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The Valtikos family is a family of prominent Jurists – Lawyers from Chios, whose descendants today live and work in Switzerland. The prosperous old Valtikos family lived in Chios developing mainly commercial activities with citrus, before the destruction of 1822 (April 2, Easter Sunday).
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Antonis Valtikos was born in 1812 in Chios and was saved "miraculously"* in the destruction of 1822, recovered the family property and had children. Of his boys only one was married, Nikolaos, and had children. The others lived an active life, courageous, somewhat adventurous, and traveled to many countries. One became a captain and ship owner. The other siblings during 1870 settled in North Egypt and at the end of their life returned to Chios, close to their relatives. Of Nikolaos’ children, the eldest, Michalis, who was born in 1880 in Kampos and was rescued from the devastating earthquake in 1881 "miraculously"*, had Nicholas. Michalis Valtikos, who was a lawyer in the Mixed Courts of Egypt, while he served for many years as vice president of the Greek Community of Cairo, died in 1969.
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His son, Nikolaos Valtikos was born in Cairo in 1918. Among other things, he had been a judge at the European Court of Human Rights, Judge Ad Hoc at the International Tribunal in The Hague, General Secretary of the Institut de Droit International, former deputy director of the International Labor Office, a member of the International Court of Arbitration, President and member of various arbitration tribunals. He was an Academician and a regular member of the Athens Academy from 1989. He died on November 24, 2003 and was buried in Geneva. The eulogy was delivered by the academic Emmanuel Roukounas. The son of Nikolaos, Michalis Valtikos continues the family tradition, as he is a distinguished lawyer in Geneva.
* In our library you can find the book of Nikolaos Valtikos, "The tragedies and miracles of 1822 and 1881 in Chios" (Easter 1994), a deposit of soul, that, as he writes himself, it is “...every man’s effort to rescue the past from the great law of oblivion”. It is bilingual, Greek - French and we give it to any interested visitor to read. Nikolaos Valtikos left behind him a great literary work on issues of law.
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