Józef Jacek Rybiński (28 February 1701 in

Torczyn Torchyn ( uk, Торчин, pl, Torczyn) is an urban-type settlement in Lutsk Raion of Volyn Oblast in Ukraine. It is located on the banks of the Serna (river), Serna in the drainage basin of the Dnieper. Population: Economy Transportation The ...

- 15 April 1782 in Oliwa) was a

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

and the last

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

of the Oliwa Monastery. He attended the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

in Stare Szkoty near

Gdańsk Gdańsk ( , also ; ; csb, Gduńsk;Stefan Ramułt, ''Słownik języka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego'', Kraków 1893, Gdańsk 2003, ISBN 83-87408-64-6. , Johann Georg Theodor Grässe, ''Orbis latinus oder Verzeichniss der lateinischen Benen ...

(Danzig). He held a position at the court of the

King of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electable position in Europe (16t ...

August II Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as Ki ...

and was a secretary to the Under Chancellor of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Li ...

. In 1729 he took monastic vows. He studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and church law in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

. In 1740 he became the abbot of the Oliwa monastery. He was a friend of the Polish general, poet and political figure Józef Wybicki and a supporter of the

Bar Confederation The Bar Confederation ( pl, Konfederacja barska; 1768–1772) was an association of Polish nobles (szlachta) formed at the fortress of Bar in Podolia (now part of Ukraine) in 1768 to defend the internal and external independence of the Polish� ...

, an association of

Polish nobles The ''szlachta'' (Polish: endonym, Lithuanian language, Lithuanian: šlėkta) were the nobility, noble Estates of the realm, estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland (1025–1385), Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the ...

organized to defend the internal and external independence of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

against

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n influence. He backed August III for King of Poland and opposed the Czartoryski family. Thanks to his monetary backing the Abbot's Palace in Oliwa was constructed, as well as the surrounding

Oliwa Park Oliwa ( la, Oliva; csb, Òlëwa; german: Oliva) is a northern district of the city of Gdańsk, Poland. From east it borders Przymorze and Żabianka, from the north Sopot and from the south with the districts of Strzyża, VII Dwór and Brętowo, ...

, designed by

Kazimierz Dębiński Kazimierz (; la, Casimiria; yi, קוזמיר, Kuzimyr) is a historical district of Kraków and Kraków Old Town, Poland. From its inception in the 14th century to the early 19th century, Kazimierz was an independent city, a royal city of the Cr ...

, in French Rococo style, which survives to this day.In Your Pocket, Essential City Guide
Oliwa Park [Park Oliwski]
Last accessed August 18, 2010 He also financed the renovation of the Church of St. Jacob in the city. Also thanks to his support the organ of the Oliwa Cathedral was constructed by Johann Wilhelm Wulff">Oliwa Cathedral#Great organ">organ of the Oliwa Cathedral was constructed by Johann Wilhelm Wulff, beginning in 1758; at the time of its completion in 1788 it was the largest organ in Europe.Organs of Gdańsk

last accessed August 18, 2010 Rybiński was so impressed with Wulff's initial work that he paid for his further studies abroad, in Germany and Holland, on the condition that upon his return Wulff finish the organs and join the Cistercian order.http://www.trojmiasto,pl
''Wielkie Organy Oliwskie''
(The Great Oliwa Organs), last accessed August 21, 2010 As a result of these activities, even during his life he was referred to as "The Great Abbot of the (Polish) Republic" (''Wielki Opat Rzeczypospolitej'').Mieczysław Orłowicz

(Guide to Gdańsk, Oliwa and Sopot with a map of the city). Last accessed August 18, 2010 After the First Partition of Poland, the Prussian occupation authorities disbanded the Oliwa Monastery and seized the properties of the order, paying compensation equal to only a small fraction of actual value. As a result, the construction of the Oliwa Cathedral organs ran into financial difficulties despite Rybiński's efforts, and eventually plans to gild the organs had to be abandoned. Rybiński died in 1782 in Oliwa.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rybinski, Jacek 1701 births 1782 deaths Abbots of Oliwa Polish Cistercians People from Volyn Oblast