Nikolaos Tsourouktsoglou (; ; Smyrna, 1861–1922) was a distinguished

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 ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

and

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

who was a political and social activist. He was a city councillor and a member of the board of governors of

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; , or ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean Sea, Aegean coast of Anatolia, Turkey. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna ...

. He was also founder and editor of the French and Greek newspapers and in the late

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 ...

Biography

Nikolaos Tsourouktsoglou was born in

(modern Izmir, Turkey) in 1861 to a Cappadocian Greek family originally from

Kayseri Kayseri () is a large List of cities in Turkey, city in Central Anatolia, Turkey, and the capital of Kayseri Province, Kayseri province. Historically known as Caesarea (Mazaca), Caesarea, it has been the historical capital of Cappadocia since anc ...

Cappadocia Cappadocia (; , from ) is a historical region in Central Anatolia region, Turkey. It is largely in the provinces of Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. Today, the touristic Cappadocia Region is located in Nevşehir ...

. As a child he attended and eventually graduated from the

Evangelical School of Smyrna The Evangelical School ( officially Ἡ ἐν Σμύρνῃ Εὐαγγελική Σχολή) was a Greek educational institution established in 1733 in Smyrna, Ottoman Empire, now İzmir, Turkey. The school, initially an Orthodox Church-approved ...

. After graduation he studied at the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

and graduated with a

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Some law degrees are professional degrees that are prerequisites or serve as preparation for legal careers. These generally include the Bachelor of Civil Law, Bachelor of Laws, an ...

. After graduation Nikolaos moved back to Smyrna where he eventually founded a

French language French ( or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-R ...

newspaper called in 1900. In 1901 he co-founded a

Greek language Greek (, ; , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language, constituting an independent Hellenic languages, Hellenic branch within the Indo-European language family. It is native to Greece, Cyprus, Italy (in Calabria and Salento), south ...

newspaper called (). Through his media outlets and Law background Nikolaos fought for the defence of his compatriots rights in the late

. He was a member of the board of governors and council of elders of Smyrna in the Vilayet of Aydin. During the Greco-Turkish War in August 1922, the Greek Military was defeated and the Turkish army entered the city of Smyrna. Tsourouktsoglou was arrested, along with other prominent Greek members of the city including the Metropolitan of Smyrna Chrysostomos Kalafatis and also Georgakis Klimanoglou. The Turkish military officer

Nureddin Pasha Nureddin Ibrahim Pasha (; 1873 – 18 February 1932), known as Nureddin İbrahim Konyar Surname Law (Turkey), from 1934, was a Turkish people, Turkish military officer who served in the Ottoman Army (1861–1922), Ottoman Army during World Wa ...

ordered the execution of Tsourouktsoglou who was beheaded. Nikolaos Tsourouktsoglou's decapitated corpse was eventually discovered in Smyrna along with the corpses of other high-profile Greeks of the city.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsourouktsoglou, Nikolaos 1861 births 1922 deaths Greek politicians Greeks from the Ottoman Empire Cappadocian Greeks Political people from the Ottoman Empire Smyrniote Greeks Greek torture victims People murdered in Turkey People who died in the Greek genocide Lynching deaths