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Jan Biziel | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 12, 1858 |
| Died | February 4, 1934 (aged 75) |
| Nationality | German, Polish |
| Occupation(s) | physician, social activist, |
| Years active | 1880s-1930s |
| Awards |  |
Jan Biziel (1858-1934) was a German and Polish physician, social activist, city councilor of Bydgoszcz. He was designated "Honorary Citizen of Bydgoszcz" in 1930.
Jan Łukasz Biziel was born on October 12, 1858, in Osieczna, Leszno County. He was the son of Rozalia née Pajkert and Franciszek Biziel, a farmer. He was the younger son of a very large family, having 4 brothers and 6 sisters. [1] He attended the gymnasium in Leszno from 1872 to 1879, then he studied medicine at Leipzig's and Greifswald's universities.
He started his medical practice in Chełmno: there he gained experience in the field of medical knowledge and perfected his practice. In particular he worked under the attention of Ludwik Rydygier, the famous Polish surgeon who later became professor at the Jagiellonian University of Kraków. Leaving Chełmno, he spent the next five years in Krzywiń, hometown of his wife Maria.
In 1902, they moved to Wrocław where Jan worked for four years at the hospital: their third daughter was born there. Finally on March 28, 1906, the Biziel family moved to Bromberg, [2] living at 3 Cieszkowskiego street. The Biziel's later purchased a house at May 3 street (Nr.8), which Pelagia, one of their daughter, kept till after WWII. [2]
At that time, there were already several private and public hospitals in Bromberg/Bydgoszcz. Most of the physicians were German: Jan Biziel joined the small group of Polish doctors which included, among others, Emil Warmiński, the first Polish medic in the city. [2]
On November 11, 1918, Poland regained independence. However, at that time, Bydgoszcz was still part of German territory. To avoid this fate, an uprising broke out in the city: power was taken over by a "Workers' and Soldiers' Council", which temporarily had control upon the local administration. On November 16, a "Polish People's Council" was set up, chaired by Jan Biziel, with Jan Teska as secretary. [3] As such, he had been representing the Polish residents of Bydgoszcz to the discussion with partitioning authorities.
During the fights following the Greater Poland uprising, while working at the garrison hospital at 11 Jagiellońska street, Dr. Biziel treated and operated the wounded insurgents, in hospitals but also in private homes. He succeeded in having secretly transferred out of hospital Polish soldiers facing death penalty for desertion from the Prussian army, by issuing false documents to allow them to reach safe houses. [4] Dr. Biziel ran as well an underground hospital, which was organized in the Stryszyk family house at 12 Długa Street during the battles near Bydgoszcz. [5]
In December 1918, Jan participated in the sessions of the Sejm of the district in Poznań as the head of the delegation representing the interests of the Bydgoszcz city. [6] At the ceremony of transfer of authority from German to Polish rule which took place on the Old Market square on January 19, 1920, Jan Biziel was one of the Polish representatives, [6] while another Bydgoszcz citizen, Hermann Dietz, sided with the German party. The following day, as president of the Polish People's Council, he welcomed Polish troops entering the city.
On August 4, 1920, Biziel was appointed a member of the Provisional City Council (1920–1921). After the resignation of Jan Maciaszek, the interim city president in July 1921, he was offered his position, but did not accept it. [2] In 1921, he became the chairman of the Polish Election Committee in Bydgoszcz and was elected as a city councilor from the Civic List, representing the interests of the Christian-democratic party from 1922 to 1925. He chaired the City Council until the end of March 1922.
In the 1920s, Dr. Biziel was the head physician of the Municipal Clinic and the chief of the internal department. He was active in the Poznań-Pomeranian Medical Chamber and the Medical Society for the Nadnotecki District in Bydgoszcz. From 1925 onwards, he shifted his focus on private medical practice. In 1930, Jan Biziel bought the tenement at 8 3 Maja street, which was managed till after the Second World War by one of his daughters, Pelagia. [2]
In May 1933, he was victim of a cerebral stroke. He could not get out of bed for five months and after recovery he had to be cared after. He eventually died on February 4, 1934, in Bydgoszcz. Two days later, the City Council convened for an extraordinary session to honor his memory. Jan Biziel's funeral took place on February 7, 1934, in the Nowofarny Cemetery of Bydgoszcz: in accordance with his last will, the ceremony was kept extremely modest.
In his farewell speech, city president Leon Barciszewski emphasized that Jan Biziel was a man "who disdained nothing more than external glitz, who shy away and escaped from fame and popularity. Quietly and imperceptibly, he glided through the streets of Bydgoszcz, bringing physical help and spiritual relief to all who called him day and night."
The care of his tombstone in Nowofarny cemetery is under the responsibility of the City Hall and High School Nr.7 in Bydgoszcz. [7]
Jan Biziel was married to Maria Ludwika née Badeltów, a teacher from Krzywin. Maria was the daughter of Paweł Badelt, very active in his city. He founded the first pharmacy of Krzywin (on March 11, 1870), co-founded the "People's Bank" in Krzywin and chaired the "Strzelce's Fowler Brotherhood" (Polish : Bractwa kurkowe) of the town. He died in 1901. [8]
They had three daughters: [1]
Jan Biziel family has many descendants, most of them live in Poland (Poznań, Wrocław). [8]
Upon his arrival in Bromberg in 1906, Jan Biziel combined his medical practice with nationalist and social activism.
He was active in many forums such as:
He was also very dynamic in the parish of the St. Martin and Nicholas cathedral. His own house at 3 Cieszkowskiego street quickly became a radiating center of social welfare and patriotism. [4]
In 1909, he headed the County Committee of the "People's Reading Room Society". [10] On his initiative, a bookshop promoting Polish language was established in Bromberg at the end of 1911, at the crossing of today's Mostowa and Jagiellońska streets. [2]
The same year, Biziel joined the city Popular National Union and soon became one of its leading members alongside Jan Teska (1876-1945). In 1914, he was one of the co-founder and representative at the supervisory board of the "Discount Bank" in Bydgoszcz. The role of this institution was to grant loans to peasants wrestling for land with the Prussian Colonization Commission.
Dr. Biziel used to give many historical lectures. In 1917, he was granted membership to the "Poznań Honorary Committee of the Centenary of the Death of Tadeusz Kościuszko". One of the commemorations in November 1917, was accompanied by his speech in the premises of the Polish House, created by his late colleague Emil Warmińskiego at today's 11 Warmińskiego street. [11]
Bernardyńska Street is a street in Old Town district of Bydgoszcz, Poland. It bears many historical buildings, of which several are listed on Kuyavian-Pomeranian Heritage list.
Podwale street is a historic path of Bydgoszcz old town.
Długa Street is the longest street of Old Town district in Bydgoszcz and the most important historically. It stands next to Gdańska Street and Dworcowa Street as one of the most important avenues of downtown Bydgoszcz.
Piotra Skargi street is a historical street of downtown Bydgoszcz.
Mikołaja Reja Street is a historical street of downtown Bydgoszcz.
The Voivodeship and Municipal Public Library "Dr. Witold Bełza" in Bydgoszcz is housed in historical buildings located between the Stary Rynek and Długa street, registered on the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Heritage List. It is the oldest (1903) library in activity in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship. Since 2002, it bears the name of Witold Bełza.
Słowackiego Street is a street located in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Despite its short length, many of its buildings are either registered on Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship heritage list, or are part of Bydgoszcz local history.
The Archer is a sculpture in Bydgoszcz, Poland. It stands in the Jan Kochanowski Park, facing the Polish Theatre. It is one of the oldest preserved sculptures in the city, realized by Ferdinand Lepcke. The figure of The Archer is one of the most expressive symbols of Bydgoszcz. Four copies of the statue still exist in German cities.
Jezuicka Street is a street located in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Many of its buildings are either registered on Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship heritage list, or part of Bydgoszcz local history.
Przyrzecze street is a street located in the old town district of Bydgoszcz, Poland. Many of its buildings are part of Bydgoszcz local history. Due to the proximity of the river, its townhouses represent a picturesque urban complex.
Bydgoszcz displays an abundant variety of architectures, with styles from neo-gothic, neo-baroque and neoclassicism, to Art Nouveau and modernism; hence its nickname of Little Berlin at the start of the 20th century. The notable granaries on Mill Island and along Brda river also recall a recognized timber-framed characteristics of the city in Poland.
Bydgoszcz Old Market square is an oblong place, situated in the old town district of the city of Bydgoszcz. The City Hall flanks one of its side, and nearby is located St. Martin and St. Nicholas Cathedral.
Świętego Floriana Street is located in the downtown district of Bydgoszcz, Poland. Despite its short length of roughly 200 metres (660 ft), it features many notable buildings in a variety of architectural styles, including Eclectic, Art Nouveau and early modernist. The street is named after Saint Florian.
Bogdan Feliks Raczkowski was an influential engineer, builder and urbanist in Bydgoszcz from the 1920s till the outbreak of World War II.
Szwederowo is a district of the city of Bydgoszcz, Poland, located on its southern territory. Szwederowo population is the second largest of all Bydgoszcz districts.
Seminaryjna street is located between Wilczak, Błonie, Downtown districts in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Laid in the late 1870s, its winding path offer a view on the old town nested down in the Brda river. Many frontages and edifices display architectural and historic interests, one of them is registered on the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Heritage List.
Emil Warmiński was a Polish physician, social and national activist and founder of the Polish House in Bydgoszcz.
The Ludwik Rydygier Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz is an extension of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń (UMK), aimed at training students in medical sciences.
Jan Teska (1876-1945) was a Polish journalist, publisher of the Dziennik Bydgoski, a national activist and a Polish politician from the 1900s till the end of World War II.
Stefania Tuchołkowa née Zaleska (1874-1924) was a Polish journalist, writer and national activist.
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