Kwartalnik Historyczny

Reviews

2023-03-16

Guidance for Contributors to the English-Language Edition of Kwartalnik Historyczny

2023-03-16

Abbreviations

2023-03-16

Modified Library of Congress Transliteration

2023-03-16

The Impact of Climate Change on Witch Trials: Myth or Reality? The Example of Royal Prussia in the Sixteenth–Eighteenth Centuries

Jacek Wijaczka — 2023-03-16

The early modern period was also a period of a ‘little ice age’. The sudden fluctuations in climatic conditions that occurred at the time greatly impacted the everyday living conditions of all people of Europe. They also affected, though not to the same degree in all European regions, the perception of the activities of alleged witches.

Apples, Books, Fruit Preserves… Cultivating a History by Countess Ludwika Ostrowska, Lady of the Maluszyn Manor – in Search of the Anthropological Dimension of Historiography

Karolina Studnicka-Mariańczyk — 2023-03-16

The article presents an analysis of the history included in a history textbook for peasant children, entitled ‘Stories from World History for Country Folk’, written by a landowner, domain manager, social activist, writer and historian – Ludwika Ostrowska of Maluszyn (1851–1926). The authors hypothesize that the cultural model of the Polish landed gentry played a crucial role in Ostrowska’s work. During their research, they wanted to show that the multiple social relations of the Polish gentry in the second half of the nineteenth century became a mirror image of the subjective aspects of human activity created in Ostrowska’s narrative. They point out that farm management (filled with a resource that creates a model of landowning culture) became the fundamental category of all intellectual reflections of Ludwika, outlining the general framework for her thinking about the world (both present and past). By suggesting that Ostrowska ‘cultivated’ history, they wish to draw attention to the need to search – supported by broader source research and methodological reflection – into the anthropological dimension of historiography.

Western Europe as a Model for Polish Defenders of Animal Welfare prior to 1939

Remigiusz Kasprzycki — 2023-03-16

This article looks at how Western Europe served as a model for Polish animal advocates before 1939. France and Great Britain inspired the greatest respect among Polish animal defenders. Polish animal lovers, fascinated by the French and English treatment of animals, discovered the effectiveness of grassroots initiatives, rather than legal resolutions and acts, for the welfare of animals. This article attempts to explain why the endeavour to copy the treatment of animals by wealthy Germans, French, and above all English and introduce it to economically poor Poland proved to be utopian.

Planning for a Landing Operation of the Polish People’s Army on the Danish Isles during the Cold War

Jarosław Pałka — 2023-03-16

During the Cold War, the Polish People’s Army (hereinafter: PPA) planned to occupy Denmark, the northern regions of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium through an offensive campaign. An essential element of this scheme was air and seaborne landing operations aimed at capturing the Danish island of Zealand and the country’s capital, Copenhagen. The actions undertaken by the PPA were intended to comprise part of a large-scale campaign of the allied forces of member states of the Warsaw Pact against NATO. In the mid-1980s, the landing tasks of the PPA were limited to the occupation of the Danish island of Bornholm.

Primate Stefan Wyszyński’s Pro Memoria Journal as a Historical Source

Rafał Łatka — 2023-03-16

This article is a concise analysis of the value of Primate Stefan Wyszyński’s Pro memoria as a historical source. It presents the most important facts concerning the hierarch’s journal, and proceeds to present a comprehensive discussion of the topics which Wyszyński touched upon in his notes, and of his writing style. The summary indicates fields of research which could utilize Pro memoria to their benefit, and also recapitulates the potential importance of the journal for scholarly research into the history of Poland in the years 1949–81.