The article claims that Lithuanian foreign minister Valionis was to give several items to the Greek foreign minister Papandreou regarding his family,the coat of arms of the Mineika family and documents from the Lithuanian State Archives detailing the life and times of the nobleman Zigmantas Mineika.
Zigmantas Gozdava Mineika was born of noble blood in 1840.
He is the great-grandfather of the current Greek foreign minister. Mineika, originally from the administrative area around the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, took part in the 1863 uprising by Poles and Lithuanians against the Tsarist occupation of their united country.
He was sentenced to twelve years' hard labor in Siberia, but managed to escape.
Zygmunt Mineyko is also my great-great grandfather and I can assure one and all that he never used the name "Zigmantas Gozdawa Mineika".
He was Zygmunt Gozdawa-Mineyko.
He was actually sentenced to death for his part in the 1863 uprising. However his mother and his relation by marriage (Russian General Todtleben) managed to get the sentence changed to 12 years hard labour. He escaped through Siberia, was exiled, passed Russian secrets directly to Napoleon III, ended up in the Ottoman Empire as a spy for the Greeks.
He helped the Greeks with the wars of 1896, 1897 and 1912 and helped them win the battle of Janina. He was almost captured and returned to Greece where the King decorated him and the Greek Parliament made him an honorary citizen. He was also the first Polish sports correspondent for the Olympic Games. He was a correspondent of "Dziennik Polski". He deposited his memoirs and articles in the Library of Jagielonian University. As if that wasn't enough he also uncovered the ancient temple of Dodona near Janina.
Even though he was a catholic he was also an active freemason (something I never understood).
He was originaly initiated in the Vox Ukrainia, belonging to the Grand Orient du Russie.
He later became a member of the Grand Orient de France, the Grand Orient d'Italie and of the Lodges Panhellenion and Pythagoras of the Grand Lodge of Greece - where he was extremely active. He also belonged to the Supreme Council of Greece of the Masonic Old and Accepted Scottish Rites.
Zygmunt Mineyko married one daughter to a Potocki, another to a Jablonowski and a third to George Papandreou (first P.M. of post-war Greece). Andreas Papandreou had some difficulties with his father and was much more close to his Mineyko mother.
He was very very fond of his Mineyko ancestry. Zygmunt Mineyko had little time for George Papandreou and I am told that he was rather rude and curt towards him on numerous occasions.
A genealogical descendancy chart showing descendants of Zygmunt Mineyko is available by clicking here: http://www.interlog.com/~mineykok/min6.html
My cousin, Krzystof Mineyko, has created a truly excellent web page on the Mineyko family. It is well worth a visit, there are also photos of Zygmunt: http://www.interlog.com/~mineykok/home.html
Rafal Heydel-Mankoo The Polish Aristocracy & Heydel-Mankoo's Almanach de Polska: http://www.geocities.com/polishnobles
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