Today I read here on Eupedia the article "interesting facts about Poland". I thing that majority of it is quite plausible, but paragraph entitled "Poland, more Germanic or Slavic?" is very radical, hence it can be seen in the comments of excitation by the controversy.
Rhetoric that uses the author is an exact copy of the rhetoric of German nationalists struggling against the facts for propaganda purposes to promote belief in the Germanic origin of original Polish lands. The need to propagate that belief was caused by expansion of kingdom of Prussia to ethnically Polish lands in 18th century - Kingdom of Prussia conquered most of Silesia, Greater Poland and Royal Prussia, parts of Lesser Poland, Mazovia and Podlachia (Partitions of Poland).
It Let's get to the facts:
Map showing Polish-speaking area in Silesia in 18th century:
Here in better quality.
Map showing Polish area in 20th century.
Prussia was also ethnically diverse area, there lived Polish Warmiaks and Masurians.
Pomerania was the most heavily Germanized area in 20th century. But in 17th century Polish language was still in official use in Duchy of Pomerania. In 25.07.1601 nobility from area around Koszalin and Słupsk made homage to the Duke Barnim X. The text of the oath was written in Polish because only three noblemen could speak German. Here is text in Polish.
This description shows situation far from that from article. One third of modern Polish territory belonged to Germany before WWII but not whole this area was ethnically German. If Polish minority in Germany was taken into account, then area ethnically German would drop from one third to one fourth. And certainly this one fourth wasn’t German for longer than the Americas have been colonized by Europeans, but for less than two centuries.
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Rhetoric that uses the author is an exact copy of the rhetoric of German nationalists struggling against the facts for propaganda purposes to promote belief in the Germanic origin of original Polish lands. The need to propagate that belief was caused by expansion of kingdom of Prussia to ethnically Polish lands in 18th century - Kingdom of Prussia conquered most of Silesia, Greater Poland and Royal Prussia, parts of Lesser Poland, Mazovia and Podlachia (Partitions of Poland).
It Let's get to the facts:
Belonging to Germany doesn't mean to be ethnically, culturally and linguistically German. In 18th century about half of Prussian Silesia was inhabited by Poles and about one third in the beginning of XX century. Johann Gottlieb Schummel wrote in "Reise durch Schlesien im Juni und August 1791"(Wrocław 1792) "Let's not start a trial of Silesia with Poles. We will lose him in the tribunal of history, both from low and higher instance"About one third of modern Poland used to be ethnically, culturally and linguistically German.(...)
Pomerania, Prussia and Silesia (...) had been ethnically and culturally German for many centuries (for longer than the Americas have been Colonized by Europeans).
Map showing Polish-speaking area in Silesia in 18th century:
Here in better quality.
Map showing Polish area in 20th century.
Prussia was also ethnically diverse area, there lived Polish Warmiaks and Masurians.
Pomerania was the most heavily Germanized area in 20th century. But in 17th century Polish language was still in official use in Duchy of Pomerania. In 25.07.1601 nobility from area around Koszalin and Słupsk made homage to the Duke Barnim X. The text of the oath was written in Polish because only three noblemen could speak German. Here is text in Polish.
This description shows situation far from that from article. One third of modern Polish territory belonged to Germany before WWII but not whole this area was ethnically German. If Polish minority in Germany was taken into account, then area ethnically German would drop from one third to one fourth. And certainly this one fourth wasn’t German for longer than the Americas have been colonized by Europeans, but for less than two centuries.
Duchy of Prussia was established as vassal of Poland in 1525 and was inherited by Hohenzollerns from Brandenburg in 1618. In 1657 the Treaty of Bromberg (Bydgoszcz) canceled Prussian dependence of Poland. In 1701 Frederic III Elector of Brandenburg made an attempt to raise prestige of its realm by using the name of new gained province Prussia to become the King. So the area after which was named the kingdom which united Germany is not entirely in Poland as it’s seen here:The duchy of Prussia merged with Margraviaviate of Brandenburg (around Berlin in East Germany) to form the Kingdom of Prussia in 1701, which progressively unified Germany and created the Second Riche in 1871. So it can be said that Germany was unified under the name of a historical area (“Prussia”) being now entirely in Poland.
That is new to me, I tried to search for that but no results… Does anybody know anything about that allegiance?Silesia (...) The region swore allegiance to the Holy Roman Emperor in 950 C.E.
I proved it not to be even close to the truth, showing Polish-speaking area in 18th century.Although it had a large ethnic Slav community, the region became predominantly German-speaking during Middles Ages, due to immigration from Germany.
Answering comment by Rasmus:Polish born astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus formulated the first explicitly heliocentric model of the solar system, thus starting the scientific revolution that transform Europe and weaken the dogma of the Catholic Church. Ironically, Poland is nowadays one of the most staunchly Catholic country in Europe.
I have nothing to add to this comment.Ironically
Copernicus could be a bit surprised with the line about his research and the Church as he himself was a clergyman (cannon) within the Catholic Church, (actually very close to become a bishop...), serving it whole his adult life and being supported by the Church since childhood.
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