The Upper Silesia as the region of many borders - historian remarks Cover Image

Górny Śląsk jako region wielu granic - uwagi historyka
The Upper Silesia as the region of many borders - historian remarks

Author(s): Zygmunt Woźniczka
Subject(s): History
Published by: Instytut Nauk o Kulturze i Studiów Interdyscyplinarnych - Wydział Filologiczny - Uniwersytet Śląski
Keywords: Upper Silesia; borders; nation; Poland; Germany; borderland

Summary/Abstract: The Essay The Upper Silesia as the region of many borders - historian remarks was trying to present a lot intriguing aspects of the borders involved with Silesian area and Silesian culture. The Author has assumed, that it is possible understanding the border in the Silesian area as state boundary, national and cultural. The Upper Silesia was an area, where developed by political and cultural borders. There hybridized proceeds of the Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland; but it is very important to notice, that political borders do not always coincide with the cultural and national. Especially, it was noticeable during the interwar, where the Upper Silesia was rived between Germany and Poland and Czechoslovakia (Zaolzie). However, still lived here Polish, German, Czechs and Jews. These diversity of culture or nation we can observe e.g in Bielsko - there was known German Theatre, Opera and typical German Gymnasium. Diversity of culture and these borders was caused by diversity of areas in the Silesia ground. The Second world war prompted these processes and gave them often dramatic dimension; the Upper Silesia people often has performed active both on the Polish side or in the German. So far, the whole area of Upper Silesia was under the Third Reich. Nearly the German dominance statehood; there has been the crucial point of dominance not only Germans but also German culture at all. As the result, author has confirmed, that Silesians were forced to adopt German nationality list, what the most means the entail a decided to Wermacht. It brought a prohibition of not spoke polish in this area; and later destroyed introduced intelligent. The Upper Silesia was within the limits of the Third Reich, but it does not matter that lived here only German themselves; as well as the official factors. In fact, the Upper Silesia expect the Zaolzie has become a part of Poland and no longer was not be a ground limit in the public sense. Nevertheless, as author has convinced - there remained the national and cultural borders because of the system population of war maintained with slight modifications. In the end, author has resumed - The Upper Silesia in its history was a region, where the spaces capable of the state border, national and cultural, also frequently border more scope than a region.

  • Issue Year: 2010
  • Issue No: 14-15
  • Page Range: 56-65
  • Page Count: 10
  • Language: Polish