E. J. Dillon
Emile Joseph Dillon | |
|---|---|
| Born | Template:Birth date Dublin, Ireland |
| Died | June 9, 1933 (aged 79) |
| Occupation(s) | Writer, journalist, linguist |
| Years active | 1887–1919 |
| Known for | Russian correspondent for The Daily Telegraph; expertise in Oriental languages; immersive journalism |
Emile Joseph Dillon (21 March 1854 – 9 June 1933) was an Irish writer, journalist, and expert in languages.
Biography
Dillon was born in Dublin to a father of Irish descent and an English mother. Initially preparing for the priesthood, he redirected his studies at age 21 to focus on Oriental languages at the Collège de France in Paris. He obtained a PhD from the University of Leipzig and subsequently earned two further doctorates—one in Oriental Languages and Literature from the Catholic University of Leuven and another in Comparative Philology from Kharkiv University.
From 1887 until 1914, Dillon worked as the Russian correspondent for The Daily Telegraph. He also briefly held teaching positions in Sanskrit, Classical Armenian, and Comparative Philology at Kharkiv University. A close confidant of Russian statesman Sergei Witte, Dillon accompanied him to the 1905 peace negotiations that concluded the Russo-Japanese War. His journalistic career encompassed reporting on significant events such as the 1899 Dreyfus affair, the 1900 Boxer Rebellion, and the 1919 Versailles peace talks. Renowned for immersive journalism, he sometimes employed disguises, particularly during the Armenian massacres in Turkey between 1894 and 1895.
Occasionally publishing under the alias E.B.Lanin—likely alluding to his Dublin origins—Dillon married Yelena Maksimovna Bogachova in 1881. They had four sons before divorcing in 1913. The following year, he wed Kathleen Ireland from Belfast. In his later years, Dillon lived in Barcelona, where he passed away on 9 June 1933 after undergoing surgery.
Legacy
The National Library of Scotland preserves a collection of E.J. Dillon’s papers (Accession 12382).
In 2025, Kevin Rafter authored a biography titled Dillon Rediscovered: The Newspaperman Who Befriended Kings, Presidents and Oil Tycoons.
A portrait of Dillon painted by William Orpen is exhibited at the National Gallery of Ireland.
Bibliography
E.J. Dillon was a versatile writer with numerous publications spanning various disciplines. Notable works include:
- The Sceptics of the Old Testament: Job - Koheleth - Agur. London: Isbister & Co., 1895.
- Maxim Gorky: His Life and Writings. London: Isbister & Co., 1902.
- The Original Poem of Job. London: T. Fisher Unwin Ltd., 1905.
- A Scrap of Paper: The Inner History of German Diplomacy and Her Scheme of World-Wide Conquest. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1914.
- From the Triple to the Quadruple Alliance: Why Italy Went to War. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1915.
- Ourselves and Germany. London: Chapman & Hall, 1916.
- The Eclipse of Russia. London: J.M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1918.
- The Peace Conference. London: Hutchinson & Co., 1919.
- Mexico on the Verge. London: Hutchinson & Co., 1921.
- Russia Today and Yesterday: An Impartial View of Soviet Russia. London: J.M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1929.
- Leaves from Life. London: J.M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1932.
- Count Leo Tolstoy: A New Portrait. London: Hutchinson & Co., 1934.
Additionally, he translated several works by Leo Tolstoy into English.