Wojciech Męciński

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Wojciech Męciński, nicknamed Alberto Polacco (born 1598 in Osmolice – died 23 March 1643 in Nagasaki) was a Polish Catholic Jesuit missionary from Kraków, widely believed to be the first Pole to visit south-eastern Asia and Japan.

Life and ministry

In 17th century, he visited Vietnam in a tour through Asia, and had documented about Vietnam as the first Polish official record of the country.[1]

It is believed that he was the first documented case of a Pole setting foot into the Philippines.[2] In 1642, Męciński arrived in Manila from Vietnam along with a large group of fellow Jesuits, where they were greeted by Governor-General Sebastián Hurtado de Corcuera. Męciński stayed in Manila for a few months before he was deployed on his second visit to Japan.[2]

After arriving in Japan in 1642, being the first Pole to do so, upon his second visit he was quickly caught, tortured and martyred.[3]

References

  1. 1."Misje Jezuici: Wojciech Męciński". 2012.
  2. 2.[2.2]Kaluszki, Marian. "Śladami Polaków po świecie: Polacy na Filipinach" (PDF) (in Polish). Przegląd Australijski. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 18, 2020. Retrieved September 24, 2013.
  3. 3.Łukasz Zalesiński (2 November 2023), "Pierwszy Polak w Japonii. Dla Europejczyka podróż tam była prawie jak wyrok śmierci", onet.pl (in Polish), Onet Podróże