Edmund Osmańczyk

Edmund January Osmanczyk ( born August 10, 1913 in German Jägel; † October 4, 1989 in Warsaw) was a Polish historian, journalist, writer, activist of the Polish minority in Germany, parliamentarians and fighters of the Polish Home Army.

Edmund January Osmanczyk was a member of the Union of Poles in Germany, since 1935 head of the press office of the Federal, editor of the Polish-language magazines "w młody Polak Niemczech " ( The young Pole in Germany ), " Nowiny " (News), " Narod " ( The people ).

In 1938 he moved to Poland. During the Second World War he was active in the Polish resistance movement. In the Warsaw Uprising in 1944, he managed the radio station of the insurgents. 1945-1946 he was active in Germany as a foreign correspondent of the Polish press, rapporteur was at the Potsdam Conference ( July 17 to August 2, 1945) as well as at the Nuremberg trial of the major war criminals ( 20 November 1945 to October 1, 1946 ). 1948 to 1952 he lived in Stettin, then in Warsaw.

1952-1961 and 1969-1985 he was a Sejm deputy, 1979-1980 Member of the State Council of the People's Republic of Poland.

1983-1988 he was chairman of the ZAiKS (Association of playwrights and composers ).

In 1975 he was made an honorary Doctor of Silesian University in Katowice, 1988, the University of Wroclaw.

In 1988 he became a member of Lech Walesa Citizens Committee. At the Round Table (6 February to 5 April 1989), he took part at the side of the Solidarity opposition. In the first free elections on June 4, 1989, he was elected to the Senate, but died a few months later.

Edmund January Osmanczyk authored nearly 50 books, mostly dedicated to the German - Polish relations. Two of his books have been published in many editions: " Sprawy Polaków " ( The affairs of Poland) and " Encyclopaedia ONZ i stosunków międzynarodowych " (English: The Encyclopedia of The United Nations and International Agreements, Spanish: Enciclopedia mundial de relaciones internacionales y Naciones Unidas ).

Works (selection)

• Młode Niemcy ( Young Germany ): Warszawa: " Czytelnik ", 1951
• Niemcy 1945-1950: liczby, Fakty, daty, Komentarze ( Germany 1945-1950: numbers, facts, data, comments): Warszawa: " Książka i Wiedza ", 1951
• Byl rok 1945 ( It was the year 1945) 1st to 5th edition: Warszawa: National Research Wydawniczy 1970 until 1980.
• Leksykon Polactwa w Niemczech ( Lexicon of Polish in Germany ): Instytut Slaski w Opolu: Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Państwowe Naukowe, 1973
• The Encyclopedia of The United Nations and International Agreements: Philadelphia: London: Taylor and Francis, 1986 ISBN 0850663121, . New York; London: Routledge, 2003 ISBN 0415939208.
• Enciclopedia Mundial de Relaciones Internacionales y Naciones Unidas: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1990, ISBN 84-375-0079-6
• Sprawy Polaków ( The affairs of Poland): ed 1 to 5: Katowice: Avir, 1946-1948: ed 6 to 8: Katowice: " Slask ", from 1982 to 1986.
• Trzeba to opowiedzieć: Dziennik z Powstania 1944 ( One has to tell: Diary of the uprising in 1944 ) Warsaw: Bellona, 1994 ISBN 8311083258. .