Ilija Despot (Zaostrog, 20 July 1885 – Split, 28 November 1970) was a Croatian theologian, lawyer, poet and writer.[1]
Early life edit
Ilija Despot was the son of Pavao Despot (1847 - 1888) and Countess Manda Kostanjić (1849 - 1918) of the noble house of Kostanjić from Drvenik. He was also the nephew of the Croatian writer Ivan Despot, after whose example he wished to become a priest. After his theological studies in Zadar however, he decided to remain a layman and went on to study law, in which he achieved a doctorate in Zagreb in 1920.
Career edit
He worked as a judge and lawyer, and as a cultural associate in Križevci, Šibenik, Split.
His writings were influenced mostly by Silvije Strahimir Kranjčević and Andrija Kačić Miošić who was a priest in the same Franciscan monastery of Zaostrog as Despot. His numerous writings include poems and travelogues together with cultural, historical and biographical studies.[2]
He was married to Iva Paulina Mardešić (born 1899) of the wealthy industrial Mardešić family from the island of Vis. Their son Pavao Despot (1936 - 2017) was also a notable writer and poet.
Bibliography edit
- Drhtaji duše (1912)
- Duša (1914)
- Iseljenoj Hrvatskoj (1914)
- Nad grobom majke (1917)
- Kidanje (1926)
References edit
- ^ "DESPOT, Ilija". Hrvatska Encyclopaedia (in Croatian). Retrieved 26 February 2017.
- ^ Pandžić, Ivan. "DESPOT, Ilija". Hrvatski Biografski Leksikon (in Croatian). Retrieved 26 February 2017.
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