Niesiołowski-Spano, Łukasz(Taylor & Francis Group, 2015)
The aim of the paper is to review the value and usefulness of the ethnic-markers of ancient societies, based on the assumption that certain populations practice certain eating and drinking habits. In other words, the conviction that some food and drink habits may be used as reliable tools for determining the ethnicities of ancient societies will be questioned. This argument is applied to the case of the Philistines, a population of Aegean or Aegeo- Anatolian origin, who settled in Palestine in the early twelfth century BCE....
Grand Duchy of Lithuania lost strategical points in frontier zone (Smolensk, Polotsk), as a result of wars against Russia, which were waged in XVI century. These yields showed the direction of Moscow’s expansion, toward Baltic Sea. Stefan Batory’s campaigns let the Commonwealth to regain Polotsk Province and Livonia. In the period of so-called Dymitriady Polish-Lithuanian state exploited the Moscow’s difficult position, taking Smolensk (1611) and, thanks to Deulino truce, lands of Smolensk, Chernigov and Seversk. Moscow was unable to regain its lost territories in the time of war, waged in 1632–34 and only after thirteen years war (1654–67) took contested lands. Besides them, Russia won Left Bank Ukraine with Kiev (Andrusovo Treaty, January 1667), what was confirmed in peace treaty in 1686. The Commonwealth lost the rivalry with Russia in that part of Europe, since it was not able to conduct more active policy in the East, because of the King John III Sobieski’s engagement in conflict with Ottoman Turkey together with the Holy League....
One of the main purposes of historical education at post-secondary school is to present to students history of Europe understood as a common civilisation. According to their opinion, the fact thatKievan Rus’ had received the Christian faith from Byzantium—in contrast to its western and northern neighbours—made the country enter the circle of Eastern Christianity. At the same time the authors present their opinion that the formal cleavage of Christian civilisation took place only in the 11th century, and a civilizational separation of Kievan Rus’ was forced by the Mongol invasion in the 13th century. As a result, the culture of the Grand Duchy of Moscow—and its successor, Russia—differed immensely and was isolated from Europe. Russia preserved its specificity both after the reforms of Peter the Great and in the 19th century, when it was a great European power playing a key role in the political arena of contemporary Europe....
This is a paper presented at the meeting organized at Paris in 2012 to commemorate the 50 years of activity of the Center of Polish Culture at Sorbonne. The Center was organized by Bronislaw Geremek, an eminent Polish historian who played an important political role in the anti-communist movement many years later, and who became the Minister of Foreign Aff airs after the communism. Both Universities established the Center to facilitate contacts of Polish and French social scientists, difficult at the time of communism. The Polish communist government encouraged this endeavour to smooth the contacts with France, which seemed more independent from the United States than other Western countries. Polish social scientists used this political conjuncture to built contacts with their French colleagues, especially from the “Annales” school. Fernand Braudel wanted to know the Marxist historians
from the East and he appreciated the Polish historical school. The Poles seemed him more reasonable than Marxists from most other communist countries. Quai d’Orsay looked with relative optimism to changes in Poland after 1956, so they facilitated the implementation of Braudel’s ideas. Most probably, Warsaw University was the unique University in the Eastern bloc to have such a center in Paris already in 1962.
After the fall of communism the Polish-French contacts are not as important for Polish social scientists as they were before—for the simple reason that the contacts with most other countries are easy today. Let’s hope nevertheless that the Polish French common programs will continue....
Kołodziejczyk, Dariusz(Oficyna Wydawnicza Związku Karaimów Polskich, 2014)
Autor wspomina swoje kontakty z Zygmuntem Abrahamowiczem, nieżyjącym już znanym polskim turkologiem pochodzenia karaimskiego. Oprócz katalogu osmańskich dokumentów znajdujących się w polskich archiwach, Abrahamowicz wydał kilka osmańskich i krymskich tekstów historycznych, opatrując je bogatymi przypisami. Był on nie tylko znakomitym językoznawcą, lecz także historykiem. Wysunął, na przykład, nader przekonującą tezę, iż w 1683 r. Wielki Wezyr kara Mustafa nie zamierzał wziąć Wiednia szturmem, lecz miał nadzieję na poddanie miasta przez jego obrońców. Taka kapitulacja spowodowałaby, że łupy ze zdobytego miasta trafiłyby do sułtańskiego skarbca, podczas gdy w wypadku zdobycia miasta szturmem zostałyby przechwycone przez żołnierzy.... The author recalls his contacts with Zygmunt Abrahamowicz, the late,eminent Polish Turkologist of Karaite origin. In addition to the catalogue of Ottoman documents held in the Polish archives, Abrahamowicz edited several Ottoman and Crimean historical texts, providing them with rich annotations. He was not only a distinguished linguist, but also a historian. For instance, he formulated the highly persuasive hypothesis that, in 1683, Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa had not intended to take Vienna by general assault, as he was hoping instead for the capitulation of the besieged garrison there. Such a capitulation would have ensured that the spoils to be found in Vienna would have been guaranteed for the Ottoman treasury whereas in a general assault they would have been captured by the soldiers....
Szlanta, Piotr(Freie Universität Berlin, 2014-10-08)
This paper presents the process of building an independent Polish state during the First World War, which, from the Polish perspective, was the most important result of this conflict. The article focuses mainly on the political and military developments in the Polish territories between 1914 and 1921. These include the internationalization of the Polish question, Polish political and military activity, occupation regimes in the Polish territories, the collapse of foreign authorities in Poland, the establishment of Polish political institutions, and Polish social and cultural life....
Michałowska-Mycielska, Anna(Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika w Toruniu, 2014)
The Seym of Lithuanian Jews (Hebrew: waad medinat Lita) was established in 1623 by breaking away from the Jewish seym called the Council of the Four Lands (created about 1580). The main reason for the division of the institution was the dualism of the Crown treasury and Lithuania (Lithuanian Jews were answerable to the Lithuanian treasurer [podskarbi]). The scope of the activity of the Seym of Lithuanian Jews was very broad. Apart from the distribution and collection of taxes, the seym settled all problems important for Jews, which included administrative, economic, religious and social questions. It also regulated issues connected with contacts with non-Jewish institutions and the Christian population. The Lithuanian Waad, like its counterpart in the Polish Kingdom, was dissolved at the convocation seym of 1764 as part of administrative and financial reforms.... Sejm Żydów Litewskich (hebr. waad medinat Lita) został utworzony w 1623 roku przez usamodzielnienie się od sejmu żydowskiego zwanego Sejmem Czterech Ziem (powstałego około 1580). Głównym powodem wyodrębnienia się tej instytucji był dualizm skarbowości Korony i Litwy, przy którym Żydzi litewscy w naturalny sposób podlegali podskarbiemu litewskiemu. Zakres działalności Sejmu Żydów Litewskich był bardzo szeroki. Oprócz rozkładu i poboru podatków państwowych sejm regulował wszystkie istotne dla Żydów kwestie (administracyjne, gospodarcze, religijne, społeczne), a także kwestie kontaktów z instytucjami nieżydowskimi i ludnością chrześcijańską. Waad litewski, podobnie jak koronny, został rozwiązany w czasie sejmu konwokacyjnego 1764, w ramach reform administracyjno-skarbowych.... Das Parlament (der Sejm) der Litauischen Juden (Hebräisch waad medinat Lita) entstand 1623 durch die Teilung des jüdischen Parlaments, dem sog. Sejm der Vier Länder (gegründet um 1580). Der Hauptgrund für die Ausgliederung der Institution war der Dualismus des Finanzwesens von Polen und Litauen, die litauischen Juden unterstanden traditionell dem litauischen Schatzmeister (Pol. podskarbi). Der Zuständigkeitsbereich des Sejms der Litauischen Juden war sehr breit. Neben der Erhebung und Verteilung der staatlichen Steuern war der Sejm für alle für die Juden relevanten Fragen (administrative, wirtschaft liche, religiöse und soziale) zuständig sowie für die Kontakte mit nicht-jüdischen Institutionen und der christlichen Bevölkerung. Ebenso wie in Polen wurde auch der Litauische Vaad während des Konvokationssejms 1764 aufgelöst, im Rahmen der Verwaltungs- und Steuerreform....