"Who would have thought it possible - we have come a long, long way"
(click on the images above to enlarge)
Romuald and Izabela Lipinski
27 September 1952, Leicester, England
I introduced myself and she told me her name: Izabela (Iza) Zienkiewicz. We danced together for the rest of the evening.
'My Story' - excerpts from Romuald Lipinski's memoir
12. Life After The War
back to 11 Life after the war
England
We arrived in England on a Bank Holiday. We went to a small camp in Sudbury, south of London. This was a camp that was for people who were not yet discharged from the army, and several courses were being offered to prepare them for civilian life. The prospect of further continuing my studies was not very good. The morale of the guys in the camp was low. They did not know what to do with themselves. They wanted to study something but did not know how to go about it and, because they did not know English, they were getting depressed. I should mention that there was the Polish University College (PUC) set up especially for Polish soldiers. They provided an introductory year of lectures that emphasized the study of the English language, but the subjects were taught in Polish by Polish professors. Lectures in English were gradually introduced and, in the final year, they were only in English. This was a very good arrangement because most of the students did not know English well enough to follow lectures in that language. PUC had its best years during and shortly after the war. By the time I came to England they were not taking any new students for the forthcoming academic year and the plan was to close it down altogether when the class of freshmen of 1947 graduated. I went to the Interim Committee for Polish Studies which was taking care of the stipends and I presented my case, explaining that my studies were interrupted in Beirut and I could not get admission to the PUC. I was told that, if I could get admission to an English college, I may be given a scholarship. It was not much: £18 to students in the country and £20 to married students and those in London.
My situation was almost desperate. It was already late summer and classes were to start soon. Most of the colleges were flooded with applications from British soldiers who were being discharged from the army. Also, studying at an English college was a frightening proposition on account of my poor knowledge of English. But I did not have any other choice. So, with the help of a friend, I composed a letter asking for admission to a college, and I sent it to 18 colleges and universities. Meanwhile, not having anything better to do, I enrolled for a course in drafting which was offered in the camp.
I found the addresses of Wladek and Tadek who had come to England with my regiment. Wladek's wife was a typical Scottish woman, probably older than him. I stayed for dinner. Wladek, as a result of his jumping accident when he was in the Polish Parachute Brigade, had part of his tongue cut off and sometimes it was difficult to understand him, especially when he was emotional. He had definitely changed since the last time that I had seen him. He was subdued and had lost his zest for life and ambition to do anything to improve his social and financial status. He was working in an ice cream factory doing a manual job. When I looked at him, I wanted to cry. Here was the man who had all that could be desired - intelligence, talent, position, and what had become of him!
My meeting with Tadek was very cordial. After all, it was with him that I spent most of the years before the war, so we had more in common. His marriage had fallen apart. It was one of so many tragedies that were a result of the war. Obviously, this was a terrible blow for him and, when I met him, he was very depressed.
Influenced by the subdued atmosphere in the camp, I did not hold out much hope for success with my studies. I had resigned myself to doing the drafting course, hoping that I would get a job as a draftsman and then be able to start my studies part-time. I would like to emphasize one thing: I was determined to go to university and get my education one way or another. That was my complete commitment and, at that time, that was the beacon that determined my actions. To my surprise, I received an admission to the Leicester College of Arts and Technology in Leicester. This was the eighth letter out of the 16 that I had sent to different colleges, and the only one with a positive response. I will never forget that morning, a couple of weeks later. I was at the drafting course when my friend came to the class and told me. Immediately I went to the Interim Committee for Education of Poles and asked for a scholarship. As soon as I had settled my affairs with the camp administration regarding my leaving, I was on the train to Leicester.
Leicester College of Arts and Technology was located in the old part of the city, a big red brick complex of buildings. It was famous for its textile department and there were students from all over the world studying there. In addition, it offered a diploma in the Higher National Certificate. It took four years of part-time study to get the Certificate and it was similar to a university degree in some respects, but the emphasis was on practical aspects of the profession rather than on the theory. It was highly respected in the professional community and there were many engineer certificate-holders, who attained high positions in their trade. It also offered courses and the laboratory work required for external studies at the University of London. I was registered as an external student of the University of London.
When I visited Tadek in London, we had many discussions about the choice of my study. I confided in him that chemistry was not exactly what I wanted to do and he highly recommended civil engineering. He painted me a rosy picture of the life of a surveyor or a civil engineer inspecting construction, designing buildings, bridges, etc. I decided to change the direction of my study to civil engineering.
My problems were complicated by my poor knowledge of English and by my very inadequate high school education. The entire time that I had spent in high school was about two years, compared to the six years that would be normal. There were entire subjects in mathematics, physics and chemistry that we had not even touched in the "school" that I attended. I realized that my difficulties would be enormous, but I was determined to go ahead.
Shortly after I started my classes at the college, I was visited by Tadek. From the way he looked at my lifestyle, it was obvious to me that he was envious. He told me that he would like to start some studying to get a certificate that would enable him to work in his profession. He had graduated from an underground Technical High School in civil engineering in Warsaw before his deportation to Germany. But, to be able to work, he needed certification from an English institution. I felt that I had abandoned my brother in need and that it would violate my moral principles if I did not stretch my helping hand to him. I told him that we could try to manage together on my scholarship. After a token hesitation, he agreed. Within two weeks he was in my room with all his worldly possessions.
Tadek's coming to Leicester opened a new chapter in my life. It became apparent that we could not live the way I was living previously, simply because my scholarship was not sufficient to cover the boarding fee for the two of us. We had to find some way to cut our expenses. Tadek's fees at the college were not very high, but we were counting the pennies. He established contact with the Professional Society of Civil Engineers and they sent him some recommendations regarding the courses he should take to prepare himself for their examinations.
At that time I was requested by the military to come to the camp to be discharged from the army. The British had created a Resettlement Corps for all the veterans coming from abroad, which was assisting in preparation for civilian life. There was a special unit in it for Polish soldiers. They were organizing courses in English, various technical fields like the one that I took in Sudbury, in accounting and other fields. These courses were provided in several camps throughout England. I was requested to come to one of these camps to be discharged. The discharge formalities were brief; I received civilian clothing (including a hat, but no shoes or overcoat), £28 cash ..... and they wished me good luck.
Tadek had a few pounds saved from his work and we put our finances together, and it was just enough to buy the bare necessities of daily life: two beds, two chairs, two plates, two spoons, one table, etc., and we rented an unfurnished room.
The first days at college were like a bucket of cold water. My high school education was so fragmentary that, to do it right, I would have to start from the beginning.
To be matriculated at the University of London and to be allowed to take the examinations, I had to take a Special Entrance Examination at the University. I don't know if this requirement was specifically for us Polish veterans or for all external students. Based on our Polish high school diplomas, we were exempted from all subjects except English. The exam was in two parts: written, where it was required to write an essay; and oral.
I realized that I desperately needed somebody who would help me to prepare myself for the Special Entrance Examination. In the local newspaper I found an advertisement for a tutor in English. I responded to the advertisement and made an appointment. The tutor turned out to be an elderly gentleman living with his daughter and her family, who wanted to occupy himself and at the same time make a few pounds on the side. We hit it off right away. I went to his place three times a week, straight from college.
It was a crazy time. Since all of the Polish armed forces were being discharged, they all were brought to England for that purpose. England at that time was practically invaded by the Poles. Whenever I went to London, I always met somebody that I knew from the past.
The Polish veterans were all trying to decide what to do with themselves, where to go and how to shape their future. It was perhaps the most difficult time for my compatriots. Imagine, for five years they had been fighting for their country, having only one purpose in mind - to bring back to their nation what the Germans and Russians had taken away: freedom.
The Special Entrance Examination was scheduled for March. The university exams were held at the beginning of July. In March 1948, I went to London for the Special Entrance Examination. We were given three subjects to choose from to write an essay. One of them was "City of My Childhood". I jumped on this one. I wrote about half of a page and I ran out of steam. I could not come up with one single line. In desperation, I looked up at the other subjects: there was another entitled "Fascination of the Difficulties". It was maybe 45 five minutes to the end of the three-hour exam. I started to write on that subject. I don't know what happened to me, but words, whole sentences were coming to my mind as inspiration.
Two weeks after that, I was called to London for an oral examination. As I mentioned before, this was usually just a formality. I knew that my spoken English was not very good at all. I was ushered into the examination room, and one of the three examiners asked me if I was in the army, and where did we fight. That was easy enough. But then he asked me what branch of service I was in. That was already beyond my vocabulary. I did not know what he was talking about. I said something stupid, I don't remember what. It must have been pretty stupid because they looked at each other and one said to the other two: "Obviously, he can write better than he can speak". Then he turned to me and said: "Your essay was pretty good and you showed a good command of English. We would like to recommend that you keep improving your English during study at the University. Congratulations on your examination". Needless to say, these words were music to my ears. I quickly thanked them and left the room.
At that time our parents, under the program of uniting military families, came from Lebanon to England. At first they were in a camp in Lincolnshire, where we visited them a couple of times. Later they were allowed to leave the camp and came to Leicester. They received a pension from the Assistance Board, equivalent to Welfare in the USA, which was very little but sufficient to cover the most necessary expenses of everyday living. They rented a room in the same house where I was with Tadek.
We realized that renting rooms was an expensive way of living. Father came up with the idea of buying a house large enough to rent out some rooms. There were many Polish ex-soldiers renting rooms in English homes. My father went to the Leicester unit of the PCA and put in an advertisement that he was looking for a partner to buy a house with. A couple of weeks later, Mr Kusztelan came to see my father about buying a house. With my approval, father designated Tadek to be the point of contact with Mr Kusztelan. They went to a real estate agency that found a large house and each party provided an equal amount of money and they bought the house. It was located at 46 St Peter Street. It was a large building with eight rooms and a kitchen.
In July, I went for the University examination for the first year, Intermediate. During the past months I had neglected college study, concentrating on English to pass the Special Entrance Exam. I went for the exam and I failed it badly.
The next year was perhaps the most difficult year of my studies in England. Since I had failed the examinations, I lost my scholarship. Thanks to my parents' investment in the house, we had some income from the boarders. Tadek found a part-time job as a surveyor's hand and he was giving mother some money for groceries and the rent. I would help her and father with cleaning the house.
I took some classes in the two subjects where I felt that I needed the most help. The remaining subjects I tried to study myself. By now I understood most of the subjects; it was a matter of learning them so that the ideas were crystallized in my mind. I put all my energy into studying.
The next Intermediate examination showed some improvement: I had two failures (E) and two bad failures (F). It was not much to brag about but it was better than before. I was not alone.
In July 1950, I tried again to pass the Intermediate. This time, I passed three subjects with a weakness in one. This was one of the happiest moments of my life. The subject that I had to correct was Applied Mathematics. I passed it in November and my scholarship was restored. Tadek, after taking some courses at the college and some correspondence courses provided by the Civil Engineers Association, passed the examination and became an Associate Member of the Civil Engineers' Association.
Iza and marriage
On 18 November 1951, there was a big rally of Polish veterans and civilians in Manchester. The occasion was the celebration of Independence Day, which was a holiday in pre-war Poland, commemorating the regaining of independence in 1918, after 123 years of partitioning between Germany, Austria and Russia. General Anders, commander of the 2nd Polish Corps in Italy, and the most of high-ranking officers were expected to come. For me this was a big thing; here I could relive the old days of my life in the Army and meet some of my friends. I arrived in Manchester on 17 November. Tadek met me at the railroad station.
That evening, since we did not have anything better to do, we decided to go to a dance at the Polish Combatants Association Club. I did not know at that time that it was one of the most significant days in my life. But I looked at the couples that were on the dance floor and noticed a young attractive brunette dancing with somebody. What attracted me most were her eyes. They were the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen. From the very moment that she looked at me with those big, beautiful eyes, I was under her spell. There was something that convinced me to ask her to dance. Our conversation was quite casual: about Manchester Polonia, I asked her if she often came to these dances, the usual things that are spoken while dancing with a stranger.
She told me that her parents applied for emigration to the USA under the bill for Polish veterans. Her stepfather was in the Polish Army and was entitled to go to America. They had all the paperwork completed, and they were only waiting for a visa, which was to come any time. We exchanged addresses and promised that we would be in contact in the future. Right then, I knew that she was the one that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Later, after we were married, Iza told me that right after that fateful evening, when she went home, she started writing her name as Izabela Lipinski just to see how it would look in the future.
I told my parents that I had met Iza and that I wanted to continue a serious relationship with her. Her forthcoming departure to the USA disturbed me a lot but I tried to push these thoughts aside, hoping that somehow we would find a way to be together. Iza sent me a card for Christmas together with a letter in which she informed me that the departure for the USA for her and her parents was set for 15 January 1951. She wrote also that she wanted to see me before her departure and invited me to Manchester for New Year's Day. That was a blow to me. I realized that her departure for America may mean an end to our relationship, and I may never see her again. On New Year's Eve, I arrived in Manchester and Iza met me at the railroad station. I asked her if she would be my wife and her eyes lit up and she quickly answered "yes". It was obvious that she had been waiting for my proposal.
On 15 January 1951, Iza left with her parents for America and I went back to my studies. We kept writing to each other often. I was writing twice a week and Iza reciprocated in the same way. Meanwhile, we were trying to find some way to reunite.
When I told my parents that I might emigrate to the USA, my mother practically had a heart attack. Besides, emigration to USA would probably involve waiting for about three to four years. After a lot of deliberating, Iza’s parents gave Iza their consent to go to England in pursuit of her happiness. In August 1952, Iza came to England. Her mother wrote a letter addressed to my parents, asking them to take care of her and asking to have the wedding as soon as possible.
After the first few weeks, Iza started to compare the standard of living in England and America and came to the conclusion that our life in England could not compare with that in the USA. I began to think seriously about emigration to the USA.
Iza went first in July 1953 and, as soon as she arrived in the USA, she requested a visa for me on the basis that she had a status of a permanent resident and I was her husband. Sometime in September, I was requested to go to the American consulate in Liverpool for a visa. I was told that I had obtained a visa and I could go to the States any time. I went to the travel office and I was told that the first available berth on a ship would be in three months time, in December.
Since the school year was over and I had time to spare, I started to look for a job and I found a job as a junior designer, in the British Reinforced Concrete Ltd., in Stafford.
The three months of waiting for a cabin on a ship finally came to an end and, on 16 December 1953, I was on my way to the USA. We had a fairly good passage over the Atlantic and on 21 December 1953, I arrived in the United States of America.
1 Romuald Lipinski intro
2 Invasion
3 Deportation
4 Siberia
5 Amnesty
6 Evacuation
7 Training
8-9 Battle of Monte Cassino
10 Action on the Adriatic Coast