Poland. Konsulat Generalny (Pretoria, South Africa) records, 1930-1957

Printable guide [HTML]
Request items

Summary

Creators:
Poland. Konsulat Generalny (Pretoria, South Africa)
Abstract:
Correspondence, telegrams, circulars, notes, speeches, clippings, minutes, protocols, and seals, relating to Polish foreign relations with South Africa and Polish émigré organizations, fund-raising for war relief, and consular activity in South Africa.
Extent:
3 manuscript boxes, 1 card file box (1.5 Linear Feet)
Language:
Polish
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Poland. Konsulat Generalny (Pretoria, South Africa) records, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Background

Scope and content:

Correspondence, telegrams, circulars, notes, speeches, clippings, minutes, protocols, and seals, relating to Polish foreign relations with South Africa and Polish émigré organizations, fund-raising for war relief, and consular activity in South Africa.

Biographical / historical:

A Polish Consulate General was established in Cape Town, Union of South Africa, on January 1, 1929. It was headed by Consul General Michał Kwapiszewski from January 1, 1930 to August 1, 1931. It then became an Honorary Consulate under Honorary Consul Cyryl Caro (August J., 1931-September 15, 1934).

In 1935, it was a Consular Agency and in 1936 an Honorary Vice-Consulate under Jan Majewski. In 1938, the post was an Honorary Consulate with Majewski as Honrary Consul, and in 1939 its status was raised to that of a regular Consulate. It remained as such, under Consul Majewski, until its liquidation in 1946. Among the changes occurring during this period were an expansion in both sphere of activity (reflecting the post's elevated status) and territorial jurisdiction (to include both Northern and Southern Rhodesia by 1938).

Elsewhere in southern Africa, a Polish Consular Agency was set up in Joharnesburg in 1939, and in the same year an Honorary Consulate was opened in Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia. By February 1941, a Consulate General had been established in Pretoria with Minister Plenipotentiary Dr. Stanisław Łepkowski as Consul General. In 1943, a Consular Agency at Durban attained the status of Consulate, the Honorary Consulate at Salisbury became a consulate General, and Consulates were opened in Lusaka, Northern Rhodesia and Zomba, Nyasaland for the care of Polish war refugees transported to East Africa. Contacts were maintained between the consular posts in South Africa and Polish government representations elsewhere in Africa, such as the Consulate in Tananarive, Madagascar and ministry delegations in Nairobi, Kenya. Among the concerns of the posts in the Union of South Africa were the transport and supervision of Polish war orphans settled at the Polish Children's Home in Oudtshoorn (see also the collection "Dom Polskich Dzieci").

As a result of withdrawal of international recognition of the London Government, most consular offices of the Republic of Poland were closed after the war. The Consulates in Durban and Cape Town and the Consulate General in Johannesburg ceased to function on May 1, 1946, while the Consulate General in Pretoria closed on May 15 of that year.

The archives of the Polish Consulate in Cape Town were sent by Mr. Majewski to Dr. Łepkowski in Pretoria for storage on July 27, 1946. Both the Cape Town and Pretoria consular archives eventually came into the possession of Mr. Tadeusz Kawalec, a former official of the Consulate in Cape Town, who donated them to the Hoover Institution in 1975.

Acquisition information:
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library Archives in 1975.
Physical location:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Box 4 may not be used without permission of the Archivist. The remainder of the collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.

Terms of access:

For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Poland. Konsulat Generalny (Pretoria, South Africa) records, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Location of this collection:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003, US
Contact:
(650) 723-3563
hooverarchives@stanford.edu
Website