 1765 - 1833 ãã. |
Oginski in Zalesie "...on 28th April 1802 I left St.Petersberg with intention of settling ultimately in village not far from Wilno...". That was what Michal Kleofas Oginski - the statesman, former insurgent, composer - wrote in his memoirs about the moment he left for Zalesie. |
 Ïàëàö Àã³íñê³õ ó Çàëåñüñ³ XIX ñò. Ìàëþíàê Í. Îðäû |
The estate of Zalesie was called earlier Dzerby. In the first half of 18th century the estate was given to Palatine of Vitsebsk Marcyan Oginski (1672-1750), then it was inherited by his son Tadeusz Franciszek (1712-1783), Palatine of Troki. When Tadeusz died, one of his two sons Franciszek Ksavery (1742-1814), the Count and the last kitchener of Lithuania inherited the right to be called the owner of Zalesie. Childless Franciszek transfered the property Zalesie to his nephew Michal Kleofas Oginski, where he was living with family during 20 years. While living in Zalesie, the former diplomat of Rzeczpospolita, the insurgent in 1794 and then emigrant Oginski was appointed senator of the Russian Empire by Tsar Alexander the First. In Zalesie Oginski engaged in literature, started writing his works named "Memoirs devoted to Poland and the Poles from 1788 to 1815" and "Letters about music". In his memoirs he repeatedly accentuated himself being descended from Lithuania. In Zalesie Oginski composed the most part of his polonaises and romances. His famous Polonaise "Farewell to the Homeland" is supposed to be written in Zalesie. By the way, it will be wrong to consider that polonaise's name "Farewell to the Homeland" was given by Oginski, originally it was called simply polonaise A-minor. It is known from the Oginski contemporaries' reminiscences that Zalesie residence was called at that time "Northern Athens". |
 Ïàëàö ó Çàëåñüñ³, ñó÷àñíû âûãëÿä |
At present Zalesie is a small borough near the town of Smorgon, Grodno region, midway between Minsk and Wilno when one travels by train. Since those times the house (the restoration started in 1970th and still not finished), some parts of the parks, laid out in 18th-19th centuries, the pond, small palace and restored chapel remained. Although restoration works will scarcely be finished in the near future, there are a lot of visitors (schoolboys and girls, teachers and people simply being interested in history) come in Zalesie every year. Since 1990, annually a large number of people visit Zalesie in September to participate in festivities in honor of M.K.Oginski the former owner of "Northern Athens". Who after all was Prince Oginski - the statesman by vocation or amateur musician or the romantic, who lived in the beginning of 19th century? Was he an ordinary man who kept the family, brought his children up and was worrying about their future or had he a contradictory and complicated character in which pragmatism and adventurism of the person who was living through 18th and 19th centuries? Who ultimately was that prince, whose name is closely associates in our “not too long” memory with popular in the past dance in single whole named “Polonaise a-minor”? To get the answer and to understand the historical event namely the live of Oginski (having remembered the well-known expression “look into the roots”), let’s consider the distant past – the history of the Ogiskis which begins from the times of Great Duchy of Lithuania in 14th century. |