Gheorghe Bengescu

Gheorghe Bengescu (Francized Georges Bengesco; August 30, 1848–August 23, 1922) was a Romanian diplomat and man of letters.

Gheorghe Bengescu
Born(1848-08-30)August 30, 1848
Craiova, Wallachia
DiedAugust 23, 1921(1921-08-23) (aged 72)
Paris, France
Nationality Romania
Occupationdiplomat

Born in Craiova to Grigore Bengescu as the scion of a boyar family, he studied in Paris,[1] earning a doctorate in political and administrative sciences,[2] before returning to Romania.[1] There, he served as prosecutor and judge for the Ilfov County tribunal and also worked as a French teacher.[3] Entering the diplomatic service in 1872, he was secretary at the legations in Vienna and London,[3] arriving in the latter city in 1882. He rose to first secretary in 1885 and legation adviser in 1889.[2] He was also first secretary in Paris, then legation adviser. From 1891 to 1898, he was minister plenipotentiary at Brussels, also accredited to The Hague, until he resigned.[1][3]

While abroad, Bengescu published a series of works on literature, producing sixteen books in as many years, including a four-volume bibliography of Voltaire that received a prize from the Académie française. His bibliography of Oriental culture was much appreciated by contemporaries, while his studies in Romanian covered Vasile Alecsandri (1886-1888), Queen Elisabeth of Romania (1906) and the literary activity of Golescu family members.[2] Bengescu belonged to the administration of the Société d'Histoire littéraire de la France, becoming vice president. He represented Romania in the Société d'histoire diplomatique.[3] Elected a corresponding member of the Romanian Academy in 1883,[2] he rose to titular status in 1921.[4] He died in Paris.[3]

Notes
  1. Octav George Lecca, Familiile boerești române, p. 70. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1899.
  2. Marie of Romania, Însemnări zilnice, p. 432. Bucharest: Editura Historia, 2006. ISBN 978-973-876-888-8
  3. Avram Cezar, Dicționar istoric al localităților din județul Dolj: Craiova, [n.p.]. Craiova: Editura Alma, 2005. ISBN 978-973-844-356-3
  4. (in Romanian) Membrii Academiei Române din 1866 până în prezent at the Romanian Academy site
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