Wawrzyniec Benzelstjerna Engeström (1829–1910) was a Polish activist, poet, translator and notable advocate of
Polish-Swedish cooperation.
Early life
He was the son of
General Stanislaus von Engeström and grandson of the
diplomat
A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...
Count Lars von Engeström.
He took part in the
Kraków uprising of 1846 and
Greater Poland Uprising of 1848, and was imprisoned by the
Prussians for one year in
Kostrzyn nad Odrą for the participation in the latter. In 1850, he studied in
Wrocław, where he engaged in youth cultural activities.
Adulthood
After marriage in 1852, he returned to his family estate in
Ostrowieczko. In 1853, he moved to
Ugoszcz. In 1856, he bought the
Rakowo estate.
In 1863, he moved to
Warsaw and then to
Lwów
Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...
, where he organized a press office on behalf of the
Polish National Government during the
January Uprising
The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...
. He published political brochures in Polish and French, and was arrested by the
Austrians in July 1863. Thanks to the efforts of his Swedish family, he was released in mid-1864, and then he moved to
Dresden, where he founded the Society for the Assistance of Emigrants, organized lectures on Polish history and literature for Polish refugees, and founded the ''Notatki Drezdeńskie'' Polish newspaper. He also befriended
Józef Ignacy Kraszewski there. In 1877, he sold his Rakowo estate as he was prohibited from returning to the
Russian Partition of Poland.
In 1878, he moved to
Poznań. From 1880 to 1906, he was a secretary of the
Poznań Society of Friends of Learning
The Poznań Society for the Advancement of Arts and Sciences ( pl, Poznańskie Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Nauk, ''PTPN'') is a learned society in Poznań, Poland, established in 1857, of scholars and scientists in all branches of learning. It has ...
. He co-founded the
Działyński Palace
Działyński Palace in Poznań, Poland is a Baroque palace built in 1773 to 1776. The building features a rich stucco-decorated interior of its "Red Hall" and a classicist façade
A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front p ...
fine arts
In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...
collection, and initiated the construction of a monument to
Renaissance poet
Jan Kochanowski in Poznań.
References
Bibliography
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Engestrom, Wawrzyniec Benzelstjerna
1829 births
1910 deaths
Polish activists
Polish male poets
Polish people of Swedish descent
Polish political prisoners in the Prussian partition
Prisoners and detainees of Austria