Count Edward Raczyński, of the
Nałęcz coat-of-arms (April 2, 1786 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 ...
– January 20, 1845 in
Zaniemyśl) was a Polish conservative politician, protector of arts, founder of the
Raczyński Library and the first
aqueduct 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
orientalist who contributed also to
nature conservation
Nature conservation is the ethic/moral philosophy and conservation movement focused on protecting species from extinction, maintaining and restoring habitats, enhancing ecosystem services, and protecting biological diversity. A range of values ...
in Rogalin (
Oaks of Rogalin).
Raczyński was the leading Polish orientalist (the term used in Europe at the time to describe scholars specializing in the Orient, i.e the Middle East) of his time. In 1823, his book ''Dziennik podróży do Turcyi odbytey w 1814'' was published, recounting a journey he made to the Ottoman empire in 1814. The Polish scholar Bogusław R. Zagórski wrote in the 19th century owing to the way that Poland had been partitioned between Prussia, Russia and Austria leading to much unhappiness amongst the Poles that there was an obsession for the Polish public with the world beyond Poland as places where happiness was possible. As such, Polish publishers in the 19th century frequently printed books recounting adventures and travels by Poles in the far-away lands in Africa, Asia, Australia and the Americas as places where it was possible to find happiness in way that did not exist in the lands that ruled by the Russian, Austrian and German empires, and that Raczyński's studies in Orientalism were part of this trend.
He married
Konstancja Potocka in 1817.
References
Books
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Witold Jakóbczyk
Witold Jakóbczyk (; 15 January 1909 in Sosnowiec – 3 October 1986 in Poznań) was a Polish historian and professor at Poznań University, specializing in the history of Greater Poland in the 19th century.
Publications
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* Witold Ja ...
, ''Przetrwać nad Wartą 1815–1914'', ''Dzieje narodu i państwa polskiego'', vol. III-55, Krajowa Agencja Wydawnicza, Warszawa 1989
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See also
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Edward Raczyński (1891–1993) was a Polish aristocrat, diplomat, politician and the President of Poland in exile (between 1979 and 1986).
1786 births
1845 deaths
Politicians from Poznań
Counts of Poland
People from the Grand Duchy of Posen
Edward
Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”.
History
The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...
Polish patrons of the arts
Suicides by firearm in Poland
Polish counts of the Kingdom of Prussia
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