Jan Kazimierz Czyński (1801–1867) was a Polish independence activist, lawyer by education, writer and

publicist A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a company, a brand, or public figure – especially a celebrity – or for work or a project such as a book, film, or album. Publicists are public relations specialists wh ...

, fighter for the

emancipation Emancipation generally means to free a person from a previous restraint or legal disability. More broadly, it is also used for efforts to procure Economic, social and cultural rights, economic and social rights, civil and political rights, po ...

of the Jews, trade supporter,

utopian socialist Utopian socialism is the term often used to describe the first current of modern socialism and socialist thought as exemplified by the work of Henri de Saint-Simon, Charles Fourier, Étienne Cabet, and Robert Owen. Utopian socialism is often ...

, and

radical democrat Radical democracy is a type of democracy that advocates the radical extension of equality and liberty. Radical democracy is concerned with a radical extension of equality and freedom, following the idea that democracy is an unfinished, inclusive, ...

. He went into exile after the Russian government issued a bounty for his capture. Czyński was one of the most vocal supporters of the Uprising and founded the first daily newspaper in Lublin, ''Kurier Lubelski.'' In his later life, he moved to Paris, France, where he was an advocate for Polish emigrants. Czyński served on the Polish National Committee. He authored multiple publications and edited several newspapers.

Biography

He was born on 20 January 1801 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 ...

Prussian partition of Poland The Prussian Partition (), or Prussian Poland, is the former territories of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth acquired during the Partitions of Poland, in the late 18th century by the Kingdom of Prussia. The Prussian acquisition amounted to ...

South Prussia South Prussia (; ) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1793 to 1807 created out of territory annexed in the Second Partition of Poland. History South Prussia was created out of territory annexed in the Second Partition of Poland and i ...

province of the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

, in a

Polish Jewish The history of the Jews in Poland dates back at least 1,000 years. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Jews, Jewish community in the world. Poland was a principal center of Jewish culture, because of the long pe ...

family of

Frankists Frankists may refer to: * Frankists (Judaism), a Sabbatean sect of the 18th and 19th centuries, followers of Jacob Frank * Frankists (Croatia), a Croatian political grouping of the 20th century, followers of Josip Frank {{disambig ...

(Jews who converted to Roman Catholicism). After finishing his studies at the

University of Warsaw The University of Warsaw (, ) is a public university, public research university in Warsaw, Poland. Established on November 19, 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country, offering 37 different fields of study as well ...

, Czyński became a lawyer and activist in

Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...

, supporter of

Polish Jacobins Polish Jacobins (or Huguenots) was the name given to a group of late 18th-century radical Polish politicians by their opponents. The group formed during the Great Sejm as an offshoot of the Kołłątaj's Forge, Forge of Hugo Kołłątaj (, and hen ...

and member of Patriotic Society (''Towarzystwo Patriotyczne''). In 1830, he participated in the

November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31) (), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in Russian Partition, the heartland of Partitions of Poland, partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. ...

(1830–1831) as an

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

to the local Polish commander, Col. Wincenty Szeptycki. He became known as one of the most vocal supporters of the Uprising and the founder of the first

daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

in Lublin, "Kurier Lubelski". After the Uprising was defeated, the Russian government issued a bounty (1,000

chervonets Chervonets is the traditional Russian name for large foreign and domestic gold coins. The name comes from the Russian term червонное золото (''chervonnoye zoloto''), meaning ' red gold' (also known as rose gold)the old name of a hi ...

) for his capture; Czyński went into

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

, escaping to

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

and eventually joining the

Great Emigration The Great Emigration () was the emigration of thousands of Poles and Lithuanians, particularly from the political and cultural élites, from 1831 to 1870, after the failure of the November Uprising of 1830–1831 and of other uprisings such as ...

in France. In Paris, France, he became one of the important activist of the Polish emigrants, where he successfully merged the Polish independence and pan-European thought (particularly Fourierist

utopian socialism Utopian socialism is the term often used to describe the first current of modern socialism and socialist thought as exemplified by the work of Henri de Saint-Simon, Charles Fourier, Étienne Cabet, and Robert Owen. Utopian socialism is often de ...

). Early coworker of

Joachim Lelewel Joachim Lelewel (22 March 1786 – 29 May 1861) was a Polish historian, geographer, bibliographer, polyglot and politician. Life Born in Warsaw to a Polonized Prussian family, Lelewel was educated at the Imperial University of Vilna, where in ...

. Member of Polish National Committee. Co-organizer of

Polish Democratic Society The Polish Democratic Society ( or TDP) was a radical constitutionalist political organization established in Paris by émigrés from the Kingdom of Poland in 1832. While not explicitly socialist with respect to their political program, the Democ ...

(''Towarzystwo Demokratyczne Polskie''). Disagreed with Prince

Adam Jerzy Czartoryski Adam Jerzy Czartoryski (14 January 1770 – 15 July 1861), also known as Adam George Czartoryski, was a Polish szlachta, nobleman, statesman, diplomat and author who served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Russian SFSR, Chairman of ...

, as well as with the

messianism Messianism is the belief in the advent of a messiah who acts as the savior of a group of people. Some religions also have messianism-related concepts. Religions with a messiah concept include Hinduism (Kalki), Judaism ( Mashiach), Christianity ( ...

Adam Mickiewicz Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. He also largely influenced Ukra ...

. Supporter of emancipation of the Jews and eventually of the Polish positivists, with whom he agreed that through education of society Polish independence can be secured. Member of French Institute of History and Literary Society. Author of many publications, editor of several newspapers: editor in chief of "Postęp" and "La Pologne", co-editor of "Północ" with

Szymon Konarski Szymon Konarski (; 1808–1839) was a 19th-century Polish- Lithuanian radical democratic politician and revolutionary, one of the leaders of the November Uprising of 1831. As a politician, he supported the radical idea of social and econo ...

, contributor to "Archives Izraelites" and "Gazeta Narodowa", publisher of "La Russie Pittoresque", publisher and editor of "Echa Miast Polskich"". After some time he moved from Paris to London, England, where he died on 30 January 1867.

Selected publications

*''Question des Juifs Polonais envisagée comme question européenne'' (The Question of the Polish Jews, considered as a European question), Paris, 1833 *''Le Réveil d'Israel'', Paris, 1847 *''Le Fils de la Juive,'' Paris, 1848 *''Israel en Pologne,'' Paris, 1861

References

*Abraham G. Duker, ''Jewish Emancipation and the Polish Insurrection of 1863: Jan Czyński's Letter of 1862 to Ludwik Królikowski'', Proceedings of the American Academy for Jewish Research, Vol. 46, Jubilee Volume (1928-29 / 1978-79) art 1 (1979 - 1980), pp. 87–103.,
CZYNSKI, JAN (JEAN)
in

Jewish Encyclopedia ''The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day'' is an English-language encyclopedia containing over 15,000 articles on the ...

Czyński Jan

Biography

Selected publications

References

Further reading