{{one source|date=July 2022}}
{{Infobox person | name = Paval Navara | native_name = Павал Навара | native_name_lang = be | birth_date = {{Birth date|1927|09|17}}. | birth_place = Kupisk village, Second Polish Republic (now Belarus) | death_date = {{Death date and age|1983|05|24|1927|09|17}} | death_place = London, UK | resting_place = St Pancras and Islington Cemetery | alma_mater = University of London | known_for = Co-founder of the Anglo-Belarusian Society }}
'''Paval Navara''' ({{langx|be|Павал Навара}}; 17 September 1927 – 24 May 1983), also romanised as '''''Paul Navara''''', was a Belarusian émigré public figure and co-founder of the Anglo-Belarusian Society.<ref name=":0">Гардзіенка, Наталля (2010). ''[https://kamunikat.org/?pubid=14870&fbclid=IwAR1ullj5QBA2ZljClB-uCiqtMIB6mW3fT1i93AGY_pLEH0MQ0cxGh4ONyus Беларусы ў Вялікабрытаніі]'' [''Belarusians in Great Britain, by Natalla Hardzijenka'']. Minsk: Згуртаванне беларусаў свету Бацькаўшчына. p. 468. {{ISBN|978-985-6887-63-8}}.</ref>
== Early years == Paval Navara was born on 17 September 1927 in Western Belarus, then part of the Second Polish Republic. After secondary school he studied at a teachers college in Navahrudak.
In 1944 at the age of 16, Navara was mobilized into the Nazi army (which occupied Navahrudak at the time) and sent to France where he surrendered to the Allies. Navara joined the Polish II Corps and, after some military training, fought for the Allies in Northern Italy.<ref name=":1">Гардзіенка, Наталля (2010). ''[https://kamunikat.org/usie_knihi.html?pubid=14870&lang=EN Беларусы ў Вялікабрытаніі]'' [''Belarusians in Great Britain, by Natalla Hardzijenka'']. Minsk: Згуртаванне беларусаў свету Бацькаўшчына. p. 551-552. {{ISBN|978-985-6887-63-8}}.</ref>
== Life in Britain == After demobilisation in 1946, Navara settled in the UK and became one of the founders and council members of the Association of Belarusians in Great Britain.<ref name=":1" />
In 1952, he earned a degree in chemistry from the University of London and embarked on a science career.
in 1954, together with Auberon Herbert, he founded the Anglo-Belarusian Society,<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Šaucoū |first1=Paval |title=Centenary of Auberon Herbert (1922–1974), the Man Who Started British-Belarusian Collaboration |journal=The Journal of Belarusian Studies |date=2022 |volume=12 |page=95 |url=https://brill.com/downloadpdf/journals/bela/12/1-2/article-p95_6.pdf |access-date=28 April 2023}}</ref> and in 1969 Navara, Herbert and Ceslaus Sipovich organised a successful fundraising campaign for the Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library and Museum, which allowed the acquisition of a building in North London to house the collection.<ref>Гардзіенка, Наталля (2010). ''[https://kamunikat.org/usie_knihi.html?pubid=14870&lang=EN Беларусы ў Вялікабрытаніі]'' [''Belarusians in Great Britain, by Natalla Hardzijenka'']. Minsk: Згуртаванне беларусаў свету Бацькаўшчына. p. 427. {{ISBN|978-985-6887-63-8}}.</ref><ref>Nadson, Alexander (2007). ''[http://online.skaryna.org.uk/items/show/61 Ceslaus Sipovich : the first Belarusian Catholic Bishop in the 20th century (1914-1981)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210511175639/http://online.skaryna.org.uk/items/show/61 |date=2021-05-11 }}''. Minsk: Technalohija. {{ISBN|978-985-458-146-0}}. p.158</ref>
== Death == Navara died in 1983 at the age of 55. He is buried in St Pancras and Islington Cemetery alongside a number of other notable members of the Belarusian British community.<ref name=":1" />
== References == <references />
{{DEFAULTSORT:Navara, Paval}} Category:1927 births Category:1983 deaths Category:People from Nowogródek Voivodeship (1919–1939) Category:Belarusian emigrants to England Category:Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Category:Burials at St Pancras and Islington Cemetery