The reflection of the Polish-Soviet War in the context of the formation of Polish statehood in the works of Yulian Marchlewski and Józef Piłsudski

Abstract

The report considers two approaches in the interpretation of the events of the Soviet-Polish war of 1919–1921. These are the approaches of Polish historians and public figures Józef Piłsudski and Julian Marchlewski. Their view of the war is particularly important and interesting because they were active participants of the events of the war and represented various positions of the new independent Poland.
On the basis of comparative analysis of the biographies of Piłsudski and Marchlewski,their works and methodological approachesin understanding the historical process, the author traces the interconnection of those approaches with socio-political events, contemporaries of which were Polish researchers.
The difficult situation in Poland, that was divided and lost its independence in the 18th century, gave no peace to the Polish people. Regardless the origin, position in society and political views, many Poles sought independence and the revival of their state. On the world map, the independent state of Poland appeared in 1918, however, its emergence coincided with a difficult period, saturated with socio-political events. Heavy consequences of the First World War, a series of revolutions – all this had a huge impact on the mindset of Poles. They sought for new landmarks and new meanings, which sometimes contradicted each other, leading to misunderstandings, civil strife and aggressive foreign policy.