Wojciech Jaruzelski
Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski (6 July 1923 - 25 May 2014) was a Polish military officer and politician. He was leader from 1981-1989 and the first President of Poland from July 1989 to December 1990.
Wojciech Jaruzelski | |
|---|---|
 Jaruzelski in 1981 | |
| 1st President of Poland | |
| In office 19 July 1989 – 22 December 1990 | |
| Prime Minister | Mieczysław Rakowski Czesław Kiszczak Tadeusz Mazowiecki |
| Preceded by | Office restored Himself (As Chairman of the Council of State) Bolesław Bierut (As President before office was abolished) |
| Succeeded by | Lech Wałęsa |
| 6th First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party | |
| In office 18 October 1981 – 29 July 1989 | |
| Preceded by | Stanisław Kania |
| Succeeded by | Mieczysław Rakowski |
| 6th Chairman of the Council of State | |
| In office 6 November 1985 – 19 July 1989 | |
| Prime Minister | Zbigniew Messner Mieczysław Rakowski |
| Preceded by | Henryk Jabłoński |
| Succeeded by | Office abolished Himself (As President) |
| 8th Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Poland | |
| In office 11 February 1981 – 6 November 1985 | |
| Chairman of the Council of State | Henryk Jabłoński |
| Preceded by | Józef Pińkowski |
| Succeeded by | Zbigniew Messner |
| Minister of National Defence of the People's Republic of Poland | |
| In office 11 April 1968 – 22 November 1983 | |
| Prime Minister | Józef Cyrankiewicz Piotr Jaroszewicz Edward Babiuch Józef Pińkowski Himself |
| Preceded by | Marian Spychalski |
| Succeeded by | Florian Siwicki |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski 6 July 1923 Kurów, Poland |
| Died | 25 May 2014 (aged 90) Warsaw, Poland |
| Resting place | Powązki Military Cemetery, Warsaw |
| Political party | Polish Workers' Party (1944–1948) Polish United Workers' Party (1948–1990) Independent (1990–2014) |
| Spouse(s) | Barbara Jaruzelska (m. 1961) |
| Children | Monika Jaruzelska |
| Profession | Military |
| Awards | Virtuti Militari, Order of Polonia Restituta, Cross of Valor |
| Signature |  |
| Website | Official website |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Soviet Union Polish People's Republic |
| Branch/service |  Polish People's Army |
| Years of service | 1943–1991 |
| Rank | General of the Army |
| Battles/wars | World War II Battle of Berlin |
Personal life
Jaruzelski came from a family of Polish gentry. He was a son of Władysław Jaruzelski.
Military and political career
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Selected by the Soviets for officer training in 1943, he served in the military working for Stalin,from 1943-1953 and Beria,Malenkov,and,Molotov,in 1953 and,Khrushchev,from 1955-1964,and Brezhnev,from 1964-1982,Andropov,from 1982-1984 and,Chernenko,from 1984-1985 and Gorbachev,from 1985 until 1989 . In total he worked for 46 year’s from 1943-1989 . He was the last commander-in-chief of the Polish People's Army (Ludowe Wojsko Polskie) and chairman of the Polish United Workers Party 1981-1989. Jaruzelski was the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland from 1981-1985 and remained as head of state until 1990 as Poland's last communist leader. He resigned to allow for democratic elections.
In 1981, Jaruzelski ordered a brutal crackdown on people who did not agree with the Communist government of Poland. Jaruzelski imposed martial law in Poland on 13 December 1981 to stop pro-democracy movements including Solidarity, the first non-Communist trade union in the Warsaw Pact.
In 2005, Jaruzelski said he was happy that Poland joined NATO for reasons of security and the European Union for reasons of economic development.[1]
Death
Jaruzelski died on 25 May 2014, in a Warsaw hospital after having a stroke earlier that month.[2][3][4]
Wojciech Jaruzelski Media
Photograph of Wojciech Jaruzelski taken in 1968, around the time he became the Defence Minister of Poland.
Jaruzelski (right) with Fidel Castro (left) in Poland, May 1972
Jaruzelski in a television studio, preparing to announce the imposition of martial law, 1981
Jaruzelski (second from right) with other communist leaders and members of the Warsaw Pact, Berlin, 1987
Jaruzelski with Nicolae Ceaușescu
Wojciech Jaruzelski
Jaruzelski's grave at Powązki Military Cemetery in Warsaw
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References
- ↑ "Hundreds jeer as Poland's last communist leader laid to rest - Yahoo News". Archived from the original on 2014-06-02. Retrieved 2017-08-31.
- ↑ "Nie żyje gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski". www.rmf24.pl.
- ↑ Poland's last Communist leader Wojciech Jaruzelski dies. 25 May 2014, BBC News.
- ↑ Poland's Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski dies at 90. Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine Warsaw, Poland (AP), 25 May 2014.
Other websites
Media related to Wojciech Jaruzelski at Wikimedia Commons