander the Great, known
for his invasion of Italy in 334.
Alexander was born as the first son of Neoptolemus, the king of the
Molossians, one of the greatest tribes in Epirus.
They lived in the neighborhood of modern Ioannina
in Greece. During Neoptolemus'
reign, the tribe became more sedentary; urbanization started and we hear about
scribes and other administrative officials. From now on, the Molossis was the
most important part of Epirus.
When Neoptolemus died (c.360 BCE), his brother Arybbas became king.
He strengthened his position by a treaty with the new king of Macedonia, Philip
II (359-336). The alliance was cemented by a diplomatic marriage: Neoptolemus'
daughter Olympias became queen of Macedonia. Her younger brother Alexander was
sent to Macedonia as well, to receive a Greek education.
In 350, Philip invaded Molossis and installed Alexander as king. Arybbas
fled to Athens, where he
died peacefully in 342. Since it would be irresponsible to make a boy king, we
may infer from the date of Alexander's accession that he was born about 370.
Hardly anything is known about his reign, except for the fact that
he subdued the other Epirote tribes and offered asylum to Olympias when she had
fallen into disgrace in 337. Alexander was not very steadfast, however: when Philip
offered him the hand of Cleopatra, his daughter by Olympias, he agreed to the
marriage, allowing Olympias to become very isolated. The death of Philip in October
336 prevented that he had to extradite his sister.
The new Macedonian king was Alexander the Great, who set out to conquer
the east. In 334, Alexander of Molossis decided to intervene in the west, where
the divided Greek colonies in Italy were threatened by the federation of mountain
tribes that is known as the Samnites. They were formidable warriors who had, in
the preceding century, conquered several Greek towns. Usually, the Italian Greeks
hired mercenaries in the mothercountry to help them. For example, king Archidamus
of Sparta had campaigned
in Italy between 343 and 338.
Support of the Greeks in Italy was probably not the only motive for
Alexander's actions on the other side of the Adriatic. The struggle against pirates
must have been an additional motive.
Our most important source for Alexander's campaign is the Roman historian
Titus Livy (59 BCE - 17 CE), who describes it in book eight of the History of
Rome from its foundation, chapter 24. He states that Alexander accepted an invitation
from the Tarentines. His most important motive was, according to Livy, that there
was an oracle that told him that he would be killed near the Acheron,
a river in western Greece. But, as it turned out, in order to escape his destiny,
he ran at it.
He conquered Heraclea
(a Greek town that had been captured by the Italian tribes), took Sipontum (one
of the pirate's ports), and captured Consentia
and Terina. The tribes were
defeated several times, and Alexander opened negotiations with the leading power
in Central-Italy, Rome, which feared war with the Samnite federation as well.
He seemed to be in control of the situation, when his army was unexpectedly
attacked near Pandosia. Although he was able to cut the losses and kill the enemy
leader, it was a severe setback. When he tried to bring his army in safety by
crossing a river, he was murdered by one of his allies. As it turned out, the
river was called Acheron, just like the river in western Greece.
Livy dates the death of Alexander in the consulship of Gaius Poetelius
Libo Visolus and Lucius Papirius Cursor. They were consuls from July 323 to June
322 BCE (the common identification with the year 326 is wrong; click here for
chronological note). This must be a confusion with the date on which the news
of the death of the other Alexander, the Macedonian conqueror of Persia, reached
Rome. But Livy also offers
another date: he says it happens at the time of the foundation of Alexandria.
That happened in the first weeks of 331, and this must be more or less right.
Alexander's campaign gave the Greeks in southern Italy some respite
and weakened the Italian tribes. They fell victim to the Romans. Their war against
the Samnite federation lasted -with a brief pause between 303 and 298- from 322
until 290. After that, war between the Italian Greeks and Romans was inevitable.
Alexander's great-nephew Pyrrhus helped the Greeks, but in vain: in 272, Tarente
was forced to conclude a peace treaty.
In the end, the campaigns of Alexander served no real purpose. The
Italian Greeks were doomed. However, they were not subjected by the Samnites,
but by the Romans. The Mediterranean world was bound to become a unity, but in
331 it was not obvious that Rome would be the leading power. Alexander helped
to pave the way.
His wife Cleopatra returned to Macedonia and played a role in the
wars of the Diadochi, the successors of Alexander the Great.
Jona Lendering, ed.
This text is cited July 2003 from the Livius Ancient History Website URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks.
Arribas, Arrybas, Arymbas or Tharrytas, a descendant cf Achilles, and one of the early kings of the Molossians in Epeirus. When he came to the possession of the throne, he was yet very young, and being the last surviving member of the royal family, his education was conducted with great care, and he was sent to Athens with this view. On his return he displayed so much wisdom that he won the affection and admiration of his people. He flamed for them a code of laws, and established a regular constitution, with a senate and annual magistrates. The accounts of this king cannot, of course, be received as historical, and he must be looked upon as one of the mythical ancestors of the royal house of the Molossians, to whom they ascribed the foundation of their political institutions (Justin, xvii. 3; Plut. Pyrrh. 1; Paus. i. 11.1). The grandfather of Pyrrhus also bore the name of Arymbas. (Diod. xvi. 72)
Admetus (Admetos), king of the Molossians in the time of Themistocles, who, when supreme at Athens, had opposed him, perhaps not without insult, in some suit to the people. But when flying from the officers who were ordered to seize him as a party to the treason of Pausanias, and driven from Corcyra to Epirus, he found himself upon some emergency, with no hope of refuge but the house of Admetus. Admetus was absent; but Phthia his queen welcomed the stranger, and bade him, as the most solemn form of supplication among the Molossians, take her son, the young prince, and sit with him in his hands upon the hearth. Admetus on his return home assured him of protection; according to another account in Plutarch, he himself, and not Pthia enjoined the form as affording him a pretext for refusal : he, at any rate, shut his ears to all that the Athenian and Lacedaemonian commissioners, who soon afterwards arrived, could say; and sent Themistocles safely to Pydna on his way to the Persian court. (Thuc. i. 136, 137; Plut. Them. 24)
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Sep 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
King Philip II of Macedonia's wife, mother of Alexander the Great and sister of
the king of Epirus,
Olympias was known both for her beauty as well as her dark character.
She was suspected of murdering Philip after he had divorced her to marry the young
Cleopatra, and it was rumoured she ran through the forests at night, orgiasticaly
honouring the god Dionysus and his mysteries.
After Alexander's death, Olympias took on his young wife Roxane and
her son Alexander, who had been born a few months after his fathers' death. Olympias
had allied with the general Polysperchon against Antipatros' son Cassandros. She
had many of Philips' friends, mistresses and children murdered, as well as Alexander's
wife Statira and her sister.
When Polysperchon was defeated by Cassandros' army, Olympias fled
with Roxane and Alexander. Polysperchon captured them soon, and Olympias was excecuted
after a trial her victims' families held. Roxane and Alexander were also killed,
as well as other family members of Alexander the Great.
This text is cited Sept 2003 from the In2Greece URL below.
Aeacides. A patronymic used of any descendant of Aeacus, such as Peleus, Telamon, Phocus, Achilles, Pyrrhus, son of Achilles, and Pyrrhus, King of Epirus, who claimed descent from Achilles.
Molossi grew to still greater power, partly because of the kinship of their kings, who belonged to the family of the Aeacidae, and partly because of the fact that the oracle at Dodona was in their country, an oracle both ancient and renowned. (Perseus Project - Strabo, Geography 7.7.5)
ΜΕΤΣΟΒΟ (Κωμόπολη) ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ
(Μέτσοβο, 1818 - Αλεξάνδρεια 1899).
Εθνικός ευεργέτης, από τις εξέχουσες μορφές του απόδημου Ελληνισμού.
Έδρα των επιχειρήσεών του υπήρξε η Αίγυπτος , όπου εγκαταστάθηκε το 1840. Αρχικά
εργάστηκε στο εμπορικό κατάστημα του αδερφού του Αναστάση, στο Κάιρο , και από
το 1866 στην Αλεξάνδρεια . Εκεί ανέπτυξε έντονη επιχειρηματική δραστηριότητα
που τον ανέδειξε σε σημαντικό παράγοντα της οικονομικής ζωής της Αιγύπτου.
Ο Αβέρωφ ασχολήθηκε πολύ νωρίς με την εκμίσθωση κτημάτων στις όχθες
του Νείλου συγκεντρώνοντας σημαντικά κεφάλαια. Μπόρεσε έτσι να αναπτύξει ευρύτερα
τις συναλλαγές του ομώνυμου οικογενειακού εμπορικού οίκου στην Οδησσό , ιδιαίτερα
στον τομέα του σιτεμπορίου. Παράλληλα συνδέθηκε στενά με το χεδίβη της Αιγύπτου
Τεουφίκ, στον οποίο προμήθευε πολύτιμα αντικείμενα από το εξωτερικό για την
αυλή του και έπαιρνε ως αντάλλαγμα αιγυπτιακές πρώτες ύλες για εξαγωγή. Συγχρόνως
κυριαρχούσε στο εσωτερικό εμπόριο της Αιγύπτου με τα ποταμόπλοιά του, που μονοπωλιακά
μετέφεραν εμπορεύματα στα λιμάνια του Νείλου. Επιδόθηκε ακόμη και σε τραπεζικές
εργασίες. Η μεγαλύτερη επιτυχία του ήταν ο έγκαιρος εφοδιασμός της ευρωπαϊκής
αγοράς με αιγυπτιακό βαμβάκι, όταν παρατηρήθηκε έλλειψη εξαιτίας του Αμερικάνικου
Εμφύλιου Πολέμου.
Με τη θέση που κατέλαβε στην οικονομική ζωή της Αιγύπτου έγινε θρύλος
για τους ντόπιους· το όνομά του επιζεί και σήμερα στον κόλπο "Αμπουρώφ"
του Νείλου.
Το 1882 ο Αβέρωφ επισκέφτηκε τη Βιέννη . Το ταξίδι αυτό του άνοιξε
νέους ορίζοντες. Με τη βοήθεια του φίλου του Νικολάου Δούμπα, εμπόρου και "μαικήνα"
των καλών τεχνών, γνώρισε την αξία της καλλιτεχνικής δημιουργίας, γεγονός που
καθόρισε το ενδιαφέρον του για την χρηματοδότηση ελληνικών πνευματικών και καλλιτεχνικών
ιδρυμάτων.
Η πρώτη δωρεά του Γεωργίου Αβέρωφ στον ελληνισμό ήταν 5.000 χρυσές
λίρες στον έρανο για την Κρητική Επανάσταση του 1866. Ακολούθησαν αλλεπάλληλες
προσφορές σημαντικών ποσών για κοινωφελή έργα στην ελληνική κοινότητα της Αλεξάνδρειας
(ελληνικό γυμνάσιο, παρθεναγωγείο, νοσοκομείο), στη γενέτειρά του το Μέτσοβο,
και αργότερα στην Αθήνα. Ειδικά στην πρωτεύουσα του Ελληνικού Κράτους χρηματοδότησε
την ανέγερση της Σχολής των Ευελπίδων, του Αβερώφειου Εφηβείου, των ανδριάντων
του Ρήγα Φεραίου και του Πατριάρχη Γρηγορίου Ε', μπροστά στο Πανεπιστήμιο. Ακόμη
με δικές του δωρέες εκτελέστηκε η αναμαρμάρωση του Παναθηναϊκού Σταδίου και
αποπερατώθηκε το Πολυτεχνείο, που ονομάστηκε Μετσόβιο, γιατί και οι τρεις δωρητές
του (Νικόλαος Στουρνάρας, Μιχαήλ Τοσίτσας, Γεώργιος Αβέρωφ) κατάγονταν από το
Μέτσοβο. Με τη διαθήκη του, εξάλλου, κληροδότησε αξιόλογα ποσά για κοινωφελείς
και εθνικούς σκοπούς, όπως για τη ναυπήγηση του θωρηκτού "Γεώργιος Αβέρωφ",
ναυαρχίδας του ελληνικού στόλου στους Βαλκανικούς Πολέμους.
Βιβλιογραφία: Μ. Αβέρωφ, "Η ζωή του Γεωργίου Αβέρωφ" (ελλην. Έκδ. 1964)
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Οκτώβριο 2004 από το Παγκόσμιο Βιογραφικό Λεξικό, Αθήνα 1983, της Εκδοτικής Αθηνών
(Μέτσοβο, 1806 - Χαλκίδα, 1853)
Μεγαλέμπορος και εθνικός ευεργέτης, ανιψιός του Μιχαήλ Τοσίτσα. Αφού
τελείωσε τη στοιχειώδη παιδεία στη γενέτειρά του, πήγε στο Λιβόρνο της Ιταλίας,
όπου εργάστηκε στον εμπορικό οίκο των θείων του αδελφών Τοσίτσα. Με τη φροντίδα
των τελευταίων στάλθηκε στο Παρίσι και παρακολούθησε ανώτερες εμπορικές σπουδές,
μετά την ολοκλήρωση των οποίων εγκαταστάθηκε στην Αλεξάνδρεια. Εκεί έγινε στην
αρχή βοηθός του θείου του στις επιχειρήσεις του και ύστερα ανέλαβε τη διεύθυνση
του εμπορικού του οίκου, που ήταν τότε ένας από τους μεγαλύτερους της Αιγύπτου.
Ο Στουρνάρης, που λόγω των υποθέσεών του ταξίδευε συχνά στα μεγαλύτερα
ευρωπαϊκά βιομηχανικά, εμπορικά και γεωργικά κέντρα, αντιλήφθηκε έγκαιρα τη σημασία
της ανάπτυξης των πλουτοπαραγωγικών πηγών κάθε χώρας και θέλησε να βοηθήσει το
καθυστερημένο ακόμη τότε, από την πλευρά αυτή, ελληνικό κράτος. Έτσι, το 1846
επισκέφτηκε την Αθήνα για να ερευνήσει την οικονομική κατάσταση του τόπου και
να αρχίσει την πραγματοποίηση των σχεδίων του. Αγόρασε μεγάλες εκτάσεις στη Φθιώτιδα
και τη βόρεια Εύβοια, για να εγκαταστήσει πρότυπες γεωργικές σχολές και καλλιέργειες,
ενώ παράλληλα άρχισε να προσφέρει σημαντικά ποσά σε φιλανθρωπικά και εκπαιδευτικά
ιδρύματα της Αθήνας, της ελληνικής παροικίας της Αλεξάνδρειας και της ιδιαίτερης
πατρίδας του. Το 1850 είχε συνεννοήσεις με την ελληνική κυβέρνηση για την κατασκευή
σιδηροδρόμου, που θα συνέδεε την Αθήνα με τον Πειραιά, καθώς και για την ίδρυση
ακτοπλοϊκών συγκοινωνιών. Πρότεινε ακόμη να αναλάβει εκβάθυνση, διεύρυνση και
νέα γεφύρωση του πορθμού του Ευρίπου.
Το 1852 ο Στουρνάρης αποσύρθηκε από την εργασία του στην Αλεξάνδρεια
και εγκαταστάθηκε στην Ελλάδα. Πέθανε ξαφνικά τον επόμενο χρόνο, ενώ βρισκόταν
στη Χαλκίδα για να εγκαταστήσει στα κτήματά του ειδικευμένους καλλιεργητές, που
έφερε από την Ιταλία, και να οργανώσει γεωργικούς σταθμούς.
Ο Στουρνάρης, με τη διαθήκη του, που είχε συντάξει λίγο πριν από το
θάνατό του, άφησε μεγάλα χρηματικά ποσά για αγαθοεργούς σκοπούς στην Αλεξάνδρεια
και στο Μέτσοβο και 100.000 τάλληρα για την ανέγερση μνημειώδους κτιρίου για τη
στέγαση "ενός λαμπρού Πολυτεχνείου", εις το οποίο "να διδάσκωνται
όλαι αι βάναυσοι και καλαί τέχναι" και να προστεθεί σ' αυτές και η διδασκαλία
της γεωργίας, την οποία χαρακτηρίζει ως "την βάσιν της αληθούς ευτυχίας ενός
έθνους". Με τη δωρεά του Στουρνάρη και εκείνες του θείου του Μιχαήλ Τοσίτσα
(1856) και του Γεωργίου Αβέρωφ (1873) κτίστηκε σε σχέδια Λύσανδρου Καυταντζόγλου
το κτίριο του Πολυτεχνείου στην οδό Πατησίων (1862-76), το οποίο έφερε το όνομα
του πρώτου δωρητή και ευεργέτη ("Στουρνάρειο") ως το 1873, οπότε σε
εκπλήρωση επιθυμίας του Αβέρωφ ονομάστηκε "Μετσόβιο".
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Οκτώβριο 2004 από το Παγκόσμιο Βιογραφικό Λεξικό, Αθήνα 1983, της Εκδοτικής Αθηνών
(Μέτσοβο, 1787 - Αθήνα, 1856)
Μεγαλοεπιχειρηματίας και εθνικός ευεργέτης. Ολοκλήρωσε τη στοιχειώδη
εκπαίδευση (1797) στη Θεσσαλονίκη, όπου ο πατέρας του Αναστάσιος Τοσίτσας διατηρούσε
κατάστημα επεξεργασίας γουναρικών. Ειδικεύτηκε και ο ίδιος στην τέχνη του γουναρά
και το 1806 ανέλαβε προσωπικά την επιχείρηση. Με συνεργάτες τους τρεις νεότερους
αδελφούς του επεξέτεινε γρήγορα τη δραστηριότητά του, ιδρύοντας εμπορικούς οίκους
στην Αίγυπτο, τη Μάλτα και το Λιβόρνο. Το 1820 εγκαταστάθηκε στην Αλεξάνδρεια,
η οποία έγινε από τότε το κέντρο των επιχειρήσεών του. Συνδέθηκε στενά με τον
Αιγύπτιο ηγεμόνα Μωχάμμετ Αλυ, παλιό γνώριμο του πατέρα του, ο οποίος τον χρησιμοποίησε
και ως σύμβουλο, και με την υποστήριξή του δεν άργησε να εξελιχτεί σε έναν από
τους ευρωστότερους οικονομικούς παράγοντες του τόπου. Αναμίχθηκε σε μεγάλους οικονομικούς
κρατικούς οργανισμούς και έγινε ο διαχειριστής των απέραντων γαιοκτησιών του Αιγύπτιου
τοπάρχη.
Ο Τοσίτσας προστάτευσε την ελληνική ομογένεια της Αιγύπτου έναντι
των μουσουλμανικών διώξεων και πολλαπλά την ευεργέτησε. Ορισμένοι ιστοριογράφοι
τον κατέκριναν για την παραμονή του στην υπηρεσία του Μωχάμμετ Αλυ στη διάρκεια
της Ελληνικής Επανάστασης. Υπάρχουν ωστόσο πληροφορίες ότι ενίσχυσε με μεγάλα
χρηματικά ποσά τους αγωνιζόμενους Έλληνες, άσκησε την επιρροή του στον ηγεμόνα
για να περιφρουρηθεί η ασφάλεια των πολυπληθών Ελλήνων της Αιγύπτου, την περίοδο
της εκστρατείας του γιου του Ιμπραήμ στην Πελοπόννησο (1825-27) και κατέβαλε χρήματα
για την εξαγορά Ελλήνων αιχμαλώτων που είχαν μεταφερθεί στην Αίγυπτο.
Το 1833 ο Τοσίτσας διορίστηκε πρόξενος της Ελλάδας στην Αλεξάνδρεια
και το 1853 ονομάστηκε γενικός πρόξενος. Στα τέλη του 1854 εγκαταστάθηκε οριστικά
στην Αθήνα, ενώ, ένα χρόνο πριν, συγκλονισμένος από το θάνατο του ανιψιού του
Νικόλαου Στουρνάρη, είχε υποστεί ημιπληγία.
Ο Τοσίτσας διέθεσε τα τεράστια κέρδη, που αποθησαύρισε, σε κοινωφελείς
σκοπούς στην Αλεξάνδρεια, το Μέτσοβο και την Αθήνα. Με δωρεές του κτίστηκαν μεταξύ
άλλων στην Αλεξάνδρεια νοσοκομείο για την ελληνική κοινότητα, ελληνικά σχολεία,
ορθόδοξη εκκλησία και άλλα ιδρύματα. Με τη διαθήκη του εξάλλου πρόσφερε μεγάλα
ποσά στο Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, στο Αμαλίειο Ορφανοτροφείο, στη Φιλεκπαιδευτική
Εταιρεία, στο Οφθαλμιατρείο, ενώ ιδιαίτερα μεγάλο ποσό άφησε στο Πολυτεχνείο.
Την αγαθοεργή του δράση συνέχισε η σύζυγός του Ελένη Τοσίτσα (Μέτσοβο, 1796 -
Αθήνα, 1866), η οποία διέθεσε όλη την περιουσία που κληρονόμησε από το σύζυγό
της σε αγαθοεργούς σκοπούς. Το 1865, με δωρεά της του 1858 προς τη Φιλεκπαιδευτική
Εταιρεία, οικοδομήθηκε στην γωνία Σταδίου και Αρσάκη (κοντά στο κτίριο του Αρσακείου)
πρότυπο αλληλοδιδακτικό σχολείο θηλέων, το Τοσίτσειο. Διέθεσε επίσης τα απαιτούμενα
χρήματα για την αγορά των οικοπέδων όπου ανεγέρθηκαν τα κτίρια του Πολυτεχνείου
και του Εθνικού Αρχαιολογικού Μουσείου.
Τελευταίος απόγονος της οικογένειας Τοσίτσα ήταν ο εγγονός του αδελφού
του Μιχαήλ Τοσίτσα, Θεόδωρου Τοσίτσα (1795-1870), επίσης μεγάλου ευεργέτη, και
φιλικού (μυημένου στην Αλεξάνδρεια το 1819), βαρόνος Μιχαήλ Τοσίτσας (1885-1950),
ο οποίος κληροδότησε το επώνυμό του στον μακρινό συγγενή του Ευάγγελο Αβέρωφ,
διέθεσε την περιουσία του για τη σύσταση (1947) του "Ιδρύματος βαρώνου Μιχαήλ
Τοσίτσα", το οποίο σύμφωνα με την επιθυμία του δωρητή αναπτύσσει δραστηριότητες
στο Μέτσοβο για τη διατήρηση της πολιτισμικής κληρονομιάς του τόπου, χορηγεί υποτροφίες
σε Ηπειρώτες σπουδαστές, διατηρεί για τους τελευταίους φοιτητική Εστία στην Κηφισιά
κ.ά.
Κείμενο: Αλίκη Σολωμού
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Οκτώβριο 2004 από το Παγκόσμιο Βιογραφικό Λεξικό, Αθήνα 1983, της Εκδοτικής Αθηνών
ΠΡΕΒΕΖΑ (Πόλη) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
Καθηγητής Μεταλλογνωσίας στο Μετσόβιο
Πολυτεχνείο, πρύτανης του Ιδρύματος όταν έγινε η εξέγερση των φοιτητών το
Νοέμβριο του 1973. Γεννήθηκε στην Πρέβεζα. Το 1974 εκλέχτηκε βουλευτής και έγινε
υπουργός Βιομηχανίας μέχρι το 1977. Εργάστηκε στη Γαλλική Εταιρεία το χρονικό
διάστημα 1937-1955, ως μηχανικός και ως αρχιμηχανικός παραγωγής. Επινόησε μέθοδο
και κάμινο παραγωγής μίνιου και μέθοδο καθαρισμού του αργύρου με οξυγόνο. Στα
Περιβολάκια, στο άλσος του Κυπριανού, υπάρχει η προτομή του.
ΚΥΨΕΛΗ (Χωριό) ΑΡΤΑ
Ο Δημήτρης Κουτσοσπύρος γεννήθηκε στην Κυψέλη της Αρτας. Πολύ γρήγορα
εγκαταστάθηκε στο Αγρίνιο, όπου ζει και δημιουργεί μέχρι σήμερα. Με τη ζωγραφική
ασχολήθηκε μικρός. Παρόλο που σπούδασε ζωγραφική και σχέδιο στην Αθήνα, θεωρείται
αυτοδίδακτος, και η δύναμη του χρωστήρα του δείχνει έναν καλλιτέχνη που βαδίζει
στα χνάρια των μεγάλων ζωγράφων.
Με τη ζωγραφική ασχολείται αποκλειστικά από το 1968. Εργάστηκε ως
αγιογράφος, φιλοτέχνησε σκηνικά θεάτρου, εικονογράφησε περιοδικά και ημερολόγια.
Έχει παρουσιάσει το έργο του σε εννέα ατομικές εκθέσεις σε όλη την Ελλάδα. Από
το 1972 διατηρεί μόνιμη έκθεση στην οδό Παπαστράτου 73, στο Αγρίνιο.
Το ατελιέ του έχει μεταμορφωθεί σε κέντρο εικαστικών τεχνών για την
Αιτωλοακαρνανία και είναι ένα καλλιτεχνικό εργαστήρι, όπου νέοι άνθρωποι, δημιουργοί,
μαθητές βρίσκουν δημιουργικό καταφύγιο. Το έργο του έχουν κριτικάρει με ευνοϊκότατα
σχόλια άνθρωποι των τεχνών και των γραμμάτων. Δικά του έργα κοσμούν Δημόσια Ιδρύματα,
Πινακοθήκες, Μουσεία, Ιδιωτικές Συλλογές στην Ελλάδα και το εξωτερικό.
Τα θέματά του είναι παρμένα κυρίως από την ελληνική ύπαιθρο. Ακολουθούν
κλασικές φόρμες, που όμως το φιλοσοφικό βάθος,το παιχνίδι της φαντασίας και η
λεπτομέρεια στη σύνθεση δείχνουν την ευαισθησία του δημιουργού και τη δύναμη του
γνήσιου ταλέντου του.
Ο προβληματισμός του καλλιτέχνη περνάει στο θεατή όμορφα, γλυκά, ομαλά,
χωρίς αισθητικούς βαρβαρισμούς και ανταμώνει λυτρωτικά τις ανησυχίες τους γιατί,
όπως τονίζει ο Δημήτρης Κουτσοσπύρος, αυτός είναι και ο προορισμός της τέχνης:
"Αναγκαιότητα για ένα ζωγράφο και γενικότερα για τον καλλιτέχνη είναι να
εκφράζει μέσα από το ψυχικό και συναισθηματικό είναι του, το συνάνθρωπό του".
Είναι μέλος του Επιμελητηρίου Εικαστικών Τεχνών Ελλάδος.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Νοέμβριο 2004 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα, με φωτογραφίες, της Νομαρχίας Αιτωλοακαρνανίας
ΑΜΒΡΑΚΙΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
Γιος του Αικίδη, βασιλιάς της Ηπείρου με έδρα την Αμβρακία, έκανε πολέμους εναντίον των Λακεδαιμονίων και των Ρωμαίων.
Περισσότερες πληροφορίες στην Αρχαία Ηπειρο
Of Ambracia; an Athenian writer of the Middle Comedy.
Epicrates, (Epikrates), of Ambracia, was an Athenian comic poet of the middle comedy, according to the testimony of Athenaens (x.), confirmed by extant fragments of his plays, in which he ridicules Plato and his disciples, Spensippus and Menedemus, and in which lie refers to the courtezan Lais, as being now far advanced in years. (Athen. ii., xiii.) From these indications Meineke infers that he flourished between the 101st and 108th Olympiads (B. C. 376-348). Two plays of Epicrates, Emporos and Antilais are mentioned by Suidas (s. v.), and are quoted by Athenaeus (xiv., xiii.), who also quotes his Amazunes (x.) and Duspratos (vi.), and informs us that in the latter play Epicrates copied some things from the Duspratos of Antiphanes. Aelian (N. A. xii. 10) quotes the Choros of Epicrates. We have also one long fragment (Athen. ii.) and two shorter ones (Athen. xi. ; Pollux, iv. 121) from his unknown plays. (Meineke, Frag. Com. Graec. vol. i., vol. iii. ; Fabric. Bibl. Graec. vol. ii.)
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Oct 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΠΛΑΤΑΝΟΥΣΣΑ (Χωριό) ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ
Γεννήθηκε στην Πλατανούσα Ηπείρου, το 1914. Μελέτησε αρχικά βιολί
με τον Γεώργιο Ψύλλα στο Εθνικό Ωδείο (αποφοίτησε το 1939) και αργότερα σπούδασε
σύνθεση με το Λεωνίδα Ζώρα και το Μανώλη Καλομοίρη (δίπλωμα 1955). Ουσιαστικά,
όμως, μπορεί να θεωρηθεί αυτοδίδακτος συνθέτης καθώς - όπως σημειώνει ο Γ. Λεωτσάκος
- "το ενδιαφέρον του για τις νεότερες τεχνοτροπίες εκδηλώθηκε εντελώς ανεξάρτητα
από τους δασκάλους του, χάρη σε δική του πρωτοβουλία".
Οι πρώτες του συνθέσεις (σχετικά αργά, σε ηλικία 43 ετών), χαρακτηρίζονται
ήδη από ωριμότητα και πυκνότητα στην έκφραση, καρπό της εμπειρίας του από τις
εθνικές περιπέτειες. Ολο το έργο του διακρίνεται για τη βαθειά αίσθηση ελληνικότητας,
χωρίς συγκεκριμένες μελωδικές και ρυθμικές αναφορές, αλλά κυρίως μέσα από μουσικές
μνήμες, που γονιμοποιούν την έμπνευσή του καθώς μεταπλάθονται σε μικρά μοτίβα
και ρυθμικά οστινάτι.
"Εγινα μουσικός χάρη στη μητέρα μου που μου έλεγε ηπειρώτικα τραγούδια"
αναφέρει και θυμάται με συγκίνηση τον πατέρα του που έπαιζε ηπειρώτικους σκοπούς
χρησιμοποιώντας ένα απλό φύλλο κισσού για γλωσσίδι!...
Πολυγραφότατος, έχει συνθέσει πάνω από 100 έργα, κυρίως ορχηστρικά
και μουσική δωματίου. Ανάμεσά τους πέντε συμφωνίες, κοντσέρτα για κλαρινέτο, βιολί,
βιολοντσέλο, όμποε, πιάνο, δύο κιθάρες και τούμπα, κοντσερτίνο για κόρνο, πέντε
κουαρτέτα εγχόρδων, δύο σονάτες για βιολί και πιάνο, σονατίνες, τρίο, μουσική
για παραστάσεις αρχαίου δράματος, κύκλους τραγουδιών, ηλεκτρονική μουσική, κ.ά.
Εξι έργα του έχουν βραβευτεί και το 1981 η "Πέμπτη Συμφωνία" του τιμήθηκε
με το Α' Βραβείο στο Διαγωνισμό Σύνθεσης του Υπουργείου Πολιτισμού. Από το 1977
διδάσκει σύνθεση στο Εθνικό Ωδείο.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Μάρτιο 2003 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα, με φωτογραφία, του Συλλόγου Οι Φίλοι της Μουσικής "Λίλιαν Βουδούρη"
ΣΟΥΛΟΠΟΥΛΟ (Χωριό) ΔΩΔΩΝΗ
1861 - 1937
Ποιητής
ΣΟΥΛΙ (Κοινότητα) ΘΕΣΠΡΩΤΙΑ
Επώνυμο μιας από τις σημαντικότερες οικογένειες του Σουλίου όπου και
εγκαταστάθηκαν τις πρώτες δεκαετίες του 17ου αιώνα. Ως τόπος καταγωγής αναφέρεται
το χωριό Δράγανη της Παραμυθιάς, ενώ, σύμφωνα με την οικογενειακή παράδοση, η
φάρα κατάγεται από τα λείψανα της στρατιάς του Γεωργίου Καστριώτη (Σκεντέρμπεη).
Η δράση της οικογένειας είναι συνδεδεμένη με τους πολέμους των Σουλιωτών εναντίον
του Αλή Πασά των Ιωαννίνων και με τον Αγώνα της Ελληνικής Ανεξαρτησίας. Ορισμένες
διαπραγματεύσεις όμως του Γιώργη και του Κίτσου Μπότσαρη με τον Αλή έβλαψαν τους
συμπατριώτες τους και μείωσαν το γόητρο της οικογενείας στα τέλη του 18ου και
τις αρχές του 19ου αι. Ηρωικές σελίδες έγραψαν και τα γυναικεία μέλη της φάρας.
Η Λένω Μπότσαρη (1785 - 1804) αφού αγωνίστηκε στη μονή
Σέλτσου ρίχτηκε και πνίγηκε στα νερά του Αχελώου
για να αποφύγει την αιχμαλωσία και την ταπείνωση. Ο Μάρκος Μπότσαρης (Σούλι, 1790
- Κεφαλόβρυσο Καρπενησίου, 1823) υπήρξε ηγετική μορφή της Επανάστασης. Στα τέλη
του 1820 διαπραγματεύτηκε με τον Αλή Πασά την απελευθέρωση του Σουλίου, ορίστηκε
αρχιστράτηγος και έδωσε λαμπρά δείγματα οργανωτικών και στρατηγικών ικανοτήτων.
Στις 3 Ιουλίου 1821 αντιμετώπισε νικηφόρα στο Κομπότι
της ´Αρτας ισχυρή τουρκική δύναμη, αγωνίστηκε στη μάχη του Πέτα,
που κατέληξε σε καταστροφή, και βρέθηκε μεταξύ των υπερασπιστών του Μεσολογγίου
στην πρώτη του πολιορκία (Οκτ. - Δεκ. 1822) όπου παρασύροντας τους Τούρκους σε
πλαστές συνομιλίες έδωσε χρόνο στους πολιορκημένους να ενισχύσουν τις οχυρώσεις.
Τον Ιούλιο του 1822 ξεκίνησε να αντιμετωπίσει τους Τουρκαλβανούς στο Καρπενήσι
και σχεδίασε νυχτερινή αιφνιδιαστική επίθεση, οι Τούρκοι αντέδρασαν αποφασιστικά
και ο Μπότσαρης ήταν από τους πρώτους νεκρούς. Κηδεύτηκε στο Μεσολόγγι
και ο θάνατός του συγκλόνισε το μαχόμενο Ελληνισμό και την ευρωπαϊκή κοινή γνώμη.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Μάιο 2003 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα της Βουλής των Ελλήνων
ΠΛΑΤΑΝΟΥΣΣΑ (Χωριό) ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ
1909 - 1956
Πεζογράφος , Μεταφραστής και Θεατρικός συγγραφέας
ΜΕΤΣΟΒΟ (Κωμόπολη) ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ
(Τρίκαλα, 1910, Αθήνα 1990)
Πολιτικός και συγγραφέας που κατάγεται από το Μέτσοβο. Σπούδασε νομικά
και πολιτικές-οικονομικές επιστήμες στην Ελβετία (διδάκτορας Οικονομικών Επιστημών).
Στον Ελληνοϊταλικό Πόλεμο υπηρέτησε σε μυστική υπηρεσία οργάνωσης δολιοφθορών
στο αλβανικό έδαφος. Το Φεβρουάριο του 1941 ανακλήθηκε και διορίστηκε νομάρχης
της Κέρκυρας. Στη διάρκεια της Κατοχής η αντιστασιακή του δραστηριότητα έγινε
αιτία να συλληφθεί και να εκτοπιστεί σε στρατόπεδο συγκέντρωσης στην Ιταλία. Δραπέτευσε
το 1943 με την ανατροπή του φασιστικού καθεστώτος, αλλά παρέμεινε στο ιταλικό
έδαφος κατευθύνοντας μια ελληνική οργάνωση αντίστασης.
Το 1946 άρχισε την πολιτική του σταδιοδρομία ως βουλευτής Ιωαννίνων
του Κόμματος των Φιλελευθέρων και από τότε εκλέγεται συνεχώς σε όλες τις βουλευτικές
εκλογές με μοναδική εξαίρεση τις εκλογές του 1952. Κατά τη διάρκεια της δικτατορίας
(1967-1974) φυλακίστηκε για τη συμμετοχή του στο αντιδικτατορικό "Κίνημα
του Ναυτικού" (Μάιος 1973).
Διατέλεσε πολλές φορές υπουργός σε κυβερνήσεις του Κόμματος των Φιλελευθέρων,
της ΕΡΕ και της Νέας Δημοκρατίας. Ειδικότερα κατείχε το χαρτοφυλάκιο του υπουργού
των Εξωτερικών σε όλες τις πολιτικές κυβερνήσεις των Κωνσταντίνου Καραμανλή της
περιόδου από το 1956 ως το 1963. Από τη θέση αυτή συνέβαλε στη χάραξη της εθνικής
εξωτερικής πολιτικής κατά την κρίσιμη πρώτη φάση του Κυπριακού. Μετά τη μεταπολίτευση
του Ιουλίου 1974 και ως τον Οκτώβριο του 1981 διετέλεσε υπουργός Εθνικής Αμύνης
στις κυβερνήσεις Κωνσταντίνου Καραμανλή και Γεωργίου Ράλλη και για λίγους μήνες
(1981) αντιπρόεδρος της Κυβέρνησης. Με την ιδιότητα του υπουργού Εθνικής Αμύνης
συνέβαλε ουσιαστικά στην ομαλή αποκατάσταση της δημοκρατικής νομιμότητας, ενώ
παράλληλα ενίσχυσε σημαντικά την πολεμική ετοιμότητα της χώρας. Το Δεκέμβριο του
1981 εκλέχτηκε πρόεδρος του κόμματος της Νέας Δημοκρατίας.
Παράλληλα με την πολιτική του δραστηριότητα, ο Αβέρωφ συνέγραψε επιστημονικά
και λογοτεχνικά έργα που γνώρισαν σημαντική επιτυχία. Ήδη το 1933, απέσπασε το
πρώτο βραβείο του Ινστιτούτου Κάρνεγκη σε διεθνή διαγωνισμό με το βιβλίο του στα
γαλλικά "Τελωνειακή ένωσις των Βαλκανίων" ("Union
Douaniere Balcanique"). Στις επιστημονικές του μελέτες περιλαμβάνονται
το ογκώδες σύγγραμμα "Το πρόβλημα του πληθωρισμού της Ελλάδος"
(1939), "Η πολιτική πλευρά του Κουτσοβλαχικού Ζητήματος" (1948)
και η ιστορική μελέτη "Feu et hache" (1973 στα γαλλικά και
1974 στα ελληνικά με τον τίτλο "Φωτιά και τσεκούρι 1944-1949"),
για την οποία τιμήθηκε με το γαλλικό διεθνές βραβείο "Ακρόπολη".
Το λογοτεχνικό του έργο είναι εμπνευσμένο από τα ζωντανά στοιχεία
της ελληνικής γης και από τις ιστορικές περιπέτειες των Ελλήνων. Στο πρώτο του
μυθιστόρημα "Η φωνή της γης" (1964), που εκτυλίσσεται στη Θεσσαλία
τον καιρό της ιταλικής κατοχής, ο συγγραφέας εκφράζει με δύναμη τους στενούς δεσμούς
του Έλληνα με τη γη του για να καταλήξει στην οδυνηρή ανάταση που δημιουργεί η
σχέση αυτή, όταν η ελευθερία χάνεται και η πατρίδα δοκιμάζεται. Την ίδια δραματική
πορεία εκφράζουν και τα επόμενα εκτενή μυθιστορήματά του. "Η γη της οδύνης"
(1966), και η "Γη δελφύς" (1968), ενώ διακρίνονται για το μυθικό
τους χαρακτήρα και τη ρεμβαστική τους διάθεση τα έργα του "Όταν ξεχνούσαν
οι θεοί" (1969) και "Όταν ευλογούσαν οι θεοί" (1971).
Έγραψε ακόμη το θεατρικό έργο "Επιστροφή στις Μυκήνες" (1973),
διηγήματα και παιδικά παραμύθια ("Περιστέρια"), καθώς και διάφορα
άλλα κείμενα και μελέτες. Έργα του έχουν κυκλοφορήσει στα γαλλικά και τα ιταλικά
και προκάλεσαν πολλές ευμενείς κριτικές.
Ως κληρονόμος του Μιχαήλ Τοσίτσα, εγγονού του ομώνυμου ευεργέτη, ο
Αβέρωφ είναι ιδρυτής (1947) και ισόβιος πρόεδρος του Τοσίτσειου Κληροδοτήματος,
με το οποίο δημιουργήθηκαν πολλά κοινωφελή ιδρύματα. Η πεποίθηση του διαθέτη ήταν
ότι τα στοιχεία της ελληνικής παράδοσης είναι ζωντανά και ότι πάνω σ' αυτά πρέπει
να θεμελιώνεται η νεοελληνική ζωή για να είναι σωστή και γόνιμη. Με το κληροδότημα
αυτό ευνοήθηκαν ξεχωριστά το Μέτσοβο και η Ήπειρος γενικότερα, με αποτέλεσμα να
αναθερμανθεί το ενδιαφέρον των κατοίκων της περιοχής για τις μορφές της παραδοσιακής
ζωής και συμπεριφοράς.
Κείμενο: Κ. Τσιρόπουλος
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Οκτώβριο 2004 από το Παγκόσμιο Βιογραφικό Λεξικό, Αθήνα 1983, της Εκδοτικής Αθηνών
ΣΙΡΑΚΟ (Χωριό) ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ
1773 - 1847
(Συρράκο Ηπείρου 1773 Αθήνα
1847)
Πολιτικός αρχηγός του «γαλλικού» κόμματος. Πρωτοστάτησε στους πολιτικούς
αγώνες ιδιαίτερα κατά την Eπανάσταση και κατά την Οθωνική περίοδο διετέλεσε πρωθυπουργός
(184447). Σπούδασε ιατρική στην Πίζα
και προσλήφθηκε ως γιατρός από το γιο του Αλή Πασά Μουχτάρ. Μυήθηκε το 1819 στην
Φιλική Εταιρεία. Οργάνωσε το 1821 επανάσταση στο Συρράκο και μετά την αποτυχία
της κατέφυγε στην Πελοπόννησο.
Ήταν από τις ισχυρότερες προσωπικότητες της εποχής του και επηρέασε τις πολιτικές
εξελίξεις της επαναστατικής και Οθωνικής περιόδου. Συνέβαλε στη συγκρότηση του
ελληνικού κράτους προσπαθώντας να υιοθετήσει ένα σύστημα διακυβέρνησης δυτικού
τύπου ταλαντευόμενος όμως συνεχώς από τη μια μεριά ανάμεσα στη γαλλική επίδραση
και τους θεσμούς δυτικής προέλευσης και από την άλλη στο ντόπιο στρατιωτικό στοιχείο
και τις παραδοσιακές δομές. Θεωρείται ο πατέρας της «Μεγάλης Ιδέας».
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Μάιο 2003 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα της Βουλής των Ελλήνων
ΤΥΜΦΑΙΟΙ (Αρχαία χώρα) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
394 - 303
Macedonian officer, regent for king Philip Arridaeus and Alexander, the son
of Alexander the Great.
Polyperchon was born as the son of a Macedonian nobleman named Simmias
in the district of Tymphaea, the valley of the Upper Haliacmon.
This was the most backward part of Macedonia. When Alexander became king and invaded
the Achaemenid empire (334), Polyperchon was an officer in the Tymphaean brigade.
Soon, he was promoted: during the battle of Gaugamela (331), he commanded either
the Tymphaean brigade or the foreign troops.
He is usually described as a conservative man, sticking to the old
Macedonian traditions and opposing Alexander's orientalism. For example, he seems
to have mocked the introduction of the Persian court ritual (proskynesis). He
was befriended with other men of his generation, such as Parmenion, Antipater,
and especially Craterus.
His first recorded independent command was in Gandara, where he captured
the town Ora in the Swat valley (spring 326). During the campaign in the Indus
valley, he belonged to the army of Craterus, which returned earlier than the main
army. In 324, both men were ordered to lead 11,500 veterans from Babylonia to
Macedonia. It is likely that
Alexander wanted to have conservative commanders like Craterus and Polyperchon
as far as possible from the main force; it was a way to silence the opposition
against his oriental policy.
It took some time to arrive in Macedonia. In Cilicia,
the veterans had to built the fleet that Alexander wanted to use to attack Carthage.
The soldiers were still working when they heard that on June 11, 323, Alexander
had died in Babylon.
Immediately, the Greeks revolted. The commander of the Macedonian
forces in Europe, Antipater, was for some time besieged in a fortress named Lamia,
but managed to break out. It was only when Craterus and Polyperchon arrived, that
the rebels could be defeated at Crannon
in Thessaly (September 5,
322).
Not much later, civil war broke out, the First Diadoch War (322-320).
Alexander had died without successor: his half-brother Philip Arridaeus was a
bastard and mentally unfit to rule, and his queen Roxane gave birth to a baby
(Alexander) who would not be old enough to rule until 305. Therefore, one of the
generals, Perdiccas, was made regent. However, several other generals felt neglected,
and when Perdiccas engaged himself to the sister of Alexander the Great, Cleopatra,
they became afraid of the regent's power.
The main rebels were Craterus, Antipater, Antigonus Monophthalmus,
and Ptolemy of Egypt. On
the other side, Perdiccas was supported by Eumenes, who defeated Craterus. Perdiccas
himself was less successful: when his invasion of Egypt failed, he was killed
by his officers Antigenes, Peithon, and Seleucus (summer 320).
Now the regency was offered to Ptolemy, who did not accept this impossible
task, and instead appointed Peithon and Arridaeus, officers without much prestige
and experience, who would never keep the empire united. Antipater, on the other
hand, still wanted to maintain the unity. He went to Syria,
where he organized a meeting with the other generals. (Polyperchon was in charge
of Macedonia.) Late in 320, Antipater was made regent and remained supreme commander
of the Macedonian forces in Europe; Antigonus was to be commander in Asia; and
Ptolemy's independence was more or less recognized. The royal family now went
to Macedonia.
Within a year, Antipater succumbed to old age. On his death bed, he
made Polyperchon regent and supreme commander; Antipater's son Cassander was to
be his vizier. However, the latter was not content with this position, organized
a rebellion, was supported by king Philip's wife Eurydice, and allied himself
to Ptolemy. In fact, this was the end of all attempts to keep the empire intact.
From now on, the political role of the Macedonian house was ended; within three
years, most of its members were dead.
At the same time, Antigonus decided that he could try to become more
independent. He commanded the world's largest army, and had established his superiority
over the satraps in what is now Turkey.
It is likely that he was already dreaming of universal rule. He joined the coalition
of Cassander and Ptolemy. This was the beginning of the Second Diadoch War (319-315).
Polyperchon, however, was not defeated yet and briefly rose to the
occasion. For example, he made king Philip write a letter patent to Eumenes, who
was still fighting a guerilla war against Antigonus. The letter said that he could
take command of several military units from Antigonus' army; since it was written
by Alexander's beloved brother, this was a serious drawback for Antigonus. Eumenes
immediately seized one of the royal treasures, and having men and money, he went
to Phoenicia, where he repelled Ptolemy's forces and started to build a navy for
Polyperchon (spring 318).
In the meantime, Polyperchon had decreed that the Greek towns, which
had been garrisoned by Antipater, would be 'free and autonomous' again. The result
was less than satisfactory. Most towns sided with the new ruler of Macedonia,
but Piraeus, the important
port of Athens, sided with Cassander. The decision in the war was to take place
somewhere else.
In the autumn of 318, Polyperchon's navy was defeated by Antigonus'
fleet in the Bosporus, and
because the navy that Eumenes was building never appeared, Polyperchon lost the
control of the Aegean Sea
to Antigonus. Cassander was the main profiteer. He secured the support of Athens
and in the spring of 317, he was recognized as ruler of Macedonia and regent of
king Philip Arridaeus.
Polyperchon, however, had made his escape to Epirus in the west. In
his presence were Alexander's wife Roxane and his son, the infant Alexander. He
was joined by Olympias, the mother of Alexander the Great, and king Aeacidas of
Epirus. It was not a very
powerful coalition, but it stillcould play a trump card: the boy Alexander was
the lawful successor of the great Alexander, whereas Philip Arridaeus was a mere
bastard of Philip. When they invaded Macedonia
in October 317, king Philip and queen Eurydice met them at the frontier -Cassander
was campaigning in the Peloponnese- but their entire army deserted them and joined
the enemy. Olympias had her stepson executed, forced Eurydice to commit suicide,
and massacred many supporters of Cassander. However, Cassander was approaching
and besieged Olympias in Pydna,
a harbor town at the foot of the holy mountain Olympus.
Although both Polyperchon and Aeacidas tried to relieve her, she was forced to
surrender and killed (spring 316).
In the meantime, Antigonus was fighting a war against Eumenes, which
lasted some time. In the end, Antigonus was victorious: now he controlled all
Asia between the Aegean Sea and the Hindu Kush mountain range. And he was dangerously
powerful. As one could expect, a new civil war broke out: the Third Diadoch War,
in which Cassander and Ptolemy opposed Antigonus (314-311).
By now, Polyperchon was almost powerless, but he still controlled
parts of the Peloponnese, and could still claim that he was, officially, the regent
of the boy king Alexander and his mother Roxane (who were kept in custody by Cassander).
Antigonus allied himself to the old man: he sent him money, and in return accepted
the title of regent. Polyperchon was now reduced from general to officer. At the
same time, Cassander offered him a more prestigious position, but Polyperchon
refused. His son accepted, but was murdered. His widow kept the two cities which
he had commanded, Sicyon
and Corinth, for Polyperchon
and Antigonus. Other towns now gave up their alliance with Cassander, and in 313,
large parts of the Peloponnese were for Antigonus. Cassander was now forced to
open negotiations, which led to nothing.
In the next two years, Cassander and Ptolemy seized the initiative
again, and Antigonus suffered several drawbacks. In the autumn of 311, a peace
treaty was concluded, in which they agreed to an armistice, recognized each other
as rulers, and agreed that the boy Alexander would be king in 305. At the same
time, Antigonus distanced himself from Polyperchon.
The results of the treaty were, as one could expect, the murder of
Roxane and her son, and the preparation of a new round of war. This time, Antigonus
was occupied in the east, where Seleucus and Peithon were in open revolt. (Both
were murderers of Perdiccas, but this is coincidence.) To keep some pressure on
Cassander, Antigonus sent a young man named Heracles to Polyperchon; he was the
son of Alexander the Great and his Persian mistress Barsine.
Again, Cassander opened negotiations, pointing at Antigonus' unreliable
behavior. This time, Polyperchon understood that he was not fighting for the Macedonian
royal house, but for an usurper. He sided with Cassander and ordered the execution
of Barsine and Heracles (309).
This was the end of Polyperchon's' political career. He remained master
of the Peloponnese, where he was still active in 304. He died, not much later.
The year is not known, but he was more than ninety years old.
Polyperchon was an officer and possessed all qualities of an officer:
he was courageous, loyal, and was willing to stubbornly defend a hopeless position
- such as the Macedonian royal house, long after it had become clear that there
was no place for the royals in the world of the Diadochi. Only at the end of his
career, he understood that he had become a relict of an ancient time.
Jona Lendering, ed.
This text is cited July 2003 from the Livius Ancient History Website URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks.
ΒΟΥΡΜΠΙΑΝΗ (Χωριό) ΚΟΝΙΤΣΑ
1891 - 1966
Διακρίθηκε ιδιαίτερα κατά τον Ελληνοϊταλικό πόλεμο.
ΦΙΛΙΠΠΙΑΔΑ (Κωμόπολη) ΠΡΕΒΕΖΑ
1924
ΑΜΒΡΑΚΙΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
Deidameia. Daughter of Pyrrhus II., king of Epeirus, after the death of her father
and the murder of her uncle Ptolemy, was the last surviving representative of
the royal race of the Aeacidae. She threw herself into Ambracia, but was induced
by the offer of an honourable capitulation to surrender. The Epeirots, however,
determining to secure their liberty by extirpating the whole royal family, resolved
to put her to death; she fled for refuge to the temple of Artemis, but was murdered
in the sanctuary itself. (Polyaen. viii. 52; Justin, xxviii. 3, by whom she is
erroneously called Laudamia Pats. iv. 35.3.) The date of this event cannot be
accurately fixed, but it occurred during the reign of Demetrius II. in Macedonia
(B. C. 239-229), and probably in the early part of it. Schorn (Gesch. Griechenl.)
supposes Deidameia to be a daughter of the elder Pyrrhus, not the younger, but
this is certainly a mistake.
This text is from: A dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology, 1873 (ed. William Smith). Cited Oct 2005 from The Perseus Project URL below, which contains interesting hyperlinks
ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ (Αρχαία χώρα) ΕΛΛΑΔΑ
Alexarchus (Alexarchos), a Greek historian, who wrote a work on the history of Italy (Italika), of which Plutarch (Parallel. 7) quotes the third book. Servius (ad Aen. iii. 334) mentions an opinion of his respecting the origin of the names Epeirus and Campania, which unquestionably belonged to his work on Italy. The writer of this name, whom Plutarch mentions in another passage (De, Is. et Os.), is probably a different person.
ΑΜΒΡΑΚΙΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
Tyrant of Ambracia, and contemporary with his more famous namesake of Corinth, to whom he was also related, being the son of Gorgus, who was son or brother to Cypselus. Periander was deposed by the people about B.C. 585.
For example the attack on the Pisistratidae took place because they outraged Harmodius's
sister and treated Harmodius with contumely (for Harmodius attacked them because
of his sister and Aristogiton because of Harmodius, and also the plot was laid
against Periander the tyrant in Ambracia because when drinking . . .
ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ (Πόλη) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
1788 - 1851
(Γιάννενα,1788 - Μόσχα, 1851)
´Eνας από τους τρεις ιδρυτές της Φιλικής Εταιρείας. Γιος του
Νικηφόρου Τεκελή. Aναγκάστηκε να καταφύγει στη Ρωσία
πριν τελειώσει τις σπουδές του κι από εκεί στο Παρίσι
αφού προηγουμένως άλλαξε το επώνυμό του σε Τσακάλωφ. Το 1813 επέστρεψε στην Ρωσία
και συναντήθηκε στην Οδησσό
με τον Νικόλαο Σκουφά και τον Εμμανουήλ Ξάνθο. Λίγο αργότερα 1814 ίδρυσαν τη Φιλική
Εταιρεία. ´Oταν το 1821 ανέλαβε την ηγεσία ο Αλέξανδρος Υψηλάντης, ο Τσακάλωφ
έσπευσε στη Μολδοβλαχία, από την Πίζα
όπου βρισκόταν, για να συμμετάσχει στον αγώνα και συνόδευσε το Δ. Υψηλάντη στην
Ελλάδα ως υπασπιστής του. Ο
Τσακάλωφ με σημαντική συμβολή στην προετοιμασία του Αγώνα, δεν αναμίχθηκε στο
πολιτικά πράγματα και δεν ανέλαβε διοικητικές ή άλλες θέσεις. Μόνο μετά την άφιξη
του Καποδίστρια τον βρίσκουμε υπάλληλο του Γενικού Φροντιστηρίου και πληρεξούσιο
της Ηπείρου στη Δ´ Eθνοσυνέλευση
του ´Aργους (1829).
Μετά τη δολοφονία του Καποδίστρια εγκαταστάθηκε στη Μόσχα,
όπου και πέθανε το 1851 χωρίς καμιά ανάμειξη στα κοινά.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Μάιο 2003 από την ακόλουθη ιστοσελίδα της Βουλής των Ελλήνων
ΜΟΝΟΔΕΝΔΡΙ (Χωριό) ΔΩΔΩΝΗ
1760 - 1824
1769 - 1841
ΑΜΒΡΑΚΙΑ (Αρχαία πόλη) ΗΠΕΙΡΟΣ
Cleombrotus (Kleombrotos), an Academic philosopher of Ambracia, who is said to have thrown
himself down from a high wall, after reading the Phaedon of Plato; not that he
had any sufferings to escape from, but that he might exchange this life for a
better (Callimach. Epigr. 60; Agath. Schol. Ep. 60. v. 17; Lucian, Philop. 1;
Cic. pro Scaur. ii. 4, Tusc. i. 34; Augustin. de Civ. Dei, i. 22). The disciple
of Socrates, whom Plato mentions as being in Aegina when Socrates died, may possibly
be the same person (Phaedon, 2)
But these Greeks invent heaps of stories and among them they make out that Cleombrotus of Ambracia threw himself down from a high wall not because he had suffered any misfortune, but (as I see it written among the Greeks) after having read a very eloquently and elegantly written book, of that greatest of philosophers Plato about death; the one, I suppose, in which Socrates, on that very day on which he was to die, argues at great length that this is death which we fancy to be life when the soul is held in shut up in the body as in a prison and that that is life when the same soul, having been released from the bonds of the body, flies back to that place from which it originated. . .
ΜΕΤΣΟΒΟ (Κωμόπολη) ΙΩΑΝΝΙΝΑ
(Μέτσοβο 1706 - Ιάσιο 1773)
Σπουδαίος νεωτερικός φιλόσοφος. (Αναφέρεται και ως Ζερτζούλης ή
Ζορτούλλιος ή Τζαρτζούλης ή Τζερτζέλης). Μαθήτευσε αρχικά στο Μέτσοβο, αργότερα
στα Ιωάννινα (κοντά στον Μπαλάνο Βασιλόπουλο) και ύστερα από μια περίοδο διδασκαλίας
στην Τρίκκη (1736-48) και στα Ιωάννινα (Σχολή Γκιούνμα 1748-50) σπούδασε φιλοσοφία,
μαθηματικά και ιατρική στην Ιταλία (1751-55). Στη συνέχεια δίδαξε στο Μέτσοβο
και ως υποδιδάσκαλος στην Πατριαρχική Ακαδημία της Κωνσταντινουπόλεως. Το 1759
κλήθηκε να διαδεχτεί τον Ευγένιο Βούλγαρη στη σχολαρχία της Αθωνιάδος Ακαδημίας,
στα 1761-66 σχολάρχησε στο Μέτσοβο, στον Τύρναβο και στην Τρίκκη και κατέληξε
στο Ιάσιο, όπου δίδαξε στην εκεί Ακαδημία και έδρασε συγγραφικά ως το θάνατό
του.
Το συγγραφικό και μεταφραστικό έργο του Ζερζούλη είναι όλο σχεδόν
ανέκδοτο. Σώζονται δύο χαρακτηριστικά κείμενα, που έχουν θέμα τους προβλήματα
φυσικής φιλοσοφίας (στα πλαίσια διαμάχης του με το γνωστό "περιπατητικό"
φιλόσοφο Δωρόθεο το Λέσβιο), καθώς και η μετάφραση (από τα λατινικά) της Αριθμητικής,
Γεωμετρίας και Τριγωνομετρίας του Κρίστιαν Βόλφερ. Δε σώζονται δυστυχώς
οι μεταφράσεις των Στοιχείων του Νεύτωνα (η πρώτη μετάφραση σε άλλη
γλώσσα του έργου-σταθμού, στην ιστορία της επιστήμης) και της Πειραματικής
Φυσικής του φημισμένου Ολλανδού Πέτερ βαν Μάσσενμπρουκ.
Για την αξία του Ζερζούλη και τη θέση του στη φιλοσοφική παιδεία
της εποχής του την καλύτερη μαρτυρία αποτελεί η κρίση του Ιώσηπου Μοισιόδακα:
"Ένας Ευγένιος Βούλγαρις, ένας Νικηφόρος Θεοτόκης, ένας Νικόλαος Ζορτούλλιος
είναι οι πρώτοι λογάδες, άξιοι και οι τρεις να συγγράφουν και να παραδίδουν
με ακρίβειαν πάσαν επιστήμην. Όλη η Ελλάς πρέπει να τους σέβεται, διότι αυτοί
σπουδάζουν ν' ανακαλέσουν τας Μούσας εις τον πάτριον Ελικώνα των".
Βιβλιογραφία: Λ.Γ. Μπενάκης, "Από την ιστορία του μεταβυζαντινού Αριστοτελισμού στον ελληνικό χώρο. Νικόλας Ζερζούλης - Δωρόθεος Λέσβιος", Φιλοσοφία 7 (1977). Του ίδιου "Ανέκδοτο κείμενο του Νικολάου Ζερζούλη για θέματα Θεολογίας, φιλοσοφίας και επιστήμης" Δευκαλίων.
Το κείμενο παρατίθεται τον Οκτώβριο 2004 από το Παγκόσμιο Βιογραφικό Λεξικό, Αθήνα 1983, της Εκδοτικής Αθηνών
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