Czesław Wycech (1899–1977) was a Polish activist, politician and historian. He was a member of the Polish peasant's parties: the

Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie" Polish Peasant Party "Wyzwolenie" or Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie"''Wyzwolenie'' is Polish for ''Liberation'', and many sources translate the party's name fully as Polish Peasant Party "Liberation" or Polish People's Party "Liberation" (Poli ...

, the People's Party, the

Polish People's Party The Polish People's Party ( pl, Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe, PSL) is an agrarian political party in Poland. It is currently led by Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz. Its history traces back to 1895, when it held the name People's Party, although i ...

, and the United People's Party. During World War II he was a member of the Polish Underground State, responsible for organizing underground education. He was the Minister of Education in the Council of National Unity (1945–1947). Within the People's Republic of Poland, he was a member of the Polish parliament (

Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of t ...

) and also held other governmental posts.

Biography

Wycech was born to a peasant family on 20 July 1899 in Wilczogęby. A teacher by profession, he graduated from the Teacher's Institute in Warsaw in 1926. He was involved with the

peasant movement A peasant movement is a social movement involved with the agricultural policy, which claims peasants rights. Peasant movements have a long history that can be traced to the numerous peasant uprisings that occurred in various regions of the wor ...

from around 1917 to 1919;Jerzy Jan Lerski, Piotr Wróbel, Richard J. Kozicki, ''Historical Dictionary of Poland, 966-1945'', Greenwood Publishing Group, 1996,
Google Print, p.667
/ref>Czesław Wycech 1899-1977
Muzeum Historii Polskiego Ruchu Ludowego around that time he joined the

(PSL "Wyzwolenie") and in 1931, the People's Party (SL).Wycech Czesław
in

WIEM Encyklopedia WIEM Encyklopedia (full name in pl, Wielka Interaktywna Encyklopedia Multimedialna - "Great Interactive Multimedia Encyclopedia"; in Polish, ''wiem'' also means 'I know') is a Polish Internet encyclopedia. The first printed edition was released ...

He joined the

(PSL) post-World War II in 1945 which by 1949 had become the United People's Party (ZSL). From 1946 until 1971 he was one of the top leaders of PSL and ZSL. Wycech was an educational activist; during World War II he was an important participant in the underground education in occupied Poland. He was one of the founders of the

Secret Teaching Organization Secret Teaching Organization ( pl, Tajna Organizacja Nauczycielska, ''TON'' also translated as the ''Secret Teaching Society'' or ''Clandestine Teaching Organization'') was an underground Polish educational organization created in 1939 after the G ...

(''Tajna Organizacja Nauczycielska'') in 1939; he later became a member of the Polish Underground State and he was the President of the Department of Culture and Education in the

Government Delegation for Poland The Government Delegation for Poland ( pl, Delegatura Rządu Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej na Kraj) was an agency of the Polish Government in Exile during World War II. It was the highest authority of the Polish Secret State in occupied Poland and was ...

from 1940 until 1945. He was the President of the

Association of Polish Teachers Polish Teachers' Union ( pl, Związek Nauczycielstwa Polskiego, ZNP, also translated as ''Union of Polish Teachers'', ''Polish Teachers' Association'', ''Association of Polish Teachers'') is the largest Polish trade union for teachers and educator ...

(ZNP) from 1944 until 1945 and from 1945 to 1947, he was the Minister of Education in the Council of National Unity. He was a deputy chairman of the

Polish Council of State The Council of State of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Rada Państwa) was introduced by the Small Constitution of 1947 as an organ of executive power. The Council of State consisted of the President of the Republic of Poland as chairman, the Marsha ...

from 1956 until 1957. From 1944 to 1971 he was member of the Polish parliament (

, earlier the

State National Council Krajowa Rada Narodowa in Polish (translated as State National Council or Homeland National Council, abbreviated to KRN) was a parliament-like political body created during the later stages of World War II in German-occupied Warsaw, Poland. It wa ...

). From 1957 to 1971 he was the

Marshal of the Sejm The Marshal of the Sejm , also known as Sejm Marshal, Chairman of the Sejm or Speaker of the Sejm ( pl, Marszałek Sejmu, ) is the speaker (chair) of the Sejm, the lower house of the Polish Parliament. The office traces its origins to the 15th ...

.George Sanford, ''Democratic Government in Poland: Constitutional Politics Since 1989'', Macmillan, 2002,
Google Print, p.109
/ref> In 1959 he was decorated with the

Order of the Builders of People's Poland Order of the Builders of People's Poland ( pl, Order Budowniczych Polski Ludowej) was the highest

for his contributions to peasant studies, development and education.

Works

* Nauczycielstwo w walce o demokrację (1947) * Materiały do dziejów ruchu ludowego (1949) * Z przeszłości ruchów chłopskich, 1768-1861 (1952) * Ks. Piotr Ściegienny (1953) * Powstanie chłopskie w roku 1846 (1955) * 60 lat ruchu ludowego (1957) * Podstawowe zagadnienia społeczno-polityczne ruchu ludowego (1958) * Polityczna myśl ludowa w świetle programów stronnictw chłopskich (1959) * Aktualne zadania polityczne i organizacyjne zjednoczonego Stronnictwa Ludowego (1962) * Społeczna gospodarka rolna w polskiej myśli politycznej (1963) * Z dziejów tajnej oświaty w latach okupacji 1939-1945 (1964) * Wincenty Witos w świetle własnej twórczości pisarskiej (1966) * Towarzystwo Oświaty Demokratycznej «Nowe Tory» 1931-1939 (1966)

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wycech, Czeslaw 1899 births 1977 deaths People from Węgrów County People from Siedlce Governorate Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie" politicians People's Party (Poland) politicians Polish People's Party (1945–1949) politicians United People's Party (Poland) politicians Government ministers of Poland Members of the State National Council Members of the Polish Sejm 1947–1952 Members of the Polish Sejm 1952–1956 Members of the Polish Sejm 1957–1961 Members of the Polish Sejm 1961–1965 Members of the Polish Sejm 1965–1969 Members of the Polish Sejm 1969–1972 Marshals of the Sejm Polish male writers Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Order of the Builders of People's Poland Burials at Powązki Military Cemetery Education ministers of Poland