March Constitution of 1921: The Crowning of Reborn Poland’s Ambitions

The March Constitution was the crowning of an important stage in the building of the Second Republic. It proved the maturity of the young state and strengthened Poland’s authority in the international arena. Its articles indicate a tendency to use solutions adopted in Western democracies as well as to draw on the legal traditions of…


The Establishment of the Bar Confederation

Ewa Zientara: Why was the Bar Confederation formed? Dorota Dukwicz: This question is only seemingly easy. In 1767 the Radom Confederates hoped that Russia would help them depose the hated King Stanisław II Augustus and move away the spectre of the demands made by the non-Catholic nobility, that is, dissenters, or dissidents, as they were…



The message of Chopin's music transcends the boundaries of musical cultures

polishhistory: Let us begin with the issue that raises disputes among historians. When should we really celebrate Fryderyk Chopin’s birthday? Zbigniew Skowron: This question remains unresolved to this day because two dates are at stake. In the light of the official document, which is Chopin’s birth certificate dated 22 February 1810, one should celebrate his…


The letters of a lonely man, or what Cat-Mackiewicz wrote about when he was not writing for his readers

We talk to Professor Rafał Habielski about the recently published correspondence of Stanisław Cat-Mackiewicz, the difficulties and challenges he encountered as a journalist and what makes his letters unprecedented in the history of Polish literature.   “Cat’s Versions” are a record of the obstacles Cat-Mackiewicz encountered in his private life as well as his reflections…


A breakthrough discovery about the first Polish chronicler

For years, historians have researched and discussed the identity of Gallus Anonymous – the author of the “Polish Chronicon.” Now, a recent discovery by Professor Tomasz Jasiński, a medievalist from the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, sheds new light on the mysterious chronicler and is a significant contribution to ongoing studies of the medieval history…


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