Constantine Ypsilantis ( ''Konstantinos Ypsilantis''; ; 1760 – 24 June 1816) was the son of

Alexander Ypsilantis Alexandros Ypsilantis (12 December 1792 – 31 January 1828) was a Greek nationalist politician who was member of a prominent Phanariot Greeks, Phanariot Greek family, a prince of the Danubian Principalities, a senior officer of the Imperial R ...

, a key member of an important Phanariote family, Grand Dragoman of the Porte (1796–1799),

hospodar ''Gospodar'' or ''hospodar'', also ''gospodin'' as a diminutive, is a term of Slavic origin, meaning "lord" or " master". The compound (, , , sh-Latn-Cyrl, gospodar, господар, ) is a derivative of ''gospod'' / ''gospodin'', , or when spe ...

East, ''The Union of Moldavia and Wallachia, 1859'', p. 178. of Moldavia (1799–1802) and Walachia (1802–1806), and a PrinceEast, ''The Union of Moldavia and Wallachia, 1859'', p. 59. through marriage to the daughter of Alexandru Callimachi.

In Ottoman service

Constantine Ypsilantis served as Grand Dragoman of the Ottoman government in 1796–1799, in conjunction with his father's appointment as Prince of Moldavia. He played a role in turning the Ottoman Empire against Revolutionary France, culminating in its joining the Second Coalition, and sponsored the occupation of the French-ruled

Ionian Islands The Ionian Islands (Modern Greek: , ; Ancient Greek, Katharevousa: , ) are a archipelago, group of islands in the Ionian Sea, west of mainland Greece. They are traditionally called the Heptanese ("Seven Islands"; , ''Heptanēsa'' or , ''Heptanē ...

and the creation of the Septinsular Republic. In this post, he also translated three French military manuals for the reformed Nizam-i Djedid Army then being created by Sultan

Selim III Selim III (; ; was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1789 to 1807. Regarded as an enlightened ruler, he was eventually deposed and imprisoned by the Janissaries, who placed his cousin Mustafa on the throne as Mustafa IV (). A group of a ...

Resistance against the Ottoman Empire

Ypsilantis had joined in a conspiracy to liberate

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

and, on its discovery, fled to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, had been pardoned by the sultan and in 1799 appointed by him

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

. Deposed in 1805, he escaped to

St Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

, and in 1806, at the head of some 20,000

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

, returned to

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

, where he set to work on a fresh attempt to liberate Greece.

Union of Moldavia and Wallachia

From 1806, during Russian occupation of the Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia, Russia encouraged their provisional union under Prince Constantine Ypsilanti. Russia preferred their union for improved relations with the

Principalities A principality (or sometimes princedom) is a type of monarchical state or feudal territory ruled by a prince or princess. It can be either a sovereign state or a constituent part of a larger political entity. The term "principality" is often ...

and their formal union was planned for 1830. Ypsilantis' plans were ruined by the Peace of Tilsit and in 1807 he emigrated with his family to Russia.

Legacy

Ypsilantis died, in Kyiv, where he had served as commandant of the Pechersk Fortress since 1807. He left five sons, of whom two played a conspicuous part in the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

and Demetrios.

References

Sources

*East, ''The Union of Moldavia and Wallachia, 1859 - An Episode in Diplomatic History'', Thirlwall Prize Essay for 1927, Cambridge University Press (1929). * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ypsilantis, Constantine 1760 births 1816 deaths 18th-century translators 19th-century princes of Wallachia Dragomans of the Porte Monarchs of Moldavia Constantine Recipients of Ottoman royal pardons Diplomats from Istanbul Constantinopolitan Greeks 18th-century Moldavian people 19th-century Moldavian people People of the French Revolutionary Wars French–Turkish translators