Konstantinos Despotopoulos ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Δεσποτόπουλος; 8 February 1913 – 7 February 2016) was a Greek philosopher and intellectual who became a university professor and the
of Greece.
Biography
Konstantinos Despotopoulos was born in Smyrna (now
Izmir), then part of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
, in 1913. Following the destruction of the city and the flight of its Greek population at the end of the
Greco-Turkish War of 1919–22, his family settled in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
.
He attended the 1st Gymnasium of Athens, which he graduated with perfect marks, and received his PhD from the
University of Athens
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA; el, Εθνικό και Καποδιστριακό Πανεπιστήμιο Αθηνών, ''Ethnikó ke Kapodistriakó Panepistímio Athinón''), usually referred to simply as the Univers ...
in Philosophy, again with perfect marks.
He taught Philosophy of Law and general philosophy courses at the University of Athens, the
University of Nancy
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
, and the
Panteion University
The Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences ( el, Πάντειον Πανεπιστήμιο Κοινωνικών και Πολιτικών Επιστημών), usually referred to simply as the Panteion University, is a university loc ...
.
In 1984 he was elected a member of the
Academy of Athens, serving as its chairman in 1993.
He was a foreign Fellow of the
Romanian Academy
The Romanian Academy ( ro, Academia Română ) is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 active members who are elected for life.
According to its byl ...
and the
Académie de Marseille
The Académie de Marseille, officially the Académie des sciences, lettres et arts de Marseille, is a French learned society based in Marseille. It was founded in 1726 and includes those in the city involved in the arts, letters, and sciences.
Hi ...
.
As an active member of the
National Liberation Front during the
Axis occupation of Greece, following the outbreak of the
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος όλεμος ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom ...
he was dismissed from his post at the university and spent the years 1947–50 in
internal exile at
Makronisos
Makronisos ( el, Μακρόνησος, lit. ''Long Island''), or Makronisi, is an island in the Aegean sea, in Greece, notorious as the site of a political prison from the 1920s to the 1970s. It is located close to the coast of Attica, facing the ...
.
From 1989 to 1990 he served as
of Greece in the
caretaker cabinet
A caretaker government is a temporary ''ad hoc'' government that performs some governmental duties and functions in a country until a regular government is elected or formed. Depending on specific practice, it usually consists of either randomly se ...
of
Ioannis Grivas
Ioannis Grivas ( el, Ιωάννης Γρίβας; 23 February 1923 – 27 November 2016) was a Greek judge, who served as President of the Court of Cassation and served as the Prime Minister of Greece at the head of a non-party caretaker governmen ...
and the
ecumenical cabinet of
Xenophon Zolotas
Xenophon Euthymiou Zolotas ( el, Ξενοφών Ζολώτας, 26 April 1904 – 10 June 2004) was a Greek economist and served as an interim non-party Prime Minister of Greece.
Life and career
Born in Athens on 26 April 1904. He graduated fro ...
, and was proposed by the leftist
Synaspismos
The Coalition of the Left, of Movements and Ecology ( el, Συνασπισμός της Αριστεράς των Κινημάτων και της Οικολογίας, ''Synaspismós tīs Aristerás tōn Kinīmátōn kai tīs Oikologías''), com ...
as its candidate in the 1990 Greek presidential election.
Despotopoulos died in Athens one day shy of his 103rd birthday on 7 February 2016.
Work
He published 32 books on philosophy, history, and politics.
References
1913 births
2016 deaths
Greek philosophers
Greek writers
National Liberation Front (Greece) members
Greek prisoners and detainees
Prisoners and detainees of Greece
Smyrniote Greeks
Greek centenarians
Men centenarians
Ministers of National Education and Religious Affairs of Greece
Members of the Academy of Athens (modern)
Emigrants from the Ottoman Empire to Greece
{{Greece-philosopher-stub