Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond, (15 November 1907 – 24 March 2001) was a British historian, geographer, classicist and an operative for the British
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its pu ...
(SOE) in
occupied Greece during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
.
Hammond is seen as the leading expert on the history of
ancient Macedonia.
He has been recognized for his meticulous research on the
geography
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, an ...
,
historical topography and history of
ancient Macedonia and
ancient Epirus
Epirus (; Epirote Greek: , ; Attic Greek: , ) was an ancient Greek kingdom, and later republic, located in the geographical region of Epirus, in north-western Greece and southern Albania. Home to the ancient Epirotes, the state was bordered by ...
.
Life and writings
Hammond studied classics at
Fettes College
Fettes College () is a co-educational independent boarding and day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, with over two-thirds of its pupils in residence on campus. The school was originally a boarding school for boys only and became co-ed in 1983. In ...
and
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of t ...
. In 1929, while he was still a student, Hammond began his personal exploration of all the ancient sites in
Epirus
sq, Epiri rup, Epiru
, native_name_lang =
, settlement_type = Historical region
, image_map = Epirus antiquus tabula.jpg
, map_alt =
, map_caption = Map of ancient Epirus by Heinri ...
. He excelled in his exams and also spent vacations exploring Greece on foot, acquiring knowledge of the topography and terrain. He also spent some time in
southern Albania
Southern Albania ( sq, Shqipëria jugore) is one of the three NUTS-2 Regions of Albania. This ethnographical territory is sometimes referred to as ''Toskeria'' ( sq, Toskëria).
It consists of five counties: Berat, Fier, Gjirokastër, Korç ...
(
Northern Epirus
sq, Epiri i Veriut rup, Epiru di Nsusu
, type = Part of the wider historic region of Epirus
, image_blank_emblem =
, blank_emblem_type =
, image_map = Epirus across Greece Albania4.svg
, map_caption ...
) where he learnt the
Albanian language
Albanian ( endonym: or ) is an Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is spoken by the Albanians in the Balkans and by the Albanian diaspora, which is generally concentrated in the Americas, Europ ...
.
These abilities led him to be recruited by the
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its pu ...
during World War II in 1940. His activities included many dangerous sabotage missions in Greece (especially on the Greek island of
Crete
Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, ...
). As an officer, in 1944 he was in command of the Allied military mission to the Greek resistance in
Thessaly
Thessaly ( el, Θεσσαλία, translit=Thessalía, ; ancient Thessalian: , ) is a traditional geographic and modern administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, The ...
and
Macedonia.
There he came to know those regions thoroughly. He published a memoir of his war service entitled ''Venture into Greece'' in 1983; he was awarded the
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...
and the Greek
Order of the Phoenix.
In the postwar period, Hammond returned to academia as senior tutor at
Clare College, Cambridge
Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. It was refound ...
. In 1954, he became headmaster of
Clifton College
''The spirit nourishes within''
, established = 160 years ago
, closed =
, type = Public schoolIndependent boarding and day school
, religion = Christian
, president =
, head_label = Head of College
, hea ...
, Bristol and in 1962 was appointed Henry Overton Wills Professor of Greek at
Bristol University, a post which he held until his retirement in 1973. He was elected a Fellow of the
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national academy for the humanities and the social sciences.
It was established in 1902 and received its royal charter in the same year. It is now a fellowship of more than 1,000 leading scholars spa ...
in 1968 and an honorary member of the ''Centre des Nouvelles études de l'histoire, de la philosophie et des problèmes sociaux à Clermont-Ferrand'' in 1988.
His scholarship focused on the history of
ancient Macedonia and
ancient Epirus
Epirus (; Epirote Greek: , ; Attic Greek: , ) was an ancient Greek kingdom, and later republic, located in the geographical region of Epirus, in north-western Greece and southern Albania. Home to the ancient Epirotes, the state was bordered by ...
,
and he was considered the leading expert on Macedonia.
He was also editor and contributor to various volumes of the ''
Cambridge Ancient History
''The Cambridge Ancient History'' is a multi-volume work of ancient history from Prehistory to Late Antiquity, published by Cambridge University Press. The first series, consisting of 12 volumes, was planned in 1919 by Irish historian J. B. Bur ...
'' and the second edition of the ''Oxford Classical Dictionary''. He was known for his works about
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
and for suggesting the relationship of
Vergina
Vergina ( el, Βεργίνα, ''Vergína'' ) is a small town in northern Greece, part of Veria municipality in Imathia, Central Macedonia. Vergina was established in 1922 in the aftermath of the population exchanges after the Treaty of Laus ...
with
Aegae, the ancient Macedonian royal city, before the archaeological discoveries.
In later years, Hammond backed Greece during the
Macedonia name dispute.
Personal life
Hammond was the father of two sons (both educated at Clifton College) and three daughters including
Caroline Bammel
Caroline Penrose Bammel, (''née'' Hammond; 6 July 1940 – 31 October 1995), also known as Caroline Hammond Bammel, was an English ecclesiastical historian, classicist, and academic, who specialised in the history of early Christianity. She wa ...
, a noted historian of the early church.
Selected works
#''A History of Greece to 322 B.C.'' (1959)
#''Epirus: the Geography, the Ancient Remains, the History and Topography of Epirus and Adjacent Areas'' (1967)
#''Migrations and invasions in Greece and Adjacent Areas'' (1976)
#ed. ''Atlas of the Greek and Roman World in Antiquity'' (1981)
#''Philip of Macedon'' (1994)
#''The Genius of Alexander the Great'' (1997)
#''The Classical Age of Greece'' (1999)
# ''Poetics of Aristotle: Rearranged, Abridged and Translated for Better Understanding by the General Reader'' (2001)
# ''A History of Macedonia'' Volume I: Historical Geography and Prehistory (1972)
# ''A History of Macedonia'' Volume II: 550-336 B.C. (1979)
# ''A History of Macedonia'' Volume III: 336-167 B.C. (1988)
#''Alexander the Great. King, Commander, and Statesman''
#''History of Macedonia''
#''
Oxford Classical Dictionary
The ''Oxford Classical Dictionary'' (''OCD'') is generally considered "the best one-volume dictionary on antiquity," an encyclopædic work in English consisting of articles relating to classical antiquity and its civilizations. It was first pub ...
'' (1970) (second edition)
#''The end of Mycenaean Civilization and Dark Age: the literary tradition'' (1962)
Notes
References
*
Clogg, Richard.
bituarybr>
''The Guardian'', 5 April 2001
* Snodgrass, Anthony. "Professor N.G.L. Hammond: Obituary", ''The Independent'', 28 March 2001.
Further reading
*
External links
Alexander's Non-European troops and Ptolemy I's use of such troops, Article by Hammond on BASP 33(1996)The scene in Iliad 18.497–508 and the Albanian Blood-feud, Article by Hammond on BASP 22(1985)Necrology in the ''American Journal of Archaeology''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammond, N.G.L.
1907 births
2001 deaths
People educated at Fettes College
Academics of the University of Bristol
Alumni of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
British Army personnel of World War II
British classical scholars
Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Companions of the Distinguished Service Order
Headmasters of Clifton College
Recipients of the Order of the Phoenix (Greece)
Fellows of the British Academy
Fellows of Clare College, Cambridge
British Special Operations Executive personnel
Greek Resistance members
Greece in World War II
Scholars of ancient Greek history
Classical scholars of the University of Bristol
20th-century British historians