Ludwika Śniadecka – a Polish woman, the leading spokeswoman for the Polish independence movement, the unrequited love of Juliusz Słowacki.
Did you know that Muslims have been connected to Poland for centuries? They started settling in Poland back in the XVII century. However, they were inhabitants for much longer. They were fighting for Polish independence and actively participated in Polish cultural life. For instance, Aleksander Sulkiewicz, a Pole, Tatar, Muslim, and a friend of Józef Piłsudski. He is called “The father of independence”.
Another individual worth mentioning is Ludwika Śniadecka – an underestimated Polish woman, Muslim and activist.
The extraordinary character
Ludwika was born in the summer of 1802 in Vilnius. Her family was essential to Polish science. Her father, uncle and brothers were professors at the Vilnius University. It was an important centre for Polish scientists in the XIX century.
Moreover, the stepfather of Juliusz Słowacki was employed at the same university. August Ludwik Bécu was a Polish surgeon, professor of medicine, and lecturer of hygiene and pathomorphology. That’s how 14-years old Juliusz met Ludwika, who was 21 years old at the time. He immediately fell in love with her. However, as Maria Czapska writes in Ludwika’s biography: ‘Judging by few and poor mentions about Juliusz in Ludwika’s correspondence, we can assume that she was rather indifferent to him. Although, we do not hear much about Ludwika Śniadecka in public discourse, she is mentioned in at least one history class in each school across Poland.
Those who have read Kordian, a romantic drama by Juliusz Słowacki, know that the author has depicted the harrowing experiences and a story of an unrequited love there. Ludwika was his inspiration here, as well as in many other books written by Słowacki.
Being the young love of Słowacki was the main thing that made her famous, but Maria Czapska notes that the biography of Ludwika’s character unfolds an entirely different, richer story. The daughter of professor Śniadecki herself appears as a very extraordinary character. She is believed to have read Byron, written her texts, and performed in amateur theatre. In addition to that, she loved lonely horse rides.
Ludwika’s connection to Islam
Around 1822, Śniadecka fell in love with Włodzimierz Rimski-Korsakow, a young Russian officer. We don’t know if the feelings were mutual. We know that a marriage between a Polish woman and a Russian man would have caused a great scandal at the time. ‘This girl only makes us all worried’, Ludwika’s father used to write in the letters. However, Korsakow was drafted into the Russian-Turkish war and died.
Ludwika travelled a lot. In 1842 she visited Constantinople, nowadays Istanbul. Why did she decide to visit the Ottoman Empire? Supposedly, she wanted to find the body of her beloved Korsakow. There she met her future husband – Michał Czajkowski. He was the leading convener of Polish political life in Turkey in the name of the Hotel Lambert organization. Czajkowski converted to Islam and adopted the name Sadyk Pasza.
Śniadecka converted to Islam in Istanbul, where she spent the rest of her life.
What is more, it is said that she has met another polish poet there. Adam Mickiewicz was impressed with Ludwika’s sacrifice for the Polish cause. Why?
After the outbreak of another Russian-Turkish war, Śniadecka worked on behalf of the Polish refugees from the Russian army. She was the leading advocate of Polish independence by Bosporus and the Polish diaspora movement.
Polish village – little Poland
Along with her husband, she founded Adamopol, a Polish settlement near Istanbul. The initiative came from prince Adam Czartoryski.
Michał Czajkowski bought the land situated about 30 kilometres from Istanbul. As soon as 1842, the first house was consecrated. The village was named Adampol in honour of Adam Czartoryski. This event was very symbolic since the Polish state did not exist then.
Adampol, today is mainly known as Polonezköy, was a symbolic patch of free Poland, giving hope for independence to the Polish people. Moreover, it was a safe shelter and later a new home for the insurgents from the November Uprising, as well as the Poles ransomed from captivity and the deserters from the tsarist army. It became the centre of the Polish political movement in exile. The village’s popularity did not decrease even after regaining independence from Poland. Adampol has been an essential source of Old Polish culture for years. Interestingly, even today, the local governor, Adampol, is a Polish man, even though only the oldest community members can speak Polish nowadays. Today Polonezköy is a part of Istanbul.
Polish heroine
‘Two souls born to understand each other – two hearts beating for Poland by each other’s side. God connected them by the Bosporus Strait. [..] May one day, one of our offspring tells the story of our bizarre lives, saying: both of them loved, believed and served Poland’ – Czajkowski wrote about his wife.
Ludwika died in 1866. Her body was buried in Polonezköy, the symbolic path of free Poland. Referring to the words at her tomb, Maria Czapska notices that the fact that she was a traveller, writer and politician was unmentioned. She was buried as a daughter, a daughter-in-law and a wife. However, Władysław, Adam Mickiewicz’s son, called her ‘a diplomat in a skirt’.
Translated by Marianna Gracz.
