Cyryl Ratajski (3 March 1875 – 19 October 1942) was a Polish politician and lawyer.

Life and career

Ratajski was born in Zalesie Wielkie, then part of the German Empire, on 3 March 1875. He graduated from a high school in

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

and studied law at the

University of Berlin The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humbol ...

. After leaving university, he worked as a court clerk in Torgau. He opened his own law firm in

Racibórz Racibórz (, , , ) is a city in Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland. It is the administrative seat of Racibórz County. With Opole, Racibórz is one of the historic capitals of Upper Silesia, being the residence of the Duchy of Racibórz, Du ...

after passing a judge's exam in 1905. He moved back to Poznań in 1911 to look after his father-in-law's business. He became an envoy for the Supreme Popular Council to the Polish National Committee in Paris in January 1919. He served as mayor of Poznań between 1922 and 1924 and again between 1925 and 1934 as well as Minister of Interior between 1924 and 1925. From 1937, he was a member of the Labor Party. He became mayor of Poznań again in September 1939 before being deported to German-occupied Poland in early 1940. He was the first Head of Delegate's Office of the

Polish government in exile The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile (), was the government in exile A government-in-exile (GiE) is a political group that claims to be the legitimate government of a sovere ...

(''Delegat Rządu na Kraj'') on 3 December 1940 until 5 August 1942 when he was replaced by Jan Piekałkiewicz due to ill health. He died on 19 October 1942 in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

References

1875 births 1942 deaths People from Krotoszyn County People from the Province of Posen National League (Poland) members Labor Party (Stronnictwo Pracy) politicians 20th-century Polish lawyers Greater Poland Uprising (1918–1919) participants Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Mayors of Poznań Interior ministers of Poland Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland) Member of the Tomasz Zan Society Government delegates for Poland {{Poland-law-bio-stub

Life and career

See also

References