George Berovich (, , ''Georgios Verovits'', 1845–1897), known as Berovich Pasha () was a Christian Ottoman statesman who served as Governor-General (''

wāli ''Wāli'', ''Wā'lī'' or ''vali'' (from ''Wālī'') is an administrative title that was used in the Muslim world (including the Rashidun, Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates and the Ottoman Empire) to designate governors of administrative divis ...

'') of

Crete Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

and

Prince of Samos The Principality of Samos (, ; ; ) was an autonomous tributary state of the Ottoman Empire from 1834 to 1912. The island of Samos had participated in the Greek War of Independence since 1821 and successfully resisted several Turkish and Egyptian a ...

Biography

Berovich was born in Scutari,

Sanjak of Scutari The Sanjak of Scutari or Sanjak of Shkodra (; ; or ''İşkodra Sancağı'') was one of the sanjaks of the Ottoman Empire. It was established after the Ottoman Empire acquired Shkodra after the siege of Shkodra in 1478–9. It was part of th ...

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

(modern

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

). He was of

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...

ethnic origin. He was the last of a line of Ottoman

pasha Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...

s of the Berovich family. In 19th-century Ottoman Empire, the government asked Christian families to send sons to be educated in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

in order to provide Christian administrators for Christian-majority provinces. He was appointed to several administrative positions in Turkey. Before coming to Samos, he was a counselor in the ''

vilayet A vilayet (, "province"), also known by #Names, various other names, was a first-order administrative division of the later Ottoman Empire. It was introduced in the Vilayet Law of 21 January 1867, part of the Tanzimat reform movement initiated b ...

'' administration of Crete. He came to Samos in the midst of an armed rebellion by the Greek population of the island. Turkish army was poised to send punitive expedition but his intervention provided the mutually accepted compromise. To Greeks he was an independent

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

and the Sultan regarded him as his

Pasha Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...

. He settled the economy of the island and he was generally successful in his administration and popular with the Samians. Among other measures, he tried unsuccessfully to institute the permanence of civil servants, but reinforced the freedom of the press, promoted agriculture, and in 1895 he set up the Archaeological Museum of Samos. He said in a speech before the Samian Parliament : "The Parliament and I have common boundaries. You shouldn't trespass my boundaries and I shouldn't trespass yours. So, we will be friends for ever". He was reassigned to a new post by the Porte while he was on a tour at the

Marathokampos Marathokampos () is a town, municipal unit, and a former municipality on the island of Samos, North Aegean, Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsul ...

region. His departure was generally viewed unfavorably by the Samian population. A similar rebellion by the Greek population of Crete took place in 1897 and Pasha Berovich was sent by the Porte as Governor General, expected to achieve a similar compromise as on Samos. Unfortunately the fighting on Crete had already taken deep root and although Greeks regarded him favorably the Turkish population and army refused to obey. The Sultan tried to intervene in his favor by the award of the '' Order of Osmaniye'' but to no avail.Papers relating to Turkey No. 10 : Affairs of Crete. Presented to the Houses of Parliament by Her Majesty's Stationery Office. July 1897 He was even arrested by the Turkish army commander. The

Great Powers A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power ...

who had laid a blockade of the island intervened to set him free. He was subsequently provided with a detachment of the

Montenegrin Army Montenegrin Ground Army () is the ground force of the Armed Forces of Montenegro. Montenegrin Army The fundamental role and purpose of the Montenegrin Army is to protect vital national interests of Montenegro and defend the sovereignty and territo ...

as bodyguards. Their arrival in Chania was greeted with jubilation by the Greek population. After the establishment of the independent

Cretan State The Cretan State (; ) was an autonomous state governing the island of Crete from 1898 to 1913, under ''de jure'' suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire but with ''de facto'' independence secured by European Great Powers. In 1897, the Cretan Revolt (18 ...

, Pasha Berovich handed over the keys of the fort of Chania to

Prince George of Greece Prince George of Greece and Denmark (; 24 June 1869 – 25 November 1957) was the second son and child of George I of Greece and Olga Konstantinovna of Russia, and is remembered chiefly for having once saved the life of his cousin the future E ...

and retired to Venice.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berovich, George 1845 births 19th-century people from the Ottoman Empire People from the Ottoman Empire of Serbian descent Christians from the Ottoman Empire 19th-century civil servants from the Ottoman Empire Pashas Princes of Samos Ottoman governors of Crete Year of death missing People from Shkodër 19th-century governors of the Ottoman Empire Serbs in Albania