DOCSLIB.ORG

Five Biographical Profiles

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Five Biographical Profiles 1 Five Biographical Profiles The following pages offer a brief account of the key episodes in my historians’ lives and of the milestones in their intellectual output. A pragmatic, rather than analytical, approach is adopted and the information presented here follows the dictates of my comparative perspective, as well as my objective of providing a backdrop to the principal concerns of the book. Thus, whilst these mini-biographies seek to be as informative as possible, they necessarily involve an element of selectivity and are by no means exhaustive. A more comprehensive picture can be constructed through recourse to the secondary literature listed in the Bibliography. LELEWEL Born in 1786 into a family with a heterogeneous ethnic background, Lelewel liked to claim that he did not possess a drop of Polish blood: his father’s ancestors were Huguenots who settled in War- saw in the early eighteenth century, whilst his mother descended from a Polish-Ruthenian land-owning family.¹ Lelewel’s father, an alumnus of Gottingen¨ University, rose to prominence in public life and participated in the reform programme introduced by the court of King Stanisław August. He sent the eldest of his nine children, Joachim, to be educated in the leading Polish educational institution of the age, the Collegium Nobilium Scholarum Piarum. Opened in 1740 by the eminent Piarist reform pedagogue Stanisław Konarski, this was a distinguished boarding ¹ My account of Lelewel’s life draws heavily on Joan Skurnewicz’s monograph, Romantic Nationalism and Liberalism: Joachim Lelewel and the Polish National Idea (New York, 1981). I also relied on Stefan Kieniewicz’s book, Joachim Lelewel (Warsaw, 1990) and on the chapter ‘Joachim Lelewel’ by John D. Stanley in Peter Brock, John D. Stanley and Piotr J. Wrobel (eds.), Nation and History: Polish Historians from the Enlightenment to the Second World War (Toronto, Buffalo and London, 2006), 52–84. 20 Five Biographical Profiles school where pupils were instructed in the spirit of the Enlightenment.² Between 1804 and 1808 Lelewel studied at the University of Vilna. This institution, which evolved out of a Jesuit Academy in 1801 as part of Tsar Alexander I’s efforts to modernize his Empire, will feature extensively in the book. At Vilna Lelewel read sciences, as well as ancient and modern languages, including Sanskrit and Arabic. He attended classes in drawing and engraving, and subsequently several high-quality hand-drawn maps testified to his artistic talent. He was also an active member of secret student societies, whose intention was to cultivate the traditions of the fatherland. Lelewel’s early scholarly attempts revealed a passion for history. His student essay, Rzut oka na dawno´s´c litewskich narod´ow i zwiazki¸ ich z Herulami (An Overview of the Antiquity of the Lithuanian Peoples and Their Relations with the Heruli), addressed the origins of the Lithuanians. Meanwhile, Edda, cyzli ksiega¸ religii dawnych Skandynawii mieszka´¸ nc´ow (Edda, or the Book of Religion of the Ancient Inhabitants of Scandinavia, 1807), a translation of Paul Mallet’s famous book on the Edda, constituted his first (anonymous) publication. After graduation Lelewel taught for two years at a lyceum in Krzemie- niec (near the Ukrainian border) and in 1811 he returned to Warsaw, where he regularly attended the meetings of the foremost learned so- ciety of the age, Towarzystwo Przyjacioł´ Nauk (Society of the Friends of Learning). In 1815 Jan Sniadecki,´ the rector of the University of Vilna, invited him to lecture in general history, an appointment which inaugurated the study of history as an independent discipline. Lelewel’s intellectual preoccupations at this time concerned the theory of history, as well as the history of ancient civilizations and the early Slavs. His interest in theoretical issues yielded a (single-volume) collection of es- says, Historyka, tudziezołatwymipo˙ zytecznym˙ nauczaniu historii (The Theory of History: On the Easy and Useful Teaching of History, 1815). An ability to condense and conceptualize intricate problems rendered his book an unparalleled pioneering work in contemporary East-Central Europe. Publications on the history of ancient India, Greece and Rome followed, drawing primarily on his university lectures. In 1818 Lelewel’s career resumed at the newly established University of Warsaw, where he was appointed Professor of Bibliography and Cura- tor of the University Library. In accordance with his new responsibilities, he developed familiarity with the field of bibliography and produced ² S. Kot, Five Centuries of Polish Learning (Oxford, 1914), 13. Five Biographical Profiles 21 the first major history of libraries and library science in the Polish language, Bibliograficznych ksiag¸ dwoje (Two Books on Bibliography, 1823 and 1826). He also delivered lectures on the comparative history of Poland and Spain, which laid the foundation for his essay Historyczna paralela Hiszpanii z Polska,¸ w XVI, XVII, XVIII wieku (A Historical Parallel of Spain and Poland in the Sixteenth, Seventeenth and Eigh- teenth Centuries). The year 1821 saw him return to Vilna, serving as a very popular Professor of General History for three years. The essay entitled O Historii jej rozgałe´zieniu¸ i naukach zwiazek¸ z niamaj¸ ac¸ (On History, Its Branches and Related Disciplines, 1826), completed the young scholar’s major contribution to the theory and methodology of history. In the early 1820s, largely due to publications in German and Russian, Lelewel’s reputation gradually extended beyond the confines of his homeland and a critical evaluation of the prominent Russian historian, Nikolai Karamzin’s Istorija gosudarstva rossijskago (History of the Russian State), later published in Polish as Por´ownanie Karamzina z Naruszewiczem (Comparison of Karamzin with Naruszewicz) won the praise of Russian liberal scholars. This productive era ended abruptly in 1824 when Lelewel, following a false allegation by the tsarist authorities that he had participated in an anti-Russian conspiracy, was expelled from the university and ordered to return to Warsaw. In the absence of secure employment, Lelewel immersed himself in research in Warsaw, focusing increasingly on national history, which also presented an important issue on the agenda of the Towarzystwo Przyjacioł´ Nauk. He completed his first attempt in this field, the rudimentary Historia Polski azdoko´˙ nca panowania Stefana Batorego (The History of Poland to the End of the Reign of Stefan Bathory) in 1813, but it was published only after his death in 1863. Another study, Panowanie Stanisława Augusta (The Reign of Stanisław August, 1818) presented a generally favourable assessment of the legacy of the Polish king (who ruled between 1764 and 1795), although it also contained some criticism. In its original form, this essay was interwoven with autobiographical elements which made it seem more like a personal recollection than a historical account. Initially banned by the censor, a subsequent and significantly improved version was published in 1831, and later in a further eight editions, including those in German and French. In 1828 my protagonist produced a small historical sketch, Historia: Obraz dziej´ow polskich (History: An Image of Polish History), which set out the main tenets of his interpretation of Polish history. This was superseded by the more complete Dzieje Polski potocznym 22 Five Biographical Profiles sposobem opowiedziane (A History of Poland Related in a Colloquial Manner, 1828), a popular history for children, which sought to address aspects of political, as well as of social and cultural, history. Nine editions of this book had appeared by 1859, and it also served as a school textbook, thereby exerting considerable influence on several generations. Its German version, Geschichte Polens, sought to popularize Polish history among the foreign public. By the 1820s Lelewel had acquired a reputation as a proponent of liberal ideas and became actively involved in politics, culminating in his election as representative to the Sejm (Diet). In response to Tsar Nicholas I’s violation of the constitutional guar- antees of the Congress Kingdom, and prompted by the eruption of the July Revolution in France and the Belgian revolt, an insurrection broke out in Warsaw in November 1830. Lelewel’s role in the events assumed great significance; for a short time he acted as a member of the provisional government led by Prince Adam Czartoryski, a position which enabled him to abolish censorship. He later briefly served as Min- ister of Education in another revolutionary government. As president of the revolutionary Towarzystwo Patrioticzne (Patriotic Society), Lelewel authored numerous pamphlets and manifestos promoting the Polish cause abroad. During the uprising he composed a comparative study of the three Polish constitutions of 1791, 1807 and 1815: Trzy konstytucje polskie (Three Polish Constitutions), which sought to offer pragmatic guidance on how to establish an effective government. Translated into French, and later into other languages, it introduced the Polish question onto the agenda of liberals in Western Europe. After the fall of the Congress Kingdom following the military capit- ulation of the Poles, Lelewel shared the fate of several thousand emigr´ es´ who sought asylum in the liberal capitals of Europe and continued their fight for the restoration of the Polish state from abroad. He was later sentenced to be hanged in absentia in his homeland. His first destination was Paris, where he received
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Vincas Kudirka, Martynas Jankus, Jonas Šliūpas and the Making of Modern Lithuania Charles C
    Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University History Dissertations Department of History Summer 2013 Lithuanians in the Shadow of Three Eagles: Vincas Kudirka, Martynas Jankus, Jonas Šliūpas and the Making of Modern Lithuania Charles C. Perrin Georgia State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/history_diss Recommended Citation Perrin, Charles C., "Lithuanians in the Shadow of Three Eagles: Vincas Kudirka, Martynas Jankus, Jonas Šliūpas and the Making of Modern Lithuania." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2013. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/history_diss/35 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of History at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in History Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. LITHUANIANS IN THE SHADOW OF THREE EAGLES: VINCAS KUDIRKA, MARTYNAS JANKUS, JONAS ŠLIŪPAS AND THE MAKING OF MODERN LITHUANIA by CHARLES PERRIN Under the Direction of Hugh Hudson ABSTRACT The Lithuanian national movement in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was an international phenomenon involving Lithuanian communities in three countries: Russia, Germany and the United States. To capture the international dimension of the Lithuanian na- tional movement this study offers biographies of three activists in the movement, each of whom spent a significant amount of time living in one of
    [Show full text]
  • THE PAST and PRESENT of the SAMOGITIAN LANGUAGE 1. Historical Overview an Essential Question Has Been Repeatedly Raised Since Ol
    The Past and Present of the Samogitian Language JUOZAS PABRĖŽA https://doi.org/10.22364/bf.28.1.05 Baltu filoloģija XXVIII (1) 2019 THE PAST AND PRESENT OF THE SAMOGITIAN LANGUAGE Juozas PABRĖŽA Šiauliai University 1. Historical overview An essential question has been repeatedly raised since olden times: is Samogitian a language or a dialect? Before the appearance of standard Lithu- anian, the concept of the Samogitian language prevailed. Quite a few Samogi- tians wrote their works in Samogitian. The 19th c. boasts a particularly large number of such works. In that period the concern and efforts to create standard Lithuanian on the basis of the Samogitian dialect were particularly obvious. The language and the spelling of Dionizas Poška, Silvestras Valiūnas and Simonas Stanevičaus, all of them originally being South Samogitians, were oriented towards their native Dūnininkai dialect. Three of the most prominent Samogitians of the 19th c. — Jurgis Ambraziejus Pabrėža, Simonas Daukantas and Motiejus Valančius — employed the North Samogitian Dounininkai dialect in their writings. The creator of the standard Samogitian language J. A. Pabrėža wrote: “A Samogitian will never agree about the language either with a Lithuanian, a Prussian or a Latvian.” (Subačius 1996: 54) Juozas Čiulda, the author of the most solid grammar of the Samogitian language of the time, written in Polish in 1854 (Trumpi samprotavimai apie žemaičių kalbos gramatikos taisykles — “Brief Reasoning about the Rules of the Samogitian Language”) consistently used the concept of the Samogitian language, and at the end of his book affirms this by stating the following: “These are my speculations about the Samogitian language.
    [Show full text]
  • Censorship in Lithuania: a Tool of Russian Policy; 1831–1865
    LITHUANIAN HISTORICAL STUDIES 7 2002 ISSN 1392-2343 pp. 43–66 CENSORSHIP IN LITHUANIA: A TOOL OF RUSSIAN POLICY; 1831–1865 ZITA MEDIŠAUSKIENĖ ABSTRACT This paper deals with the specificities of Russia’s policy of censorship conducted in the Northwest Province by the Vilnius Censor- ship Committee between 1831 and 1865. In the general context of the Province an attempt is made to give answers to the questions: (1) by whom and in what way the attitudes of the censors of Vilnius were regu- lated with respect to the Lithuanian and Polish press ‘under local condi- tions’ and (2) what requirements of the Censorship Committee were caused ‘by local conditions ’ and by the implementation of Russia’s policy in the Northwest Province. The study is based on official documents, censorial lawsuits, and the censored manuscripts. It is maintained that the opinion and initiative of the governor general of Vilnius were crucial in formulat- ing the ‘local’ policy of censoring. The principal aim of the censorial activity was to ensure the integrity of the Russian Empire by preventing the spread of disintegrational anti-Russian ideas and those of propagat- ing the independence of Poland and ‘Polish patriotism’. Attempts were also made to weaken the influence of the Catholic Church, in particular among the peasantry and to create conditions favouring both religious tolerance and the dissemination of Orthodoxy. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries Russian nationality policy as well as the ‘Polish Question’ or Russia’s policy in the Polish Kingdom and in the Northwest Province have been subjected to increasing historical scrutiny.
    [Show full text]
  • Maciej Górny Tadeusz Manteuffel Institute of History, Polish Academy of Sciences
    Acta Poloniae Historica 123, 2021 PL ISSN 0001–6829 Maciej Górny https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8594-1365 Tadeusz Manteuffel Institute of History, Polish Academy of Sciences BLACK MIRROR: A COMPARATIVE HISTORY OF POLISH AND AMERICAN FAILURES Abstract Even though they occurred around the same time, the Polish January Uprising of 1863/64 and the American Civil War (1861–5) have seldom been considered in the same context by historians, while comparative historical studies of the events are scarce. The present article explores the historiography relating to both countries to, fi rstly, outline the most interesting attempts in existing Polish and US-American research to fi nd shared aspects in the two events. Secondly, my study establishes and analyses phenomena and themes in these parallel histories that could prove most fruitful for comparative investigation. In conclusion, I assess the potential that comparative approaches could generate for the historiography of the American Civil War and the January Uprising. Keywords: January Uprising, Poland, American Civil War, memory, gender ste- reotypes, nationalism, guerrilla warfare I One of the most renowned historians of the American Civil War, James M. McPherson, sought to illustrate the signifi cance of this confl ict for the history of the USA by referring to an experience from the 1970s. He met a delegation of Soviet historians who had come to mark the bicentenary of the War of Independence. McPherson was stunned that they had no interest in visiting places connected to the American Revolution. Instead, they wanted to visit the site of the Battle of Gettysburg. Why was this so? Because, as they told their hosts, Gettysburg was the US-American Stalingrad and the Civil War the equivalent of the Great Patriotic War.1 1 James M.
    [Show full text]
  • An Emigre—Historian
    ORGANON 32:2003 Piotr Wandycz (Yale, U. S. A.) AN EMIGRE — HISTORIAN How and where does one commence a scholarly autobiography? Perhaps the best precept is to be found in Alice in Wonderland: Begin at the beginning, the King said, and go on till you come to the end: then stop. Thinking of the beginnings my thoughts go back to my family, an intelligentsia Polish family with broad intellectual interests. My mother wrote children’s books, her sister (Mieroszewska) was a painter, and so was my brother, my sister had a Ph. D. in art history from the Jagiellonian University. To avoid possible confusion I should add that they were my half-brother and half-sister and their family name was Mars. However, being extremely close to one another we never used the term half. My brother’s influence during my formative years was particularly strong. My father was by education a chemist and he became a leading figure in the Polish oil industry. But by inclination he remained a humanist with a deep knowledge of music and literature. The tradition of Young Poland weighed heavily on my parents and to some extent was passed on to me. So was an attachment to the past - perhaps a romanticized vision of it. Ideologically, my parents were adherents of Piłsudski - my father was a legionary of the First Brigade - and I remember them crying at the news of the Marshal’s death. My uncle (father’s brother) was in POW. In the late 1930s, however, when the sanacja split internally and began to move to the right, my parents became critical of the regime and looked up to general Kazimierz Sosnkowski and the nascent Democratic Clubs.
    [Show full text]
  • The University of Vilnius
    04_04_lt_eng.docx THE UNIVERSITY OF VILNIUS The University of Vilnius – one of the oldest and most famous establishments of higher education in Eastern and Central Europe, was founded in 1579. Functioning for a long time as the only school of higher learning in Lithuania, it was a preserver of cultural and scientific traditions, and has played a significant part in the cultural life not only of Lithuania, but the neighboring countries as well. During more than four centuries of its existence, the University of Vilnius has seen periods of growth and decline, revival, and closure. The University is a unique witness to the history of the Lithuanian state. In 1773, the Jesuit order was dissolved in Europe and the University was taken over by the secular authority. After Lithuania was annexed by Russia, the University was renamed into Vilnius Principal School. In 1803, the University received a new statute and the title of the Imperial University of Vilnius. As a number of students and professors became engaged in the anti–tsarist movement, the University was closed down according to the orders of tsar Nicholas I, and it was not reopened until 1919. Vilnius and its region were then annexed by Poland, and the University functioned under the Polish auspices until 1939 by the name of Stephen Bathory University. In 1943, the University was closed down by the Nazis, and resumed its activities in the autumn of 1944. Though restrained by the Soviet system, Vilnius University grew and gained force. Vilnius University started to free itself from the Soviet ideology in 1988 even before Lithuania regained independence in 1990.
    [Show full text]
  • Global Austria Austria’S Place in Europe and the World
    Global Austria Austria’s Place in Europe and the World Günter Bischof, Fritz Plasser (Eds.) Anton Pelinka, Alexander Smith, Guest Editors CONTEMPORARY AUSTRIAN STUDIES | Volume 20 innsbruck university press Copyright ©2011 by University of New Orleans Press, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. All inquiries should be addressed to UNO Press, University of New Orleans, ED 210, 2000 Lakeshore Drive, New Orleans, LA, 70119, USA. www.unopress.org. Book design: Lindsay Maples Cover cartoon by Ironimus (1992) provided by the archives of Die Presse in Vienna and permission to publish granted by Gustav Peichl. Published in North America by Published in Europe by University of New Orleans Press Innsbruck University Press ISBN 978-1-60801-062-2 ISBN 978-3-9028112-0-2 Contemporary Austrian Studies Sponsored by the University of New Orleans and Universität Innsbruck Editors Günter Bischof, CenterAustria, University of New Orleans Fritz Plasser, Universität Innsbruck Production Editor Copy Editor Bill Lavender Lindsay Maples University of New Orleans University of New Orleans Executive Editors Klaus Frantz, Universität Innsbruck Susan Krantz, University of New Orleans Advisory Board Siegfried Beer Helmut Konrad Universität Graz Universität
    [Show full text]
  • Collectivist' Spirit" (P
    with the mysticism of the Eurasian 'collectivist' spirit" (p. 54). Considering transcul- ture's desire to transcend politics, and also Epstein's argument for "utopianism after utopia" and "non-totalitarian totality," this particular historical (and ideological) con- text really needs to be addressed. Eliot Borenstein New York University Virgil Krapauskas, Nationalism and Historiography: The Case of Nineteenth Century Lithuanian Historicism. Boulder, CO: East European Monographs, 2000. viii, 234 pp. Distributed by Columbia University Press, New York. Krapauskas' book-length historiographical essay*fills an essential spot in the cor- pus of Lithuanian historical writing. The appearance of ethnic nationalism in East Central Europe in the nineteenth century would change the politieal landscape in the twentieth. Krapauskas traces the appearance of this brand of identity formation in the historical works - professional, joumälistic and dilettante - in Lithuania during the century leading to independence in 1918. Krapauskas' monograph is solid despite persistent problems with intent and the- ory. Thus, he writes, "Historicism mediated between the prejudices of nationalism and the dispassion of historical research," using Maurice Mandelbaum's definition of his- toricism that an event could only be understood "in terms of the place it occupied and the role it played within a process of development." Presumably, Krapauskas' mono- graph should then trace this approach to history in nineteenth century Lithuania. It does not do so, except tangentially. Nationalism and Historiography is about the de- velopment of Lithuanian historical writing as part of the Lithuanian national awaken- ing. Krapauskas' approach, not his subject matter, may be historicist. Nationalism and Historiography is also conceptually tentative.
    [Show full text]
  • XIX A. Lietuvių Tautinio Atgimimo Sąjūdžio Įvaizdis Bendrojo Lavinimo Mokykloje
    Acta humanitarica universitatis Saulensis. T. 12 (2011). 236–247. ISSN 1822-7309 XIX a. lietuvių tautinio atgimimo sąjūdžio įvaizdis bendrojo lavinimo mokykloje Arūnas GUMULIAUSKAS Šiaulių universitetas Pagrindinės sąvokos: XIX a. lietuvių tautinio atgimimo sąjūdis, Jonas Basa- navičius, Vincas Kudirka, Jonas Šliūpas, Mindaugas, Vytautas Didysis, Maironis, Simonas Daukantas, Motiejus Valančius, Juozas Tumas-Vaižgantas, Jonas Jablons- kis, „Aušra“, „Varpas“, daraktoriai. Pirmąsias žinias apie savo tautos istorinę praeitį jaunuoliai dažniausiai įgyja dar mokyklos suole. Čia formuojamas pilietinis mokinių požiūris į valstybę, jos istori- ją. Mokyklai skirtas ypatingas vaidmuo patriotiškai auklėjant jaunąją kartą. Sunku paneigti tą faktą, jog šiame procese didžiausias krūvis tenka istorijos ir kitiems humanitariniams mokslams. Norint išsiaiškinti jaunuolių požiūrį į XIX a. lietuvių tautinio atgimimo sąjūdį, buvo atlikta apklausa, kurioje dalyvavo Šiaulių miesto gimnazijų III ir IV klasių moksleiviai, taip pat Šiaulių universiteto Humanitarinio fakulteto įvairių kursų studentai. Beje, analogiškas tyrimas atliktas 2006 m., kada norėta atskleisti kry- žiaus karų įvaizdžio formavimo Lietuvos bendrojo lavinimo mokyklose peripetijas (Gumuliauskas 2007, 319). Šį kartą į 11 klausimų atsakė 243 respondentai. Studentų išreikšta pozicija padėjo praplėsti lokalinio požiūrio į rūpimą problemą ribas. Apklausos rezultatai parodė, kad istorijos mokymosi tendencijos bendrojo lavinimo mokykloje išlieka stabilios. 2006 m. 84,8 % respondentų nurodė vado- vėlį,
    [Show full text]
  • Acta 123.Indd
    Acta Poloniae Historica 123, 2021 PL ISSN 0001–6829 Mariusz Wołos https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6943-1069 Tadeusz Manteuffel Institute of History, Polish Academy of Sciences Institute of History and Archival Research, Pedagogical University in Cracow “AN UNFULFILLED WRITER WHO BECAME A HISTORIAN”*. JERZY WOJCIECH BOREJSZA (22 AUGUST 1935 – 28 JULY 2019)** Abstract 12 Jerzy Wojciech Borejsza was the son of communist activist Jerzy Borejsza, referred to as an ‘international communist’, and Ewa née Kantor. His grandfather Abraham Goldberg was one of the leaders of Polish Zionists. Borejsza described himself as ‘a Pole of Jewish origin’. His personality was greatly infl uenced by the Second World War experiences, including the pogrom of Jews in German-occupied Lwów in July 1941 and the tragic events of occupied Warsaw. As a result of the deci- sion of the communist party authorities, in 1952, Borejsza was sent to study in the Soviet Union, fi rst to Kazan, then to Moscow. This made it impossible for him to study Polish philology in Warsaw; Borejsza, therefore, chose historical studies. After returning to Poland in 1957, he undertook research on the history of Polish emigration after the January Uprising (1863–4). He was also interested in the history of the Polish socialist movement and its connections to socialism in Western Europe. Later, Borejsza intervened in the historiography of the Crimean War (1853–6), intending to bring this forgotten armed confl ict back to light. He coined the phrase ‘the beautiful nineteenth century’, in contrast to the twentieth century as a time of hatred, extermination, and the Holocaust.
    [Show full text]
  • Review Essay
    Studia Judaica (2017), Special English Issue, pp. 117–130 doi:10.4467/24500100STJ.16.020.7372 REVIEW ESSAY Piotr J. Wróbel Modern Syntheses of Jewish History in Poland: A Review* After World War II, Poland became an ethnically homogeneous state. National minorities remained beyond the newly-moved eastern border, and were largely exterminated, forcefully removed, or relocated and scattered throughout the so-called Recovered Territories (Polish: Ziemie Odzys­ kane). The new authorities installed in Poland took care to ensure that the memory of such minorities also disappeared. The Jews were no exception. Nearly two generations of young Poles knew nothing about them, and elder Poles generally avoided the topic. But the situation changed with the disintegration of the authoritarian system of government in Poland, as the intellectual and informational void created by censorship and political pressure quickly filled up. Starting from the mid-1980s, more and more Poles became interested in the history of Jews, and the number of publica- tions on the subject increased dramatically. Alongside the US and Israel, Poland is one of the most important places for research on Jewish history. * Polish edition: Piotr J. Wróbel, “Współczesne syntezy dziejów Żydów w Polsce. Próba przeglądu,” Studia Judaica 19 (2016), 2: 317–330. The special edition of the journal Studia Judaica, containing the English translation of the best papers published in 2016, was financed from the sources of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education for promotion of scientific research, according to the agreement 508/P-DUN/2016. 118 PIOTR J. WRÓBEL Jewish Historiography during the Polish People’s Republic (PRL) Reaching the current state of Jewish historiography was neither a quick nor easy process.
    [Show full text]
  • Emanuel Halicz – More Than Scientist’S Profile
    Studia z Dziejów Rosji i Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej ■ LII-SI(1) Michał Kozłowski Lublin Emanuel Halicz – More than Scientist’s Profile Zarys treści: Sylwetka naukowa i polityczna Emanuela Halicza, historyka XIX w., współpracow- nika emigracyjnych „Zeszytów Historycznych”. Outline of content: Scientific and political profile of Emanuel Halicz, nineteenth-century historian, co-worker of emigrant Zeszyty Historyczne. Słowa kluczowe: polscy historycy, polscy Żydzi, oficerowie polityczni Wojska Polskiego, Instytut Kształcenia Kadr Naukowych, Wojskowa Akademia Polityczna, emigranci marcowi, „Zeszyty Historyczne”, powstanie styczniowe 1863 Keywords: Polish historians, Polish Jews, political officers of Polish Armed Forces, Institute of Scientific Staff Education, Political-Military Academy, March emigrants,Zeszyty Historyczne, January Uprising of 1863 Many historians left Poland after 1986. Among them were such scholars as Lucjan Dobroszycki (1925–1995), Bolesław Drukier (1913–2006), Dawid Fajnhauz (1920–2004), Łukasz Hirszowicz (1920–1993), Henryk Katz (1914–1998), Paweł Korzec (1919–2012), Karol Lapter (1912–2003), Józef Lewandowski (1923–2007) and Aleksander Litwin (1909–1984). In People’s Republic of Poland they were doomed to oblivion. As opposed to their colleagues, who elected not to return to Poland in 1945, their situation was completely different. Conditions they faced were so difficult that few of the historians found themselves in the then situation. They were not welcome by “the old steadfast emigration” due to their former commitment to communism. Recently, one of the last representatives of this group passed away – Emanuel Halicz, an outstanding researcher of the 19th century. The historian was born on 19 September 1921 in Lvov. He was named Emanuel Halpern; his parents’ names were Leon and Róża.
    [Show full text]