Danuta Wałęsa
Mirosława Danuta Wałęsa | |
---|---|
First Lady of Poland | |
In office 22 December 1990 – 22 December 1995 | |
President | Lech Wałęsa |
Preceded by | Karolina Kaczorowska - in Exile Barbara Jaruzelska |
Succeeded by | Jolanta Kwaśniewska |
Personal details | |
Born | Mirosława Danuta Gołoś 25 February 1949 Węgrów |
Nationality | Polish |
Spouse | Lech Wałęsa (m. 08.11.1969-present) |
Children | Bogdan (b. 1970) Sławomir (b. 1972) Przemysław (b. 1974) Jarosław (b. 1976) Magdalena (b. 1979) Anna (b. 1980) Maria Wiktoria (b. 1982) Brygida (b. 1985) |
Mirosława Danuta Wałęsa, maiden surname Gołoś (born 25 February 1949 near Węgrów[1]), is the wife of the former President of Poland Lech Wałęsa.[2] In 1983 she accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway on behalf of her husband,[2][3] who feared, at a time of great political upheaval in the country, that the Polish government might not allow him to return if he travelled to Oslo himself. Lech and Danuta have been married since 8 November 1969[4] and have eight children:
- Bogdan - b. 1970
- Sławomir - b. 1972
- Przemysław - b. 1974
- Jarosław - b. 1976
- Magdalena - b. 1979
- Anna - b. 1980
- Maria Wiktoria - b. 1982
- Brygida - b. 1985.[2]
Danuta grew up in Krypy village near Węgrów (Krypy, Gmina Wierzbno or Krypy, Gmina Liw[1]). She was working in a flower shop near the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk when she met Lech Wałęsa, then an electrician. After they married, she began using her middle name more than her first name, per Lech's request. She was even more resolutely anti-Communist than her husband. During her husband's frequent interrogations by the SB in the 1980s, she was known to openly taunt officers who came to pick him up.[5]
References
- ^ a b Wałęsa, Danuta; Piotr Adamowicz (oprac.) (2011). Danuta Wałęsa. Marzenia i tajemnice. Cracow: Wydawnictwo Literackie. p. 11. ISBN 978-83-08-04741-5.
- ^ a b c "Pokojowa Nagroda Nobla Lecha Wałęsy" (Lech Wałęsa's Peace Prize)
- ^ R. W. APPLE JR., "AWARD IS ACCEPTED BY DANUTA WALESA", New York Times, December 11, 1983, [1]
- ^ Wałęsa, Danuta; Piotr Adamowicz (oprac.) (2011). Danuta Wałęsa. Marzenia i tajemnice. Kraków: Wydawnictwo Literackie. p. 11. ISBN 978-83-08-04741-5.
- ^ Sebetsyen, Victor (2009). Revolution 1989: The Fall of the Soviet Empire. New York City: Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-375-42532-2.