Konstantinos Spanoudis (; 1871 – 24 April 1941) was a

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

politician of the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

, journalist and the first president of AEK sports club.

Biography

Spanoudis was born in 1871 in Fanari,

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. A graduate of the

Phanar Greek Orthodox College Phanar Greek Orthodox College or Phanar Roman Orthodox Lyceum (), known in Greek as the Great School of the Nation and Patriarchal Academy of Constantinople (, ''Megáli toú Genous Scholí''), is the oldest surviving and most prestigious Greek Or ...

, he studied

Political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

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. After completing his studies he returned to

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 ...

and devoted himself to journalism. In 1904 he started publishing the newspaper "Progress", the patriotic character of which cost him persecution and two expulsions. He joined the Greek Liberal Party and became close associate of Prime Minister

Eleftherios Venizelos Eleftherios Kyriakou Venizelos (, ; – 18 March 1936) was a Cretan State, Cretan Greeks, Greek statesman and prominent leader of the Greek national liberation movement. As the leader of the Liberal Party (Greece), Liberal Party, Venizelos ser ...

during the military operations of Greece in the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans, Balkan states in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan states of Kingdom of Greece (Glücksburg), Greece, Kingdom of Serbia, Serbia, Kingdom of Montenegro, M ...

and

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. After the

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he settled in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. In 1924 he and other Constantinopolitans founded ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'' (A.E.K.) ''()'' and Spanoudis became the first President of the new club. In

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

he was elected MP with the Liberal Party and at the same time left the administration of AEK to join politics, keeping only a formal position. He died on 24 April 1941 in Athens.

Personal life

In 1910, Spanoudis married a distinguished music critic, Sofia Ioannidis. Together they had one daughter, Athina (1921–1998), who was a radio producer for 35 years at ERT. In October 2008, the Municipality of Athens honored Spanoudis, giving his name to the square located next to the

metro Metro may refer to: Geography * Metro City (Indonesia), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban area with high ...

station at Kato Patisia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spanoudis, Konstantinos 1871 births 1941 deaths Constantinopolitan Greeks Liberal Party (Greece) politicians Greek journalists Greek football chairmen and investors Greeks from the Ottoman Empire Emigrants from the Ottoman Empire to Greece AEK (sports club) AEK Athens F.C. AEK Athens F.C. chairmen Greek MPs 1932–1933 People from Fatih Politicians from Istanbul Journalists from Istanbul