The Battle of Khotyn (Chocim): defeat, victory, and regicide

There have been few wars in the history of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth so short and so full of sensational twists and turns. by Michał Wasiucionek   The story of the short but bloody Khotyn War (1620–1621) was full of dramatic twists and turns: from the unexpected and overwhelming defeat of the Crown army at Țuțora…


Józef Unrug: honour above all

Born into a family of German origin, he spoke with a strong accent until the end of his life. However, when he was taken prisoner during the Second World War, he was persuaded to go over to the side of the Third Reich. Rear Admiral Józef Unrug replied briefly: ‘On 1 September 1939, I forgot…


Stanisław Konarski: a reformer in a greasy headscarf

While writing rhetoric textbooks, he illustrated a critique of macaronic, heavily latinized language with excerpts from his own youthful works. Acting as if he was a political scientist avant la lettre, he created the first systematic critique of the liberum veto system, advocating the introduction of the principle of majority voting in parliament of the…


The defence of Westerplatte: the first battle of the Second World War

The attack on Westerplatte was one of the first acts of armed German aggression against Poland in September 1939. The heroic defence of the peninsula has gone down in history. It was assumed that the resistance would last a few hours. Meanwhile, the Polish garrison defended itself for seven long days… by Daniel Czerwiński  …


Człowiek z żelaza / Man of Iron

This feature drama directed by Andrzej Wajda was made in early 1981 on the basis of a script by Aleksander Ścibor-Rylski, as a continuation of the celebrated and outstanding Man of Marble (1976). To this day, it is the most famous feature film telling the story of the strikes of August 1980 and the birth…


Max Factor and the art of makeup

Today, his name is associated with high-quality cosmetics and the art of makeup. His real name was Maksymilian Faktorowicz, and the name which is known today he received, by mistake, from an American immigration official. by Piotr Bejrowski   He was born on 8 February 1872 in Zduńska Wola, a Polish town then under Russian…


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