Anna Nakwaska

Anna Nakwaska née Krajewska (born 28 March 1781 in Warsaw, died 21 October 1851 in Mała Wieś (powiat Płock)) – was a Polish fiction writer, memoirist, children's author and educationist. Biography She was born the daughter of Stanisław Kostka Krajewski, a royal courtier, and his wife Franciszka née Kluszewska. She was home schooled in Warsaw and on the country estate. All her lessons were in French. She married a Senator, Franciszek Salezy Nakwaski, who from 1799 became prefect of the Warsaw region in the Duchy of Poland and then progressed to Voyevoda in Congress Poland. The couple had a son, Henryk, born in 1800, who was later to become a political activist and emigrant in France. They initially lived in Lipnice near Płock, but often travelled to the capital where she was a member of the Society in the Palac pod Blacha and an active participant in its cultural life. In the home of Stanisław Sołtyk, she got to know people like, Franciszek Salezy Dmochowski, L. Osiński and Onufry Kopczyński. During the Duchy period, she was an inspector of girls' schools and a member of the committee overseeing the education of women. At the same time, she pursued her own studies in Polish language and literature. After the collapse of the November uprising, she would spend the summer months on the Mała Wieś estate, returning to Warsaw for the winter months. In 1837 she left for Switzerland and after 7 years, in 1844 she visited Lower Silesia and Breslau stopping off for a cure in Szczawnica. Creativity From 1816 she had established a Literary salon in Warsaw, which enjoyed great popularity over many years. She wrote novels (Czarna mara, Obraz warszawskiego społeczeństwa w dwóch powieściach spisany), children's stories and historical fiction based on the uprising, (Aniela, czyli Ślubna obrączka, Powstaniec litewski). In 1852, the Warsaw Daily, 'Gazeta Warszawska' published an extract from her memoirs and several decades later, in 1891 a further extract appeared in Kronika Rodzinna- the Family Chronicle. Till now, her memoirs have not been published in their entirety. Notable works Trois nouvelles, publiées par une Polonaise, Warsaw 1821 Suite des Trois nouvelles, publiées par une Polonaise, Warsaw 1821 Obraz warszawskiego społeczeństwa w dwóch powieściach, powst. przed 31 grudnia 1830, publ.. Poznań 1842, Aniela, czyli ślubna obrączka. Powieść narodowa, Warsaw 1831; translated from the French: Angélique ou l'anneau nuptial. Nouvelle polonaise.