Janusz Marek Kurtyka (13 August 1960 – 10 April 2010) was a Polish

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

, and from December 2005 until his death in the

2010 Polish Air Force Tu-154 crash On 10 April 2010, a Tupolev Tu-154 aircraft operating Polish Air Force Flight 101 crashed near the Russian city of Smolensk, killing all 96 people on board. Among the victims were the president of Poland, Lech Kaczyński, and his wife, Maria, ...

, the second president of the

Institute of National Remembrance The Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation ( pl, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej – Komisja Ścigania Zbrodni przeciwko Narodowi Polskiemu, abbreviated IPN) is a Polish state resea ...

(IPN). Kurtyka was born in

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

and obtained his degree in the History and Philosophy Department of the Jagiellonian University. He had been a historian at the

Polish Academy of Sciences The Polish Academy of Sciences ( pl, Polska Akademia Nauk, PAN) is a Polish state-sponsored institution of higher learning. Headquartered in Warsaw, it is responsible for spearheading the development of science across the country by a society o ...

since 1985 where he specialized in Polish medieval and communist era history, modern history and historical methodology. He finished his PhD in 1995 and was habilitated in 2000. He was a contributor to '' Wielka Encyklopedia PWN'' and ''

Polski Słownik Biograficzny ''Polski Słownik Biograficzny'' (''PSB''; Polish Biographical Dictionary) is a Polish-language biographical dictionary, comprising an alphabetically arranged compilation of authoritative biographies of some 25,000 notable Poles and of foreigner ...

'' (''Polish Biographical Dictionary'') and the author of more than 140 academic publications. In the People's Republic of Poland, Kurtyka was a member of the democratic opposition to communism and an activist with the

Independent Students Union Independent Students' Association ( pl, Niezależne Zrzeszenie Studentów, NZS) is a Polish student society, created in October 1980, in the aftermath of the Gdańsk Agreement and the anti-government strike actions (see: History of Solidarity). It ...

and the trade union Solidarity. Between 1989 and 2000 he was the presidents of the Kraków office of Solidarity in the Historical Institute PAN. After the Institute of National Remembrance (a Polish government-affiliated research institute which investigates both Nazi and Communist crimes committed in Poland) was created in 1998, Kurtyka was the first president of its Kraków branch. In April 2005 he was recommended by the Board of the Institute for the position of the president and was approved by the Polish

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 ...

and Senate in December of that year. He took his oath of office on 29 December 2005. In 2007, Kurtyka was awarded the Ukrainian Order of Merit, third degree and in April 2009 he was awarded the Commander's Cross with Star of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on foreigners for outstanding achievement ...

by the

President of Poland The president of Poland ( pl, Prezydent RP), officially the president of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Prezydent Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej), is the head of state of Poland. Their rights and obligations are determined in the Constitution of Pola ...

, Lech Kaczynski. Kurtyka was on the Tupolev Tu-154 flight of the 36th Special Aviation Regiment carrying the

Lech Kaczyński Lech Aleksander Kaczyński (; 18 June 194910 April 2010) was a Polish politician who served as the city mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 2005, and as President of Poland from 2005 until his death in 2010. Before his tenure as president, he pre ...

which crashed near Smolensk-North airport near Katyn,

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, on 10 April 2010, killing all aboard. Days before he died he called for "the results of the Russian investigation into

Katyn massacre The Katyn massacre, "Katyń crime"; russian: link=yes, Катынская резня ''Katynskaya reznya'', "Katyn massacre", or russian: link=no, Катынский расстрел, ''Katynsky rasstrel'', "Katyn execution" was a series of m ...

to be declassified and for the Russian archives to be opened". The post which was left open by his death was considered particularly problematic due to the difficulty there would be in replacing him.Poland returns to work in shock and sorrow
''The Times''. Roger Boyes, Warsaw. After a mass in the Saints Peter and Paul Church in Kraków he was buried in the Rakowicki Cemetery on 23 April 2010. On 16 April 2010 he was

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta.

Selected publications

*''Generał Leopold Okulicki "Niedźwiadek" (1898–1946)'', (General

Leopold Okulicki General Leopold Okulicki (noms de guerre ''Kobra'', ''Niedźwiadek''; 1898 – 1946) was a general of the Polish Army and the last commander of the anti-Nazi underground Home Army during World War II. He was arrested after the war by the Sovi ...

, "Niedźwiadek" (1898–1946)), 1989 *''Konspiracja i opór społeczny na Podkarpaciu w okresie PRL (red.)'', (Conspiracy and Social Resistance in Subcarpathia During the PRL (ed.)), 2007 *''Latyfundium Tęczyńskie. Dobra i właściciele (XIV–XVII wiek)'', (The Latifundia of the Tęczyński Family. Estate and Owners (14th through 17th centuries)), 1999 *''Odrodzone królestwo. Monarchia Władysława Łokietka i Kazimierza Wielkiego w świetle nowszych badań'', (Kingdom Reborn. The Monarchy of Władysław Łokietek and

Kazimierz Wielki Casimir III the Great ( pl, Kazimierz III Wielki; 30 April 1310 – 5 November 1370) reigned as the King of Poland from 1333 to 1370. He also later became King of Ruthenia in 1340, and fought to retain the title in the Galicia-Volhynia Wars. He ...

in Light of New Research), 2001 *''Tęczyńscy. Studium z dziejów polskiej elity możnowładczej w średniowieczu'', (The Tęczyński Family. A Study from the History of a Polish Medieval Magnates), 1997 * "Freedom And Independence - Zrzeszenie "Wolność i Niezawisłość, WiN"
A Historical Brief

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurtyka, Janusz 1960 births 2010 deaths Writers from Kraków 20th-century Polish historians Polish male non-fiction writers Victims of the Smolensk air disaster Jagiellonian University alumni Grand Crosses of the Order of Polonia Restituta Chevaliers of the Order of Merit (Ukraine) Polish medievalists People associated with the Institute of National Remembrance Collaborators of the Polish Biographical Dictionary 21st-century Polish historians