Maria Helena Kaczyńska (Polish pronunciation: [ˈmarja kaˈt͡ʂɨj̃ska]; née Mackiewicz [mat͡sˈkʲɛvit͡ʂ]; 21 August 1942[a] – 10 April 2010) was the First Lady of Poland from 2005 to 2010 as the wife of President Lech Kaczyński.

[5] Her father fought in the Vilnius Armia Krajowa (Home Army), while an uncle fought in the Polish II Corps of Gen. Władysław Anders at the Battle of Monte Cassino; another uncle was murdered by the NKVD (Soviet secret police)[6] at Katyń.

[5] In addition to her native Polish, Maria Kaczyńska spoke four languages such as English, French and some Spanish and Russian.

[7] The Kaczyńskis were traveling with several senior government figures on a trip to mark the 70-year anniversary of the World War II Katyn Massacre, where thousands of Polish military officers were executed by the NKVD.

[9] Her diary was found by her daughter after her death, sparking an interest among many publishers who desired to buy it and release it.