Military Wiki
Military Wiki
Dimitrios Ypsilantis
Dimitrios Ypsilantis - Sp. Prosalentis
Native name Greek: Δημήτριος Υψηλάντης
Romanian language: Dumitru Ipsilanti
Born 1793
Died 16 August 1832(1832-08-16)
Place of birth Constantinople, Ottoman Empire
Place of death Nafplion, Greece
Allegiance Russia
Greece
Years of service 1814-1832
Commands held Moldavia and eastern Greece
Battles/wars Greek War of Independence (Battle of Dervenakia, Battle of Petra)

Demetrios Ypsilantis (also spelt using Dimitrios, Demetrius and/or Ypsilanti; Greek: Δημήτριος Υψηλάντης; Romanian language: Dumitru Ipsilanti

1793 – August 16, 1832) was a dragoman of the Ottoman Empire, served as an officer in the Imperial Russian Army in Moldavia and was appointed as modern Greece's first Field Marshal by Ioannis Kapodistrias, a hero of the Greek War of Independence. Ypsilantis was the brother of Alexander Ypsilantis, a leader of Filiki Eteria.

Early life[]

A member of an important Phanariote family, he was the second son of Prince Constantine Ypsilantis of Moldavia. He was sent to France where he was educated at a French military school.

Union of Moldavia and Wallachia[]

He distinguished himself as a Russian officer in the campaign of 1814. In 1821 there was a Greek rebellion under Demetrios Ypsilantis, in Moldavia, that indirectly benefited the Principalities (of Moldavia and Wallachia).[1]

The Greek War of Independence[]

File:Ypsilantisflag.jpg

The flag of the Sacred Band.

Ypsilanti Water Tower 2011

A bust of Demetrius Ypsilantis in front of the Ypsilanti Water Tower in Ypsilanti, Michigan, USA.

In 1821 he went to the Morea, where the Greek War of Independence had just broken out. He was one of the most conspicuous of the Phanariote leaders during the early stages of the revolt, though he was much hampered by the local chiefs and by the civilian element headed by Prince Alexander Mavrocordatos, as a result the organisation of a regular army was slowed and operations were limited.[2]

On 15 January 1822, he was elected president of the legislative assembly. However, due to the failure of his campaign in central Greece, and his failure to obtain a commanding position in the national convention of Astros, he was compelled to retire in 1823.

In 1828, he was appointed by Ioannis Kapodistrias as commander of the troops in eastern Greece. On 25 September 1829, he successfully compelled the Turkish commander Aslan Bey to capitulate at the Pass of Petra, thus ending the active operations of the war.

Romance[]

He was known for an affair with Manto Mavrogenous who was a Greek heroine of the Greek War of Independence.

Death[]

He died at Nafplion on August 16, 1832. The city of Ypsilanti, Michigan in the United States - founded in 1825, during the Greek struggle for independence - is named after him. A bust of Demetrios Ypsilanti stands between American and Greek flags at the base of the landmark Ypsilanti Water Tower.

See also[]

References[]

  1. East, The Union of Moldavia and Wallachia, 1859, p. 8.
  2. John S. Koliopoulos, Brigands with a Cause - Brigandage and Irredentism in Modern Greece 1821-1912, Clarendon Press Oxford (1987), p. 68.

Sources[]

  • East, The Union of Moldavia and Wallachia, 1859 - An Episode in Diplomatic History, Thirlwall Prize Essay for 1927, Cambridge University Press (1929).
All or a portion of this article consists of text from Wikipedia, and is therefore Creative Commons Licensed under GFDL.
The original article can be found at Demetrios Ypsilantis and the edit history here.