Until recently, it was believed that Mieszko I, Poland’s first ruler, had minted the kingdom’s first coin, however, this claim has since been refuted. Mieszko’s denarius was indeed minted by a Mieszko, although in fact it was Mieszko II, the grandson of the founder of the Polish state. by Wojciech Kalwat If we are…
Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte’s victorious campaign against Prussia and Russia in 1806-1807 ended with the Treaties of Tilsit, which laid the foundations for the revival of the Polish state as a rump Duchy of Warsaw, ruled by Saxon king Fryderyk August (Frederick August I), grandson of the Polish king August III and a descendant of Jan…
Politics and culture go their own ways. Fragmented Italy, plunged into feuds, gave the world the Renaissance. Spain suffered defeat after defeat in the 17th century, but was in its golden age in the field of literature and art. At the end of the reign of Jan III Sobieski, the Polish-Lithuanian state fell into utter…
The former seat of Masovian dukes and Polish-Lithuanian monarchs has remained a symbol of Polish statehood for centuries. It was the venue of parliamentary sessions and witnessed triumphs (such as the homage paid to King Sigismund III by the Russian Tsar taken prisoner), but also shameful events, such as the consent of corrupt and intimidated…
A mountain and glacier in Spitsbergen is named after him, as well as a bay, peninsula, mountain range, mountain, nunatak (a hill hidden under the ice surface) and a research station in Antarctica. Despite his German origin, Arctowski was a Polish patriot who believed that, thanks to his presence in Antarctica, his homeland would find…
The Union of Krewo that took place in 1385 and the following Christianization of Lithuania were a true political catastrophe for the Teutonic Order. Firstly, the knights lost their previous excuse for their Christianization expeditions to the east. Secondly, their military strength was shaken, which was eventually proven by the defeat of the Teutonic Knights…
