W trudzie, zniechęceniu i w niesprzyjających okolicznościach…

O powstawaniu pewnej książki słów kilka

Abstract

Jacek Staszewski was undoubtedly one of the most prominent Polish historians who focused on the first half of the 18^th century. This article aims to present the circumstances surrounding the creation of the monograph on the Polish presence in Dresden in the 18^th century, authored by the historian from Toruń, although the content of the book itself, or the interpretation of its theses, are not the subject of discussion here. During the preparation of the book, Jacek Staszewski encountered a number of difficulties related to certain events in which he was directly involved, i.e. the emergence of the Solidarity trade union in 1980, followed by the necessity to resign from the position of director of the Institute of History and Archival Studies at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, as well as from the position of head of the Doctoral Studies Department. Additionally, some of his colleagues at the institute frequently showed disloyalty towards him. These facts resulted in the writing, publication, and printing of the book taking over eight years, which even by the standards of the Polish People’s Republic was a very long wait. The outcome in the form of a monograph on the Polish presence in the capital of the Electorate of Saxony is extremely important for Polish historiography, as well as for Jacek Staszewski himself, but it must be remembered that these years cost him many sacrifices, disappointments, and much discouragement.