Andrzej Szczypiorski | |
|---|---|
 Szczypiorski in 1994 | |
| Born | (1928-02-03)3 February 1928 |
| Died | 16 May 2000(2000-05-16) (aged 72) |
| Occupation | novelist,politician,diplomat |
| Nationality | Polish |
| Genre | novel,short story |
| Notable works | A Mass for Arras (pl.: Msza za miasto Arras) |
Andrzej Szczypiorski (pronounced[ˈandʐɛjʂt͡ʂɨˈpjɔrskʲi]ⓘ; 3 February 1928 – 16 May 2000) was aPolishnovelist andpolitician. He served as a member of the Polish legislature, and was aSolidarity activist interned during themilitary crackdown of 1981. He was a secret police agent in the 1950s.[1]
He was son ofAdam Szczypiorski [pl], a political activist, historian and mathematician, and Jadwiga née Epsztajn. Szczypiorski had a sister Wiesława (1924–1945). He spent his childhood inWarsaw.
DuringWorld War II Szczypiorski studied atan underground university called the "flying university" due to the regular changing of its location for safety. He was a partisan of the PolishPeople’s Army, and a participant of theWarsaw Uprising.[2] After the Uprising he was arrested and condemned to imprisonment at theSachsenhausen concentration camp, where he survived until 1945.[2]
In 1946–1947 he studied political science in the Warsaw Consular Diplomatic Academy. In 1948–1956, Szczypiorski worked as an editor in the Katowice Silesian Theater. During this period, in 1952, he made his literary debut in the magazine "Życie Literackie" using the pseudonym 'Maurice S. Andrews' and was inducted into thePolish Writers' Union. He won theAustrian State Prize for European Literature in 1988.[3]
In 1956–1958, he was selected to serve in the Polish Embassy toDenmark, after which he returned to work as an editor on the radio and for publications. He later served as a member of the Polish legislature. He was also aUNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.[4] Prior to his death, Szczypiorski converted toCalvinism, and is buried in theProtestant Reformed Cemetery in Warsaw.
After his death it became known that Szczypiorski was a collaborator of thePolish communist secret police in the years ofStalinism in Poland.[1]
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