Transfer of Paderewski’s Body Stalled

For nearly half a century, the remains of Ignace Jan Paderewski, renowned pianist, composer and beloved Polish statesman, have rested in a zinc casket at the base of the mast of the USS Maine memorial at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

If all had gone according to plan, his remains would have been transferred to Poland for a state burial June 29, the 50th anniversary of his death. A celebratory concert in Warsaw with some of the biggest names in music was scheduled.

But those plans have been postponed for at least a year--and some fear it may not happen for years.

At the personal behest of Polish President Lech Walesa, the Bush Administration recently agreed to postpone--possibly until June, 1992--the return of Paderewski’s remains until political events in Poland have stabilized.

“The Poles are having parliamentary elections in October and the feeling was they didn’t want the transfer to take place at a time when involved in political debate,” Edward J. Derwinski, the secretary of veterans affairs, said this week.

“They wanted to be able to focus on the great event without use or misuse politically by anyone. It is our understanding that Paderewski didn’t want his body returned to Poland until Poland was free. The return would be a great emotional and historic event in Poland and it was felt it should not take place when there is political rancor in the air,” said Derwinski, who as the Administration’s highest-ranking Polish American said he had expected to head the delegation escorting the body back to Poland.

The delay has saddened and divided members of the Polish-American community. It also has brought to light the controversy surrounding Paderewski’s burial wishes.

Henry Archacki, chairman of the New York-based Polish Memorial Committee that is helping with the transfer, said the delay “hurts emotionally.”

“We had everything up to peak,” Archacki said. “We sought no funds. This was all done privately. All we wanted was a sense of history. Now, if we get him (Paderewski) there before the year 2001 we will be lucky.

“We can’t give specifics, but we believe there are special-interest groups wanting to make money off this thing. This is grotesque. You don’t peddle Paderewski for money.”

Richard Uniwersal, consular at the Polish Embassy in Washington, said: “The reasons for the postponement are hard to explain. My country is now in the process of democratization and there are many political developments taking place. These are the general reasons given by my government. Perhaps there are others which we don’t yet know anything about.”

Born in 1860, Paderewski was destined to become one of the star pupils of famed piano pedagogue Theodor Leschetizky. Reports of his many wrong notes aside, Paderewski emerged a romantic figure, not unlike Franz Liszt in his attraction to hordes of swooning women. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in November, 1891, and paid repeated visits to the United States, earning large sums of money. His compositions include a symphony and other longer works, but he is remembered mainly for his piano music (his Minuet in G, Opus 14, remains much played to this day).

But above all, Paderewski was a Polish patriot, who devoted his considerable resources to the fight for Polish independence.

In 1919, Paderewski became Poland’s first premier and foreign minister. Not entirely suited to political life, however, he resigned nine months later to resume his musical career in Europe and America.

Paderewski went on to own a couple of almond ranches in Paso Robles, Calif. And as a member of the Paris-based Polish government-in-exile, he continued the fight to free his country, this time from Nazi domination.

Legend has it that before his death at the Hotel Buckingham in New York, Paderewski asked his sister, Antonina Paderewska Wilknoska, who died four months after him, to arrange for his heart to be removed and be buried separately.

The Polish tradition, which first began with King John III Sobieski in 1696, also extended to Frederic Chopin, whose body lies in Paris while his heart is interred at the Church of the Holy Cross in Warsaw. Paderewski’s heart now rests at a national shrine in Doylestown, Pa.

Also at Wilknoska’s supposed urgings, President Franklin D. Roosevelt allowed for Paderewski’s remains to be placed at Arlington National Cemetery. (Because only Americans may be interred there, his body was not buried.)

However, with no written proof of Paderewski’s requests, some skeptics doubt his desire to be buried in Poland.

For instance, the State Dept. Watch--a conservative group with offices in Los Angeles and Washington that does what its name suggests: dogs the State Department--is directing a letter campaign at the media, the State Department and others, questioning the right to “deport” Paderewski’s remains. The group also notes the absence of documentation regarding Roosevelt’s declaration that Paderewski be allowed to rest “temporarily” in the United States, a fact confirmed by the Roosevelt Library in Hyde Park, N.Y.

However, retired Lt. Gen. Edward L. Rowny, who served as chief negotiator for Strategic Arms Reduction Talks under President Reagan and who resigned from the State Department last June, confirms that a record of such a conversation between Roosevelt and a member of his Cabinet can be found in State Department archives.

Rowny, a Polish American who worked behind-the-scenes to help arrange the transfer, further points to remarks made by President Kennedy at a memorial service for Paderewski on May 9, 1963, that conclude:

“The understanding was that when Poland would one day be free again, he would be returned to his native country. The day has not yet come. But I believe in this land of the free that Paderewski rests easily. We are proud to have him here.”

Paderewski’s only surviving relative, 82-year-old Clarence Paderewski, a retired architect living in San Diego and a second cousin to the pianist, has no doubts about the validity of Paderewski’s request:

“There is no question in my mind that this is all real. After all, if Roosevelt had not intended the body to be returned to Poland, surely it would have been buried immediately. True, there was nothing here in writing. It was just a request from a brother to a sister.”

Veterans Affairs Secretary Derwinski is aware of the speculation surrounding Paderewski’s wishes: “There are few people alive today who could testify what was on Paderewski’s mind 50 years ago.” Nevertheless, he said, the decision to accept the body rests solely with the Polish government.

“It’s their decision and as far as we are concerned, it’s a government-to-government courtesy,” Derwinski said. “It’s a good-will step we are ready to take at any time the Polish government deems the proper time.”

POLISH CONCERT * A free concert featuring the music of Paderewski and six other Polish composers will begin at 4 p.m. Saturday in Bing Theater at the County Museum of Art. Performed by vocal and instrumental artists from Poland and the United States, the concert will be simulcast on KUSC-FM (91.5). Highlighted will be rarely heard works, including songs by Paderewski.