Casimir Dunin Markievicz ( pl, Kazimierz Dunin-Markiewicz , 15 March 1874 – 2 December 1932), known as Count Markievicz, was a Polish playwright, theatre director, and painter, and the husband of the Irish revolutionary Constance Markievicz.

Early life and marriage

The Dunin Markievicz family held land in Malopolska Province (today Ukraine), and had an estate in a town of Zywotow ( pl, Żywotówka; now ) where Casimir grew up. Markievicz attended the State Gymnasium in

Kherson Kherson (, ) is a port city of Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers appr ...

, and studied law at the University in Kyiv which at that time still held a vast Polish minority.Timothy Snyder. (2003). ''The Reconstruction of Nations.'' New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 120-122 In 1895, he transferred to the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. While in Paris, he met and married Jadwiga Splawa-Neyman. They had two sons, Stanislas and Ryszard, but the marriage did not last. Jadwiga returned to Ukraine where she and Ryszard died in 1899. He met Constance Gore-Booth in 1899, and the two mixed in the bohemian Paris society of the time. In Paris, Markievicz styled himself as " Count Markievicz". When Constance's family enquired as to the validity of the title, they were informed through Pyotr Rachkovsky of the Russian Secret Police that he had taken the title "without right", and that there had never been a "Count Markievicz" in Poland. However, the Department of Genealogy in Saint Petersburg said that he was entitled to claim to be a member of the ''

Szlachta The ''szlachta'' (Polish: endonym, Lithuanian: šlėkta) were the noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth who, as a class, had the dominating position in the ...

'', of whom there were several hundred thousand in 1900. Markievicz and Gore-Booth married in London in 1900, and their daughter, Maeve, was born the following year. From 1902 the couple lived in Dublin. He continued to be known as "Count Markievicz" (and Constance as "Countess Markievicz"), and in the 1911 census gave his occupation as "Count (Russian nobility)". Stanislas later said in a letter that his father had not been a count.

Artistic life

Markievicz was part of the literary circle that centred on W. B. Yeats, Lady Gregory, J.M. Synge, and the Abbey Theatre. In 1910 he formed his own theatre company, the Independent Dramatic Company, which staged plays written by himself and starring his wife, Constance.

Return to Poland

In 1913, Markievicz moved back to Poland, and never returned to live in Ireland. However, he did correspond with his wife in Dublin and he was by her side when she died in 1927. Towards the end of his life Markievicz was active in Warsaw, as well as a correspondent for British magazines, such as the ''Londoner Daily News''. He also wrote the screenplay of a 1920 Polish film, ''Powrót'', directed by

Aleksander Hertz Aleksander Hertz (1879–1928) was a Polish film producer and director. Hertz was an influential figure in early Polish cinema, directing films such as the historical '' Countess Walewska'' in 1914. He founded the "Sfinks" film company. Hertz was ...

.. His paintings included portraits, landscapes, and

genre painting Genre painting (or petit genre), a form of genre art, depicts aspects of everyday life by portraying ordinary people engaged in common activities. One common definition of a genre scene is that it shows figures to whom no identity can be attached ...

. The largest part of his art collection is held in Dublin, some remain in Poland ( National Museum, Kraków, and in private collections). His talent lent itself particularly to the large oil portraits of two Polish statesmen:

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

Piłsudski and Stanisław Wojciechowski. A catalogue for his works is still pending. He died in Warsaw,

Republic of Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, in December 1932.

Plays

(Source: ''Productions of the Irish Theatre Movement, 1899-1916'') *''Seymour's Redemption'', Abbey Theatre, 9 March 1908 *''The Dilettante'', Abbey Theatre, 3 December 1908 *''Home Sweet Home'' (with Nora Fitzpatrick), Abbey Theatre, 3 December 1908 *''The Memory of the Dead'', Abbey Theatre, 14 April 1910 *''Mary'', Abbey Theatre, 14 April 1910 *''Rival Stars'', Gaiety Theatre, 11 December 1911

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Markievicz, Casimir 19th-century Polish painters 19th-century Polish male artists 20th-century Polish painters 20th-century Polish male artists 20th-century Polish dramatists and playwrights Polish male dramatists and playwrights Duninowie Artists from Warsaw Artist authors Polish nobility People from Vinnytsia Oblast People from the Russian Empire of Polish descent 1874 births 1932 deaths Polish male painters