Rozalia Saulson – Author of the First Guidebook to the Sudetes in Polish

Did you know that the first guidebook to the Sudetes in Polish was written in 1850? Even more remarkable, it was authored by a woman—a Polish Jew and an ardent patriot.
Dom Marysieńka w Cieplicach

“Marysieńka” at Plac Piastowski 33  in Cieplice Śląskie-Zdrój, where Rozalia Saulson wrote the guidebook / Photo by Marta Maćkowiak

Rozalia Saulson née Feliks

Rozalia Saulson, the subject of today’s exploration, was born in 1807 in Łask as the daughter of the physician Abraham Juda Feliks and Fajga Filipina née Enoch, the daughter of a physician from Wieruszów. Rozalia had a sister named Hanna, and the family lived on the market square in Łask at house number 60.

Rozalia married twice. On November 1, 1826, in Łask, she married Jakub Juliusz Pauli, a doctor from Kępno, with whom she divorced after two years. Her second husband was Mikołaj Saulson, a merchant from Warsaw. There, Rozalia resided, charitably educated Jewish children, and flourished in the field of writing, especially in Polish, which she considered her native language.

Sojourn in Cieplice (Warmbrunn)

In 1849, likely for health reasons, Rozalia came to Warmbrunn, today’s Cieplice Śląskie-Zdrój, where she spent three months at the Verein guesthouse – today’s “Marysieńka” at Piastowski Square 33. During this stay, she wrote the aforementioned guidebook „Warmbrunn i okolice jego w 38 obrazach zebranych w 12 wycieczkach przez Pielgrzymkę w Sudetach” (Warmbrunn and its surroundings in 38 pictures gathered in 12 excursions during a Pilgrimage in the Sudetes).

The first page of Rozalia Saulson’s guidebook “Warmbrunn and its surroundings in 38 pictures gathered in 12 excursions during a Pilgrimage in the Sudetes” / Source: Polona.pl

Rozalia’s husband, Mikołaj (Mordechaj) Saulson, son of Jehuda Lejba, died in Warsaw on June 10, 1858, and was buried in the Jewish cemetery on Okopowa Street in Warsaw.

A year later, there is a mention in Kurjer Warszawski about Mikołaj’s death, with information that the family lived on Leszno Street. However, according to the 1839 tariff, Mikołaj Saulsohn lived at ul. Franciszkańska 12 (mortgage number 1811).

Nagrobek Mikołaja Saulsona w Warszawie

Tombstone of Mikołaj Saulson at the Jewish cemetery in Warsaw / source: Fundacja Dokumentacji Cmentarzy Żydowskich w Polsce (Foundation for Documentation of Jewish Cemeteries in Poland)

Kurjer Warszawski 11.06.1859 

Supposedly due to her pro-Polish activities, Rozalia had to leave Warsaw and moved to Krakow, where she lived with her sister Anna Kirszbaum at Plac Szczepański 2.
 
Saulson passed away on December 4, 1896, at the age of 89, and was likely buried in the Jewish cemetery on Miodowa Street. Unfortunately, her tombstone did not survive.
 
On the building of “Marysieńka,” there is now a plaque commemorating the creation of the guidebook, but there is not a single word about the author of the work. Perhaps it could be changed? I believe Rozalia deserves recognition.
Tablica upamiętniająca powstanie przewodnika

Plaque commemorating the creation of the guidebook on the “Marysieńka” building in Cieplice Śląskie-Zdrój / Photo by Marta Maćkowiak

Sources:

  • Rybińska Agata, Rozalia Saulsonowa – pomiędzy kulturą żydowską, niemiecką i polską (Rozalia Saulson – Between Jewish, German, and Polish Culture)
  • Słownik Biograficzny Ziemi Jeleniogórskiej (Biographical Dictionary of the Jelenia Góra Region)

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