Western Institute
Encyclopedia
The Western Institute in Poznań
(Polish: Instytut Zachodni, German West-Institut, French: L'Institut Occidental) is a scientific research society focusing on the Western provinces of Poland
- Kresy Zachodnie
(including Greater Poland
, Silesia
, Pomerania
), history, economy and politics of Germany
, and the Polish-German relations in history and today.
Established by professor Zygmunt Wojciechowski
in 1944 in Warsaw
, since 1945 based in Poznań
. There were branches in Warsaw (1945–53), Wrocław (1948–49) and scientific posts in Kraków
and Olsztyn
.
Full name: Instytut Zachodni. Instytut Naukowo-Badawczy im. Zygmunta Wojciechowskiego w Poznaniu
has been criticised by German-American historian Richard Blanke as having anti-German bias
Other criticism of work from this period have included allegations of propaganda and dullness while admitting that the Institute produced "some good works on political sciences and legal systems"
German historian Gregor Thum
has written that the premise of the research concept of the Western Institute in the first decades was the idea of an eternal German-Polish antagonism and thus the Institute's research, like its German counterpart, the Ostforschung
, was based on explicit political objectives, active support of the territorial claims of the state and the distribution of research results by popular science.
After the fall of communism, the Institute has been one of the leading institutions in joint Polish-German scholarship and cooperation.
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
(Polish: Instytut Zachodni, German West-Institut, French: L'Institut Occidental) is a scientific research society focusing on the Western provinces of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
- Kresy Zachodnie
Kresy Zachodnie
Kresy Zachodnie is a term used by Poles, mostly in a historical context, to refer to the western parts of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth that in the partitions were annexed by Prussia...
(including Greater Poland
Greater Poland
Greater Poland or Great Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska is a historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief city is Poznań.The boundaries of Greater Poland have varied somewhat throughout history...
, Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
, Pomerania
Pomerania
Pomerania is a historical region on the south shore of the Baltic Sea. Divided between Germany and Poland, it stretches roughly from the Recknitz River near Stralsund in the West, via the Oder River delta near Szczecin, to the mouth of the Vistula River near Gdańsk in the East...
), history, economy and politics of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and the Polish-German relations in history and today.
Established by professor Zygmunt Wojciechowski
Zygmunt Wojciechowski
Zygmunt Wojciechowski was a Polish historianand nationalist politician, active in the Second Polish Republic. During the Occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany he was a member of the Polish underground...
in 1944 in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, since 1945 based in Poznań
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
. There were branches in Warsaw (1945–53), Wrocław (1948–49) and scientific posts in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
and Olsztyn
Olsztyn
Olsztyn is a city in northeastern Poland, on the Łyna River. Olsztyn has been the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999. It was previously in the Olsztyn Voivodeship...
.
Full name: Instytut Zachodni. Instytut Naukowo-Badawczy im. Zygmunta Wojciechowskiego w Poznaniu
History
The Western Institute was founded in 1944 and became the flagship of the Polish Research of the West.Mission
The mission of the Institute is to conduct research projects within fields of political science, sociology, history, economics and law-especially focusing on Polish-German issues as well as European politics. It has been founded by a group of Poznań University professor in 1944, and incorporated with Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1992Praise
Professor Władysław Bartoszewski, Polish survivor of Auschwitz, and renown figure of Polish-Jewish and Polish-German reconciliation praised the work of the institute:I often used the archives of the Western Institute, when writing my works on the Nazi terror. They reliably researched Nazi atrocities. The series "Documenta Occupationis"-a collection of original documents concerning German policy in occupied Poland is a canon position. Many American, Israeli and German scholars use them to this day without reservations. They are part of scholarly literature and this is the greatest contribution of the Institute during its early years of existenceCriticism
The work of the Institute carried out while Poland was a communist countryPeople's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
has been criticised by German-American historian Richard Blanke as having anti-German bias
Other criticism of work from this period have included allegations of propaganda and dullness while admitting that the Institute produced "some good works on political sciences and legal systems"
German historian Gregor Thum
Gregor Thum
Gregor Thum is a German historian of Central and Eastern Europe.From 1988 through 1995, Thum studied history and Slavic studies at the Free University of Berlin. From 1995 to 2001, he was a lecturer at professor Karl Schlögel's chair for East European history at Viadrina European University in...
has written that the premise of the research concept of the Western Institute in the first decades was the idea of an eternal German-Polish antagonism and thus the Institute's research, like its German counterpart, the Ostforschung
Ostforschung
Ostforschung in general describes since the 18th century any German research of areas to the East of Germany. Since the 1990s, the Ostforschung itself is a subject of historic research, while the names of institutes etc. were changed to more specific ones. For example, the journal „Zeitschrift für...
, was based on explicit political objectives, active support of the territorial claims of the state and the distribution of research results by popular science.
After the fall of communism, the Institute has been one of the leading institutions in joint Polish-German scholarship and cooperation.
The directors
- 1945-1955 - prof. Zygmunt WojciechowskiZygmunt WojciechowskiZygmunt Wojciechowski was a Polish historianand nationalist politician, active in the Second Polish Republic. During the Occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany he was a member of the Polish underground...
- 1956-1958 - prof. Kazimierz PiwarskiKazimierz PiwarskiKazimierz Piwarski was a Polish historian, professor of Jagiellonian University in Kraków since 1946 and Poznań University in years 1953-1955, member of Polish Academy of Skills since 1945, and member of Polish Academy of Sciences since 1958.He researched in the history of the Polish provinces...
- 1959-1961 - prof. Gerard LabudaGerard LabudaGerard Labuda was a Polish historian whose main fields of interest were the Middle Ages and the Western Slavs. He was born in what became the Polish Corridor after World War I...
- 1961-1964 - prof. Michał SczanieckiMichal SczanieckiMichał Sczaniecki was a Polish historian of state and law, especially of Poland and France; professor of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań from 1951 to 1965, and director of the Western Institute in Poznań from 1961 to 1964, later professor at Warsaw University.Publications:* Powszechna...
- 1964-1965 - prof. Zdzisław KaczmarczykZdzislaw KaczmarczykZdzisław Kaczmarczyk was a Polish historian and director of the Western Institute in Poznań from 1964 to 1965....
- 1966-1973 - prof. Władysław MarkiewiczWladyslaw MarkiewiczWładysław Markiewicz is a Polish sociologist; professor of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań since 1966, and Warsaw University since 1972, director of the Western Institute in Poznań in years 1966-1973, member of Polish Academy of Sciences since 1972.He was a secretary of the Social Sciences...
- 1974-1978 - prof. Lech TrzeciakowskiLech TrzeciakowskiLech Trzeciakowski is a Polish historian who served as director of the Western Institute in Poznań from 1974 to 1978.-Selected publications:...
- 1978-1990 - prof. Antoni CzubińskiAntoni CzubinskiAntoni Czubiński was a Polish historian and director of the Western Institute in Poznań from 1978 to 1990....
- 1990-2004 - prof. Anna Wolff-PowęskaAnna Wolff-PoweskaAnna Wolff-Powęska is a Polish historian and political scientist specialising in Polish-German relations. She was the director of the Western Institute in Poznań from 1990 to 2004....
- since 2004 - prof. Andrzej SaksonAndrzej SaksonAndrzej Sakson is a Polish sociologist and historian. Since 2004 he has been the director of the Western Institute in Poznań....
Main publications
- The Western Review (Przegląd Zachodni)
- Polish Western Affairs
- La Pologne et les Affaires Occidentales
External links
- http://www.iz.poznan.pl/ Instytut Zachodni official site (in English and Polish)