Works of 16th-century Paduan law professors, philosophers and philologists in the collection of the Jagiellonian Library and their provenance

In the introductory part of the article, the authors emphasize the role played by one of the most famous centers of European thought in the Renaissance – University of Padua. They describe the scientific profiles of its six distinguished professors – lawyers, philosophers and philologists: Carlo Sigonio, Francesco Robortello, Jacopo Zabare lla, Marco Mantova Benavides, Antonio Riccoboni and Guido Panciroli. Since the 30s of the 16th century, period of the most extensive contacts between Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Padua school was recorded, where many of its prominent citizens’ so ns continued their studies. The authors discuss the course of their studies, the role they played among numerous international youth, their exercised dignities, and, above all, the degrees achieved. Personal contacts with the Paduan professors, fascination with their knowledge and the scientific atmosphere of then Italy, contributed to the deepening of Polish – Italian scientific contacts. One of their effects was the acquisition of the latest  works of the Paduan scholars, which were brought by the Poles to t heir homeland. Most of them over the years have found their place in the Collegium Maius library of the Cracow Academy. Various routes of this transfer were presented in the article on the basis of the archival materials studied at the Archivio Antico in Padua, the extensive foreign and  olish bibliography, but above all in the rich collections of old prints of the Jagiellonian Library, which took over the collections of the Collegium Maius library. The article has been enriched with six illustrations of the works of the Paduan scholars.

The Bohemian State During the Thirty Years War

The article describes the uprising of the Bohemian Protestant Estates (1618–1620) against the Habsburg Emperor Ferdinand II. and the political developments in Bohemian lands up to the end of Thirty Years War in 1648. The aim of the article is to show the transformation of the Bohemian state from an estate monarchy into an absolute monarchy ruled by the Emperor-King. This process was possible due to the victory of Ferdinand II. over the rebellious Bohemian Protestant estates in the Battle at the White Mountain at the outskirts of Prague on 8 November 1620. After the suppression of the uprising the participants were severely punished, their property confiscated and the political significance of the estates severely curtailed. The victory of the army of Ferdinand II also meant a victory of Catholicism. Protestant nobles and burgers had to convert to Catholicism or to leave the country. In the classical Czech historical discourse the battle at the White Mountain is considered to be the end of the Bohemian independence. The article shows that in reality it was not exactly so: the royal absolutism imposed by Ferdinand II after White Mountain completely changed the political nature of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown, but, on the other hand, the Habsburgs still ruled the country only as the kings of Bohemia, just like before 1618, e.g. before the estate uprising.

Origins of the ethnic conflicts in Cyprus

Numerous studies of the so-called “Cyprus problem” are devoted mainly to particular phases of the conflict, especially the period from 1958 to 1960, the activities of the EOKA, the period 1960–1964, the problems of the newly created republic and the 1974 division of Cyprus. Only rarely do we find references to the earlier history of Cyprus and there are still only few objective academic papers showing the genesis of the conflict.

The article presents the origins of ethnic conflicts of Cyprus, discussing the theories of the origin of the island’s first inhabitants, and the arrival of numerous Muslims on the island after the Turkish conquest in the 16th century. During the next three centuries, regardless of the subsequent developments, peaceful coexistence and fruitful cooperation of  oth communities – Christians and Muslims – are an authentic historical event and are not subject to any doubts. The situation began to change after the begining of the so-called “Cultural war” caused by, among others things, by spreading the idea of Great Greece. The takeover of Cyprus by the British in 1878 only strengthened the hopes of the Greek Cypriots of joining the island to Mother Greece, which resulted in the rise of nationalist feelings, both among Greek and Turkish Cypriots, and eventially led to the outbreak of the first ethnic conflicts in 1912.

Slovenian Opinion on the Situation of Poles in the Prussian Partition in the Second Half of the 19th Century

In the years of the 1848–1849 revolution, apart from the Galician theme, the attention of liberal Slovenian activists was also focused on the situation and events in Poznan. The reason for these interests is not difficult to understand, as it was the Poles had to face the common enemy there, meaning German nationalism. In the following decades, as  the Germanization pressure intensified, this interest grew, turning into solidarity and open support for the national struggle of Poles. With the advent of the constitutional era, when two concepts of the organization of the Habsburg monarchy clashed together: federalist and centralist, Slovenes and Poles found themselves in the federalist camp.  Slovenians, whose position, as a so-called “unhistorical” nation, was definitely weaker, they tried to benefit from the political experience of Poles and, in some actions, follow their example. During the January Uprising, the main attention of the Slovenes focused on the attitude of the Prussian government to the Polish uprising and the related international implications. Nevertheless, the Slovenians continued to solidarize themselves with the nationalist struggle of Poles in Poznan, which, as it was stressed, was the link of a common Slavic cause, that is, resistance to the Germanic pressure. In the face of the rise of the German threat after 1866, the fate of Poles in the Prussian partition was an instructive example for the Slovenes and a warning about what they could expect from the Germans. Therefore, Slovenian activists, following the events in Poznan, tried to draw conclusions that can help them in their own national struggle. The struggle against the Catholic Church in Poznan, which intensified as part of Kulturkampfu, occupied a leading position among the reports of Slovenian newspapers and magazines. Both “Slovenski narod” and “Slovenec” wrote about the great police action, revisions and arrests carried out by the authorities.

During the fourteen-year rule of Eduard Taaffe (1879–1893), when the Poles and Slovenes were on the side of the majority government, the struggle of the Poles against the German pressure in the Prussian partition enjoyed constant support and recognition of the Slovenian opinion. The relentless attitude of Poles, and especially the activities of  Polish deputies in the Prussian and German parliaments, was often set as an example worth imitating not only Slovenian, but also served as a weighty argument in criticizing the policy of the Polish Circle in the Austrian State Council.

The article aims to show political realism not in the deformed framework in which his opponents – political romantics – present it, but as a universal typological category. Pietism in relation to reality forces the realists to postulate a sparse, non-military policy focused on cooperation. At the same time, it demands from its representatives that they avoid involvement beyond their own strengths and seek peaceful coexistence with their opponents in political struggles. The considerations also show the reasons why it is unlawful to bind the imperialism of Napoleon, Hitler and Stalin with political realism.

The Development of the Events in Siberia in 1917–1919 and the Place in this Process of the Czechoslovak legion

Siberia occupied a specific position in Russian history. In Tsarist Russia, it was the region with the largest area, however, sparsely populated and poorly understood.

Siberia, however, had the opinion of a region with a tendency to separatism. This was favoured by its geographical location as well as the specificity of its economic development and the way of administering the area.

All these factors created favourable conditions for the emergence of “specific” moods among urban intelligentsia, which in the nineteenth century contributed to the emergence of the Siberian regional movement (“oblastniczestwo”). The Siberian regional movement was created in the 19th century, and its basis formed an idea conditioned by the  specificity of Siberia.

The ideas of the Siberian regional movement, however, did not find much support among the citizens of Siberia and the local intelligentsia. The beginning of the twentieth century brought a revival of the regional movement in Siberia. The events in St. Petersburg in 1917 also activated the Siberian regionalists. The events taking place in the European  part of Russia were a signal to increase the efforts and activities of the Siberian regionalists who at that time became the main promoters of the idea of Siberian autonomy. In October 1917, the postulate of the autonomy of Siberia was formulated during the Siberian Regional Meeting, and in December 1917, the Siberian Circuit Convention adopted a resolution on the creation of temporary administrative bodies, which were to become the Siberian Duma District and the Siberian District Council.

The Bolsheviks’ arrival in power in January 1918 interrupted the activities of the Siberian autonomous authorities. In June 1918, the Bolsheviks were forsaken from the Siberian cities, and the Siberian Provisional Government and the Siberian Duma District came to power. During this period, Czechoslovak legion played an important role in internal  events in Siberia. The legion leaders made contact with the Siberian Provisional Government and representatives of the Siberian Central Duma. In time, legion actively participated in internal political events that continued in Siberia up to 1920.

Golo Mann’s approach to history

The article explores the originality of Golo Mann‘s approach to history. The exeptional position of history in his works is analyzed based on two questions – the affinity between history and literature and the condition of historiography in a democratic system. The main thesis oft he article is showing the important role that history plays in anticipating future (also political) events.

Funeral Texts as a H istorical Source. A Contribution to the Biography of Aleksy Wdziękoński, the Polish Consul in Jerusalem

Funeral texts (obituaries, posthumous memories) are usually of a standard nature and show the deceased in a positive light. For this reason, they are marginalized as a research source. Wrongly, because they convey specific biographical information, such as the date of death and the age of the deceased, the place and time and the nature of the  funeral ceremonies, and sometimes also the profession, circumstances of death, family name and others. The celebration of the last farewells may be an interesting contribution to the figure of the deceased, and in the case of people who have had their place in history, it also illustrates the state of feelings (patriotic, national, religious) of the local  community. It seems that this additional sense, going beyond the usual rite of burial, focused on the funeral ceremony after the death of Aleksy Wdziękoński, the last consul general of the Second Polish Republic in Jerusalem.

Wdziękoński (1892–1946) ran the institution from June 1943 to January 1946. For the last months he acted in an unofficial capacity, as the United Kingdom withdrew recognition of the Polish Government in Exile. His death echoed in the emigration environments in Palestine, and the last farewell of the consul was attended by about 2,000–2,500  people

1947 in Bulgarian-Yugoslav Relations in the Context of Stalin’s Policy and International Situation

The Bulgarian-Yugoslav relations in 1947, built by the Soviet Union, were part of the concept of strengthening Soviet influence in Central and Eastern Europe and in the Balkans. Stalin knew very well about the contacts between Tito and Dimitrov, about their negotiations in Bled and about signing the agreement in Euxinograd, and Stalin knew exactly  and controlled all the actions of the Yugoslav and Bulgarian leaders.

Although the Yugoslav Marshal Josip Broz-Tito, rising to become a main leader in the Balkan region, had a different attitude to many political issues than Stalin, and at the time of a sharpened division into East and West their ideas regarding foreign policy – Balkan – were different. At that time Tito’s foreign policy was a welcome excuse to tighten  Moscow’s cooperation with Yugoslavia and thereby exacerbate Soviet control over other countries, including Bulgaria. An important element of this policy was the creation of the Cominform and opposing the Marshall Plan. To illustrate this thesis, the situation in 1947 was analysed, which concerned the Bulgarian-Yugoslav relations.

The “strategic depth” paradigm implemented by the AKP, in general aimed at strengthening Turkey’s role in the region, is perceived both as clear pragmatism in foreign policy making and a tool for the neo-ottoman expansion. This paper argues that current foreign policy of Turkey towards Albania is reminiscent of the Kemalist foreign policy towards  this country but at the same time it represents a new quality, immanent for the AKP’s perception of international relations. While analyzing Turkey’s influence in the various spheres and the outcomes of Ankara’s foreign policy, this paper seeks to verify the hypothesis that the modern bilateral relations of these two countries shall be perceived rather  both as AKP’s pragmatic stance, with possible neo-Ottoman ambitions playing an important role.

Macedonian language after the collapse of Yugoslavia

This paper describes the linguistic situation in Macedonia since 1991, after the collapse of Yugoslavia. The situation changed after World War II, when Macedonia became a part of Yugoslavia. According to the cultural autonomy principles, on the 2nd of August 1944, Macedonian language acquired the status of literary language and official language  of the Republic of Macedonia. At the time when Macedonia was a part of Yugoslavia, the implementation of various changes, mainly lexical ones, started in Macedonian language. Serbisms were eliminated and replaced with native words in various areas of life. Elements of Serbian language were being removed, while, on the other, due to the  technological advances, more and more Anglicisms began to appear in the language. Globalization, technology development and growing importance of media – all these factors caused substantial growth of internationalisms usage in Macedonian language. Macedonian Language Council (Совет за македонски јазик) in the “Strategy for the Development of Culture in Macedonia in 2012–2017”, presented an action plan, which, under its leadership, it is to be carried out within a specified period. One of its main tasks is to update the spelling – mainly due to appearance of new terminology in computer science, medicine and technology. Observing the trends of the Macedonian language  for the last 20 years, it has been noticed that it is a subject of more general processes similar to those visible in other Slavic languages, however, it also reveals some characteristic phenomena associated with Macedonian language.