Ignacy Błażej Franciszek Krasicki (3 February 173514 March 1801), from 1766 Prince-Bishop of

Warmia Warmia ( pl, Warmia; Latin: ''Varmia'', ''Warmia''; ; Warmian: ''Warńija''; lt, Varmė; Old Prussian: ''Wārmi'') is both a historical and an ethnographic region in northern Poland, forming part of historical Prussia. Its historic capital ...

(in German, ''Ermland'') and from 1795 Archbishop of Gniezno (thus,

Primate of Poland This is a list of archbishops of the Archdiocese of Gniezno, who are simultaneously primates of Poland since 1418.Enlightenment poet"Ignacy Krasicki", '' Encyklopedia Polski'' (Encyclopedia of Poland), p. 325. ("the Prince of Poets"), a critic of the clergy, Poland's La Fontaine, author of the first Polish novel, playwright, journalist,

encyclopedist An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...

, and

translator Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transl ...

from French and

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

. His most notable literary works were his ''

Fables and Parables ''Fables and Parables'' (''Bajki i przypowieści'', 1779), by Ignacy Krasicki (1735–1801), is a work in a long international tradition of fable-writing that reaches back to antiquity. Krasicki's fables and parables have been described as being ...

'' (1779), ''Satires'' (1779), and poetic letters and religious lyrics, in which the artistry of his poetic language reached its summit.

Life

Krasicki was born in

Dubiecko Dubiecko (; yi, דיבעצק, Dubetzk; uk, Дубецько, Dubetsʹko) is a town in Przemyśl County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in southeastern Poland. It is the seat of the '' gmina'' (administrative district) called Gmina Dubiecko. It lies ...

, on southern Poland's

San River The San ( pl, San; uk, Сян ''Sian''; german: Saan) is a river in southeastern Poland and western Ukraine, a tributary of the river Vistula, with a length of (it is the 6th-longest Polish river) and a basin area of 16,877 km2 (14,42 ...

, into a family bearing the title of

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

. He was related to the most illustrious families in the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ru ...

and spent his childhood surrounded with the love and solicitude of his own family. He attended a Jesuit school in Lwów, then studied at a

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

(1751–54). In 1759 he took holy orders and continued his education in Rome (1759–61). Two of his brothers also entered the priesthood. Returning to Poland, Krasicki became secretary to the

Primate of Poland This is a list of archbishops of the Archdiocese of Gniezno, who are simultaneously primates of Poland since 1418.Stanisław August Poniatowski. When Poniatowski was elected king (1764), Krasicki became his chaplain. He participated in the King's famous "

Thursday dinners Thursday Dinners ( pl, obiady czwartkowe, less commonly translated as Thursday Lunches) were gatherings of artists, intellectuals, architects, politicians and statesmen held by the last King of Poland, Stanisław August Poniatowski, Stanislaus II ...

" and co-founded the ''

Monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, West ...

'', the preeminent Polish Enlightenment periodical, sponsored by the King. In 1766 Krasicki, after having served that year as coadjutor to

Prince-Bishop of Warmia This is a list of Bishops and Prince-Bishops of the Diocese of Warmia ( pl, link=no, Diecezja warmińska, la, link=no, Dioecesis Varmiensis, german: link=no, Bistum Ermland), which was elevated to the Archdiocese of Warmia in 1992. The Bishop ...

Adam Stanisław Grabowski, was himself elevated to Prince-Bishop of Warmia and ''ex officio'' membership in the Senate of the Commonwealth. This office gave him a high standing in the social hierarchy and a sense of independence. It did not, however, prove a quiet haven. The Warmia cathedral chapter welcomed its superior coolly, fearing changes. At the same time, there were growing provocations and pressures from

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

, preparatory to seizure of

in the First Partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Krasicki protested publicly against external intervention. In 1772, as a result of the First Partition, instigated by Prussia's King Frederick II ("the Great"), Krasicki became a Prussian subject. He did not, however, pay homage to Warmia's new master. He now made frequent visits to Berlin,

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and, with around 183,000 inhabitants, largest city of the German state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream o ...

and

Sanssouci Sanssouci () is a historical building in Potsdam, near Berlin. Built by Prussian King Frederick the Great as his summer palace, it is often counted among the German rivals of Versailles. While Sanssouci is in the more intimate Rococo style and ...

at the bidding of Frederick, with whom he cultivated an acquaintance. This created a difficult situation for the poet-bishop who, while a friend of the Polish king, maintained close relations with the Prussian king. These realities could not but influence the nature and direction of Krasicki's subsequent literary productions, perhaps nowhere more so than in the ''

'' (1779). Soon after the First Partition, Krasicki officiated at the 1773 opening of Berlin's St. Hedwig's Cathedral, which

Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederick ...

had built for Catholic immigrants to

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

and Berlin. In 1786 Krasicki was called to the

Prussian Academy of Sciences The Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences (german: Königlich-Preußische Akademie der Wissenschaften) was an academy established in Berlin, Germany on 11 July 1700, four years after the Prussian Academy of Arts, or "Arts Academy," to which "Berlin ...

. His residences in the castle of the

bishops of Warmia This is a list of Bishops and Prince-Bishops of the Diocese of Warmia ( pl, link=no, Diecezja warmińska, la, link=no, Dioecesis Varmiensis, german: link=no, Bistum Ermland), which was elevated to the Archdiocese of Warmia in 1992. The Bisho ...

Lidzbark Warmiński Lidzbark Warmiński (; german: Heilsberg, ), often shortened to Lidzbark, is a historical town located within the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, in northern Poland. It is the capital of Lidzbark County. Lidzbark Warmiński was once the capital of ...

(in German, ''Heilsberg'') and in the summer palace of the bishops of Warmia at Smolajny became centers of artistic patronage for all sectors of partitioned Poland. After

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...

's death, Krasicki continued relations with Frederick's successor. In 1795, six years before his death, Krasicki was elevated to Archbishop of

Gniezno Gniezno (; german: Gnesen; la, Gnesna) is a city in central-western Poland, about east of Poznań. Its population in 2021 was 66,769, making it the sixth-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. One of the Piast dynasty's chief cities, ...

(thus, to

Primate of Poland This is a list of archbishops of the Archdiocese of Gniezno, who are simultaneously primates of Poland since 1418.Stanisław August Poniatowski with the Order of the White Eagle and the Order of Saint Stanisław, as well as with a special 1780 medal featuring the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

device, "''Dignum laude virum Musa vetat mori''" ("The Muse will not let perish a man deserving of glory"); and by Prussia's King

, with the

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle (german: Roter Adlerorden) was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful se ...

. Upon his death in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

in 1801, Krasicki was laid to rest at St. Hedwig's Cathedral, which he had consecrated. In 1829 his remains were transferred to Poland's

Gniezno Cathedral The Royal Gniezno Cathedral (The Primatial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Shrine of St. Adalbert, pl, Bazylika Archikatedralna Wniebowzięcia Najświętszej Marii Panny i Sanktuarium św. Wojciecha) is a Bri ...

Czesław Miłosz Czesław Miłosz (, also , ; 30 June 1911 – 14 August 2004) was a Polish-American poet, prose writer, translator, and diplomat. Regarded as one of the great poets of the 20th century, he won the 1980 Nobel Prize in Literature. In its citation, ...

describes Krasicki:

Works

Ignacy Krasicki by Per Krafft the Elder ca

Ignacy Krasicki was the leading literary representative of the

Polish Enlightenment The ideas of the Age of Enlightenment in Poland were developed later than in Western Europe, as the Polish bourgeoisie was weaker, and szlachta (nobility) culture (Sarmatism) together with the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth political system (Gol ...

—a prose writer and poet highly esteemed by his contemporaries, who admired his works for their wit, imagination, and fluid style. Krasicki's literary writings lent splendor to the reign of Poland's King Stanisław August Poniatowski, while not directly advocating the King's political program. Krasicki, the leading representative of Polish classicism, debuted as a poet with the

strophe A strophe () is a poetic term originally referring to the first part of the ode in Ancient Greek tragedy, followed by the antistrophe and epode. The term has been extended to also mean a structural division of a poem containing stanzas of varyi ...

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...

, "''Święta miłości kochanej ojczyzny''" (" O Sacred Love of the Beloved Country"), published in 1774. He was then nearing forty. It was thus a late debut that brought the extraordinary success of this strophe, which Krasicki would incorporate as part of song IX in his

mock-heroic Mock-heroic, mock-epic or heroi-comic works are typically satires or parodies that mock common Classical stereotypes of heroes and heroic literature. Typically, mock-heroic works either put a fool in the role of the hero or exaggerate the heroic ...

poem, '' Myszeida'' (Mouseiad, 1775). In "O Sacred Love of the Beloved Country," Krasicki formulated a universal idea of patriotism, expressed in high style and elevated tone. The strophe would later, for many years, serve as a

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

and see many translations, including three into French. The Prince Bishop of Warmia gave excellent Polish form to all the genres of European

classicism Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for a classical period, classical antiquity in the Western tradition, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. In its purest form, classicism is an aesthet ...

. He also blazed paths for new genres. Prominent among these was the first modern Polish novel, ''Mikołaja Doświadczyńskiego przypadki'' ( The Adventures of Nicholas Experience, 1776), a synthesis of all the varieties of the Enlightenment novel: the social-satirical, the adventure (''à la'' ''

Robinson Crusoe ''Robinson Crusoe'' () is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. The first edition credited the work's protagonist Robinson Crusoe as its author, leading many readers to believe he was a real person and the book a tra ...

''), the

Utopian A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia'', describing a fictional island society ...

, and the didactic. Tradition has it that Krasicki's mock-heroic poem, '' Monachomachia'' (War of the Monks, 1778), was inspired by a conversation with Frederick II at the palace of

, where Krasicki was staying in an apartment that had once been used by

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...

. At the time, the poem's publication caused a public scandal. The most enduring literary monument of the Polish Enlightenment is Krasicki's

fables Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular moral ...

: ''Bajki i Przypowieści'' (

, 1779) and ''Bajki nowe'' (New Fables, published posthumously in 1802). The poet also set down his trenchant observations of the world and

human nature Human nature is a concept that denotes the fundamental dispositions and characteristics—including ways of thinking, feeling, and acting—that humans are said to have naturally. The term is often used to denote the essence of humankind, or ...

in ''Satyry'' (Satires, 1779). Other works by Krasicki include the novels, ''

Pan Podstoli ''Pan Podstoli'' (''Lord Steward'', or ''Royal Pantler'') is a novel by Polish author, Ignacy Krasicki, published in several parts (1778, 1784 and 1803). It is one of the first Polish novels, and one of the most important works by Krasicki. It se ...

'' (Lord High Steward, published in three parts, 1778, 1784 and posthumously 1803), which would help inspire works by

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. A principal figure in Polish R ...

, and '' Historia'' (History, 1779); the epic, '' Wojna chocimska'' (The Chocim War, 1780, about the

Khotyn Khotyn ( uk, Хотин, ; ro, Hotin, ; see other names) is a city in Dnistrovskyi Raion, Chernivtsi Oblast of western Ukraine and is located south-west of Kamianets-Podilskyi. It hosts the administration of Khotyn urban hromada, one of t ...

War); and numerous others, in

homiletics In religious studies, homiletics ( grc, ὁμιλητικός ''homilētikós'', from ''homilos'', "assembled crowd, throng") is the application of the general principles of rhetoric to the specific art of public preaching. One who practices or ...

, theology and heraldry. In 1781–83 Krasicki published a two-volume encyclopedia, '' Zbiór potrzebniejszych wiadomości'' (A Collection of Essential Information), the second Polish-language general encyclopedia after

Benedykt Chmielowski Benedykt Joachim Chmielowski (1700–1763) was a Polish priest born presumably in Łuck. He wrote ''Nowe Ateny,'' the first Polish-language encyclopedia. It was first published in 1745-46; the second edition was supplemented between 1754 and 176 ...

's ''Nowe Ateny'' (The New Athens, 1745–46). Krasicki wrote ''Listy o ogrodach'' (Letters about Gardens) and articles in the ''

'', which he had co-founded, and in his own newspaper, ''Co Tydzień'' (Each Week). Krasicki

translated Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between ''transla ...

, into Polish,

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

, '' Ossian'', fragments of

Dante Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian people, Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', origin ...

's ''

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature ...

'', and works by

Anacreon Anacreon (; grc-gre, Ἀνακρέων ὁ Τήϊος; BC) was a Greek lyric poet, notable for his drinking songs and erotic poems. Later Greeks included him in the canonical list of Nine Lyric Poets. Anacreon wrote all of his poetry in the ...

, Boileau,

Hesiod Hesiod (; grc-gre, Ἡσίοδος ''Hēsíodos'') was an ancient Greek poet generally thought to have been active between 750 and 650 BC, around the same time as Homer. He is generally regarded by western authors as 'the first written poet ...

and

Theocritus Theocritus (; grc-gre, Θεόκριτος, ''Theokritos''; born c. 300 BC, died after 260 BC) was a Greek poet from Sicily and the creator of Ancient Greek pastoral poetry. Life Little is known of Theocritus beyond what can be inferred from h ...

. He wrote a 1772 essay "On the Translation of Books" ("''O przekładaniu ksiąg''") and another, published posthumously in 1803, "On Translating Books" ("''O tłumaczeniu ksiąg''").

Fame

Krasicki's major works won European fame and were translated into Latin, French, German, Italian, Russian, Czech, Croatian, Slovene, and Hungarian. The broad reception of his works was sustained throughout the 19th century. Krasicki has been the subject of works by poets of the Polish Enlightenment

Stanisław Trembecki Stanisław Trembecki (8 May 1739 – 12 December 1812) was a Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''P ...

Franciszek Zabłocki Franciszek Zabłocki (2 January 1754, Volhynia – 10 September 1821, Końskowola), is considered the most distinguished Polish comic dramatist and satirist of the Enlightenment period. He descends from an old aristocratic family of Poland with ...

, Wojciech Mierand in the 20th century, by Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński. He has been the hero of prose works by

Wincenty Pol Wincenty Pol (20 April 1807 – 2 December 1872) was a Polish poet and geographer. Life Pol was born in Lublin (then in Galicia), to Franz Pohl (or Poll), a German in the Austrian service, and his wife Eleonora Longchamps de Berier, from a Fre ...

, Adolf Nowaczyński and Henryk Sienkiewicz.

Literary reflection

Scholars have viewed Krasicki's ''Fables'' and ''Satires'' as adaptive to the culture for which they were written, and as politically charged.Shaffer, E. S. (2002). ''Comparative Criticism, Vol24, Fantastic Currencies in Comparative Literature: Gothic to Postmodern''. Cambridge University Press. p. 73. . The characterizations were not based on reconstructions of individuals from direct observation, but were fictional constructs that reflected society's actual values. Krasicki held that Poles, and humanity generally, were governed by greed, folly, and vice.

Target audience

Evidence for this is found in the preface, " To the Children,", targeted not to children but to villagers, congregations, and the commonalty. The fables were meant to bring attention to major questions of the day, and to advocate for social reforms. Although the ''New Fables'', the sequel to the ''Fables and Parables'', were published posthumously in 1803, the better known ''Fables and Parables'' found their audience between 1735 and Krasicki's death in 1801, most of them being published after the First Partition of Poland, of 1772. The fables usually find their meaning in the final line, through the symbology of the tale rather than through a complex presentation of ideology, thereby readily conveying even to the illiterate the moral and the Enlightenment ideal behind it.

Enlightenment contributions

Katarzyna Zechenter argues in ''

The Polish Review ''The Polish Review'' is an English-language academic journal published quarterly in New York City by the Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America. ''The Polish Review'' was established in 1956. Editors-in-chief The following persons hav ...

'' that Western historians have generally overlooked Krasicki's works, and that the publisher of ''Polish Fables'' overlooked the importance of the "political and social context contributing to he fable'sorigin." However, it is easy to see Krasicki's influence on his contemporaries and on the early 19th century, as in the case of Gabriela Puzynina, a Polish princess, poet, and diarist. In 1846 she started a newspaper for the intelligentsia of Vilnius and Warsaw, and furthered the establishment of Krasicki's ''Fables'' in Poland's suppressed political life. In her ''Diary of the Years 1815–1843'', Puzynina focuses on the fable, "Birds in a Cage", as a commentary on the Partitions of Poland.

Notes

References

* Edward Balcerzan, ed., ''Pisarze polscy o sztuce przekładu, 1440–1974: Antologia'' (Polish Writers on the Art of Translation, 1440–1974: an Anthology), Poznań, Wydawnictwo Poznańskie, 1977. * Jan Zygmunt Jakubowski, ed., ''Literatura polska od śreniowiecza do pozytywizmu'' (Polish Literature from the Middle Ages to Positivism), Warsaw, Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, 1979, , pp. 245–54. * '' Encyklopedia Polski'' (Encyclopedia of Poland), Kraków, Wydawnictwo Ryszard Kluszczyński, 1996, . * Julian Krzyżanowski, ''Historia literatury polskiej: Alegoryzmpreromantyzm'' (A History of Polish Literature: AllegorismPreromanticism), Warsaw, Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, 1974, pp. 435–54. * Zbigniew Landowski, Krystyna Woś, ''Słownik cytatów łacińskich: wyrażenia, sentencje, przysłowia'' (A Dictionary of Latin Citations: Expressions, Maxims, Proverbs), Kraków, Wydawnictwo Literackie, 2002, . *

, ''The History of Polish Literature'', 2nd ed., Berkeley, University of California Press, 1983, , pp. 176–81.

External links

* *
Polish Forum

Catholic Online

Collected works

Other works

List of Primates of Poland
{{DEFAULTSORT:Krasicki, Ignacy 1735 births 1801 deaths People from Przemyśl County Ecclesiastical senators of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 18th-century Polish–Lithuanian novelists 18th-century Polish–Lithuanian poets Polish male novelists Polish translators Polish translation scholars French–Polish translators Translators from French Translators from Greek Translators to Polish 18th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Archbishops of Gniezno Bishops of Warmia Roman Catholic writers Fabulists Burials at Gniezno Cathedral Members of the Prussian Academy of Sciences Ignacy Polish male poets Age of Enlightenment 18th-century male writers 18th-century translators Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland) Catholic clergy of the Prussian partition Polish Enlightenment