Dimitrios Kallergis | |
|---|---|
| Δημήτριος Καλλέργης | |
 Kallergis in Paris in 1865 photographed byAndré Disdéri | |
| Minister of Military Affairs | |
| In office 1854–1855 | |
| Monarch | Otto |
| Prime Minister | Alexandros Mavrokordatos |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1803 Eyalet of Crete,Ottoman Empire (nowGreece) |
| Died | 8 April 1867 Athens,Kingdom of Greece |
| Resting place | First Cemetery of Athens |
| Political party | French Party Russian Party |
| Awards |  Grand Cross of theOrder of the Redeemer |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  First Hellenic Republic Kingdom of Greece |
| Branch/service |  Hellenic Army |
| Years of service | 1821–1867 |
| Rank | Major General |
| Battles/wars | |
Dimitrios Kallergis (Greek:Δημήτριος Καλλέργης; 1803 – 8 April 1867) was a fighter of theGreek War of Independence, major general, politician and one of the most important protagonists of the3 September 1843 Revolution.
Kallergis was born in 1803 inCrete.[1] Hailing from the distinguished CretanKallergis family, a historic family ofMylopotamos, the roots of which lay in theByzantine Empire and which had risen to prominence under theVenetian domination of the island. He was left fatherless at an early age and he was sent toRussia to the care of the Tsar's Minister of Foreign Affairs,Count Nesselrode, who appears in some sources is mentioned as his uncle.[1] After completing his general studies he went to Vienna in order to study medicine.[1] On the outbreak of theGreek War of Independence went to theMorea and joined the insurgents.[2]
On 19 January 1822 he disembarked with his relatives, Emmanuel and Nikolaos Kallergis, and the officer Valianos in Hydra bringing with them ammunitions, whose worth was 100.000 rubles and a recommendation letter of bishop Ignatius Oungrovlachias.[3]
During the summer of 1825 he took on along with his compatriot Emmanuel Antoniadis the leadership of the campaign in Crete. On 2 August 200 revolutionaries occupied the fortress ofGramvousa, in which many pirates assembled during the next months.[4] The campaign failed while, according to the American PhilhelleneSamuel Gridley Howe, Kallergis was unsuitable for the leader's position.[5] Subsequently he participated in the expedition ofGeorgios Karaiskakis inRoumeli and he was distinguished.[6] In October 1826 he participated in the failed attack ofColonel Fabvier against Thebes (it was sent as reinforcement by Karaiskakis).[7]
On 30 January 1827 he took part in the victoriousBattle of Kastella where he had significant contributions and on 20 February he defended strongly the area of the Three Towers, which was eventually conquered by the Ottomans but she had suffered several losses.[8] He was captured by the enemy forces during the disastrousBattle of Phaleron, where he was leader of the Cretan fighters.[9] Finally, he was released after his family paid a large sum for his ransom but during his captivity, one of his ears was cut by the Ottomans.[10]
During the government ofIoannis Kapodistrias, Kallergis was one of his supporters.[1] He served as his adjutant and he proceeded to the organization of a regular body of the cavalry, where he became deputy commander.[11] After the governor's assassination he had sided withAugustinos Kapodistrias and he actively participated in the civil conflicts of the time. During January 1832 he fought as a cavalry officer in the Battle of Argos[12] and in March in the Battle of Loutraki where his forces and those ofNikitaras were defeated by the troops ofIoannis Kolettis.[13]
At the same time, he followed a military career as an officer in the regular army[14] while he was actively involved in the political issues of that period, first as a follower of theRussian Party and then of theFrench Party.[15] In 1834, during theBavarian regency and the Kolettis government he was imprisoned as a supporter of the Russian Party, whose significant members had made at that time various uprisings in the Greek territory.[16]
In 1843, as colonel of thecavalry,[14] he was a leading figure of the3 September 1843 Revolution againstOtto which forced the king to dismiss hisBavarian ministers and grant a constitution. He was appointed military commandant of Athens, promoted to major general andaide de camp to the king. In 1845 he was dismissed by the army and withdrew from Greece, following an incident between him and Queen Amalia. He went toLondon, where he became friend withLouis Napoleon, nephew ofNapoleon I and later Emperor of the French, which he followed later inParis and so he became follower of the French policy.[15]
In 1848 he made an abortive descent on the Greek coast, in the hope of launching a revolution in the Greek kingdom. He was captured, but soon released and, after a stay in the island ofZante, went to Paris (1853).[2] In 1854, during theCrimean War, he served as Minister of Military Affairs in theAlexandros Mavrokordatos cabinet—imposed by the British and French, and hence called "Ministry of Occupation" by the Greeks. Until Mavrokordatos' arrival, Kallergis exercised authority as a dictator,[17] with the full support of the French occupation troops. This particular government recalled all the Greek officers who participated in the anti-Ottoman revolutionary movements in Thessaly, Epirus and Macedonia to return to Greece while by personal requirement of Kallergis, Otto's adjutants—Gennaios Kolokotronis,Spyromilios,Ioannis Mamouris andGardikiotis Grivas—were dismissed, while the hitherto Minister of Military Affairs,Skarlatos Soutsos, was suspended.[18]
When he was the minister, Kallergis formed for the first time in Greece a fire brigade. In September 1855, a serious episode of Kallergis with the royal couple entailed the fall of Mavrokordatos' government.[19] In 1861 he was appointedminister plenipotentiary in Paris, in which capacity he took an important part in the negotiations which followed the fall of the Bavarian dynasty and led to the accession ofPrince George of Denmark to the Greek throne.[2]
In 1866 he participated in the two-day government ofDimitrios Voulgaris as Minister of Military Affairs.[20] In mid-1866 he returned to Greece as chief equerry of KingGeorge I. He proposed to the king to assign him the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, arguing that with the help of the governments of France and Italy he would be able to accomplish the vision of theMegali Idea, but King George didn't believe it.[21] In the summer of the same year he was elected by the Cretans as leader of theCretan Revolt, but in September he refused the post because of health problems.[15]
In January 1867 he was appointed as Ambassador of Greece to theUnited States but during the trip he fell ill in Paris and returned to Athens, where he died on 8 April 1867 ofhemiplegia.[22]
Kallergis was depicted on thereverse of the Greek 50drachmas commemorative coin issued in 1994 for the 150th anniversary of thefirst Greek Constitution.[23]
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Kalergis, Dimitri".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 640.
