Michał Czajkowski ( uk, Mykhailo Chaikovsky; 29 September 180418 January 1886), also known in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

as Mehmet Sadyk Pasha ( tr, Mehmet Sadık Paşa), was a Polish writer and political

émigré An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social self- exile. The word is the past participle of the French ''émigrer'', "to emigrate". French Huguenots Many French Huguenots fled France follow ...

of distant

Cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

heritage who worked both for the resurrection of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

and also for the reestablishment of a Cossack state.

Early life

Michał Czajkowski was born in Halchyn (Halczyniec) to Stanisław Czajkowski and Petronela Głębocka, in a

szlachta The ''szlachta'' (Polish: endonym, Lithuanian: šlėkta) were the noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth who, as a class, had the dominating position in ...

family settled in Ukraine for several generations. The Czajkowskis had origins in Czajki in

Masovia Mazovia or Masovia ( pl, Mazowsze) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the unofficial capital and largest city. Throughout the centuri ...

, while the Głębockis were an old family from

Kuyavia Kuyavia ( pl, Kujawy; german: Kujawien; la, Cuiavia), also referred to as Cuyavia, is a historical region in north-central Poland, situated on the left bank of Vistula, as well as east from Noteć River and Lake Gopło. It is divided into three ...

. Through his mother he was a descendant of the

Ukrainian Cossack The Cossacks , es, cosaco , et, Kasakad, cazacii , fi, Kasakat, cazacii , french: cosaques , hu, kozákok, cazacii , it, cosacchi , orv, коза́ки, pl, Kozacy , pt, cossacos , ro, cazaci , russian: казаки́ or ...

Hetman

Ivan Briukhovetsky Ivan Briukhovetsky ( uk, Іван Брюховецький, links=no, pl, Iwan Brzuchowiecki, links=no, russian: Иван Брюховецкий, links=no) (died 18 June 1668) was a hetman of Left-bank Ukraine from 1663 to 1668. In the early year ...

(reigned 1663–68). According to Michał Czajkowski, his mother was the hetman's great-granddaughter. Her family cultivated the memory of Głębocki who married the Hetman's granddaughter. Czajkowski was raised in the spirit of szlachta and Cossackdom. He participated in the Polish insurrection of 1830-31. After the failure of this uprising, he went into exile in France where he developed his ideology of the resurrection of Cossackdom and wrote several novels on this theme. Very popular at this time, some of them were translated into several languages including French and German. In general, in his early writings, Czajkowski saw no conflict between Polish and Cossack interests and romanticized the history of Ukrainian-Polish relations.

France and Turkey

During his French period, Czajkowski briefly collaborated with the radically oriented Polish Democratic Society, and then with the moderate Confederation of the Polish People, before going over to the conservative Polish emigre faction led by Prince

Adam Jerzy Czartoryski Adam Jerzy Czartoryski (; lt, Аdomas Jurgis Čartoriskis; 14 January 177015 July 1861), in English known as Adam George Czartoryski, was a Polish nobleman, statesman, diplomat and author. The son of a wealthy prince, he began his political c ...

called the "Hotel Lambert," after the Prince's residence in Paris. At Czartoryski's bidding, Czajkowski went to

where he was active in Bosnia and Serbia and supported anti-Russian activities in the Caucasus. In the years following the unsuccessful

revolutions of 1848 The Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Springtime of the Peoples or the Springtime of Nations, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe starting in 1848. It remains the most widespread revolutionary wave in Euro ...

, he helped arrange for political asylum for refugee Polish and Hungarian revolutionaries. Russian and Austrian efforts to have him extradited back to his homeland and conflicts with Paris led to his eventual conversion to Islam and his new name "Sadyk Pasha". He thereupon organized an Ottoman Cossack Brigade to fight against the Russians. Michał Czajkowski's Ottoman Cossack unit actually saw some action in the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

during the Crimean War but never got to invade Ukraine from the south which was the original intention of its organizers.

Return to Ukraine

Although Czajkowski returned from the war with honours and was able to live a comfortable life in

, his restless nature could never be completely satisfied. His differences with the Hotel Lambert had steadily increased over the years and he was becoming more and more estranged from the Polish political emigration. He was also frustrated by the failure of his larger Cossack project. In 1872, the Russian government offered him an amnesty, and in part under the influence of his third wife, a young Greek girl, he accepted the Russian offer, converted to Orthodoxy, returned to Ukraine and chose to live in

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Ky ...

. During this period he wrote his very extensive memoirs. His young wife proved unfaithful, however, and in 1886 a dispirited Czajkowski took his own life.

Legacy

Czajkowski is remembered as a great Cossack enthusiast, a contemporary and friend of other prominent Polish romantics like the poet

Adam 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 ...

, and a leading member of the

Ukrainian School In Polish poetry, the Ukrainian school were a group of Romantic poets of the early 19th century who hailed from the southeastern fringes of the Polish-inhabited lands of the time (this period followed the partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Common ...

of Polish literature. His writings had a profound influence upon younger generations of aristocratic Poles from right-bank Ukraine and boyhood reading of them probably influenced the future prominent historians,

Volodymyr Antonovych Volodymyr Antonovych ( ukr, Володимир Боніфатійович Антонович, tr. ''Volodymyr Bonifatijovych Antonovych''; pl, Włodzimierz Antonowicz; russian: Влади́мир Бонифа́тьевич Антоно́вич, ...

and

Vyacheslav Lypynsky Vyacheslav Kazymyrovych Lypynsky ( pl, Wacław Lipiński, uk, Липинський В'ячеслав Казимирович) (April 5, 1882 — June 14, 1931) was a Ukrainian historian, social and political activist, an ideologue of Ukrainian c ...

to go over to the Ukrainian independence movement. His son, Władysław Czajkowski, became an Ottoman official and served as governor in Mount-Lebanon.

Famous Works

*''Powieści Kozackie'' (Cossack Tales, 1837) *''Wernyhora'' (1838) *''Kirdzali'' (1839) *''Owruczanin'' (The Man from Ovruch, 1841) *''Ukrainki'' (Ukrainian Women, 1841)

References

External links

*
Michal Czajkowski
at the

Encyclopedia of Ukraine The ''Encyclopedia of Ukraine'' ( uk, Енциклопедія українознавства, translit=Entsyklopediia ukrainoznavstva), published from 1984 to 2001, is a fundamental work of Ukrainian Studies. Development The work was crea ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Czajkowski, Michal 1804 births 1886 deaths People from Zhytomyr Oblast People from Zhitomirsky Uyezd Polish male writers Polish Cossacks November Uprising participants Polish expatriates in Turkey Polish people of the Crimean War (Turkish side) Activists of the Great Emigration Ottoman Army generals Pashas Converts to Islam from Roman Catholicism Converts to Eastern Orthodoxy from Islam Eastern Orthodox Christians from Poland Former Muslims Ottoman military personnel of the Crimean War Diplomats of the Hôtel Lambert Ukrainian nobility Suicides by firearm in Ukraine Ottoman military personnel who committed suicide