Seweryn Nowakowski (January 8, 1894 in

Piotrków Trybunalski Piotrków Trybunalski (; also known by #Etymology, alternative names), often simplified to Piotrków, is a city in central Poland with 71,252 inhabitants (2021). It is the capital of Piotrków County and the second-largest city in the Łódź Voi ...

- died probably in 1940) was a Polish politician who served as the last

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Białystok Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the List of cities and towns in Poland, tenth-largest city in Poland, second in terms of population density, and thirteenth in area. Biał ...

prior to the outbreak of the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Biography

He studied at the Faculty of Law of the

University of Warsaw The University of Warsaw (, ) is a public university, public research university in Warsaw, Poland. Established on November 19, 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country, offering 37 different fields of study as well ...

, and after the outbreak of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he stayed in

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

. Then he continued his studies at the Faculty of Law of the University of Moscow. He returned to Poland probably in 1919 with a

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

transport and settled in

. He joined the

Polish Socialist Party The Polish Socialist Party (, PPS) is a democratic socialist political party in Poland. It was one of the most significant parties in Poland from its founding in 1892 until its forced merger with the communist Polish Workers' Party to form ...

. He was elected to the position of juror, or a full-time employee in the Municipal Board in Piotrków Trybunalski, which he held until 30 December 1928. From 1927 to November 1930 he was the head of the financial and administrative department. In the spring of 1931 he was designated by the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

for the position of government commissioner in Białystok, arriving to the city in August 1932. He remained in this position until 1934, when he became the temporary President of the city of Białystok. In 1935, after winning the local government elections, he took over the position of the city's President (mayor). Before the 1935 parliamentary elections to the

Sejm The Sejm (), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (), is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of the Third Polish Republic since the Polish People' ...

, he was appointed election commissioner in constituency no. 40. On 1 September 1939, the German

invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

began starting

. German bomber squadrons flew over the areas of the then Białystok Voivodeship, the first bombs fell in the area of

Białystok railway station Białystok railway station is the most important railway station in the city of Białystok, Poland. It is sometimes referred to as Białystok Central (Białystok Centralny), to distinguish it from six other, much smaller, stations located in the ...

and military barracks in the city. From September 4, the Citizen Guard (), established by Nowakowski, was operating in the city, tasked with supporting and replacement functions for the

state police State police, provincial police or regional police are a type of sub-national territorial police force found in nations organized as federations, typically in North America, South Asia, and Oceania. These forces typically have jurisdiction o ...

and the

army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

which were evacuated. In night of the 28th to 29th of October 1939, he was arrested by the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (, ), abbreviated as NKVD (; ), was the interior ministry and secret police of the Soviet Union from 1934 to 1946. The agency was formed to succeed the Joint State Political Directorate (OGPU) se ...

and shortly imprisoned at the Białystok Prison, from where he was deported to the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Since then, there has been no news about him. His symbolic grave is located at the

Powązki Cemetery Powązki Cemetery (; ), also known as Stare Powązki (), is a historic necropolis located in Wola district, in the western part of Warsaw, Poland. It is the most famous cemetery in the city and one of the oldest, having been established in 179 ...

in Warsaw. He was awarded golden Cross of Merit (November 11, 1934).

Commemoration

200px, A monument to Nowakowski erected in Planty Park in 2024 On February 19, 2004, a commemorative plaque dedicated to Seweryn Nowakowski was placed on the Presidential Villa in Białystok at Akademicka 26 street. A street in Wygoda district and roundabout in Piaski district in Białystok is named after Seweryn Nowakowski. Seweryn Nowakowski was the patron of Public Junior High School No. 6 in Bacieczki district of Białystok before it was liquidated. As part of the celebrations of the centenary of Poland's independence and in connection with the celebrations of the Year of Seweryn Nowakowski,

Ryszard Kaczorowski Ryszard Kaczorowski, GCMG (; 26 November 1919 – 10 April 2010) was a Polish statesman. From 1989 to 1990, he served as the last President of Poland- in-exile. He succeeded Kazimierz Sabbat, and resigned his post following Poland's regain ...

and Feliks Filipowicz established by the

Białystok City Council The Białystok City Council () is the governing body of the city of Białystok in Poland. The council has 28 elected members elected every five years in an election by city voters through a secret ballot. The election of city council and the loc ...

, from November 22, 2019 to February 16, 2020, the BOK–Centrum im. Ludwik Zamenhofa in Białystok hosted an exhibition dedicated to Seweryn Nowakowski. On September 16, 2021, the Nowakowski Research Institute was established at the Sybir Museum of Memory in Białystok. The founding act was signed by the Mayor of Białystok

Tadeusz Truskolaski Tadeusz Truskolaski (born 10 April 1958) is a Polish economist and politician. A member of the Civic Platform ''(Platforma Obywatelska)'' party, he has been the president (mayor) of the Polish city of Białystok since 5 December 2006, succeeding R ...

, the director of the Museum of Memory of Sybir prof. Wojciech Śleszyński and Krystyna Nowakowska, Nowakowski's daughter-in-law. On September 16, 2024, a monument was unveiled in Białystok in

Planty Park Planty may refer to: * Planty Park, a city park in Kraków, Poland * Planty, Podlaskie Voivodeship (north-east Poland) * Planty, Aube, France {{geodis