Dr. Vincent Žuk-Hryškievič ( be, Вінцэнт Жук-Грышкевіч, sometimes ''Vintsent Zhuk-Hryshkevich'', ; February 10, 1903 – February 14, 1989) was a

Belarusian Belarusian may refer to: * Something of, or related to Belarus * Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent * A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus * Belarusian language * Belarusian culture * Belarusian cuisine * Byelor ...

emigre politician. Vincent Žuk-Hryškievič studied at a Belarusian gymnasium in Budsłaŭ and then, after the gymnasium's closure, in the

Belarusian Gymnasium of Vilnia The Belarusian Gymnasium of Vilnia ( be, Віленская беларуская гімназія) was an important Belarusian school in Vilnius. Many notable Belarusian cultural figures of the 20th century graduated from the school. History The ...

from which he graduated in 1922. He graduated from the

Charles University in Prague Charles University ( cs, Univerzita Karlova, UK; la, Universitas Carolina; german: Karls-Universität), also known as Charles University in Prague or historically as the University of Prague ( la, Universitas Pragensis, links=no), is the oldest an ...

in 1926 and worked in 1927-1939 as a teacher in the

, while also taking part in Belarusian activities in

West Belarus Western Belorussia or Western Belarus ( be, Заходняя Беларусь, translit=Zachodniaja Bielaruś; pl, Zachodnia Białoruś; russian: Западная Белоруссия, translit=Zapadnaya Belorussiya) is a historical region of mod ...

, including work for a newspaper published by the

Belarusian Peasants' and Workers' Union The Belarusian Peasants' and Workers' Union or the Hramada ( be, Беларуская Сялянска-Работніцкая Грамада ( Lacinka: ''Biełaruskaja Sialanska-Rabotnickaja Hramada''), pl, Białoruska Włościańsko-Robotnicza H ...

. In late September 1939, after the

Soviet invasion of Poland The Soviet invasion of Poland was a military operation by the Soviet Union without a formal declaration of war. On 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Poland from the east, 16 days after Nazi Germany invaded Poland from the west. Subse ...

, Vincent Žuk-Hryškievič was first appointed editor in a Soviet newspaper but very soon arrested by the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...

. After several months of tortures, he was sent to

Gulag The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= was the government agency in ...

concentration camps in

Kotlas Kotlas (russian: Ко́тлас) is a town in Arkhangelsk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Northern Dvina and Vychegda Rivers. Population: Kotlas is the third largest town of Arkhangelsk Oblast in terms of population (after Ar ...

and

Vorkuta Vorkuta (russian: Воркута́; kv, Вӧркута, ''Vörkuta''; Nenets for "the abundance of bears", "bear corner") is a coal-mining town in the Komi Republic, Russia, situated just north of the Arctic Circle in the Pechora coal basin at ...

. In 1942 he was set free as a Polish citizen and fought in the

Anders' Army Anders' Army was the informal yet common name of the Polish Armed Forces in the East in the 1941–42 period, in recognition of its commander Władysław Anders. The army was created in the Soviet Union but, in March 1942, based on an understandi ...

in Egypt and Italy, including the

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino, was a series of four assaults made by the Allies against German forces in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II. The ultimate objective was ...

. After the war, Žuk-Hryškievič first settled in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

where together with other Belarusian veterans of the Anders Army he became one of the founders of the

Association of Belarusians in Great Britain The Association of Belarusians in Great Britain ( be, Згуртаваньне беларусаў у Вялікай Брытаніі, ''Zhurtavańnie bielarusaŭ u Vialikaj Brytanii'') is the oldest Belarusian organisation in the United Kingdom un ...

. In 1950, he moved to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and actively participated in Belarusian activities in North America as one of the leaders of the

Belarusian Canadian Alliance Belarusian may refer to: * Something of, or related to Belarus * Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent * A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus * Belarusian language * Belarusian culture * Belarusian cuisine * Byelor ...

. In 1952, he became a Ph.D. in Literature at the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottawa ...

.Жыцьцё Вінцэнта Жук-Грышкевіча he Life of Vincent Zuk-Hryskievic by Raisa Zuk-Hryskievic, Toronto, 1993, p. 109 For a period of two years he moved to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

, at the invitation of President

Mikoła Abramčyk Mikola Abramchyk ( be, Мікола Абрамчык, russian: Николай Абрамчик, he, מיקעולא אברמצ'יק) (16 August 1903 – 29 May 1970) was a Belarusian journalist and emigre politician of Ottoman Jewish and Armeni ...

. Here he established and managed the Belarusian section of

Radio Liberty Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...

. He made the first broadcast to his homeland on May 20, 1954, and remained with the programme until April 1956 when he returned to Toronto. Vincent Žuk-Hryškievič was president of the government-in-exile of the

Belarusian Democratic Republic The Belarusian People's Republic (BNR; be, Беларуская Народная Рэспубліка, Bielaruskaja Narodnaja Respublika, ), or Belarusian Democratic Republic, was a state proclaimed by the Council of the Belarusian Democratic R ...

between 1971 and 1982.

External links

Першы партал Нарачанскага краю - Вінцэнт Жук-Грышкевіч

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zhuk-Hryshkevich, Vincent 1903 births 1989 deaths People from Myadzyel District People from Vileysky Uyezd Belarusian Roman Catholics Members of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic Belarusian emigrants to the United Kingdom Belarusian emigrants to Canada Charles University alumni Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty people Belarusian journalists Polish military personnel of World War II Foreign Gulag detainees 20th-century journalists