Stagnacja, ewolucja czy rewolucja. Ustrój Polski między 13 grudnia 1981 a 4 czerwca 1989 r. Mity i fakty

The paper concerns the syncretistic, evolutionary nature of political transformation in Po- land prior to the introduction of political plurality in mid-1989. The author refers to the studies published in his books: Wojciech Jaruzelski wobec wyzwañ swoich czasów [Wojciech Jaruzelski and the challenges of his time] (2003) and Los genera3a [The General’s fate] (2008) where he confronts recorded facts with political propaganda. The evolution which eventually led to political plurality occurred in three stages. The first spanned the period ending when martial law was formally revoked after 586 days (on July 22, 1983), the second one was related to the office of Prime Minister that Wojciech Jaruzelski held (until September 25, 1985), and the third stage commenced when he gave up direct supervision of the government and assumed the office of Head of State (which continued to be combined with the actual power he held as 1st secretary of the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers’ Party (KC PZPR)). The last stage was to continue for nearly four years, excluding over 18 months of his presidency, held under completely different conditions. Yet these 18 months were significant for the evolutionary process of the handover of power. Jaruzelski took into consideration the international context, particularly the balance of power in the Kremlin. Real change took place there only after Mikhail Gorbachev assumed power on March 11, 1985. On May 29, 1985 the Polish parliament passed the law on the Constitutional Tribunal, announced three years earlier in an amendment to the Constitution of March 1982. On July 15, 1987 the parliament passed the law on the Defense of Human Rights. The State Tribunal began working at the same time. The first president of Poland after the transformation drew attention to these facts a few years later. The ex-President has become a skilful polemicist and political writer, documenting the peaceful political transformation in Poland after 1980

Zrozumieć współczesność, pod red. Grzegorza Babińskiego, Marii Kupiszewskiej, Oficyna Wydawnicza AFM, Kraków 2009, ss. 648.

Zrozumieć współczesność, pod red. Grzegorza Babińskiego, Marii Kupiszewskiej,Oficyna Wydawnicza AFM, Kraków 2009, ss. 648

Wojciech Jaruzelski, Starsi o 30 lat, Wydawnictwo Adam Marszałek, Toruń 2011, ss. 205.

Wojciech Jaruzelski, Starsi o 30 lat, Wydawnictwo Adam Marszałek, Toruń 2011, ss. 205

John Blundell, Margaret Thatcher. Portret Żelaznej Damy, Wstęp Leszek Balcerowicz, przełożył Piotr Kuś, Wydawnictwo Zysk i S-ka, Poznań 2010, ss. 371 + ilustr.

John Blundell, Margaret Thatcher. Portret Żelaznej Damy, Wstęp Leszek Balcerowicz, przełożył Piotr Kuś, Wydawnictwo Zysk i S-ka, Poznań 2010, ss. 371 + ilustr

Droga na Downing Street. Uwagi nad karierę polityczną Margaret Thatcher

The road of Margaret Thatcher (born in 1925) to her political career and winning the tell- ing nickname of the ‘Iron Lady’ has commonly been described as exceptional in the recent history of the Old Continent. The first woman to head a great European democracy, she served as Prime Minister three times, winning general elections and heading the government of Great Britain for eleven years (1979-1990). This was a record-breaking result in the history of the UK, which she managed, surrounded by a team of consummate coworkers whom she clearly dominated. Thatcher is included in a small circle of the most outstanding statespeople in her country, in particular compared to Winston Churchill. Despite not having aristocratic origins, she won the highest office in the government of Her Majesty Elizabeth II thanks to her talent, diligent work, ambition, and experience gath- ered in the positions she successively held. Her career in the Conservative Party lasted many years. Her vision of transformations in the political system of the state was based on her own experience and the advice of devoted workers, who she selected using her intuition. Her hus- band, Denis Thatcher, played an important role by her side, yet he always remained in the background, providing support and playing the role of a reasonable private advisor. The author emphasizes the high political culture of Margaret Thatcher and her circle, and he also underlines Polish elements in her policy. He pays a lot of attention to her excellent memoires as a source for politological studies, and to a review of the latest movie about the ‘Iron Lady’.The road of Margaret Thatcher (born in 1925) to her political career and winning the tell- ing nickname of the ‘Iron Lady’ has commonly been described as exceptional in the recent history of the Old Continent. The first woman to head a great European democracy, she served as Prime Minister three times, winning general elections and heading the government of Great Britain for eleven years (1979-1990). This was a record-breaking result in the history of the UK, which she managed, surrounded by a team of consummate coworkers whom she clearly dominated. Thatcher is included in a small circle of the most outstanding statespeople in her country, in particular compared to Winston Churchill. Despite not having aristocratic origins, she won the highest office in the government of Her Majesty Elizabeth II thanks to her talent, diligent work, ambition, and experience gath- ered in the positions she successively held. Her career in the Conservative Party lasted many years. Her vision of transformations in the political system of the state was based on her own experience and the advice of devoted workers, who she selected using her intuition. Her hus- band, Denis Thatcher, played an important role by her side, yet he always remained in the background, providing support and playing the role of a reasonable private advisor. The author emphasizes the high political culture of Margaret Thatcher and her circle, and he also underlines Polish elements in her policy. He pays a lot of attention to her excellent memoires as a source for politological studies, and to a review of the latest movie about the ‘Iron Lady’

Book Reviews: GENERAŁ. Wojciech Jaruzelski w rozmowie z Janem Osieckim, Wyd. Pruszyński i S-ka, Warszawa 2014, ss. 655

Recenzja książki: GENERAŁ. Wojciech Jaruzelski w rozmowie z Janem Osieckim, Wyd. Pruszyński i S-ka, Warszawa 2014, ss. 655Book Reviews: GENERAŁ. Wojciech Jaruzelski w rozmowie z Janem Osieckim, Wyd. Pruszyński i S-ka, Warszawa 2014, ss. 65

Stanisław Sławomir Nicieja, Kresowa Atlantyda. Historia i mitologia miast kresowych, t. X: Złoczów, Zadwórze, Kozaki, Gańczary, Łanowce, Zasmyki

Stanisław Sławomir Nicieja, Kresowa Atlantyda. Historia i mitologia miast kresowych, t. X: Złoczów, Zadwórze, Kozaki, Gańczary, Łanowce, Zasmyk

Aleksander Gieysztor and Gerard Labuda (For the 100th Anniversary of Two Great Historians’ birthdays 1919–2016)

Two Polish historians and friends, both born in 1916, were among the most eminent medievalists in Poland in the 20 th century. Their academic debut came in the years preceding the outbreak of WWII, while their careers progressed brilliantly in the years following the end of the war. For several decades, they marked their academic presence as the authors of great works, and they held the most prominent offices in academic life in Poland and in the international arena. They took an active part in the process of political transition, leading to Poland regaining full sovereignty in 1989, and they approved of its evolutionary mode. They were unquestionable moral authorities for scolarly circles and beacons in public activities. Aleksander Gieysztor died in 1999, followed eleven years later by Gerard Labuda (2010), who remained active until his last days. The 100th anniversary of their birthdays reminds historical circles, first and foremost, albeit not only, of Warsaw and Poznań, about their academic and public achievements

Mikołaj Tarkowski, Wydział Prawa i Nauk Społecznych Uniwersytetu Stefana Batorego w Wilnie w latach 1919–1939, Gdańsk 2015, ss. 344

Review articleArtykuł recenzyjn