Hugo Steinhaus was a Polish Jew who fought in the Polish Legions and became a mathematical genius. His ideas helped develop medicine e.g. establish paternity. It would not have happened if a Polish policeman had not helped him during the Second World War.
The future genius mathematician was born in Jasło (formerly Austria-Hungary) on January 14, 1887, into a Jewish family. After completing his primary education, he studied philosophy and mathematics in Lwów (today Lviv). Later he moved to Göttingen and Munich where he abandoned philosophy and devoted himself to applied mathematics. In 1911, he presented his doctorate in this science.
Steinhaus for Poland
A year after World War I broke out, in 1915 Steinhaus decided to join the Polish Legions – a military formation led by the Polish national hero, Józef Piłsudski. Poles did not have their own country then but formed Polish troops to win their independence. In addition to the struggle on the front, Steinhaus joined the Central Reconstruction of the Country in Krakow, contributing to the restitution of Poland in 1918.
Development of a scientific career
In 1917, Hugo Steinhaus habilitated at the University of Lwów, and after Poland regained independence, he became a professor at this university. At that time, Lwów was a part of the territory of the Second Polish Republic. His scientific career was developing, and he travelled around the world presenting the famous Polish school of Lwów mathematicians.
Unexpected rescue
When World War II broke out in 1939, Poland was torn into two parts by two totalitarian states: the Soviet Union and the Third German Reich. The Soviets took Lwów and left Steinhaus at the university. The situation changed when the Germans entered the city in 1941 and he had to hide with Polish friends. In the end, he was helped by Józef Laska a policeman from Polnische Polizei im Generalgouvernement supervised by Nazi Germans, commonly known as “the navy-blue police” for the color of its uniform. Some of the officers, however, collaborated with the Polish underground army, fighting against Germans. One of them was Józef Laska who provided Steinhaus with false documents by the name of Grzegorz Krochmalny. Then the professor was hidden and cared for by Marian Szafraniec – also associated with the Polish independence underground. They helped Steinhaus survive the war and teach others secretly.
Applied Mathematics in various areas
After the end of the war, Poland lost Lwów to the Soviet Union. Steinhaus moved to Wrocław and created a scientific community there. His work has made a significant contribution to statistics, biology and medicine, e.g. it helps in establishing paternity. The professor’s mathematical ideas were also used to study labor productivity, how to arrange oil wells and to build suspension bridges. Hugo Steinhaus died on February 25, 1972, in Wrocław.