„A forgotten” Grand Duchy of Lithuania – some critical remarks about the regress of the term in Polish historiography of the 19th and 20th c.

Abstract

It seems pondering on, of the 19th and 20th c. Polish historiography since the times of its creator Joachim Lelewel, that a term Grand Duchy of Lithuania occurs very rarely in the majority of popular outlines of the history of the ancient Commonwealth (Rzeczpospolita – the Republic). It emerges mostly in the context of discussions concerning particular issues of the subsequent Polish-Lithuanian unions: at Krewo (1385), in Vilna-Radom (1401), Horodlo (1413), Grodno (1432), Vilna (1499), Mielnik (1501), and finally of the Lublin union (1569). Even the establishing of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth after the concluding of the so called ,,real” and final union at Lublin, was not mentioned and reflected in Polish historiography as an ultimate change of the character of the state, but rather as an enlargement of Polish elite influence on the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which much earlier was already united with the Crown (or even incorporated to the Crown) through a dynastic union.
Meaningful and visible tendency is resignation from using the term Grand Duchy of Lithuania, as well as of the term Commonwealth of Both Nations, and replacing it by a simple denomination Poland as a core. Therefore there is no purpose to look for any synthesis entitled a history of the first Commonwealth or a history of the ancient Commonwealth. Everywhere and every time other titles are requested in various modified versions: A History of Poland, An Outline of the History of Poland, the Polish History etc. Of course it has its own historical and serious justification concerning the pre Jagiellonian period, at least till the concluding of the Krewo union. But for the Jagiellon dynasty’ times and the period of the Commonwealth of Both Nations the resignation of this term seems very symptomatic and meaningful. Why the authors resigned of using the fruitful idea of the Commonwealth of Both Nations, in fact of many nations, the idea which in large scope although in a different manner was and is still used in many historic narratives, i.e. in English tradition of the British Commonwealth, as well as in Russian and Soviet tradition in a shape of its Pan-Slavic idea, as for example in the concept of the brotherhood of nations of the former USSR? Why no one dares to write The History of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth? Such an attempt was already undertaken few years ago by professor Jerzy Kłoczowski in his Institute of East Central Europe in Lublin. It resulted in preparing the national histories of Poland, Lithuania, Belarus and Ukraine, written by historians of those nations. But a common synthesis was not achieved.
The question is: neither any one, nor no one of historical milieu of the countries which carry on a burden of the history of common state, do not dare to represent the ancient idea of the Commonwealth? Shall we write only and exclusively national narratives?
Grand Duchy of Lithuania is not displayed as a title of none of Polish language synthesis of the history of the first Republic (pierwsza Rzeczpospolita). There is only one exception – Pawel Jasienica and his popular trilogy: Piast Poland (18 editions in 1960–2012, including 2 in English), Jagiellonian Poland (18 editions, including two in English translation), Calamity of the Realm – Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów – The Commonwealth of Both Nations (31 editions including two in English translation). But even Jasienica did not entitled none of his books a history of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
In popular Polish language dictionaries since the first compiled by Samuel Bogumil Linde, we can not find the entry Grand Duchy of Lithuania, however the entry Lithuania emerges very often. In quite popular Encyklopedia staropolska of Zygmunt Gloger there is no trace of the entry: Grand Duchy of Lithuania, nor Lithuania. In Encyklopedia staropolska of Alexander Brückner there is no article on Grand Duchy, but there is a large text on Lithuania.
Similar situation is in the Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland (Słownik geoficzny Królestwa Polskiego) where one can not find the entry Grand Duchy, but the article on Lithuania seems very significant.
In the latest Polish encyclopedias i.e. in the forth volume Encyklopedia Powszechna, published in 1980s we have the title Grand Duchy of Lithuania, but only with a paginal reference to the entry Lithuania. In the most popular one volume encyclopedia of 1960s - Encyklopedia Powszechna PWN, edited by professor Bogdan Suchodolski, there is no entry about Grand Duchy. On the other hand in the 20th volume encyclopedia of Gazeta Wyborcza and the Printing House PWN, published at the beginning of the 21st century, the entry about Grand Duchy of Lithuania is included, but it occupies less place than the neighboring article about the Grand Duchy of Poznan.
In this article author tries to answer the questions why such situation happened in Polish historiography in the 19th and 20th c.? What were the reasons of this phenomenon? And what kind of historic narratives concerning Polish or Commonwealth nations in spe were in the focus of this historiography? Is a presentation of the history of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth possible only through the national issue, and exclusively from the contemporary point of view, and a present division on the statehoods? The text might give some answers for those questions.