Multi-nationality is an integral part of the landscape of Central and Eastern Europe. I really wished to avoid writing a one-dimensional book based on one narrative, even if it coincided with the way my compatriots would like to see the events of 1918 in Lwów, says Damian Markowski, the author of the book about Polish-Ukrainian…
Jack Fairweather, author of a best-selling biography of Witold Pilecki – “The Volunteer” – tells about the Polish hero’s life. Describing Pilecki’s fate, he tells a story of remarkable, brave man living in hard times, whose message is still important and still inspires. Witold Pilecki is currently widely known in Poland, although his story…
polishhistory: In the spring of 1940, the Soviet secret police committed an unprecedented crime by secretly murdering nearly 22,000 Polish citizens. What place does this tragedy occupy in Polish national memory? Professor Tadeusz Wolsza: The Katyń massacre permanently, painfully, and deeply entered into our national history. Each subsequent anniversary is accompanied by new editions of…
The Roman Catholic Church in Poland was perceived by occupiers, and especially the Germans, as a synonym of Polishness, says Prof. Jan Żaryn, a historian from the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw. Polish Press Agency: What was the situation of Christian churches in Poland during the Second World War? Prof. Jan Żaryn: Most…
On 1 March 1951, following a show trial at Mokotów prison in Warsaw, seven members of the WiN independence movement (IV Zarządu Głównego Zrzeszenia – Wolność i Niezawisłość) were shot. The anniversary of this crime has been commemorated since 2011 as the National Memorial Day of the Cursed Soldiers. Tomasz Wiścicki interviews Dr. Tomasz Łabuszewski,…
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…
