Powstanie Wielkopolskie na tle polskich powstań narodowych (z perspektywy 90-lecia)
The Greater Poland Uprising against the Backdrop of Polish National Uprisings (From the Perspective of Its 90th Anniversary)

Summary/Abstract: Among the Polish uprisings the ones most often mentioned include: the Kościuszko uprising, five Greater Poland uprisings, the November uprising, the Cracow uprising of 1846, the January uprising, the three Silesian uprisings and the Warsaw uprising. The question that is asked in connection with each of them is whether it was necessary and whether it broke out at the right moment. For obvious reasons only one of them does not raise such doubts: the Greater Poland uprising of 1918_1919. The citizens of Greater Poland took part in Polish armed insurrections beginning with the Kościuszko uprising, and also played a significant role in the service of the nation in the sphere of culture, saving from destruction invaluable relics of the past and organizing great scientific libraries that exist until today. Their way to the uprising was long and lasted 124 years (1794-1918), from participation in the first Polish national insurrection up to a formal end of the armed struggle after the First World War. During the time of Germanization conducted by increasingly ruthless methods – following a reactivation of the Reich under the aegis of Prussia – the Polish society in the Poznan´ Province was hardened and prepared to defend itself. Poles had gained a thorough knowledge of the methods of the enemy, tried to avail themselves of the official German legalism and also used propaganda to influence attitudes in Europe. On account of all these factors the cause of regaining independence towards the end of the war did not come as a surprise.

• Details
• Contents