Michał Radziwiłł – a Biographical Sketch of the Last Owner of the Przygodzice and Antonin Estates
Michał Radziwiłł – a Biographical Sketch of the Last Owner of the Przygodzice and Antonin Estates

Summary/Abstract: This article examines the life of Prince Michał Radziwiłł, the last holder of the Przygodzice entail, a figure as compelling as he was controversial. His conduct, widely documented by the press of the interwar period, left him estranged from members of his aristocratic family for the greater part of his life and in constant conflict with the Polish state authorities. Utilizing archival sources (including records of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Second Polish Republic and legal correspondence), the author analyzes the economic decline of the Przygodzice entail, which resulted in the judicial imposition of compulsory administration, alongside the prince’s bigamy law proceedings and family-led incapacitation attempts. An important element of the study is Radziwiłł’s conduct during World War II – notably his unequivocal siding with Nazi Germany, his attempts to bequeath his estates to Adolf Hitler, and his efforts to be officially recognized as a German national. The paper revisits and expands existing biographical data, contextualizing the social marginalization and ultimate negative public assessment of the last ordynat of Przygodzice.

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