Karel Sabina

Karel Sabina (pen names include Arian Želinský and Leo Blass), (28 December 1811 – 8 November 1877) was a Czech writer and journalist. He grew up in poverty as an extramarital child of a daughter of a sugar producing factory's director in the family of a bricklayer and a washerwoman. He claimed he was an illegitimate son of a Polish noble. He studied philosophy and law at a university, but did not graduate. In 1848 1848 he became one of the leade... more

Karel Sabina (pen names include Arian Želinský and Leo Blass), (28 December 1811 – 8 November 1877) was a Czech writer and journalist. He grew up in poverty as an extramarital child of a daughter of a sugar producing factory's director in the family of a bricklayer and a washerwoman. He claimed he was an illegitimate son of a Polish noble. He studied philosophy and law at a university, but did not graduate. In 1848 1848 he became one of the leaders of the Czech radical democrats, the founder of a secret radical political circle "Repeal" (whose name was inspired by Irish revolutionaries) , a member of the National Committee and the Czech congress. He wrote articles (several of which were censored) to many magazines during this period. In 1849 he was arrested for taking part in the "May Coup" (a plan to make an uprising, inspired by Bakunin, then present in Prague ) and in 1851 sentenced to death together with 24 other men; but these sentences were changed by the Emperor to 18 years in... less