Usurpation of Aristocratic Privilege and the Social Identity of the Polish Noble Elite in the Period of the Partitions

The aristocratic titles, which the partitioning monarchies granted to some of their Polish noble subjects in the long nineteenth century, did not play a decisive role in the development and formation of the modern Polish noble elite. The foreign titles could only sanction the internal noble hierarchy, which was apparently much more determined by specific noble traditions and the cult of the pre-partition past. This argument is evidenced by the cases of families which did not need formal title grants to be recognized as truly aristocratic in that period.

The Winding Paths of Russian Imperial Politics: On Die Geburt des russländischen Imperiums: Herrschaftskonzepte und -praktiken im 18. Jahrhundert by Ricarda Vulpius

The article discusses the book Die Geburt des russländischen Imperiums by Ricarda Vulpius, a publication that tracks the emergence of the conceptual background for governing the growing Russian Empire in the eighteenth century, when territorial gains rendered the country increasingly multinational, multi-faith and multicultural. In this paper, the book was treated as an inspiration for examining the relationship between the practices employed by Russia on newly acquired territories in the east and south of Asia, described by Vulpius in the book, and the Russian Empire’s policy towards Poland.

The English Connection: Jacob and Johann Philipp Breyne, James Petiver and Plants: The Correspondence between the Breynes and Petiver from the 1690s

The article discusses the hitherto unknown correspondence between the Danzig (present-day Gdańsk) botanist Jacob Breyne, his son Johann Philipp Breyne, and James Petiver in the last decade of the seventeenth century. Their correspondence documents contacts between one of the most important naturalists of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the second half of the seventeenth century and members of the Royal Society. The content of the letters reveals how books, naturalia and various artefacts circulated between Western and East-Central Europe. It also reveals the principles of reciprocity and friendship followed by those who conducted inquiries into natural history.

The Motif of the ‘Bloodbath of Toruń’ in Voltairean Writings Concerning the Dissident Question of 1767/68 and the First Partition of Poland

The ‘Tumult of Toruń’ of 1724, which resulted in the sentencing to death of the mayor and a dozen or so townsmen (the so-called ‘bloodbath’ or ‘bloody court’), brought about a veritable deluge of publications. It has become widely accepted in literature that these writings fundamentally impacted the development in Western public opinion of the notion that eighteenth-century Poland was an intolerant country. In 1767–71, Voltaire placed his pen at the service of the Russian empress, and his propaganda texts provided support for the diplomatic and military offensive of the court of Saint Petersburg in Poland. One of the more significant themes that appeared in the papers commissioned by the Russians and also in the philosopher’s correspondence was that of the ‘Tumult of Toruń’ of July 1724 and the death sentences that were passed against the city’s mayor and a dozen or so townspeople.

Were Elections in the Socialist Countries Elections at All? The Case of Elections to the Sejm in Communist-Ruled Poland

The article presents the current state of research into parliamentary elections in Poland during the period of communist rule. The author outlines the development of the electoral system of the Polish People’s Republic in the 1940s and 50s, and also analyses its singular features in the years when elections to the Sejm were fully controlled by the ruling Polish United Workers’ Party. The final part of the paper is devoted to elections in the 1980s, when this electoral model collapsed, thereby contributing to the disintegration of the communist dictatorship in Poland.

‘Out of Poland, Not to Israel, but Out of Poland’: Factors Influencing the Decision to Leave Poland after March 1968: On the Basis of Research from the 1970s

In this article the author explores the question of Jews’ emigration from Poland to Israel after the events of the anti-Zionist campaign of 1968. On the basis of émigrés’ accounts recorded in the 1970s, the author has reconstructed the complex mosaic of factors influencing their decision to leave Poland and choose Israel as their final destination. The most important among these factors were: the ‘anti-Zionist campaign’ and anti-Semitism of the period, as well as the resulting sense of alienation and stigmatization; the large number of people leaving the country, in particular those with family ties and relationships; disappointment with communism; and the Warsaw Pact’s invasion of Czechoslovakia.

Difficult Unions: Marital Cases Before the Consistorial Court of Poznań at the Beginning of the Fifteenth Century

The utilization of consistorial sources is a research postulate that has been voiced repeatedly over the years. These materials comprise a compact volume of data that are both organized serially and mass-produced, while the fact that they touch upon a wealth of topics and thus have considerable cognitive value for interdisciplinary studies cannot be overestimated. Magdalena Biniaś-Szkopek’s book is a pioneering study and, at the same time, a successful attempt at making comprehensive use of the nine oldest registers of the consistorial court of Poznań. The ledgers cover the years 1404–26 and contain entries devoted to ‘marital issues’ in the broadest meaning of the term, with particular consideration being given to the complex position of women who took part in proceedings before mediaeval ecclesiastical courts.

Protestant Providentialism in the Commonwealth of the Nobles: A critical view on Sarmatism

This study is devoted to providentialism, an element characteristic of Sarmatism – a dominant ideology and culture in the early modern Commonwealth of the nobles. The attachment of special weight to providence’s care of the state and the nobility seems to have been characteristic also of Protestant circles in the sixteenth and early seventeenth century, and therefore the culture of the nobles’ Sarmatism should not be reduced to its late form, dominated as it was by Catholicism in the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Latyfundium Tęczyńskich w XVII wieku. Dobra i właściciele

Tęczyńscy herbu Topór od XIV do XVII w. należeli do ścisłej elity możnowładczej a następnie magnackiej Królestwa Polskiego, później Rzeczypospolitej Obojga Narodów. Dziejom tego rodu poświęcono bardzo dużo miejsca w polskiej literaturze historycznej. Stosunkowo niewiele pisano jednak o należących do Tęczyńskich majątkach. Wydawać by się mogło, że zarówno genealogia tej rodziny, jak i dzieje należącego do niej latyfundium nie kryją już żadnych tajemnic. Badania podjęte przez autora przeczą jednak temu mniemaniu. W prezentowanym tu artykule, przy okazji przedstawiania dziejów latyfundium rodziny Tęczyńskich w XVII w. dokonano kilku istotnych korekt i uzupełnień dotyczących stosunków rodzinnych i dziejów życia przedstawicieli dwóch ostatnich pokoleń tej możnej i zasłużonej dla kraju rodziny.

Epidemia szkarlatyny we Lwowie w latach 1907‒1910. Urząd miejski, higieniści i polityka zdrowia publicznego

Celem artykułu jest zbadanie, w jaki sposób odbyła się modernizacja w dziedzinie zdrowia publicznego we Lwowie w końcu XIX – na początku XX w. Analiza została przeprowadzona na przykładzie epidemii szkarlatyny w latach 1907‒1910. Ma ona na celu wyjaśnienie mechanizmu funkcjonowania miejskiej służby zdrowia: w jaki sposób działania przeciwepidemiczne miały wpływ na życie mieszkańców, a także jak wyglądało zaangażowanie higienistów w realizację polityki miejskiej. Odpowiedzi na te pytania pozwolą częściowo scharakteryzować politykę zdrowia publicznego we Lwowie, a także zilustrować miejscowy ruch higieniczny.