Dimitrie Ghica-Comanesti
Encyclopedia
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n nobleman, explorer, famous hunter, adventurer and politician. He was born into the Ghica family
Ghica family
The Ghica family were a Romanian noble family, active in Wallachia, Moldavia and in the Kingdom of Romania. In the 18th century, several branches of the family went through a process of Hellenization...
, with nobiliary ancestry roots beginning in the 17th century. He was the son of Ecaterina Plagino (1820-1881) and aga (Rom. archaic - Chief of Justice) Nicolae (Nicholas) Ghika, boyar (b. Iaşi
Iasi
Iași is the second most populous city and a municipality in Romania. Located in the historical Moldavia region, Iași has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Romanian social, cultural, academic and artistic life...
1798- d. Comăneşti
Comanesti
Comăneşti is a town in Bacău County, Romania, with a population of 26,230. It is situated on the Trotuş River, which flows between the Ciuc and the Tarcău mountains .The town administers two villages, Podei and Vermeşti.-History:...
1853) whom he inherited the estate domains of Comăneşti and Palanca from, two of the ten his father had. He graduated as Juris Doctor from the University of Berlin
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
, and pursued his career as prefect
Prefect (Romania)
A prefect in Romania represents the Government in each of the country's 41 counties, as well as the Municipality of Bucharest.-Attributes:The main attributes of prefects are defined at Article 123 of the Constitution of Romania:...
of Bacău County
Bacau County
Bacău is a county of Romania, in Moldavia, with its capital city at Bacău. It has one commune, Ghimeş-Făget, in Transylvania.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 706,623 and the population density was 113/km²....
, magistrate, and member of the Chamber of Deputies of Romania
Chamber of Deputies of Romania
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house in Romania's bicameral parliament. It has 315 seats, to which deputies are elected by direct popular vote on a proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms...
between 1872 and 1892 and further as royal adviser.
Like his father, since childhood he was an avid outdoor enthusiast, and educated himself about nature, only to become later a prominent member of the Romanian Geographical Society, one of the very firsts in the world, founded in 1875. He remarked himself in studies of zoology, botany and geology, geography and topography. He married Zoe Lahovary
Lahovary
-Famous members of the family:*Iacob Lahovary, politician who was the Minister of War and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kingdom of Romania*Ioan Lahovary, politician who was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kingdom of Romania...
(1851-1902); they had one son, Nicolae (Nicholas) Ghika (1875-1921), who followed in his father's path. He was chairman and president of the Senate. Also they had a daughter, Maria (1870-1952), married Prince Leon Mavrocordato (1858-1939), military attaché
Military attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission . This post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer who retains the commission while serving in an embassy...
in Viena.
Like many other Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
an explorers, the Ghikas were of noble blood, high education and considerable family wealth, major factors that fueled their bold ventures. After the opening of Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
in late 1869, a new era in African exploration has begun, specially after British took control of the canal in 1882, when sea trips to Africa from Europe via Mediterranean Sea became very common. However, few people ventured past the relative comforts of the cities and trade zones, and the ones that did, for the most part, perished killed by hostile natives, like lieutenant Stroyan, Pietro Sacconi in 1883, or the Greek merchant Panaghiotis, Italian Count Gianpetro Porro in 1883, others by wild beasts like Prince Eugene Ruspoli in 1891 who found its end trampled by an angry elephant. Ones that did were adventurous spirits with hunting or exploration in mind. The Ghikas, father and son, had both and between 1894 and 1895 ventured deeper than any European in the Horn of Africa
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa is a peninsula in East Africa that juts hundreds of kilometers into the Arabian Sea and lies along the southern side of the Gulf of Aden. It is the easternmost projection of the African continent...
, crossing today's Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, Djibouti
Djibouti
Djibouti , officially the Republic of Djibouti , is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden at the east...
and Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
, where they made notable geographical explorations and natural history discoveries.
Their exploits on the African continent are typical for the upper class of the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
, filled with safari
Safari
A safari is an overland journey, usually a trip by tourists to Africa. Traditionally, the term is used for a big-game hunt, but today the term often refers to a trip taken not for the purposes of hunting, but to observe and photograph animals and other wildlife.-Etymology:Entering the English...
s and extensive hunting of exotic species. The Ghikas sailed from Europe on the Imperatrix to Aden
Aden
Aden is a seaport city in Yemen, located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea , some 170 kilometres east of Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000. Aden's ancient, natural harbour lies in the crater of an extinct volcano which now forms a peninsula, joined to the mainland by a...
, then crossed into Africa at the port of Berbera
Berbera
Berbera is a city and seat of Berbera District in Somaliland, a self-proclaimed Independent Republic with de facto control over its own territory, which is recognized by the international community and the Somali Government as a part of Somalia...
, at the time the capital of British Somaliland
British Somaliland
British Somaliland was a British protectorate in the northern part of present-day Somalia. For much of its existence, British Somaliland was bordered by French Somaliland, Ethiopia, and Italian Somaliland. From 1940 to 1941, it was occupied by the Italians and was part of Italian East Africa...
, and on 22 October 1894 a massive caravan of over seventy luggage camels, four horses, two mules and three donkeys serving as lion bait, not counting hordes of sheep and goats for food, parted on a journey that will last almost a half year in the interior of the continent. The caravan crew consisted of 53 porters, few scouts from local tribes, four shikari hunting guides, two valets and the two Ghikas. They crossed the Gouban plains, traversed the Ogo plateau, to the Shebelle River
Shebelle River
The Shebelle River begins in the highlands of Ethiopia, and then flows southeast into Somalia towards Mogadishu. Near Mogadishu, it turns sharply southwest, where it follows the coast. Below Mogadishu, the river becomes seasonal...
and the north range of the Mountains of the Moon
Mountains of the Moon
Mountains of the Moon can refer to:* List of mountains on the Moon, mountains on Luna* Mountains of the Moon , a mountain range in Africa that is the source of the Nile River* Mountains of the Moon , a 1990 film...
. After crossing the Somalian highlands they entered northern Ethiopia, where they started intensive hunting, collecting specimens. The Ghikas were seasoned big game hunters already from back home, Romania, where they pursued trophy brown bear
Brown Bear
The brown bear is a large bear distributed across much of northern Eurasia and North America. It can weigh from and its largest subspecies, the Kodiak Bear, rivals the polar bear as the largest member of the bear family and as the largest land-based predator.There are several recognized...
s in the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
, stag
STAG
STAG: A Test of Love is a reality TV show hosted by Tommy Habeeb. Each episode profiles an engaged couple a week or two before their wedding. The cameras then follow the groom on his bachelor party...
s and wild boars at the Dofteana estate where his family had a hunting chateau, or in the Danube Delta
Danube Delta
The Danube Delta is the second largest river delta in Europe, after the Volga Delta, and is the best preserved on the continent. The greater part of the Danube Delta lies in Romania , while its northern part, on the left bank of the Chilia arm, is situated in Ukraine . The approximate surface is...
, enjoying fishing and hunting as a favorite pastime. The plants and animals collected during their African expedition were sent to private but mostly academic collections, notably the Romanian National Museum of Natural History (known today as Grigore Antipa
Grigore Antipa
Grigore Antipa was a Romanian Darwinist biologist who studied the fauna of the Danube Delta and the Black Sea. Between 1892 and 1944 he was the director of the Bucharest Natural History Museum, which now bears his name....
Museum), located in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
. An account of the hunting species, very grave by modern standards, quotes their exploits at: four lion
Lion
The lion is one of the four big cats in the genus Panthera, and a member of the family Felidae. With some males exceeding 250 kg in weight, it is the second-largest living cat after the tiger...
s (including the two man-eaters of Del-Marodile), five elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
s, fifteen crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
s, around a dozen rhinos
Rhinoceros
Rhinoceros , also known as rhino, is a group of five extant species of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. Two of these species are native to Africa and three to southern Asia....
, one giraffe
Giraffe
The giraffe is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all extant land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant...
(a new subpecie), two panther
Leopard
The leopard , Panthera pardus, is a member of the Felidae family and the smallest of the four "big cats" in the genus Panthera, the other three being the tiger, lion, and jaguar. The leopard was once distributed across eastern and southern Asia and Africa, from Siberia to South Africa, but its...
s, seven hyaena
Hyaena
For the Siouxsie and the Banshees album, see Hyæna.For the group of animals commonly known as "hyaena", see Hyena.Hyaena is a genus comprising two of the living species of hyenas: the striped hyena from western Asia and northern Africa and the brown hyena from southern Africa...
s, fifteen zebra
Zebra
Zebras are several species of African equids united by their distinctive black and white stripes. Their stripes come in different patterns unique to each individual. They are generally social animals that live in small harems to large herds...
s, three wild asses (onager
Onager
The Onager is a large member of the genus Equus of the family Equidae native to the deserts of Syria, Iran, Pakistan, India, Israel and Tibet...
s), two greater kudu
Greater Kudu
The Greater Kudu is a woodland antelope found throughout eastern and southern Africa. Despite occupying such widespread territory, they are sparsely populated in most areas, due to a declining habitat, deforestation and hunting....
, eleven lesser kudus
Lesser Kudu
The lesser kudu is a forest antelope found in East Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. The southern lesser kudu is a subspecies found in Kenya and Tanzania....
, eight hartebeest
Hartebeest
The hartebeest is a grassland antelope found in West Africa, East Africa and Southern Africa. It is one of the three species classified in the genus Alcelaphus....
, twenty five oryx antelope
Antelope
Antelope is a term referring to many even-toed ungulate species indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia. Antelopes comprise a miscellaneous group within the family Bovidae, encompassing those old-world species that are neither cattle, sheep, buffalo, bison, nor goats...
s (gemsbok
Gemsbok
The gemsbok or gemsbuck is a large antelope in the Oryx genus. It is native to the arid regions of southern Africa, but formerly some authorities included the East African Oryx as a subspecies...
), eight warthog
Warthog
The Warthog or Common Warthog is a wild member of the pig family that lives in grassland, savanna, and woodland in Sub-Saharan Africa. In the past it was commonly treated as a subspecies of P...
s, around one hundred different gazelle
Gazelle
A gazelle is any of many antelope species in the genus Gazella, or formerly considered to belong to it. Six species are included in two genera, Eudorcas and Nanger, which were formerly considered subgenera...
s plus fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
es, jackal
Jackal
Although the word jackal has been historically used to refer to many small- to medium-sized species of the wolf genus of mammals, Canis, today it most properly and commonly refers to three species: the black-backed jackal and the side-striped jackal of sub-Saharan Africa, and the golden jackal of...
s, monkey
Monkey
A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...
s. Even though avid hunters, they did not neglect flora, and their discoveries are well-noted in their Plantarum enumeratio et descriptio work with names like Loranthua ghikae , Ghikea spectabilis or Ipomoea ghika and other names titillating Romanian royalty were given to the new sixteen species of plants discovered by them; they even discovered a new botanical genus which the German savants named Ghikae in their honor. Members of the Romanian Geographic Society, they made keen and pertinent descriptions of the flora, fauna, geology and the people they encountered and compiled maps.
The analogy of their adventures to the later ones of United States President Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
and his son, Kermit Roosevelt
Kermit Roosevelt
Kermit Roosevelt I MC was a son of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. He was an explorer on two continents with his father, a graduate of Harvard University, a soldier serving in two world wars, with both the British and U.S. Armies, a businessman, and a writer...
, in East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
, to much extent is striking.
The first book about the Ghika's African voyage, published in German and French was Cinq mois aux pays des Somalis came out in 1898 in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, and was written by G. A. Schweinfuhrt, G. Volkens and Nicolas D. Ghika (see photos below). Prior and after that notable academic institutions all throughout Europe published articles and recorded their deeds, including the British Royal Geographic Society. Another book was Un voyage en Afrique (A voyage in Africa - French and Romanian).
The Ghika's passion for hunting was remarkable, both father and son being noted as acquiring world record game trophies not only at home in Romania of European stag
Red Deer
The red deer is one of the largest deer species. Depending on taxonomy, the red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Asia Minor, parts of western Asia, and central Asia. It also inhabits the Atlas Mountains region between Morocco and Tunisia in northwestern Africa, being...
Cervus elaphus but also Africa's plains or dangerous game including: elephant, black rhino, oryx, kudu, waterbuck and gazelles, according to Rowland Ward
Rowland Ward
Rowland Ward was a British taxidermist and founder of the taxidermy firm Rowland Ward Ltd. of Piccadilly. The company specialized in, and was renowned for, their work on big game trophies, but their output covered all aspects of taxidermy...
(Records of Big Game, third edition, London).
Prior to his dramatic suicide in 1921, his son Nicholas continued passionately hunting and venturing the world, further in sultanate of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and Sahara
Sahara
The Sahara is the world's second largest desert, after Antarctica. At over , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as Europe or the United States. The Sahara stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean coasts, to the outskirts of the Atlantic Ocean...
n desert in 1899 and later, in 1910, to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, all the way to Kodiak Island
Kodiak Island
Kodiak Island is a large island on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, separated from the Alaska mainland by the Shelikof Strait. The largest island in the Kodiak Archipelago, Kodiak Island is the second largest island in the United States and the 80th largest island in the world, with an...
, probably drawn in pursuit by the world's largest land carnivore, the Kodiak grizzly
Kodiak Bear
The Kodiak bear , also known as the Kodiak brown bear or the Alaskan grizzly bear or American brown bear, occupies the islands of the Kodiak Archipelago in South-Western Alaska. Its name in the Alutiiq language is Taquka-aq. It is the largest subspecies of brown bear.- Taxonomy :Taxonomist C.H...
.
Two years after his son, Nicolas, committed suicide, Demetrius Ghika died of broken heart in 1923 and was buried together with his family and son nearby his estate in Comăneşti
Comanesti
Comăneşti is a town in Bacău County, Romania, with a population of 26,230. It is situated on the Trotuş River, which flows between the Ciuc and the Tarcău mountains .The town administers two villages, Podei and Vermeşti.-History:...
, Romania, at the St. Spiridon church cemetery.
His estate's residence, the Ghika Chateau (or Palatul Ghica - Rom.) built in 1880, in late Baroque style, by the French architect Albert Galleron, (also designer of the Romanian National Bank and the Romanian Atheneum) stands still, wonderfully preserved until today, serving as Demeter Ghika Museum of Ethnography and Contemporary Art ("Dimitrie N. Ghika Comăneşti" - Rom.). The property is situated in Comanesti, small town in Bacau district. The museum is host to popular arts and crafts collection and a section of contemporary Romanian beaux-arts. Adjacent to the chateau, a nineteen acre dendrological park boasts rare, exotic and decorative species of trees from Asia and North America.
Timeline of the Ghika expedition in Somaliland
189522 October - Started crossing Ogaden coastal plains, moving into the arid deserts of Gouban
25 October - The high plateaus of ‘Ogo then the Haud
Haud
Haud is a region of thorn-bush and grasslands in the Horn of Africa, which includes the northeastern part of the Ogaden territory of Ethiopia, as well the adjacent parts of Somalia. The Haud is of indeterminate extent; some authorities consider it denotes the part of Ethiopia east of the city of...
country
27 October - Leferoug
29 October - Bouhalgachan, oryx hunts
30 October - Reached fortress of Hargeysa where he met Sheik Mattar trying to avoid Abyssinian troops of King Menelik expedition changes course further south through the country of Aniya Oromo tribes, tributaries of Menelik, less violent
2 November - Closer to the Abyssinian border, the Ghikas kill their first lions on a close encounter
4 November - Reaching Harar
Harar
Harar is an eastern city in Ethiopia, and the capital of the modern Harari ethno-political division of Ethiopia...
mountains, entering in the Ethiopian Alps
9 November - Prairies and forests of Harar
14 November - Reaching fortress of Jijiga
Jijiga
Jijiga is a city in eastern Ethiopia and the capital of the Somali Region of that country. Located in the Jijiga Zone approximately 80 km east of Harar and 60 km west of the border with Somalia, this city has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 1,609 meters above sea...
19 November - Mount Sabatwein, after crossing Jerer
Jerer River
The Jerer is an intermittent river of eastern Ethiopia. A tributary of the Fafen River, it rises near Jijiga to flow in a south-easternly direction....
and Fafen River
Fafen River
Fafen River is a river of eastern Ethiopia. Rising to the east of Harar, this river cuts through a series of wide, flat shelves of sedimentary rocks made of sandstone, limestone, and gypsum as it descends in a south-eastern direction towards the Shebelle River. The Fafen only joins the Shebelle...
s, where the father was almost killed by a charging rhino during a hunt
24 November - Crossing Fafen river
25 November - Reached Degehamedo
30 November - Daghato river region hunting panthers and Nicolas has a close escape from an angry bull elephant in the highland forests.
6 December - Mountains of Kaldech, Khodjar and Djigo
21 December - Crossing Shebeli River (Leopards River)
27 December - Venturing into a never explored land of the Aulihan
Aulihan
The Aulihan are a Somali clan, a division of the larger Ogaden clan, living on both sides of the Kenya - Somalia border.The Aulihan migrated from the Ogaden region of Western Ethiopia in response to pressure from the expanding Ethiopian empire and had taken control of the hinterland of the lower...
tribes
31 December - Entering the Oromo country and discoveries of the alabaster cave, and hunted first giraffe
1896
5 Jan. - At the confluence of Webu with Madesso, they adopt a child, the last survivor of a Geleimis Somali village completely massacred by Abyssinian warriors.
8 Jan. - Discovered another impressive alabaster cave and named her after the Princess Marie of Romania
9 Jan - Dek-Marodi and Ouasasale (Wasasali) mountains
13 Jan. - Enter the Del-Marodile and killed the two man-eating lions that ravaged the village
21 Jan. - Crossed the fertile plains of En and Sibi
23 Jan. - Entered the country of Melengour tribes of Somalis, villages of Sassabene
24 Jan. - Biosoro Mountains
25 Jan. - Entering the Haud plateau, helped the Sheik of the Habr Awal
Isaaq
The Isaaq is one of the main Somali clans. Members of the clan principally live in the northwestern Somaliland region of Somalia, and the Somali Region of Ethiopia. The populations of five major cities of Somaliland – Hargeisa, Burco, Berbera, Ceerigaabo and Gabiley – are predominantly Isaaq...
retrieve his stolen livestock by the Rer-Ali tribe
5 February - Rest at Hargeisa, then head north crossing Mt. Gah-Liba, Mt. Golis, Rock of The Seven Thieves and then entered Mandeira
20 February - Arrived at the port of Berbera
Timeline was based on the book Cinq mois aux pays des Somalis by Nicolas Ghika, G. A. Schweinfuhrt and G. Volkens, in Geneva, 1898