Myfamilyhistory2

Such a travel by coach with horses was not speedy at all, it lasted at least many days or even weeks and you must rest from time to time, horses need to be changed and passengers need to get out and walk or stay over night somewhere in an inn.

One day, when they went nearby the Loire river, their equipage came on the road which crossed a forest. The countess watched the road and suddenly she had noticed a woman sitting under the tree, very tired, maybe sleeping. She was dressed not simple like a country girl but like a noble lady, even though her clothes and she herself was very dirty and torn. The countess was both mercy as curious woman and she made the driver to stop the carriage. She had got out of carriage and went there to see the woman.

Eventually, the countess was able to know that it was really a noble lady whose name was Celestine de Feydos and who just escaped, some miles maybe, from her castle because of they were attacked, robbed and threatened by unknown marauders. Her husband who was Knight of Malta had been killed. She was chased by robbers too, but she succeeded to mislead them. She sow the castle get fire too and she happened at last to find a road where she hopped to get help. Unfortunately, it was not much traffic on the roads those times. The poor lady had been sitting and waiting some days and nights without food, water and tidy clothes, so she almost lost hope and only prayed about an easy death. But she was not really ready to die - she was pregnant and she wanted to save her child for any price. That was what kept her alive.

But Celestine was really not lucky woman. Her husband family was happy to get rid of her and to grape all what was to get after her killed husband and they did not care at all what happened to Celestine or about her child future. She wrote many letters almost without answer. Katarzyna became fond of Celestine and she proposed to take her with her boy to Poland. Celestine had not other choice but to go with Katarzyna. She was not rich any more.

Only valuable thing she had it was a ring with her husband family weapon. She was compelled to stay in Poland and she was a resident at the Czetwertynski family. After Katarzyna had got married, she wanted to take Celestine with her to her husband Dembinski palace in another part of Poland. But before that the Tartars had raided on Czetwertynski palace and Celestine with others were hidden a long time in the wood. It was too much for a fragile French woman - Celestine had caught a cold, maybe pneumonia - and she died. Before her death Katarzyna and her husband had promised to take care of Celestine´s boy and when Tomek (from Tomasz, what was his Polish name), grown up, he had got a piece of land and the Feydos family became practically farmers. They changed their name to be easer for Polish people; first it became Fydos and eventually - Fidos.

Dembinski family promised also to Celestine that her son and his children and grandchildren should always marry somebody from a noble family and that they should always try to get some education and take care of the ring. But in Poland was not so easy to live a stabile life in peace. Somewhere and somehow the ring was hidden from robbers to a secret hiding-place in the wall of the Dembinski´s palace, together with some letters from France, probably from Celestine's sister. My grandfather has found them when restored the palace but he had no idea that it was his forefathers´. Neither the new palace owners.

Tomasz´ grandchildren were more and more poor because of partition of his ground into smaller and smaller pieces, accord to Polish customs about legacy. My great grandfather was practically a peasant who owned ca one hectare, but he was very capable in almost everything. My forefathers went always to school, were not analphabets as the most of peasants and they were bright. My father was born in the country as well but he was eventually highly educated, he was among others also the master of science in law. All brothers of him had got some kind of education as well. But a family tradition remained - nobody was rich..

Celestine asked the Polish countess for help to get to Paris, where her sister lived and run a sorts off dressmaking workshop. Poor woman hopped to get help from her sister to delivery her child and to contact her husbands family to get means of living.

The countess was touched by Celestine´s fate and the dressmaking workshop was just she needed. She took then the French woman as a company to Paris. She thought she could maybe order all clothes at Celestine sister´s workshop. Besides, Celestine had really good manners and they could practice their French as well.