An Evening With Author Francis C. Kajencki

 

Washington, D.C. (June 22, 2005)

Military historian and author Francis C. Kajencki was feted here with a special evening at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland on June 22, 2005. The affair was hosted by Minister Plenipotentiary Boguslaw Winid and co-sponsored by the Polish Library in Washington, led by President Ryszard Okreglak. Kajencki presented to the attentive audience a short, fascinating synopsis for each of his 5 published books:

  1. The Pulaski Legion in the American Revolution,
  2. Casimir Pulaski: Calvary Commander of the American Revolution,
  3. Thaddeus Kosciuszko: Military Engineer of the American Revolution,
  4. Discordant Trumpet: Discrimination of American Historians,
  5. Poles in the XIX Century Southwest

Of related interest is that the authors daughter, Dr. AnnMarie Francis Kajencki, authored the children's book: Count Casimir Pulaski: From Poland to America, A Hero's Fight for Liberty (above)

The presentation was followed by a very interesting and in-depth discussion between the author and audience, capped-off with a bountiful Embassy reception.

Author Francis Casimir Kajencki (left) is shown receiving an award from Minister Plenipotentiary Boguslaw Winid (r.) at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Washington. The military honor was issued by the Akademia Obrony Narodowej (Academy of National Defense) in Warsaw, Poland to commend Kajencki's most worthy literary contributions to Polish-American military history. An integral component of the award is a bronze medallion of Adam K. Czartoryski (1734-1825), First Commandant of the Knights Academy. The painting appearing in the background is Court Jester (Stanczyk) by Jan Matejko, 1862.

The author has led a very interesting, varied and fruitful life as his amazing military and academic biography indicates: "Francis Casimir Kajencki was graduated from the U.S. Military Academy and commissioned a second lieutenant in January 1943. He served in the Pacific Theater in World War II, followed by staff and command assignments over a span of thirty years. He retired as Colonel and Assistant Chief of Information, Department of the Army, in 1973."

"Kajencki has earned three Masters Degrees: From the University of Southern California in Mechanical Engineering, 1949; University of Wisconsin-Madison in Journalism, 1967; and George Mason University in History, 1976. Upon retiring from the Army, he took up historical research and writing that led to 5 published books on American history."

In attendance of note on this evening were General/Ambassador Edward Rowny (Ret.) and 19 participants of the annual, week long, American Council for Polish Culture Youth Conference in Washington, escorted by co-chairpersons Thaddeus and Irena Mirecki. It was a very rewarding cultural experience and memorable evening for these future leaders of Polonia, hailing from the length and breadth of America, and they were very appreciative for this unique experience.

 



Baltimore, Md., July 10, 2005
text and photographs by Richard P. Poremski, contact the author by e-mail
This article was published originally in Polish American Journal, Buffalo, NY.


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