Home
The Vatican stamp at L.15 bears the portrait of Mieszko I, the ruler of Poland, and of his wife, Dabrowka, the daughter of the King Boleslaus, sovereign of Bohemia. Mieszko, inspired by Dabrowka, was baptized in 966; his court immediately followed suit, and then almost all the Poles living in the northern part of the country. Those in the south were already evangelized by the two great Slav missionaries, Saints Cyril and Methodius. Excavations of ancient Polish churches prove this to be true. The picture of Mieszko I and Dabrowka is a reproduction of the portrait by the famous Polish painter, Jan Matejko, who is also known in Rome for his large painting: The Victory of King Jan Sobieski, the ruler of Poland, over the Turks at Vienna, Austria. Above the two rulers' portraits there stands a white eagle, the shield of the royal Polish family of Piast, the grandfather of Mieszko I. The white eagle has always been the emblem of Poland. Dominating the center of the stamp at L. 25 is the figure of St. Wojciech/St. Adelbert/ bishop of Prague, a friend of Pope Silvester II, of Emperor Otto III and of the Polish King Boleslaus the Great, son of Mieszko I. Expelled from Bohemia, St. Wojciech came to Poland. Soon after, at the suggestion of King Boleslaus, he went on to Prussia, lying northeast of the Vistula River, to convert those Baltic peoples who still were pagans. In the 14th century, the Prussians were annihilated by the Teutonic Knights who came to them under the pretext of converting them to Christianity. St. Wojciech was murdered by the Prussians. His body, ransomed by King Boleslaus, was placed in the Cathedral of Gneizno. In the year 1000 both Emperor Otto and King Boleslaus made a pilgrimage barefoot to the tomb of their friend, St. Adelbert, where they prayed for the grace of peace and harmony between their peoples, the Poles and the Germans. Immediately after the pilgrimage King Boleslaus, with the approval of Pope Sylvester and Emperor Otto, founded the first metropolitan see at Gneizno and three bishoprics at Wrocsaw/ Bratislav/ in Silesia; at Kotobrzeg/ Kolberg/ in Pomerania; and at Krakow/ Cracow/ in southern Poland. The first archbishop of the new ecclesiastical province was Archbishop Radzimin, brother of the saintly martyr. On the right of the saint is the Cathedral of Wrocsaw in a section of the country that was christianized by the slav missionaries, Saints Cyril and Methodius at the end of the 9th century. The Cathedral, built by a Polish royal family, was the see of the bishops of Silesia, under the authority of the Polish Metropolitan Archbishop of Gneizno from the year 1000 until half of the 19th century. On the left is the Cathedral of Gneizno where the body of St. Adelbert was put to rest. Officially it is the seat of the Polish Primate, although since the last war, he resides at Warsaw The picture in the center of the stamp at L.40 is that of Sw. Stanislaw/ St. Stanislaus/ SZCZEPANOWSKI, the bishop of Cracow, a heroic defender of the freedom of the Polish people who were oppressed by their King Bolislaus II, the Brave. Re-proved by the holy bishop, the King went into a rage and under the pretext of high treason, he ordered his soldiers to kill the bishop in 1079. Later, having become aware of the gravity of his crime, he renounced his throne and retired to a monastery where he died repentant. On the Vatican stamp at L.50 stands Hedwig/Jadwiga, the youngest and most beloved queen of the Polish people. She was the granddaughter of King Ladislaus Lokietek, who with the help of Pope Boniface III unified the loosely organized Polish kingdom. Hedwig was also the daughter of Louis d'Anjou, the king of Poland and Hungary. In 1384 when Hedwig was only twelve years of age, the Polish nobility elected her queen of Poland. During the couple of years she ruled alone, Hedwig, reunited Ruthenia/today's Ukraine/ to Poland and prepared it for a reunion with Rome. Ladislaus Jagiello, the Grand Duke of Lithuania, proposed marriage with Hedwig, promising to embrace Christianity with all his people and to join his country with Poland. For the love of Christ, Hedwig consented - at the price of personal sacrifice of the love of her dearest fiance, William. Jagiello, after his baptism and under the influence of his young and virtuous wife, became a fervent and sincere Catholic. A year after his marriage Jagiello kept his promise of leading his good nation to the Faith and so extended his rule over Bialorus/White Russia/ and the northern part of Russia. Very soon the presence of Hedwig, the queen, at Vilno, the capital of Lithuania, and her angelic goodness to the Lithuanians, gave impetus to the early and peaceful conversion of the people. Queen Hedwig died young and in the odor of sanctity. The picture on the stamp is a copy of the portrait of Jadwiga painted by Jan Matejko. On the left side of the stamp is the Gate of Vilno, called "Ostra Brame". On the gate is a picture of Our Lady which is held in great veneration by the Poles and Lithuanians. (Cf. Vatican Scott #189-91) (Cf. Vatican Notes, Vol.VIII,#6,pp.11-12 -May-June 1960) On the right side is the library of the University of Cracow, founded by the uncle of Queen Hedwig, the Polish King Casimir the Great in 1364, and reorganized by the same Queen Jadwiga who offered to its cause all her personal gems and valuables. Behind the gate in the background is a monument to the great Polish astronomer, Nicolas Copernicus, an alumnus of the same university. In the center of the Vatican stamp at L.150 is the image of the miraculous Madonna at Czestochowa, Queen of Poland. According to a legend the picture was painted by St. Luke. Thousands of pilgrims come each year to this shrine to beg the Blessed Virgin's intercession. (Cf. Vatican Scott #216-18. Cf. Vatican Notes, Vol. IX, 41, pp.11-12- July-August 1960). On the left of the Madonna is the Basilica of Our Lady of Czestochowa at Jasna Gora, which means "Bright Mountain", and which constitutes the major part of the town of Czestochowa. On May 3 of this year (1966) the Millenium celebrations will culminated at this famous shrine. On the right of the Madonna is the Cathedral of Cracow, built during the middle ages, destroyed by the Nazis during the last war and rebuilt soon afterwards. On the stamp at L.220 is the portrait of Pope Paul VI, surrounded by Poles dressed in costumes of various parts of Poland. Pope Montini as a young priest worked for some time at the Polish Nunciature in Warsaw and for that he is well known and very much loved by the Polish people, especially for his efforts to maintain peace in the world. The entire Polish nation would so much desire to pay special homage to the Holy Father at Czestochowa on May 3 and on the occasion of the Millenium celebrations and during the great pilgrimage of Poles from all over the world at Rome from May 12 to 18. (Permission for Pope Paul VI to attend the celebration in Poland was refused by the Polish communist government) The Polish inscription above the picture is none other than the traditional greeting of the Polish people and means "Praised be Jesus Christ", which is also used to open the Vatican Radio news broadcasts. At the bottom is the response: "For ever and ever. Amen." Technical Details: Scott Catalogue - 433 - 438 Date Issued - 03 May 1966 Face Value - 15 l, 25 l, 40 l, €1.25, 50 l, 150 l, 220 l Perforations - 14x13.5 Printer - The Italian State Printing Works |
| (From Vatican Notes Volume XV, Number 1, July-August 1966, Pages 7-9) |
