Wladyslaw Bartoszewski

Władysław Bartoszewski was a Polish historian, journalist, writer, social activist, and politician. He was a prisoner of Auschwitz concentration camp, a resistance fighter in the Polish underground, and a participant in the Warsaw Uprising. After the war, he was persecuted and imprisoned by the communist regime for his opposition activity. He was a close ally and friend of Lech Wałęsa, the leader of the Solidarity movement and the first democratically elected president of Poland. Bartoszewski served twice as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, as well as an ambassador and a senator. He was also a member of the Council for the Protection of Struggle and Martyrdom Sites, and a secretary of state in the Chancellery of the Prime Minister. He was a recipient of many honors and awards, including the Order of the White Eagle, the highest Polish decoration, and the Righteous Among the Nations, awarded by Yad Vashem for his efforts to help the Jews during the Holocaust. He was an honorary citizen of several cities, and a member of various academic and cultural institutions. He wrote and edited over 40 books and hundreds of articles on Polish history, especially on the topics of World War II, the Holocaust, and Polish-German relations. He was known for his moral authority, his commitment to democracy and human rights, and his slogan "To be a Pole means to be an optimist".