Count Edward Raczynski; Former Polish Diplomat to Great Britain

Count Edward Raczynski, 101, the aristocratic Polish diplomat who was ambassador to Britain at the outbreak of World War II and a member of the wartime Polish government-in-exile. Raczynski witnessed the rise and fall of Communism, and saw his native country pass from German occupation to Soviet control to multi-party democracy. He never returned home after the war. Raczynski was ambassador in London from 1934 to 1945. During the war, he was acting foreign affairs minister in the London-based exiled Polish government and then minister of state in charge of foreign affairs. The British government withdrew its recognition of the government in July, 1945, following the Yalta Conference at which Britain, the United States and Soviet Union agreed to recognize a rival, Soviet-backed government. He felt betrayed, but continued to help settle Polish refugees in Britain. Raczynski began his diplomatic career after World War I and served in Copenhagen, Warsaw, Geneva and London. In London on Friday.