Okupacja austriacka Bełchatowa w czasie I wojny światowej
The Austrian occupation of Bełchatów during World War I

Summary/Abstract: As a result of military actions undertaken on the Eastern Front of World War I by the Central Empires, Bełchatów, formerly part of Russia, was under Austrian occupation in 1914-1918 as part of the Piotrków District of the General Government of Lublin. Although the front line passed through Bełchatów several times in the first months of the conflict, the city was not seriously damaged. Later despite the far-reaching political apathy of the majority of the inhabitants and the economic crisis caused by the prolonged war, Bełchatów experienced a significant cultural flourishing, which was possible thanks to the politics of Vienna that was friendly to Poles and the social involvement of local intellectual elites. Consequently, there was an awakening of national consciousness among the inhabitants of Bełchatów, which was particularly important in the face of the imminent revival of Poland. However, this period of the city’s history has remained largely forgotten and underestimated by posterity, who do not cultivate the traditions associated with the times of the Great War.

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