LELEWEL, lel'ev-el, Joachim, Polish his torian, geographer and numismatist : b. War saw, 22 March 1786; d. Paris, 29 May 1861. His family was of Prussian origin, but his father was naturalized as a Polish citizen. He was educated at Vilna, taught at Krzemieniec, Volkynia, and in 1814 became lecturer in his tory at Vilna. In 1818-21 he was lecturer and librarian at the University of Warsaw, re turning then to his old position at Vilna. He was highly popular among the students and so gained the disfavor of the Russian governor, Novosiltsev, who in 1824 deprived him of his professorship. He removed to Warsaw, was elected to the Diet in 1829 and was connected with the revolutionary movement there, his activities making him so obnoxious to the government that he was forced to disguise himself to make his escape. He arrived in Paris in 1831, but was suspected by the Russian Ambassador of complicity in Polish plots and the French government, upon request, ban ished him in 1833. He then went to Brussels
where he engaged in literary work, returning to Paris a few days before his death. His work evidences wide learning and careful re search; and his maps, which he personally en graved in order to assure the preservation of their remarkable accuracy, are also of im portance. Author of 'Bibliograficznych Ksiag dwoge,' A Couple of Books on Bibliography (2 vols., 1823-26) ; 'La Numismatique du moyen age' (2 vols., 1835) ; 'Etudes Numisma tiques' (1840) ; 'La Geographic du moyen age' (with an atlas of 50 plates; 5 vols., 1852-57); 'La Pologne au moyen age' (3 vols., 1846-51) ; 'Polska,' an historical survey of Polish affairs (20 vols., 1853-76), etc.