Adam Bargielski (January 7, 1903 – September 8, 1942) was a Polish Roman Catholic priest. He was born in Kalinowo,

Łomża County __NOTOC__ Łomża County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Podlaskie Voivodeship, north-eastern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 19 ...

. He died in the Nazi German

Dachau concentration camp Dachau (, ; , ; ) was one of the first concentration camps built by Nazi Germany and the longest-running one, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents, which consisted of communists, s ...

. He was beatified by Pope

John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

on June 13, 1999 and is a member of the

108 Martyrs of World War II The 108 Martyrs of World War II, known also as the 108 Blessed Polish Martyrs (), were Catholics from Poland killed during World War II by Nazi Germany. Their liturgical feast day is 12 June. The 108 were beatified on 13 June 1999 by Pope John P ...

Biography

Bargielski was born in Kalinowo to Franciszek and Franciszka Bargielski (). In 1924, he completed schooling from a gymnasium in

Łomża Łomża () is a city in north-eastern Poland, approximately to the north-east of Warsaw and west of Białystok. It is situated alongside the Narew river as part of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the capital of Łomża County and has been the se ...

, and entered into a officer cadet school in

Ostrów Mazowiecka Ostrów Mazowiecka (; ) is a town in eastern Poland with 23,486 inhabitants (2004). It is the capital of Ostrów Mazowiecka County in Masovian Voivodeship. History Ostrów was granted town rights in 1434 by Duke Bolesław IV of Warsaw. Its name ...

; however, he eventually left the school and entered the diocesan seminary in Łomża on 5 January 1925. He was ordained a priest on 24 February 1929 by Stanisław Kostka Łukomski, and was assigned on 7 March of the same year to serve as vicar of the Church of St. Adalbert in Poznań. He was later sent by Stanisław Łukomski to study law in

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

in October 1929; he studied

canon law Canon law (from , , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical jurisdiction, ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its membe ...

at the

University of Strasbourg The University of Strasbourg (, Unistra) is a public research university located in Strasbourg, France, with over 52,000 students and 3,300 researchers. Founded in the 16th century by Johannes Sturm, it was a center of intellectual life during ...

between 1929 and 1931. After returning to Poland, he served as a parish priest for various parishes between 1931 and 1939. In April 1940, Bargielski offered himself to the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

as a substitute for Klemens Sawicki, who had been arrested by the Gestapo. They complied and released Sawicki in exchange for Bargielski, who was transported to Soldau; he was then transferred to

Dachau Dachau (, ; , ; ) was one of the first concentration camps built by Nazi Germany and the longest-running one, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents, which consisted of communists, s ...

on 19 April 1940, where he received the identification number 4860. From there, he was transferred to Gusen I on 25 May 1940, though he returned to Dachau on 9 December 1940, where he was given an identification number of 22061. Alongside other Polish priests, he was unable to celebrate Mass, pray, recite the

breviary A breviary () is a liturgical book used in Christianity for praying the canonical hours, usually recited at seven fixed prayer times. Historically, different breviaries were used in the various parts of Christendom, such as Aberdeen Breviar ...

or carry religious objects. In spite of this, Bargielski continued to help fellow prisoners. Bargielski was killed on 8 November 1942 at Dachau by a camp guard — his body was cremated and his ashes scattered in the fields surrounding Dachau. He was beatified by

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

on 13 June 1999 in Warsaw.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bargielski, Adam 1903 births 1942 deaths 20th-century Polish Roman Catholic priests People from Łomża County Polish beatified people Polish people who died in Dachau concentration camp Beatifications by Pope John Paul II 108 Blessed Polish Martyrs Roman Catholic priests executed by Nazi Germany

Biography

See also

References