In keeping with the saying "you praise others, you do not know your own", we present a profile of the engineer Michał Doliwo-Dobrowolski, whose breakthrough inventions in the field of electrical engineering astonished Thomas Edison himself.

Pole or Russian - different narratives of origin

Although more than a century has passed since Michal Doliwo-Dobrowolski's death, his figure still arouses some controversy. On the Internet, on Polish websites he functions as a 'Pole of Russian origin', on Russian websites as a 'Russian of Polish origin'. Born of a Russian mother, Olga Yevreinov, and a Polish father, Józef Doliwo-Dobrowolski, the future engineer and inventor, Michal Doliwo-Dobrowolski spent his childhood and youth in the Russian Empire. This is probably why the narrative is so different.

Apart from the fact of his noble, Polish descent by marriage, there is another significant and pregnant extract from his curriculum vitae. He was born in 1862 in Gatczyn near St Petersburg, where his father was director of the Institute for Orphans. This was no ordinary orphanage, but a place for the children of well-to-do or throne-serving parents. Unfortunately, what happened in Gatchin, according to the recollections of former pupils, including the eminent chess player Mikhail Chigorin, verged on horror. Children were beaten, intimidated and starved for years. Our protagonist's father also had an infamous part in this. One day, a mutiny broke out in the institution and the young residents severely beat up Jozef Doliwo-Dobrowolski.

Odessa and Riga - the next stages of education

After this event, the director and his family left Gatczyna forever. As a result, his son graduated from the real secondary school in Odessa. Then, in 1878, he entered the Faculty of Chemistry of Riga Polytechnic, the leading technical university of the Russian empire. The language of instruction at this private university was German, and Poles were one of the most numerous nationalities among the students (the Polytechnic was even known under the informal name Polentechnikum ). It is difficult to say to what extent a young student with a dual national identity, which was not unusual at the time, became involved in independence or radical student groups in Riga. What is certain, however, is that he must have had some, if only symbolic, involvement in them, as in June 1881, perhaps as part of the repression following the successful assassination attempt on Tsar Alexander II, he was disciplinary expelled from the university with a so-called 'wolf ticket' preventing him from studying in Russia.

Ingenious innovator and inventor

The Doliwo-Dobrowolski family could afford to send their son, who had been expelled from Russian universities, to Germany, where he took up studies at the Darmstadt University of Technology. This university, one of the oldest and leading European polytechnics, enjoyed a well-deserved reputation, and foreigners, among them Poles - subjects of the Russian tsars - made up a significant proportion of the students. Paradoxically, then, what was supposed to be a blot on Michał Doliwo-Dobrowolski's CV unexpectedly became a winning lottery ticket. There were more such fortunate coincidences in the inventor's life.

The Technical University of Darmstadt was a thriving scientific centre where, thanks to Erasmus Kittler (1852-1929), pioneering experiments in electrical engineering were launched. In 1884, Doliwo-Dobrowolski graduated from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at Darmstadt (incidentally the first in the world).

The innovative technologies of the time completely absorbed the student and young assistant. He had his own publications in the field of electrical engineering, which in the eyes of his contemporaries appeared to be innovative, and even today are often placed alongside the achievements of the genius Nikola Tesla.

Doliwo-Dobrowolski's inventions

In addition to theoretical solutions, Doliwo-Dobrowolski was also the author of practical applications. His inventions have gone down in history, such as the three-phase alternating current generator (previously only two phases were used), the effectiveness of which was doubted by Thomas Edison himself (!), or the induction motor with squirrel-cage rotor. To the layman, these names probably do not mean much, but it is important to realise that the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries was a time of increased urban electrification and the consequent incomparable growth in demand for energy, including energy transmitted over long distances. These were therefore such important achievements that international delegations came to visit Michał Doliwo-Dobrowolski to see for themselves the results of his research.

The scientist's later professional life took place mainly in Western Europe - in Germany, where he worked for the AEG concern (as technical director of the company's Berlin branch), in Switzerland and, on rare occasions, in Russia. He also used his expertise on the Polish market in Silesia, Zabrze and Chorzów in the design of three-phase power plants. There may have been more such realisations, but probably all the documentation is hidden in German and Russian archives.

Professional success and a modest family life

Going to study in Germany, after being expelled from the Riga Polytechnic, was a symbolic farewell to Russia for the young Michal Doliwo-Dobrowolski. His subsequent fate was mainly linked to Germany and Switzerland. It is not entirely clear whether, when applying for Swiss citizenship in 1905, he renounced his Russian serfdom; authors of Russian studies claim that he did not. However, it can be assumed that on this occasion he got rid of his first passport.

Ultimately, the most important city in Doliwo-Dobrowolski's life turned out to be Darmstadt. Here he lived with his second wife, the Dutchwoman Hedwiga Pallatschek. Paradoxically, despite his professional success (managing a large factory) and international recognition, the inventor's family lived a surprisingly modest life, and he himself had to put in a lot of effort to support it. Overwork, stress and innate health problems were the cause of his rapidly deteriorating health. In the autumn of 1919, he was taken to a clinic in Heidelberg, where one of his sons was working. Unfortunately, Michał Doliwo-Dobrowolski died on 15 November that year.

Doliwo-Dobrowolski tombstone

The outstanding inventor of Polish origin was buried in the Forest Cemetery (Waldfriedhof) in Darmstadt. This necropolis was established in 1914. It occupies an area of 33 hectares, covered with carefully selected monumental trees, and has a roughly circular shape. The entrance part is dominated by a semicircular colonnade (concealing the columbaria) with an ornamental portico, flanked by two pavilions topped with domes.

The tomb of Michał Doliwo-Dobrowolski is included among the "graves of honour", burials of people important to the city. Today, information about the scientist resting there can be found in leaflets and guides to the historic necropolis. The tombstone of Doliwo-Dobrowolski and his wife Hedwiga itself consists of a cuboidal plinth (closed with moulding), made of light-coloured stone. In its central part, a simple inscription is engraved, with the scientist's name and surname written as "Michael Dolivo-Dobrowolsky". On the pedestal is a large urn in the antique style, topped by a flame, one might say - a sheaf of electric sparks.

The figure and achievements of Michał Doliwo-Dobrowolski still need to be popularised. Although ten years ago the 100th anniversary of the Polish inventor's birth was celebrated, the celebrations were limited mainly to electrotechnical circles. So maybe now, when we are still hearing about possible problems with electricity supply, Doliwo-Dobrowolski's innovative ideas will find suitable continuators.