Hi ! It has been along time, I have not written about beautiful stamps of Poland. As I always love to see and write about Polish stamps because of their exquisite design and nice subjects, so I have a selected a recent Polish stamp for today's Post. It is about Polish Year in Israel. The stamp was issued on recently on 22 April 2009. Well it is very interesting to note that The Polish Year is celebrated in Israel. It is to show the love for Poland by Jewish people.Since 9 April 2008 a major event of culture and science - The Polish Year, has been celebrated in Israel in order to demonstrate the legacy of Poland, a country which is dear to many Jewish people. Its a great a way to show concern and respect for a country. The stamp is in the form of a souvenir sheet. Here is the beautiful stamp which features a portrait of Berek Joselewicz sitting on a horse, wearing a captain's uniform, and heading a regiment formed during the battle of Kock. The image on the miniature sheet is a copy of a painting made in 1893 by an outstanding Polish painter, Juliusz Kossak. This is all for today ! .....Till Next Post.......Have a Nice Time !
The Polish Post, in cooperation with Israel Post, issued a postage stamp block in order to commemorate the Polish Year in Israel and to stress the amiable nature of the relations between both states. The stamp features a portrait of Berek Joselewicz sitting on a horse, wearing a captain's uniform, and heading a regiment formed during the battle of Kock. The image on the postage stamp is a copy of a painting made in 1893 by an outstanding Polish painter, Juliusz Kossak. The FDC features a bibliographical note on Berek Joselewicz.
Berek Joselewicz
Berek Joselewicz was born in 1764 in Kretynga, Lithuania. He earned a living as a horse trader. Upon the outbreak of the Tadeusz Kościuszko uprising in 1794, with the help of Józef Aronowicz he wrote an appeal in the Yiddish language calling the Polish Jews to arms. With around five hundred volunteers who responded to his call, he built a cavalry regiment. He persuaded Kościuszko to allow that the Jewish freedom fighters observe their religious customs, including wearing beards, eating kosher meals and celebrating Sabbath whenever it's possible in the circumstances. Berek Joselewicz's squadron was beaten during the battle to defend the Praga district of Warsaw, with only a few survivors remaining, including the captain. After the fall of the uprising, Berek Joselewicz emigrated to Italy, where he joined the Polish Legions of general Jan Henryk Dąbrowski as "colonel, Captain of the Polish Cavalry." He took part in numerous battles of the Napoleonic campaign, including the ones of Hohenlinden and Austerlitz.
Following the constitution of the Duchy of Warsaw (Księstwo Warszawskie) in 1807, he remained in the army as squadron leader in the 5 Mounted Riflemen Regiment. In 1808 he was awarded with the Virtuti Militari Knight's Cross, and he also received the National Order of the Legion of Honour prior to that. He died during the battles of Kock in 1809. The patriotic traditions of fighting for the freedom of Poland were passed on to Berek Joselewicz's son, Józef Berkowicz (1789-1846), and his grandson Leon. Józef Berkowicz began to fight side by side with his father in the armed forces of the Duchy of Warsaw. He struggled against the Austrians near Kock, and after his father died, he fought in Napoleon Bonaparte's Russian campaign in 1812. He received multiple wounds, but his bravery in battle never withered away. Similarly to his father, his accomplishments on the battlefield earned him the National Order of the Legion of Honour (with a Golden Cross). After that, he and his son Leon fought in the November uprising, and after its failure he emigrated to France, and then to Great Britain, where he lived until his death.
Berek Joselewicz earned himself a great deal of fame. The example that he set by committing his life to fighting for the freedom of the country where his family had lived for generations, and which he considered to be his motherland, was the strongest encouragement for many Polish Jews in the following years. Numerous Polish patriots of Jewish origin fought in the armed bids for independence. They were the ones who did not agree to stand idle and watch the Polish land being engulfed with the ravages of war. So they joined the army, and they gave proof of their courage and valour. The descendants of Berek Joselewicz fought on every front of World Wars I and II, including in the armed forces of general Władysław Anders, the 1st Polish Army and the Polish underground forces. That is because no one could understand what it means to dream of the freedom of one's mother country, and sacrifice their life for that cause, better than the Poles and the Jews.
Courtesy - Polish Post
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