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Historyka Studia Metodologiczne

Historyka Studia Metodologiczne

Description

HISTORYKA. STUDIES IN HISTORICAL METHODS is a journal dedicated to the theory of history, historical methods and history of historiography. The journal is published once a year since 1967.

ISSN
ISSN 0073-277X; e-ISSN 3071-6608
Publishers
Polska Akademia Nauk Oddział PAN w Krakowie, Instytut Historii Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego
HISTORYKA. STUDIES IN HISTORICAL METHODS is a journal dedicated to the theory of history, historical methods and history of historiography. The journal is published once a year since 1967
Dipesh Chakrabarty (University of Chicago),
Ewa Domańska (Stanford University; Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza),
Maciej Dymkowski (SWPS, Wrocław),
François Hartog (L'École des hautes études en sciences sociales, L'EHESS),
Allan Megill (University of Virginia),
Tomasz Pawelec (Uniwersytet Śląski),
Jan Pomorski (Uniwersytet Marii Curie Skłodowskiej),
Maciej Salamon (Uniwersytet Jagielloński),
Rafał Stobiecki (Uniwersytet Łódzki),
Jan Skoczyński (Uniwersytet Jagielloński),
Veronica Tozzi (Universidad de Buenos Aires),
Krzysztof Zamorski (Jagiellonian University),
Anna Ziębińska-Witek (Maria Curie Skłodowska University)




EDITORS IN CHIEF

Marta Kurkowska-Budzan is Associate Professor at the Institute of History, Jagiellonian University in Kraków. She studied history and sociology at the Jagiellonian University and sociology at the University of Kent at Canterbury. She held postdoctoral fellowships at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC, and at the Remarque Institute for European Studies, New York University (under the supervision of Tony Judt).

Author of five monographs, editor of five collected volumes, and author of over fifty articles and chapters. She is a member of the European Citizen Science Association and the International Commission for the History and Theory of Historiography affiliated with the Comité International des Sciences Historiques (CISH). Co-founder of the Polish Oral History Association. Member of the Oral History Commission at the Historical Sciences Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences (since 2024). Member of the editorial boards of Acta Poloniae Historica (since 2024), Rocznik Antropologii Historii (since 2010), Stan Rzeczy (2011–2016), and Oral History Review ( 2008–2012).

Her research focuses on historical anthropology, theory of history, oral history, and heritage studies (recent publications in English: Embodied Labour, ed. with A. Galasińska, Routledge 2025; Sport and Polish Society, with M. Stasiak, Routledge 2024; "Transforming Workspaces into Sites of Public History" in: History in Public Space, Routledge 2024; "Oral History in Poland" in: Public History in Poland, Routledge 2021; "'Perpetrator Trauma' in Memoirs of Veterans of the Polish Home Army" in: Trauma, Experience and Narrative in Europe after World War II, Palgrave Macmillan, 2022).

Jakub Muchowski is an adjunct professor at the Department of History of Jagiellonian University, Poland. He studied History and Polish Studies at Jagiellonian University. He was a visiting scholar at the Corcoran Department of History of the University of Virginia, US (2011).

He is the author of two monographs, editor of two collective volumes and over fifty articles and chapters. He is a member of the International Commission for the History and Theory of Historiography affiliated with the Comité International des Sciences Historiques (CISH). Between 2011 and 2024, he served as assistant editor at Historyka.

His research focuses on the theory of historical writing, Polish memory cultures, transnational history of Poland and labour history. His ongoing work centres on reading historical writing, transnational relations between Poland and South Africa and forms of invisibility of labour in industrial museums. He has authored articles in journals including Journal of the Philosophy of History, História da Historiografia, International Journal of Heritage Studies and Rethinking History.

ASSISTANT EDITORS

Rafał Swakoń (Jagiellonian University)

LANGUAGE CONSULTANTS

Barbara Ratecka, Caroline Stupnicka, Robin Gill

e-mail: historyka@uj.edu.pl

Department of History

Jagiellonian University

Golebia 13

31-007 Krakow

Poland

Historyka is an open access journal with all content available with no charge in full text version. The journal content is available under the licencse CC BY-NC-SA 4.
Historyka is indexed in databases:
SCOPUS
Arianta
BazHum
CEJSH
ERIH Plus

Historyka is archived in the repository of the Polish Academy of Sciences and made available on the academy's Journal PAS platform.



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Content

Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53

1 Od Redakcji
Jakub Muchowski
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 7-9
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Authors and Affiliations

Jakub Muchowski
ORCID: ORCID
2 Nagroda czasopisma Historyka. Studia metodologiczne im. Marcelego Handelsmana sponsorowana przez polskie towarzystwo historyczne i towarzystwo historiograficzne. Regulamin konkursu
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 11-14
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3 Nagroda czasopisma Historyka. Studia metodologiczne im. Marcelego Handelsmana za rok 2023. Wyniki konkursu
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 15-16
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4 Opening Speech at the XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences
Tomasz Schramm
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 17-18
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Authors and Affiliations

Tomasz Schramm
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań
5 Closing Speech at the XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences
Tomasz Schramm
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 19-21
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Authors and Affiliations

Tomasz Schramm
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań
6 XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences, Poznań 2020/2022 – Final Report
Krzysztof A. Makowski
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 23-31 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147350
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Authors and Affiliations

Krzysztof A. Makowski
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań
7 XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences in Poznań (2020/2022) through the eyes of a young researcher
Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 33-53 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147351
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Authors and Affiliations

Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach
8 Introduction: global conversations on the future of history and theory
Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi , Taynna Mendonça Marino
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 55-59 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147352
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Authors and Affiliations

Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi
1
ORCID: ORCID
Taynna Mendonça Marino
2
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach
  2. Uniwersytet Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
9 On African history, the importance of theory and historical education in Nigeria. Ewa Domańska in conversation with Olufunke Adeboye
Ewa Domańska
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 61-69 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147353
Keywords: academic history decolonisation historical education Nigeria Nigerian historiography public history theory of history
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Abstract

In this interview, conducted during the XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences in Poznań (2022), Olufunke Adeboye (Professor of Social History at the University of Lagos, Nigeria) discusses the problems of decolonisation of African history, the relations between academic historiography and popular history, new trends in historical writing, the importance of theory for historical research, and the problems of historical education in Nigeria.
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Authors and Affiliations

Ewa Domańska
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
10 Intercultural intervention. Dawid Rogacz in conversation with Q. Edward Wang
Dawid Rogacz
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 71-77 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147354
Keywords: Chinese historiography comparative historiography history of historiography cultural history
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Abstract

In this interview conducted at the XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences in Po-znan, Q. Edward Wang (Professor of History at Rowan University in the US and Changjiang Professor of History at Beijing University in China) addresses the main problems in global and comparative historiography. Elaborating upon the background and impact of his scientific con-tributions, Prof. Wang discusses the modernization of Chinese historical writing, the challenges of comparative historiography, the status of historical studies today, and the future of historical theory. In addition, he refers to his recent studies in culinary history as instances of a new model of global historiography.
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Dawid Rogacz
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
11 Theory of history in a planetary age. Tomasz Wiśniewski in conversation with Dipesh Chakrabarty
Tomasz Wiśniewski
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 79-89 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147355
Keywords: planetary age postsecular turn postcolonial studies globe‑making worldmaking anthropocene climate crisis provincializing Martin Heidegger (1889–1976) Carl Schmitt
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Abstract

In the interview, Dipesh Chakrabarty gives an insight into recent transformations of historical thinking and writing. He discusses various faces of recent democratisation of history, like the proliferation of environmental history and the decolonialisation perspective. He outlines the genealogy of the term “provincializing”, known from his notable work Provincializing Eu-rope. Finally, he elaborates on the emergence of “the planetary” (or “a planetary age”) and recalls the contributions of Martin Heidegger and Carl Schmitt on the conceptualisation of the issue.
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Authors and Affiliations

Tomasz Wiśniewski
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
12 How to make sense of the new historical condition? Taynna Marino in conversation with Marek Tamm and Zoltán Boldizsár Simon
Taynna Mendonça Marino
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 91-104 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147356
Keywords: historical theory new historical condition more‑than‑human condition historical futures multiscalar history
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Abstract

Marek Tamm and Zoltán Boldizsár Simon, in dialogue with Taynna M. Marino, discuss some of the main dilemmas and challenges of contemporary historical theory, from the scientific status and so-called crises within the discipline to discussions about new forms of temporality and historicity that can respond to the technoscientific, ecological and socio-political changes we are facing today. In this conversation, the authors emphasize the historians’ role in making history relevant for the future and the efforts to redefine historical knowledge to encompass diverse forms of life (more-than-human, better-than-human, nonhuman) and tackle disconnected pro-spects of the future. Finally, they call attention to the importance of a fruitful dialogue between historians and theorists of history and of collaborating with scholars from other sciences to develop new ways of making sense of the new historical condition.
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Authors and Affiliations

Taynna Mendonça Marino
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
13 The future of the past, the future of history. Hugo Merlo in conversation with Edoardo Tortarolo
Hugo R. Merlo
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 105-112 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147357
Keywords: crisis in history paradigm shift gamification of historical knowledge history of historiography global history Franco Venturi Reinhart Koselleck
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Abstract

In this interview, Professor Edoardo Tortarolo discusses his intellectual trajectory and reflections on historiographical practice. Influenced by historians Franco Venturi and Reinhart Koselleck, Tortarolo shares his fascination with the philosophical approach to history. He explores the shifting paradigms in historiography, from nation‑state‑centred perspectives to embracing global history and the evolving relationship between history and other sciences. Looking ahead, Tor-tarolo envisions a changing landscape for historical studies, influenced by gamification, evol-ving mass media, and the merging of factual and fictional historical accounts. Despite the emergence of diverse narratives, he stresses the significance of traditional, veracious historical accounts. Expressing optimism, he believes the past holds a future with new possibilities.
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Hugo R. Merlo
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
14 Theory is not for amateurs. Hugo Merlo in conversation with Estêvão de Rezende Martins
Hugo R. Merlo
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 113-120 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147358
Keywords: philosophy of history/theory of history historical thinking historical epistemology challenges for history non‑human history history of historiography
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Abstract

In this interview, Professor Estêvão de Rezende Martins, an emeritus professor at the University of Brasilia, discusses his intellectual journey and research interests in the theory, philosophy, and methodology of history and historiography. The conversation delves into the development of historical thinking and consciousness, exploring how human existence is inherently historical and how individuals relate to their experiences through cognitive operations and historical culture. Moreover, the interview explores the evolution of the theory of history in Brazil, emphasising the shift from the speculative reflections of the philosophy of history to the meth-odological rigour of the theory of history or epistemology of history. The role of academic historiography in the face of contemporary challenges, such as the recognition of non‑human or post‑human planetary agencies, is also addressed. Martins discusses the diversification of his-toriography and its autonomy in exploring previously neglected topics, along with the need for historical education to empower individuals to think independently and critically in our border-less, globalised world. Ultimately, the interview sheds light on the ongoing theoretical experi-mentation in the field of history and the potential impact on historiographical practice in the future.
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Authors and Affiliations

Hugo R. Merlo
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
15 Continuing crisis of history: new iterations. Tomasz Wiśniewski in conversation with Kalle Pihlainen
Tomasz Wiśniewski
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 121-129 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147359
Keywords: crisis of history fictionality constructivism representation narrativist philosophy of history materiality embodiment
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Abstract

In this interview, Kalle Pihlainen discusses the challenges which academic historical writing meets from other ways of using history. The proliferation of these contexts seems to offer numerous new opportunities, but they need to be responded to with advance theoretical reflec-tion. It is important to not fall under the illusion of direct access to reality (historical reality included). Hence, mastery of the constructivist perspective is still needed for doing reliable historical research and theoretical reflection on history. Representation still proves to be one of the most important questions. Pihlainen stands firmly for the narrativist philosophy of history, although one of his main concerns are materiality and embodiment.
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Authors and Affiliations

Tomasz Wiśniewski
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
16 In history we trust? Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi in conversation with Verónica Tozzi Thompson
Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 131-138 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147360
Keywords: epistemology of witness trust in history philosophy of science sociology of science historical method
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Abstract

In this interview, conducted during the XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences in Poznan, Verónica Tozzi Thompson (professor of Philosophy of History at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina) discusses historiography in Argentina and recent trends in historical theory, in particular the epistemology of the witness. She addresses important issues concerning key concepts for the philosophy and sociology of history: truth and trust. In addition, Tozzi Thompson discusses the differences and connections between analytic and narrativist philoso-phy of history and recommends some further readings.
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Authors and Affiliations

Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach
17 In defence of history. Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi in conversation with Antoon de Baets
Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 139-147 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147361
Keywords: future of history crimes against history professional duties codes of ethics responsible history
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Abstract

In this interview, conducted at the XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences in Poznan, Antoon De Baets (emeritus professor of History, Ethics and Human Rights at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands) addresses key issues for historians and other produ-cers of history. His remarks about the scientific status of historiography and the range of different threats to history seem particularly important. He talks not only about the most direct crimes against historians and history, but also about issues like hindsight bias and fake news. The professional duties of historians and the issue of ethical codes for historians are also discussed.
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Piotr Kowalewski Jahromi
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach
18 On the art of resilience. Marta Nowak in conversation with Michele Salzman
Marta Nowak
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 149-156 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147362
Keywords: resilience in history Late antiquity women in antiquity Fall of Rome tatus of historiography
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Abstract

The interview with Michele Salzman, a renowned scholar of Late Antiquity at the University of California, Riverside, focuses on issues of reinterpreting the methods of the historian of anti-quity in the face of new research developments. Here Salzman outlines the importance and possibilities of interdisciplinary studies and the global dimension of Late Antiquity, outlining the possible research horizons of the coming decades. Referring to the case of the decline of the Roman Empire, the conversation deals with the ways in which the interpretation of the past can be understood as a reflection of the current desires or fears of societies in times of crisis. Special attention in the conversation was given to the issues of resilience and the role of women in the period of Late Antiquity.
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Authors and Affiliations

Marta Nowak
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Marii Curie‑Skłodowskiej w Lublinie
19 In the search of Late Antiquity. Marta Nowak in conversation with Ignazio Tantillo
Marta Nowak
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 157-164 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147363
Keywords: Late antiquity periodisation in history epigraphy habits public history crisis in history court in historiography
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Abstract

The interview provides a record of a conversation held during the XXIII International Congress of Historical Sciences in Poznan, with late antiquity scholar and epigraphic specialist Ignazio Tantillo (professor at the Università di Napoli “L’Orientale”). The conversation revolves around the matter of understanding the peculiarities of Late Antiquity in terms of an autonomous period in history, the temporal and spatial framework of which remains the subject of deliberations to this day. In the article, Ignazio Tantillo discusses the role of new challenges and hopes for scholars of Late Antiquity in the coming decades. The conversation also includes a reflection upon the nature of the historian's involvement in the public sphere, the (paradigm of public history), especially in the context of the “cancel culture” phenomenon.
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Authors and Affiliations

Marta Nowak
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Marii Curie‑Skłodowskiej w Lublinie
20 Józef Andrzej Gierowski and Jacek Staszewski – letter talks conversations by scholars about Saxon times
Stanisław Roszak , Agnieszka Wieczorek
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 165-180 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147364
Keywords: Józef Andrzej Gierowski Jacek Staszewski correspondence Saxon times
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Abstract

Correspondence was an essential form of communication in the world of the humanities in the 1960s and 1970s. The letters exchanged between Józef Andrzej Gierowski and Jacek Staszewski exemplify the scholars’ discussion of Saxon times. This collection is at the same time a reflection of the main currents of research on political history and cultural history of the 18th century. Simultaneously, it is a testimony to the struggle of historians with the black legend of the reign of August II and August III.
The article presents the nature of these conversations and the topics discussed by the scholars: an exchange of views on resources in European archives, the reigns of August II and August III, a discussion of the Enlightenment, reviews of subsequent monographs and doctoral theses prepared at seminars in Kraków and Toruń. The correspondence between the two scholars is evidence not only of a shared passion, an interest in the Saxon era, neglected for many decades and marked by a black legend, but also of an intellectual exchange between the two humanists, which in time developed into a friendship.
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Authors and Affiliations

Stanisław Roszak
1
ORCID: ORCID
Agnieszka Wieczorek
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika w Toruniu
21 A handful of memories about professor Józef Andrzej Gierowski, not only about academia…
Jan Kopiec
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 181-186 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147365
Keywords: Józef A. Gierowski memories biography
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Abstract

The prolific life of this eminent scholar has confidently aroused interest in his person and aimed at multiplying efforts to benefit from his wisdom and rich experience. Likewise, I also bury in my memory this kind of inner feelings, of which I have accumulated no small number while building a world of historical interest. The name of Professor Józef A. Gierowski had already sunk into my memory several decades ago. I reached for his publications when I had not yet crystallised a clear direction of interest. Nevertheless, I persistently reached for his texts to “taste” the problems of the 17th and 18th centuries.
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Authors and Affiliations

Jan Kopiec
1
  1. Uniwersytet Opolski
22 Recollections of a seminar by professor Józef Andrzej Gierowski 1965–1967
Kazimierz Przyboś
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 187-191 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147366
Keywords: Józef Andrzej Gierowski memories Jagiellonian University
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Abstract

The following paper presents recollections of a seminar by Professor Józef Andrzej Gierowski 1965–1967 by Kazimierz Przyboś.
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Authors and Affiliations

Kazimierz Przyboś
1
  1. Uniwersytet Jagielloński
23 Saxon era in the 20th century historical studies (from Władysław Konopczyński to Jacek Staszewski)
Jerzy Dygdała
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 193-210 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147367
Keywords: 20th century Polish historiography Saxon era political history Władysław Konopczyński Emanuel Rostworowski Jerzy Michalski Józef Andrzej Gierowski Jacek Staszewski
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Abstract

The article discusses the development of studies on the epoch of the Polish‑Saxon Union (1697– 1763) in the 20th century (until 1990). Particular attention has been paid to the works of Władysław Konopczyński and his students (including Józef Feldman, Emanuel Rostworowski, Jerzy Michalski, Józef Andrzej Gierowski), as well as Mieczysław Skibiński and Jacek Stas-zewski. An attempt was made to identify the conditions influencing academic interest in the Saxon era, the gradual changes in research topics and their effects, and the varying intensity of this research. It was emphasised that they were largely concerned with political history.
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Authors and Affiliations

Jerzy Dygdała
1
  1. Instytut Historii im. Tadeusza Manteuffla PAN
24 Badania nad parlamentaryzmem Rzeczypospolitej Obojga Narodów w dorobku Józefa Andrzeja Gierowskiego
Michał Zwierzykowski
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 211-224 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147368
Keywords: Józef Andrzej Gierowski parliamentarism Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth sejm sejmiki
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Abstract

The present text is the first attempt in historiography to evaluate the scientific output of Józef Andrzej Gierowski from the perspective of research into the parliamentarism of the Polish-‑Lithuanian Commonwealth. Out of the 482 publications written by him between 1946 and 2006, 20 were selected which were directly or significantly devoted to parliamentarism. The influence of Gierowski's on the study of parliamentarism was not limited to publications, but included the shaping of successive generations of historians of political history and political systems (including parliamentarism), through the promotion of master's and doctoral theses and numerous reviews in promotion proceedings and publishing procedures. A key role in promoting the results of his own research, as well as his profound reflections on the function-ing of parliamentarism, its role in the former Republic, and its significance on against the backdropground of the processes of change of the political systems of Europe at that time, is occupied by the extremely widely read syntheses of Polish history by Gierowski. He should therefore be regarded as one of the key figures in the field of research into Polish‑Lithuanian parliamentarism.
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Authors and Affiliations

Michał Zwierzykowski
1
ORCID: ORCID
  1. Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
25 Józef Andrzej Gierowski’s contributions to the study of Saxon times. Prospects for the future
Jarosław Porazinski
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 225-234 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147369
Keywords: Józef Andrzej Gierowski Saxon times paradigm Augustus II the Strong Augustus III of Poland
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Abstract

The main purpose of the article is to present the achievements of J.A. Gierowski in his research into the Saxon times, i.e., the period of the reigns of August II and August III Wettin in the Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth (1697‑1763). For a long time, this period was assessed negatively in historiography. There was a widespread view that both for the Polish‑Lithuanian state and for Saxony, those years meant decline and catastrophe. Gierowski, who began his scientific work after World War II, carefully analysing Polish and German archival sources, created his own paradigm of research on Saxon times. After rejecting extreme assessments, Gierowski focused on the following elements of this paradigm: 1. the problem of internal reforms 2. a general assessment of the importance of the Polish‑Saxon union and its conse-quences 3. the problem of the place in Europe, i.e., diplomatic activity, and 4. the economic and social situation combined by the “one‑person rulers” of states. This model of research proce-dure has been accepted by historians.
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Authors and Affiliations

Jarosław Porazinski
1
  1. Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika w Toruniu
26 The enlightenment in Józef Andrzej Gierowski’s syntheses of the history of the polish-lithuanian commonwealth (against the background of the views of Władysław Konopczyński snd Celina Bobińska)
Richard Butterwick
Historyka Studia Metodologiczne | 2023 | tom 53 | 235-247 | DOI: 10.24425/hsm.2023.147370
Keywords: Józef Andrzej Gierowski Enlightenment synthesis Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth historiography
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Abstract

The Enlightenment occupied an important place in the oeuvre of Professor Józef Andrzej Gierowski. This piece presents his evolving views on the Enlightenment in three syntheses of the history of early modern Poland and the Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth: two university textbooks first published in 1967 and 1978 respectively, and a book addressed to a wider, non‑academic readership first published in 2001, much of which was presented to Anglophone readers in 1996. J. A. Gierowski’s views are presented against the background of the sardonic references to “the enlightened age” and “enlightened Europe” in the synthesis published by his supervisor, Władysław Konopczyński in 1936, as well as the Marxist‑Leninist scheme of the Enlightenment forced on historiography and the humanities in postwar Poland, especially by Celina Bobińska. J. A. Gierowski’s view of “the ideology of the Enlightenment” gradually shifted from the primacy of rationalist and materialist thinking to the aim of the pursuit of happi-ness within human society. While still emphasising economic and social factors, including the role of the bourgeoisie in the Dutch Republic, England and France, he increasingly distanced himself from the model of the Enlightenment as the ideology of the rising bourgeoisie, forced on him in the early stages of his academic career. After long reflection on the question of the reception and originality of the Enlightenment in the Commonwealth, he came to appreciate the contributions of Royal Prussian burghers, the Catholic clergy and the Polish‑Lithuanian nobility. He also jettisoned the postwar dogma that the beginning of the capitalist order in Poland should be dated to 1764.
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Authors and Affiliations

Richard Butterwick