GOOD ROOTS
ABOUT THE INSTITUTE OF AGRONOMY IN MARYMONT
In 1816 Stanisław Staszic obtained from Russian authorities a permission to create the Institute of Agronomy in Marymont, the first agricultural school in the Kingdom of Poland and one of the first in Europe. The Institute was given government lands lying near Warsaw: Marymont and Bielany with Ruda, Wawrzyszew and Buraków manors (so, the place is situated near Warsaw).
Management of the Institute was entrusted to Jerzy Beniamin Flatt, who learnt agriculture in Germany and Switzerland. Learning in the Institute included practical exercises with elements of theory and lasted for a year. Later the profile of the Institute was extended and forestry was incorporated into the scope of teaching. The change was reflected in the new name of the school, which from 1840 functioned as the Institute of Rural Economy and Forestry.
After the downfall of the November Uprising the Russian authorities closed the schools in the Kingdom of Poland. The Institute in Marymount was also closed down and its resources and equipment were transferred in 1862 to a newly created Technical University of Agriculture and Forestry in Puławy.
THE CREATORS OF THE INSTITUTE AND OUTSTANDING PEOPLE OF MARYMONT
The creators of general education and agricultural education in the Kingdom of Poland
STANISŁAW STASZIC
JULIAN URSYN NIEMCEWICZ
PRINCE ADAM JERZY CZARTORYSKI
STANISŁAW KOSTKA POTOCKI
GENERAL JÓZEF ZAJĄCZEK
IGNACY SOBOLEWSKI
The directors of Institutes in Marymont and Puławy
JERZY BENIAMIN FLATT
MICHAŁ OCZAPOWSKI
SEWERYN ZDZITOWIECKI
STANISŁAW PRZYSTAŃSKI
DOMINIK OKNIŃSKI
ANTONI ZIELIŃSKI
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WOJCIECH BOGUMIŁ JASTRZĘBOWSKI
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Stanisław Staszic – a scholar, a social activist, a co-creator of the Commission of National Education; since 1808 the chairman of the Society of Friends of Learning
Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz – a feature writer, a novelist, since 1826 the chairperson of the Society of Friends of Learning; the owner of the lands and the Krasiński Palace in Ursynów (since 1822)
Prince Adam Jerzy Czartoryski – a vice-president of the Provisional Government of the Kingdom of Poland in 1815.
Stanisław Kostka Potocki – the owner of the lands in Wilanów, the Minister of Religious Denominations and Public Enlightenment in the Kingdom of Poland
General Józef Zajączek – the governor of the Kingdom of Poland between 1815 and 1826
Ignacy Sobolewski – a Secretary of the Tsar for Polish Issues; since 1825 the Minister of Justice in the Kingdom of Poland
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Jerzy Beniamin Flatt – a teacher, a pioneer of agricultural education in Poland, the first director of the Institute of Agronomy in Marymont (1816 – 1833)
Michał Oczapowski – a professor of agronomy of the University of Vilnius and the Institute of Marymont; the director of the Institute between 1833 and 1853
Seweryn Zdzitowiecki – a chemist, a specialist in metallurgy; the director of the Institute between 1853 and 1859
Stanisław Przystański – the director of the Institute in Marymont and Puławy between 1860 and 1862; since 1875 the first director of the Museum of Industry and Agriculture in Warsaw
Dominik Okniński – acting director of the Polytechnic Agricultural and Forest Institute in Puławy between 1862 and 1863
Antoni Zieliński – a graduate of the Institute of Marymont; between 1865 and 1869 the director of the Institute in Puławy
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Wojciech Bogumił Jastrzębowski – professor of the Institute of Agronomy in Marymont, a botanist, naturalist, philosopher of nature; the author of a visionary work from 1831 r. “On eternal peace between the nations”, in which he expressed the idea of the unification of Europe.
“YOUNG MASTERS FROM THE FLOUR OF MARYMONT”
The young men of noble birth and from the upper class were cuttingly spoken of in this manner in the 18th century. The expression referred then to the mills of Marymont, famous for the production of high quality flour, used by the inhabitants of Warsaw to bake cakes. It revived when the Institute of Agronomy was created, and it changed its sense. Since then the expression “young master from the flour of Marymont” described the students and graduates of the Institute.
“Let’s start from the bottom. It is obvious that in the conditions of Marymont long boots were not only fashionable, but also necessary. Even in Warsaw there were few pavements and on the lands of Marymont there was a lot of mud. Various types of trousers were tucked into the boots, that is leggings, close-fitting culottes, broad harem pants or ordinary long baggies, which were tucked into the boots or covered them, depending on the weather. Shirts were usually white (…), with a low collar band, on which some dandies wore something resembling a clerical collar, opened to the front. Such pseudo-clerical collars were usually worn by rich students, because they easily got dirty, you had to change them often and only the good and expensive washerwomen monopolised washing and starching them. Jackets, that is, frock coats were usually of such a cut, that they could be fastened under the neck. They usually had a turndown collar. Some of the rich young masters wore very much “reduced” czamaras, that is men’s long-sleeved, fitted, braided outer garments, fastened at the neck, and in fact something between a czamara and a frock coat. The biggest variety was among the waistcoats. All of their colours and cuts were always fashionable. Also their function could be different. When it was cold they were used only as “warmers”. When it comes to huts, maciejówka, a visored cap worn by Polish soldiers in the 19th century, was very popular (…). When the former school was transformed into the Institute of Rural Economy and Forestry the uniforms were obligatory.”
Michał Strzemski, “Instytut Agronomiczny w Marymoncie”, Puławy 1980, p. 177 – 178
FROM THE SOCIETY OF ACADEMIC COURSES TO THE HIGHER SCHOOL OF AGRICULTURE
The political situation in Russia after the revolution in 1905 influenced the process of the revival of the higher agricultural education at the beginning of the 20th century. The scientific environment of Warsaw used to take advantage of the loosening of the anti-Polish policy and created the Society of Academic Courses in 1906, under which the Faculty of Agriculture was created. Soon the Faculty was transferred to the Museum of Industry and Agriculture and it gained the status of the Industrial and Agricultural Courses (1911). The later professors of WULS-SGGW, Józef Mikułowski-Pomorski, Stefan Biedrzycki, Jan Sosnowski, played leading role in creating them. The Programme of the Courses was planned for three years and the level of education corresponded with agricultural studies. In 1913 the Courses were extended for the Faculty of Agriculture, and in 1916 the Higher Courses of Forestry were created as a part of them. The structure was in 1916 transformed into a Highers School of Agriculture, which was a commencement of the agricultural higher education facility in Warsaw.
LONG LIVE WARSAW UNIVERSITY OF LIFE SCIENCES-SGGW!
In 1918, when Poland regained its independence, the Higher School of Agriculture was nationalised and then transformed into an academic school called the Royal Polish Main School of Rural Economy. Under the decree of the Chief of State from 1919 the school obtained the name of the Warsaw University of Life Sciences-SGGW.
The news about the creation of the school caused euphoria among young people, who enrolled to school in crowds, straight from the front, still in their military uniforms. In the beginning the school had to cope with the problem of no seat of its own. The lectures and classes took place in rented places scattered all over Warsaw, from Hoża Street and Miodowa Street, to the former Museum of Industry and Agriculture at Krakowskie Przedmieście.
The school obtained its own address in 1923, when under the decision of Sejm of the Republic of Poland a plot of 11 ha at Rakowiecka Street was designated for its needs.
“Title: The Higher School of Agriculture could not be preserved, because already then the creation of new faculties at the university was planned: forestry, horticulture and veterinary medicine. The name of “Agrotechnika” was proposed. The name of “Szkoła Główna Gospodarstwa Wiejskiego” (literary “The Main School of Rural Economy”) won because of the tradition: the former Main Lithuanian School – of the Śniadecki, Mickiewicz, Słowacki and other elevated minds; the younger Main School of Warsaw of Mianowski, Chałubiński, Sienkiewicz, Prus, Świętochowski and other outstanding men, and our fathers, seemingly positivists, in reality romantics (…).”
A fragment of memoirs of prof. Tadeusz Miłobędzki [in:] „Księga pamiątkowa …”, edited by Franciszek Staff. Warsaw 1937, p. 183
IN THE BASTION OF WARSAW UNIVERSITY OF LIFE SCIENCES-SGGW AT RAKOWIECKA
Realization of the Main Building of WULS-SGGW at Rakowiecka was finished in 1929. The building, designed by an architect, Tadeusz Zieliński senior, was characterised by functionality and has a spacious lecture theatre and modern equipped laboratories. The area behind the building was developed for the needs of a didactic park. There was also an experimental weather station. Thanks to the efforts of the rector of WULS-SGGW, prof. Władysław Grabski, a tram line was built along Rakowiecka Street. It provided the students and employees with good communication with the city centre. The university from its beginning consisted of two faculties: the Faculty of Agriculture and the Faculty of Forestry. In 1921 the Faculty of Horticulture was created. The building of WULS-SGGW at Rakowiecka Street is thought of as “the bastion” of the university and constitutes a historical heritage of the university.
RECTORS OF THE UNIVERSITY BETWEEN 1918 AND 1944
Prof. Józef Mikułowski-Pomorski, a specialist in agricultural chemistry, professor of the Agricultural Academy in Dublany, an outstanding teacher and organizer was appointed the first rector of WULS-SGGW. After he arrived to Warsaw in 1911 he laid the foundations for the Industrial and Agricultural Courses, known after his name as “the Pomorski courses”. He raised their profile and led to them being transferred into the Higher School of Agriculture, which paved the way for the creation of WULS-SGGW. Professor Mikułowski-Pomorski fulfilled also many other, significant functions. Between 1917 and 1918 he was, among others, the Minister of Agriculture and the Royal Demesnes.
Prof. JÓZEF MIKUŁOWSKI-POMORSKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1918 – 1920, 1928 – 1929
Prof. TADEUSZ MIŁOBĘDZKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1920 – 1921
Prof. STEFAN BIEDRZYCKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1921 – 1922, 1929 – 1932
Prof. WACŁAW DĄBROWSKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1922 – 1923
Prof. JAN SOSNOWSKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1923 – 1925, 1932 – 1933
Prof. ZDZISŁAW LUDKIEWICZ
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1925 – 1926
Prof. WŁADYSŁAW GRABSKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1926 – 1928
Prof. MARIAN GÓRSKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1933 – 1936 (and 1947 – 1949)
Prof. JAN MIKLASZEWSKI
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1936 – 1944
LIKE A PHOENIX FROM THE ASHES
The capital city rose from the ruins after the war, and so did the academic structures. In the survived, although much devastated buildings of WULS-SGGW at Rakowiecka Street, in which German troops were stationed during the occupation, there started the action of getting everything in order. The organization works connected with preparing the university to didactic classes started as early as in February 1945. Thanks to this, WULS-SGGW, as the first higher education facility in Warsaw, inaugurated its activity as early as on 15th May 1945. The charismatic speech delivered during the celebrations of the then rector of WULS-SGGW, prof. Franciszek Staff went down in history.
He said: “We had a great honour, that we are the first academic university, reviving in the Capital City. The moment should be commemorated above all in the hearts of all of those, who enter our buildings for the first time. The circumstances, in which you enter the community of the High Education Facility, are so incredible, that you need to think, and you should prove it with your actions, that the fate appointed you to be the co-builders of the better future of our Nation, State and its Capital City.”
The rector’s gown sewed for prof. Franciszek Staff for the celebration of the inauguration of the first post-war academic year in WULS-SGGW. It was made from a woollen blanket dyed purple, transferred under the American aid of UNRRA.
“Today, deprived of the visible signs, symbols of our power and reign over your souls, which we take over you, we appear here among different symbols (…). Instead of the gown, the purple, ermine robes, berets, chains and staff of office, which were stolen from us by the “sword thieves” and the knights of war industry – we sit here “quantum mutati ab illo”, haggard, pale, in threadbare, worn out, patched jackets, which grace us with a different meaning of the facts. Many of us, having experienced the ordeal of war, saved their soul, as Ghandi covered in a sheet, or spent the threat of war, as Diogenes in a barrel. It is not us, who are shamed by the fate of the robbed. The war does not get one richer.”
“Speech to the young men” delivered on 15th May 1945 by the Rector of WULS-SGGW prof. Franciszek Staff on the day of inauguration of the academic year 1944/1945.
THE RECTORS OF THE UNIVERSITY BETWEEN 1944 AND 2016
Professor Franciszek Staff took the position of the rector of WULS-SGGW in difficult, post-war realities. He had been connected with the university since 1918 and was the creator and organizer of the Unit of Ichtiobiology and Fishing of WULS-SGGW, the first academic place in Poland involved in fishing. Professor Staff was an outstanding specialist in biology and fish farming. During the occupation he was involved in underground education and underground publishing. In 1946 he created Fishing Studies of the Agricultural Faculty of WULS-SGGW, which constituted the germ of future Faculty of Fishing in the Higher School of Agriculture in Olsztyn, which honoured professor with the title of doctor honoris causa.
Prof. FRANCISZEK STAFF
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1944 – 1947
Prof. ANTONI KLESZCZYCKI
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1949 – 1955, 1962 – 1969
Prof. KAZIMIERZ KRYSIAK
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1955 – 1962
Prof. ZBIGNIEW MUSZYŃSKI
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1969 – 1972, 1972 – 1975
Prof. HENRYK JASIOROWSKI
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1975 – 1978, 1978 – 1981
Prof. MARIA JOANNA RADOMSKA
Rector of WULS-SGGW 1981 – 1984, 1984 – 1987
Prof. WIESŁAW BAREJ
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1987 – 1990
Prof. JAN GÓRECKI
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1990 – 1993, 1993 – 1996
Prof. WŁODZIMIERZ KLUCIŃSKI
Rector of WULS- SGGW 1996 – 1999, 1999 – 2002
Prof. TOMASZ BORECKI
Rector of WULS- SGGW 2002 – 2005, 2005 – 2008
Prof. ALOJZY SZYMAŃSKI
Rector of WULS- SGGW 2008 – 2012, 2012 – 2016
TOWARDS THE PRESENT
Since the 50-ties of 20th century the history of the university has been connected with Ursynów, the place of rich tradition connected with education, stemming from the times of the first owner of the lands, Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz. The heirs of his ideas were the Raczyński, who transferred the lands of Ursynów in 1921 to the Ministry of Religious Denominations and Public Enlightenment for educational purposes. In the 30-ties the National Horticulture School was created here, and it was re-established after the war. In 1949 the area around the palace was extended for the purpose of a training centre of the Ministry of Agriculture, which has belonged to WULS-SGGW since 1956. A modern campus named after count Edward Raczyński was created in the terrain of 70 ha. It started to be built in the 60-ties. In 1989 the seat of the university authorities was transferred from Rakowiecka Street to the renovated Krasiński Palace in Ursynów. Since 2004 all the faculties of WULS-SGGW and its whole structure have been located in Ursynów.
WULS-SGGW CAMPUS OF COUNT EDWARD RACZYŃSKI
70 ha of surface situated along Nowoursynowska street. Historic part with period park and the Krasiński Palace in Ursynów – the seat of the authorities of the University. Modern part with faculty buildings, scientific and didactic base and sport facilities