Andrzej Ciechanowiecki

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Andrzej Ciechanowiecki
Art historian, art dealer (1961–) Edit this on Wikidata

Andrew Stanislaus (Andrzej Stanisław) Ciechanowiecki (28 September 1924 – 2 November 2015) was a Polish-British nobleman, diplomat, and art historian. He was considered an authority on

French baroque sculpture in the second half of the 20th century.[1]

His wartime and immediate post-war activities remain unclear.[2] A lack of clarity also applies to the origins of Ciechanowiecki's restored title of "Count".[3]

Biography

Early life to 1945

Andrew Ciechanowiecki was born in

Stefan Batory Gimnazjum & Liceum. The household came to be dominated by his widowed mother and maternal grandmother and their social connections.[5]

Ciechanowiecki's war

Mołodów, watercolour by Napoleon Orda
1864

The

deportations. Recrossing the new frontier, they finally returned to Warsaw in early May 1940.[5]

Back at his old school, he obtained his

SGH. To "distract" himself from difficult wartime conditions he decided to join an Art History course at the Uniwersytet Ziem Zachodnich (Western University) unaware of how portentous it would become. It enabled him to attend the lectures of professor Tatarkiewicz "on themes like happiness, in the light of a Carbide lamp in a chilly suburban room."[5] In between these many courses, he attended Home Army
training classes for cadets.

At some stage, he became secretary to the politician,

Freedom and Independence organisation, (Wolność i Niezawisłość), until the spring of 1945 does not stand up since it was not founded till September of that year.[8][9]

Polish People's Republic

Having decided not to escape to the West, in June 1945 he applied to the newly installed government of the

Catholic intelligentsia
, which was preparing for the fall of Communism.

Imprisonment

Having completed his studies, he was almost immediately appointed lecturer at the Institute of History of Art. Work on his doctoral thesis was interrupted by his arrest on 22 October 1950. Transported immediately to Warsaw in connection with the staged "British Embassy" Show trial and after lengthy interrogations, he was sentenced to ten years in prison in February 1952 for allegedly helping British and Vatican spies, as well as for extending his underground activities beyond the official date for disclosure, which, in any case, would probably have led to an earlier arrest. He spent five years and four months in prison in difficult conditions – firstly on remand in the cellars of the Ministry of Public Security in Koszykowa Street, and later in the infamous Mokotów Prison, both in Warsaw, and finally – after sentencing – in the prisons of Rawicz and Wronki.[10] In the latter two he actively organised spiritual help for his fellow prisoners. Having got himself work in the prison hospital, he was instrumental in forging documents enabling the early release of a very large number of political prisoners. He himself was released on 6 March 1956 less than midway through his sentence. He was later cleared of all charges, probably in exchange for becoming an informer, especially on foreign trips.[11]

Academic pursuits

Returning to Kraków, he took up his doctoral thesis and also worked on other research projects. He was a consultant at the Wawel Castle Museum and also a curator at the Castle Museum in Łańcut. His academic interests concentrated on the history of furniture and later on Kraków Baroque silver, as well as on the culture of the former Commonwealth of Poland. In 1958 he won a travel scholarship from the Ford Foundation and the British Council, leaving the country on 22 July of that year, presumably, not thinking that it would mean a 19-year break with his homeland. He did, however, take the precaution of bringing with him all his materials relating to his research, the subject of his doctoral thesis. Later he completed another thesis at University of Tübingen, Germany.

Activities in the West

After a 3-month stay in Great Britain, he spent another six months in the United States, visiting museums and lecturing on Polish culture. He had offers of work and further scholarships, but he decided to return to Europe, where in the autumn of 1959 he enrolled at the University of Tübingen to prepare a further doctoral thesis, on a new topic, and for which he had fortunately taken most of the materials with him from Kraków. At the same time, he taught Polish Culture for two

Gulbenkian Foundation scholarship, the results of which were articles on Portuguese furniture
.

Art dealership

In 1961, he settled permanently in London, where he had been offered a directorship in the newly founded firm Mallett at Bourdon House, a subsidiary of Mallet & Son[12] in Bond Street. That same year, with the help of Polish friends already permanently resident in the United Kingdom, he arranged for his mother, Matylda, to whom he was devoted to come and join him in Britain.[13] He became a British subject in 1967.

During his time at Mallett's, he organised four innovative exhibitions on sculpture, mainly of the forgotten French 19th century, which were received with much critical acclaim. In 1965 he was invited to be co-organiser and co-owner of the newly opened London branch in Jermyn Street of the French Heim Gallery. Gradually he bought out his partners and finally became the gallery's sole owner.[14][15] In 1991 he sold the Heim Gallery and opened a smaller specialist business named, The Old Masters Gallery, located opposite his previous gallery in Jermyn Street. He dealt from there until 1995, when as a result of a serious stroke he had to close the gallery and retire from business.[citation needed]

Art curator and collector

Finally, having established a good income stream, he began collecting works of Polish art and art connected with Poland, in the hope that they would ultimately reach his homeland. He was also the co-organiser of three major exhibitions including: Treasures of a Polish King at the

Dulwich Gallery in London in 1992.[16] Next was the exhibition on Polish Expressionism and The Land of the Winged Horsemen in museums in the USA. Travelling to the United States several times a year, he lectured extensively on the history of Polish Culture, particularly in Detroit, where he contributed to the creation of a Polish Section at the Detroit Institute of Arts. He also lectured in Britain and had articles published in various scholarly magazines.[17]

Knight of Malta

Ciechanowiecki had petitioned from Poland, as the first Pole from behind the

Bailiff Grand Cross of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem
.

He was also very active in various dynastic orders, especially those of the

Order of St Januarius, Bailiff Grand Cross of Justice of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George with Collar and Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Francis I
.

He later formed the Delegation of the Order of St Maurice & St Lazarus of the Royal House of Savoy in the UK and in recent years helped to establish the Tuscan Dynastic Orders of St Stephen and that of St Joseph in Britain. He was also very close to the former Russian Imperial House and was decorated with the highest Orders of Imperial Russia.

His position in the Order of Malta and his personal relationships with the heads of former ruling houses as well as his quasi-diplomatic activities in the fields of culture and ecclesiastical affairs were the grounds on which the last

Umberto II, who although in exile, had kept his royal prerogatives in the field of Heraldry and confirmed Ciechanowiecki's "hereditary right" to use a comital title in 1975 – a foreign title allegedly "bestowed" on a family member more than 200 years ago.[19]
Two years later the Order of Malta confirmed this usage in all pertinent acts of the order internationally, as it maintains diplomatic relations with more than 100 sovereign states.

Maksymilian Kolbe
, Kraków

On behalf of the Polish Association of SMOM in the UK, he did much to support Polish charities during Martial law in Poland (1991–92), funded many scholarships and, on behalf of the Polish Association of the Knights of Malta contributed to the costs for the construction of the Church of St Maximilian Kolbe in the industrial suburb of Mistrzejowice on the outskirts of Kraków.[20] It was the second church to be built in a secular Communist city (1975–1983). Its interior décor is mainly sculptural. He worked closely with Prof. Gustaw Ziemła, a noted Polish sculptor, to produce the décor of the Lady chapel, which has entered the canon of Polish post-war sculpture.

Recognition of the Jewish contribution

As co-founder of the Page of History Foundation, (Fundacja Karta z Dziejów), which commemorates the centuries of Jewish participation in the culture and life of Poland, he contributed financially and as its artistic advisor to the erection of the monument "The Ten Commandments" in Łódź and the statue of "David the Psalmist" in Zamość, both the work of Gustaw Zemła. Other works, sponsored by the foundation, are in the pipeline. He also deposited works of art from his own collections to decorate several Polish Embassies.

Old age and death

In 1995 Ciechanowiecki suffered a severe stroke, which deprived him of the use of his legs. He became confined to a wheelchair for the last twenty years of his life. However, he remained intellectually very active in the pursuit of his many interests. Above all, he continued with his numerous connections with Poland, where he still travelled several times a year to attend academic meetings, including those of his own Foundation, as well as to deal with the publication of various books, and also to pursue his para-diplomatic and political activities.

Ciechanowiecki never married and was the last of his line. He died in London on 2 November 2015, aged 91. After a funeral service at the Brompton Oratory, London, his remains were taken to their final resting place in the crypt of the Knights of Malta in the parish church of Mistrzejowice, Kraków.[21][22]

Distinctions

Polish

  • Order of the White Eagle (1998)
  • Order of Polonia Restituta
    • Grand Cross (25 February 1993) – in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Polish culture
    • Commander's Cross with Star (1986, London)
  • Gold
    Medal for Merit to Culture
    (Gloria Artis) (2006)
  • Cross of Merit with Swords (1944)
  • Cross of the September Campaign (1984)
  • Cross of the Polish Home Army
    (Krzyż Armia Krajowa) (1995)
  • Cross of the Warsaw Uprising
    (1995)
  • Army Medal for War 1939-45
    , 3 times
  • Veteran's Cross (SPK, London)
  • Gold Medal of Merit of the Polish National Treasury (London)
  • Merentibus Medal (Jagiellonian University, Cracow) (1986)
  • Gold Cross of Merit of the Polish Catholic Church

Other

Dynastic orders

See also

References

  1. ^ Jeremy Warren. (2016). "Andrew Ciechanowiecki (1924–2015)" in The Sculpture Journal Archived 1 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Jerzy Pelc. (2016) School reminiscences of a former pupil of the Batory clandestine secondary school during the Second World War http://www.batory.edu.pl/uploads/Stowarzyszenie%20Wychowanków/Glos_Batorakow_2016.pdf Archived 3 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine p.25-27 (in Polish) Pelc who remembers his clever classmate, "Adi" (Ciechanowiecki) and his uncanny ability to play the system, casts doubt on Ciechanowiecki's role as a soldier. He was too young to fight in 1939. Surprisingly, there is no mention of the Warsaw Uprising. [Retrieved 2018.11.30]
  3. ^ Andrzej Rachuba, "Panowie z Ciechanowa" (2010). "Kronika Zamkowa 1-2/59-60": 33. Archived from the original on 1 December 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2018. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help) In Polish with an English summary. The author believes in the absence of historical evidence, it is likely one or other of the Ciechanowiecki ancestors could simply have "conferred a foreign title upon himself" to hark back to the family's former grander status. [retrieved 2018.11.30.]
  4. ^ Marek Jerzy Minakowski. "Potomkowie Sejmu Wielkiego: Andrzej, hr. Ciechanowiecki z Ciechanowca, h. Dąbrowa (ID: sw. 13358)". Ciechanowiecki's noble Lineage.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Stefania Kossowska (1993). ""Rozmowa z Dr. Andrzejem Ciechanowieckim"" (PDF). Kultura. 555/12: 78–90.
  6. ^ Michał Aniszewski (2007) "Jak zgineli Skirmunttowie i Polscy Policjanci". Echa Polesia [1] [retrieved 2018.12.01.]
  7. ^ Margaret O'Brien de Lacy. (2008) Archiwum Historii Mówionej [2].
  8. ^ Stanisław Dunin, Andrzej Rachuba, Jolanta Sikorska-Kulesza, Ciechanowieccy herbu Dąbrowa, Warsaw 1997, p.155-159.
  9. Instytut Pamięci Narodowej
    IPN, Poland.
  10. ISBN 978-8324019359
    . p.191
  11. ^ lustratorpolski (28 October 2015). "Andrzej Ciechanowiecki i strażnicy pamięci". lustratorpolski (in Polish). Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  12. ^ Mallett & Son
  13. ISBN 978-8377055694
  14. ISSN 0261-3077
    . Retrieved 15 November 2023.
  15. ^ Izabella Zuralski. Ed. Online Archive California. "Finding Aid for the Heim gallery archive." http://pdf.oac.cdlib.org/pdf/getty/spcoll/910004.pdf
  16. ISBN 9780950156460
    .
  17. ^ A.Ciechanowiecki/B.O. Jeżewski, Polonika na Wyspach Brytyjskich, Londyn 1965.
  18. ^ Association of Polish Knights of Malta – United Kingdom http://www.apkmuk.co.uk/index.php?searchword=Andrzej+Ciechanowiec&ordering=&searchphrase=all&Itemid=1&option=com_search
  19. ^ Andrzej Rachuba, "Panowie z Ciechanowa" (2010). "Kronika Zamkowa 1-2/59-60": 33. Archived from the original on 1 December 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2018. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help) In Polish with an English summary. The author shows it is likely a Ciechanowiecki ancestor either received a fashionable noble title, in exchange for money, while travelling on the Grand Tour in Western Europe or, simply "conferred it upon himself" to hark back to a former higher status. [retrieved 2018.11.30.]
  20. ^ History of the Parish church of St. Maksymilian Kolbe http://www.mistrzejowice.net/Historia,ke/Budynek-Kosciola,aca.html Archived 1 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine (in Polish) [retrieved 2018.11.30.]
  21. ^ "Count Andrew Ciechanowiecki,Telegraph Obituary". 23 December 2015.
  22. ^ "Patron of the arts and WWII resistance veteran Ciechanowiecki dies". Polskie Radio dla Zagranicy.

Bibliography

External links
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