N. G. L. Hammond
Encyclopedia
Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond CBE
, DSO
(15 November 1907 – 24 March 2001) was a British scholar of ancient Greece
of great accomplishment and an operative for the British Special Operations Executive
(SOE) in occupied Greece during World War II
.
Hammond studied classics at Fettes College
and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
. He excelled in his exams and also spent vacations exploring Greece and Albania on foot, acquiring unrivalled knowledge of the topography and terrain, as well as fluency in Albanian
. These abilities led him to be recruited by the SOE during World War II in 1940. His activities included many dangerous sabotage missions in Greece (especially on the Greek island of Crete
) as well as Albania. As an officer, in 1944 he was in command of the Allied military mission to the Greek resistance in Thessaly
and Macedonia
regions of Greece. There he came to know those regions thoroughly. He published a memoir of his war service - Venture into Greece in 1983; he was awarded the order of the DSO and the Greek Order of the Phoenix.
In the postwar period, Hammond returned to academia as senior tutor at Clare College, Cambridge
. In 1954 he became headmaster of Clifton College
, Bristol and in 1962 was appointed 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
in 1968.
His scholarship focused on the history of ancient Macedonia and Epirus
. He was also editor and contributor to various volumes of the Cambridge Ancient History and the second edition of the Oxford Classical Dictionary. He was known for his works about Alexander the Great and for suggesting the relationship of Vergina
with Aegae, the ancient Macedonian royal city, before the archaeological discoveries.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
(15 November 1907 – 24 March 2001) was a British scholar of ancient Greece
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
of great accomplishment and an operative for the British Special Operations Executive
Special Operations Executive
The Special Operations Executive was a World War II organisation of the United Kingdom. It was officially formed by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton on 22 July 1940, to conduct guerrilla warfare against the Axis powers and to instruct and aid local...
(SOE) in occupied Greece during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Hammond studied classics at Fettes College
Fettes College
Fettes College is an independent school for boarding and day pupils in Edinburgh, Scotland with over two thirds of its pupils in residence on campus...
and Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college is often referred to simply as "Caius" , after its second founder, John Keys, who fashionably latinised the spelling of his name after studying in Italy.- Outline :Gonville and...
. He excelled in his exams and also spent vacations exploring Greece and Albania on foot, acquiring unrivalled knowledge of the topography and terrain, as well as fluency in Albanian
Albanian language
Albanian is an Indo-European language spoken by approximately 7.6 million people, primarily in Albania and Kosovo but also in other areas of the Balkans in which there is an Albanian population, including western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, southern Serbia and northwestern Greece...
. These abilities led him to be recruited by the SOE during World War II in 1940. His activities included many dangerous sabotage missions in Greece (especially on the Greek island of Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
) as well as Albania. As an officer, in 1944 he was in command of the Allied military mission to the Greek resistance in Thessaly
Thessaly
Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....
and Macedonia
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
regions of Greece. There he came to know those regions thoroughly. He published a memoir of his war service - Venture into Greece in 1983; he was awarded the order of the DSO and the Greek Order of the Phoenix.
In the postwar period, Hammond returned to academia as senior tutor at Clare College, Cambridge
Clare College, Cambridge
Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1326, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. Clare is famous for its chapel choir and for its gardens on "the Backs"...
. In 1954 he became headmaster of Clifton College
Clifton College
Clifton College is a co-educational independent school in Clifton, Bristol, England, founded in 1862. In its early years it was notable for emphasising science in the curriculum, and for being less concerned with social elitism, e.g. by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated...
, Bristol and in 1962 was appointed 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
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
in 1968.
His scholarship focused on the history of ancient Macedonia and Epirus
Epirus
The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
. He was also editor and contributor to various volumes of the Cambridge Ancient History and the second edition of the Oxford Classical Dictionary. He was known for his works about Alexander the Great and for suggesting the relationship of Vergina
Vergina
Vergina is a small town in northern Greece, located in the peripheral unit of Imathia, Central Macedonia. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Veroia, of which it is a municipal unit...
with Aegae, the ancient Macedonian royal city, before the archaeological discoveries.
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 Macedon Volume I: Historical Geography and Prehistory (1972)
- A History of Macedon Volume II: 550-336 B.C. (1979)
- A History of Macedon Volume III: 336-167 B.C. (1988)
- Alexander the Great. King, Commander, and Statesman
- History of Macedonia
- Oxford Classical DictionaryOxford Classical Dictionary-Overview:The Oxford Classical Dictionary is considered to be the standard one-volume encyclopaedia in English of topics relating to the Ancient World and its civilizations. It was first published in 1949, edited by Max Cary with the assistance of H. J. Rose, H. P. Harvey, and A. Souter. A...
(second edition) - The end of Mycenaean Civilization and Dark Age: the literary tradition