Stosunek polskich elit do prawa francuskiego po upadku Napoleona – zarys problemu
The attitude of Polish elites toward the French law after the fall of Napoleon: an outline of the problem

Summary/Abstract: The focus of our research is on the argumentation applied by this part of the Polish intellectual and legal elites, which took it upon itself to defend the French law in force on Polish territories in the most difficult moment, immediately following the collapse of the Duchy of Warsaw. On the eve of establishment of the Kingdom of Poland, the further fate of Napoleonic Code and of its accompanying French codes seemed set in stone. The new ruling elites, headed by Prince Adam Jerzy Czartoryski, secured the approval of tsar Alexander to abrogate the laws in place as quickly as possible. The prevailing atmosphere of hostility toward all things French and revolutionary left no illusions as to the further fate of Napoleonic codes and, moreover, made it difficult for anyone to defend this codifi cation openly, as it was deemed foreign to Polish customs and traditions. The proposal to retain it could not withstand the confrontation with the catchy idea of replacing it with a national codification. How was this situation faced by such outstanding lawyers as Antoni Bieńkowski, Jan Wincenty Bandtkie or Antoni Wyczechowski, who on the one hand appreciated the quality, modernity and universality of French codes, as well as the fact that the process of their adaptation on the Polish territories had been bringing some effects over the recent years, and who on the other hand noticed the lack of alternatives to the difficulties posed by creating a similar work referring to the heritage of Polish legal culture?

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