Zenon Kliszko (8 December 1908 – 4 September 1989), was a politician in the

Polish People's Republic The Polish People's Republic (1952–1989), formerly the Republic of Poland (1947–1952), and also often simply known as Poland, was a country in Central Europe that existed as the predecessor of the modern-day democratic Republic of Poland. ...

, considered the man of Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR) leader

Władysław Gomułka Władysław Gomułka (; 6 February 1905 – 1 September 1982) was a Polish Communist politician. He was the ''de facto'' leader of Polish People's Republic, post-war Poland from 1947 until 1948, and again from 1956 to 1970. Born in 1905 in ...

. He was born in

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

and died in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Biography

Kliszko graduated from Warsaw University and joined the Communist Party of Poland in 1931. He was arrested in 1934 for anti-state agitation and released after the courts established that he was mentally challenged. Text only version.
/ref> Kliszko took part in the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...

during

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

's occupation of Poland and escaped capture by swimming across the

Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...

river. He met Gomułka in

Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...

, befriended him, and became the KC PZPR

functionary An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of the ...

after the Soviet takeover in 1945. On Kliszko´s advice and recommendation, the communist party took down the production of '' Dziady'' by Mickiewicz at the Polish Theatre in

, leading to the 1968 Polish political crisis and student protests across the country, brutally suppressed by ORMO, as well as the expulsion from Poland of thousands of individuals of

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

ancestry. Kliszko was responsible for issuing an order to regular army units under

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Bolesław Chocha to open fire on striking workers in

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

and

Gdynia Gdynia is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With an estimated population of 257,000, it is the List of cities in Poland, 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in the Pomeranian Voivodeship after Gdańsk ...

during the Polish 1970 protests. The protests would lead to Gomułka's resignation in December 1970; shortly thereafter, Kliszko was fired from his position and removed from the PZPR by Edward Gierek.

Awards and decorations

* Order of the Builders of People's Poland (1964) * POL Order Sztandaru Pracy 1 klasy BAR

Order of the Banner of Labour (1959) * Cross of Grunwald, 2nd Class (1959) * Silver Cross of

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari (Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', ) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was established in 1792 by the last King of Poland Stanislaus II of Poland, ...

* Medal for Warsaw 1939–1945 (17 January 1946) * Medal of Ludwik Waryński (1986) * Badge of the 1000th Anniversary of the Polish State (1963) * Grande ufficiale OMRI BAR

Grand Officer of

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republi ...

(Italy, 1965) * Order of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, 1st Class (Bulgaria, 1967) * SU Medal In Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin ribbon

SU Medal In Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin ribbon

Jubilee Medal "In Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" (USSR, 1969)) Euzebiusz Basiński, Polska-ZSRR. Kronika faktów i wydarzeń 1944–1971, Wyd. Książka i Wiedza, Warszawa 1973, s. 392.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kliszko, Zenon 1908 births 1989 deaths Politicians from Łódź People from Piotrków Governorate Communist Party of Poland politicians Polish Workers' Party politicians Members of the Politburo of the Polish United Workers' Party Members of the State National Council Members of the Polish Sejm 1947–1952 Members of the Polish Sejm 1957–1961 Members of the Polish Sejm 1961–1965 Members of the Polish Sejm 1965–1969 Members of the Polish Sejm 1969–1972 Gwardia Ludowa members Armia Ludowa members Recipients of the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari Recipients of the Order of the Builders of People's Poland Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Grunwald, 2nd class Recipients of the Order of the Banner of Work Burials at Powązki Military Cemetery