He was a Gdańsk patrician and councillor who, thanks to his income from beer production, was able to conduct groundbreaking observations of space. He was one of the most eminent astronomers of 17th-century Europe and the creator of scientific knowledge of the Moon. by Jan Hlebowicz Johannes Hevelius (1611–1687) was born and grew up…
Bronisław Geremek was a man of many passions: history and politics were the most important among them. His political achievements are much more noticeable because of their social impact and significance for the Polish state. Geremek embodied the successes of the foreign policy of post-1989 Poland: the country’s accession to NATO and the European Union….
Recalling the Katyn Massacre was an important aspect of the activities of the democratic opposition in the Polish People’s Republic (PRL), one of the reasons being the subject’s high importance for society back then. by Grzegorz Majchrzak This is best exemplified by the fact that a booklet by Ryszard Zieliński entitled ‘Katyń’ was the…
One of the tasks of historians (at least those who have learned the principles of modern scientific techniques) is to search for sources, and to subject those already found to critical appraisal. However, won’t the resources of unknown documents be exhausted one day? Fortunately, not only is the number of documents increasing (and archives make…
A city of 10,000 inhabitants on the Skawa River, Wadowice seems a poor, idyllic place, far away from the hustle and bustle of the world. This is where Karol Wojtyła was born one hundred years ago. by Wojciech Stanisławski Cities and towns have their own destinies. For decades, Wadowice has played the role of the…
We all know the poem by Władysław Bełza, “The Catechism of a Polish Child,” written in 1900, and we will all reply without a second thought: the white eagle. Still, it would not come amiss to wonder: why the eagle? by Beata Wolszczak The legendary Lech had resolved to settle in the flatlands, where…
