Jacques Damala - Diplomatic Career and Notorious Social Life

Diplomatic Career and Notorious Social Life

Damala was born at Piraeus, Greece on 15 January 1855 to an aristocratic family. He was the second of three children to Ambrosios (Ambrouzis) Damalas (2 June 1808 – 29 July 1869), a wealthy shipping magnate, who later served as mayor of Ermoupoli and Piraeus and his wife, Calliope Ralli (6 June 1829 – 14 February 1891), whose father, Loukas Rallis, had also once served as mayor of Piraeus and Ermoupolis, Syros (he had also came up with the name "Ermoupoli") and was a member of the Executive Committee which attempted the liberation of Chios in 1827, during the Greek War of Independence. The other two children of Ambrouzis and Calliope were a son, Paul (Pavlos) Damalas (17 July 1853 – 25 December 1925) and a daughter, Eirini (ca 1857 – ?). The family later moved to Marseille, France, where they spent several years, until they relocated to Ermoupoli, Syros, after Ambrosios was appointed mayor there. The family later returned to Marseille and eventually to Piraeus.

After finishing school in Piraeus, Damala spent four years abroad, mainly in England and France, where he pursued diplomatic studies. During his time abroad, he became acquainted with representatives of high society, as well as representatives of the theatre world, since he had the dream of excelling as an actor one day. He returned to Greece in 1878 and recruited in the army. He was later trained in the Page Corps in Russia but eventually decided to drop his studies there and return to Paris.

By the early 1880s, he had earned a post as a military attaché to the Greek Diplomatic Corps. He quickly acquired a reputation of being "the handsomest man in Europe", as well as the nickname "Diplomat Apollo" by his friends and the assumption of being the most dangerous man in Paris, among the several husbands who feared their wives would fall victim to his charms and be seduced by the young diplomat. Damala was indeed considered as the epitome of handsomeness of his time, and many women of the high society of Paris were infatuated with him. He rapidly earned the reputation of being a merciless heartbreaker and womanizer of the high circles. Besides his passion for women, he was also said to enjoy the company of young men, as well. His affair with the wife of a Parisian banker, Paul Meisonnier, had ruined the woman's reputation to the extent of forcing her to leave France. It was also rumoured that he had driven two women to divorce and one to suicide. One of his documented affairs was with the young daughter of a Vaucluse magistrate who had left her parents and home to follow Damala to Paris, where he deserted her when their illegitimate child was born. The young girl was never heard from again; she is presumed to have committed suicide. Following these scandals, Damala was reassigned to Russia.