Historical Calendar: November 30, 1868 – leaves Hipolit Cegielski

Historical calendar – the anniversary of the premature death of a prominent Polish entrepreneur and social entrepreneur, operating in the Prussian partition – Hippolyt Cegielski.

Today in our calendar we will look at the life and activities of this man.

Hippolyt came from the bench in Wielkopolska. His parents were mediocre nobles Michael and Joseph from the Palkowska house. At first, nothing announced the industrial career of young Hippolyt, who seemed to have no attraction to science. He graduated from the Maria Magdalena Secondary School in Poznań, after which he began philological and philosophical studies in Berlin. In order to rise funds to proceed his studies, he gave paid tutoring to younger yearbooks.

After returning to the Grand Duchy of Poznań, he became a teacher of Polish language in the mediate school, which he had previously completed. During this period of his life, he settled down marrying Valentine Motty, with whom he had 3 children. As a passionate linguist, he worked to systematize the principles of Polish language. To this end, he wrote a paper entitled About the Polish word and his conjugations. He besides wrote articles for local newspapers and developed a school textbook for learning ancient Greek.

He met well-deserved patriotic, social and economical activists specified as Desidery Chłapowski and Karol Marcinkowski, supporting their various initiatives. During the 1846 revolution, he opposed the Prussian authorities who wanted to review the states of his students suspected of conspiracy activity. For this he was punished with dismissal and a ban on teaching. Thanks to the aid of his friends, he founded an iron store in the celebrated Poznań Basar, where he traded agricultural tools.

The thought proved to be a hit. In time, Cegielski developed his business, moving a workshop at the store to repair and improve broken equipment. The request for services and the experience gained in work led to the beginning of a separate, larger repair workshop in 1850 and the agricultural machinery mill in 1855. The Prussian authorities tried to harm and support German competition, but the comparatively low price, modernity and advanced quality of the products offered by many customers, not only in the Prussian occupation.

He besides sold his products in the Kingdom of Poland and in Silesia, Saxony, Bavaria and another German countries. In 1859, he expanded the scope to include industrial machinery, beginning a modern foundry and assembly plant. During his 20 years of career, he gained considerable wealth, becoming 1 of the richest Poles. In parallel with individual improvement he conducted patriotic activity in the stream of organic work.

First of all, he fought Germanization through the material support of the Polish element. In his mill he employed Poles, to whom he paid decent salaries. He financially supported various Polish cultural and educational organisations specified as Scientific Aid Society and Poznań Society of Friends of Sciences, whom he became vice president. He worked for the improvement of secondary and vocational education, focusing on professionalism and applicable apprenticeship.

It was thanks to his initiative in 1853 that the City Realna School was established in Poznań. In 1848 he opened a full independent diary entitled “Gazeta Polska”. The patriotic pronunciation of articles published in it was very uncomfortable for the Prussians, who 2 years later decided to destruct it. Cegielski did not quit and founded the fresh diary “Goniec Polski”, and since 1859 “Dziennik Poznański”.

He was repeatedly elected a associate of Poznan City Council, in which he cared about Polish education and science. In 1849, he became an MP for Prussian Seym from the Koscian District. While serving this position, he bravely fought to defend Polish economical interests against discrimination by the authorities. He founded the Central Industrial Society and the debt Society, which supported local legal aid initiatives and low-interest loans.

He never gave up his research. In 1858 he published a paper entitled Agricultural tools and machinery, in which he comprehensively described the construction and usage of modern equipment manufactured in his factory. It was 1 of the first tools catalogues in Polish history. Cegielski was buried solemnly next to his wife and friend Karol Marcinkowski. During planet War II, his grave was completely destroyed by the Nazis, who considered it 1 of the main pests of the German origin in the 19th century.

Hippolyt Cegielski was a large industrialist and socialist, well-deserved in the field of economical development, organic work and fighting for the Polishness of Prussian occupation. He felt that the nation could last only if its individual components felt a work to each another and to a larger whole. The teaching of patriotism in his edition is not only beautiful words, but above all an act. He personally tried to set an example of Polish attitude in his political and economical activities. No wonder he gained considerable respect for his contemporaries and descendants.

Previous entry from our calendar is available Here.