Former Polish Consul General in Scotland

Born: January 30, 1965;

Died: March 18, 2018

DARIUSZ Adler, who has died suddenly aged 53, was for four years (2013-17) Poland's Consul General in Scotland, looking after the interests of the 100,000 Poles in the country as well as 35,000 in Northern Ireland which was part of his patch. He was assigned from Edinburgh to Belfast last November to open a separate new Polish Consulate General - the first consulate of a European country in Northern Ireland - and it was there that he died, leaving behind a wife and two children.

Although based in Edinburgh for those four years, where his office had a fine view of Arthur's Seat, he was also closely involved with the Polish community in Glasgow, notably through the Polish Social & Educational Society in the city and its social centre, the Sikorski Polish Memorial House on Parkgrove Terrace, Kelvinhaugh. In November 2014, he was present at the 60th anniversary of the society and the Memorial House and he dedicated a memorial wall at the front of the house in October 2016. Other memorial plaques commemorate the Polish men and women who gave their lives for Europe's freedom during the Second World War.

In Glasgow, Mr Adler cooperated closely with Dr Izabela Czekaj of the Polish Social & Education Society. He was also key to a campaign to have a memorial sculpture in Edinburgh to recognize Polish war hero General Stanislaw Maczek, nicknamed Baca (the Shepherd) by his troops. After the war, Gen. Maczek was unable to return to his by-then communist homeland so he settled in Edinburgh - almost unbelievably as a barman in the Learmonth Hotel, where former soldiers would salute him while ordering their drinks. Like him, many of them had been billeted in Scotland during the war. The Maczek sculpture is due to be unveiled in November in the quadrangle of the Edinburgh City Chambers.

Mr Adler also helped tell Scots the story of "Private" Wojtek, the legendary "soldier bear" (yes, a real bear, a Syrian brown one) who was not only the mascot and lucky charm of Polish soldiers during the final battle for Monte Cassino but helped them carry crates of heavy artillery shells up that mountain amid horrific Nazi defensive fire. Wojtek was retired with the official rank of "Corporal" in the Polish army and lived out his days in Edinburgh zoo. Mr Adler inaugurated a statue to the bear in Princes Gardens, Edinburgh, in 2015.

Like Gen. Maczek and Corporal Wojtek, many Poles came to Scotland after the war, fearing their fate under the new communist regime in their homeland. A new influx came after 2004 when Poland became a member of the European Union and its people were free to enter the UK. Many of those, however, have since returned to Poland. "Poles come here to work," Mr Adler once told an interviewer. “We are absolutely not interested in taking benefits. When I read that Poles come here for benefits, I find it almost funny. The fact that we are spread across Scotland shows that we are only interested in finding a job. We go where there is work.” Mr Adler was not averse to pointing out that Bonnie Prince Charlie's mother was Polish.

Dariusz Adler was born in Warsaw on January 30, 1965, when Poland was a member of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact, and he was encouraged, indeed pressed to speak Russian and avoid English. As a student, he lived through

some of Poland's most turbulent times since the war, including the Solidarity movement led by Lech Walesa which helped lead to free elections and a restoration of democracy. “It was an amazing time for the people of Poland," he

recalled, "and for students who wanted change. We grew up with Solidarity.”

In 1994, he obtained a master’s degree in international relations from the University of Warsaw and two years later completed a postgraduate diploma in international trade from the Warsaw School of Economics.

In 1996, he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a young diplomat, working on Poland's changing relationship with NATO. He was then posted to the Polish Consulate in Chicago where he impressed senior colleagues with his

organisational skills and smooth relations with the Americans he dealt with. He stayed there for five years with his wife and two young children.

His success in Chicago led to a 2006 posting to London as head of consular services at the Polish Consulate General, a key position given the number of Poles living in, working or visiting the city. In 2009, he was promoted

to head of the consular division at the Polish embassy in the UK capital.

In 2013, Mr Adler was appointed Consul General of the Republic of Poland in Edinburgh, responsible for supporting his countrymen, and furthering Polish culture, not only in Scotland but also in Northern Ireland, helping build up Polish grassroots organisations. He said he was shocked by the UK's decision to leave the European Union and was concerned about the future of Poles when the Brexit dust settles but still felt traditional Scots-Polish friendship would prevail. He himself had successfully campaigned to get Scots of Polish origin more involved in voting at all levels. He was also a great supporter of the Harcerze, Polish boy and girl scout troupes in Scotland.

His transfer to the new Consulate General in Belfast last November was partly motivated by the implications of Brexit for Poles in Northern Ireland and the sill-unclear future of the Irish border.

Dr Czekaj of the Polish Social & Education Society told The Herald that Mr Adler was always open in any discussions and supportive in any difficult situation, ready to help and resolve problems, and very active in promoting Polish values and traditions. Friends said Mr Adler loved his family and their yellow labrador Bruno.

Before he left Edinburgh, Mr Adler said he had come to love Scotland and looked forward to returning as often as possible. Tragically, he died before he could do so. He is survived by his wife Krystyna Nietupska-Adler, a

medical doctor, son Maciej, a graduate doctor, daughter Marta, a medical student, and sister Katarzyna. His wife had hoped to return to Scotland to practise medicine.

PHIL DAVISON