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BartłomiejBeniowski,1800-1867
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theoldsocialorder,andBeniowskididnotqualifyasarealPoleonanyofthese
grounds.
Inordertosettlepersonalorpoliticalgrievances,hisPolishopponents
passedonasgospeltruthtonaiveorill-disposedEnglishmentheinsults(fiJew,”
fiRussianspy”)thatweremoreorlessbackgroundnoiseintheideologicalin-
fightingofthePolishémigrécommunity.Itshouldincidentallybeemphasised
thatIcanfindnoinstancewhereBeniowskihimselfpubliclyindulgedinthe
pastimeofcharacterassassination,beingpreparedtoextendthebenefitofthe
doubteventotheobnoxiousDavidUrquhart,whoin1839-1840,onthebasisof
thisPolishgossip,madeoutrageousallegationsagainsthim,andlaterdragged
himthroughthecourtsforahot-headed,non-verbalresponsetothelibels.
EchoesofthesesmearsenteredthecontemporaryBritishChartistnarrativeand
laterhistoricalstudies,whichconsideredthequestionofwhetherBeniowski
engineeredtheNewportRisingasaRussianagent,orwasthefibetrayerof
Frost.”Thisbiographyisundoubtedlyinpartanattemptfinallytosettherecord
straightandturnthemandescribedbyPeterBrock,followingtheconservative
émigrépress,asafiratherdubiousadventurer”
3
intoarationalifcomplexhuman
beingwhooperatedwithintransnationalframeworksofideologicalconviction.
Rectifyingthehistoricalrecord,ormakingamendsforoldwrongs,isnot
howevertheonlyreasonwhyBartłomiejBeniowski)slifedeservesexploration.
Whenhediedin1867,hissentimentaldaughter-whohadtravelledfromWilno
toLondonafterhisdeathandlivedfortwomonthsat8BowStreet,Covent
Gardenamonghispapersandeffects-describedhimasagreat,unrecognised
genius.Thishyperbolecanbeexcusedasfamilybias,butBeniowskiwas
certainlyanextraordinaryman.Hedidnotonthesurfaceaccomplishmuch.He
foughtresolutelyforpoliticalgoalsthatwerenottobeachievedinhislifetime.
Hewroteandpublishedrelativelylittle.Heemergedonlysporadicallyontothe
publicstage.Andyethisinterventionsinpoliticalandsocialprocesseswereof
tellingsignificance,ashereachedoutto,andinteractedwith,theradical
Europeanmovementsofthefirstsevendecadesofthe19thcentury,andhislife
illustratesthemulti-culturalbackdroptocommonEuropeaninterests.
BeniowskiarrivedinBritainasaPolishrefugee,but-likemanyother
émigrés-hadspentthefirstthirtyyearsofhislifeintheRussianEmpireas
aRussiancitizen.Hewasbornin1800intotheurbanmiddleclassinthedistant
marchlandsoftheoldPolishCommonwealth,transferredsevenyearsearlierto
RussiabythesecondpartitionofPolandin1793.Hewasbroughtupin
BerdyczówinVolhynia[nowBerdychivinUkraine],castbyaccidentofbirth
alongfaultlinesbetweenpeoplesandlanguages.Thiswasatradingentrepôt
wherePoles,RussiansandJewsmingled,andBeniowskiwasmulti-lingualfrom
childhood,althoughhisfirstlanguagewasPolish.HeattendedaPolishschool
3
PeterBrock,fiPolishDemocratsandEnglishRadicals,1832-1862.AChapterinthe
HistoryofAnglo-PolishRelations,”JournalofModernHistory,vol.25,no.2,June1953,p.147.
