Antiheroines of Early Modern Polish History in the Textbooks of the Second Polish Republic
Antiheroines of Early Modern Polish History in the Textbooks of the Second Polish Republic

Summary/Abstract: The author of the article presents changes that took place in the textbook depictions of women – counted among the antiheroines of Polish History – from 1918 to 1939. The starting point are 19th-century compilations, in which the authors’ attention was focused on prominent queens of the Early Modern era: Bona Sforza, Maria Ludwika Gonzaga, and Maria Kazimiera de La Grange d’Arquien. The attitudes of the authors of historical and educational compilations created after Poland regained its independence towards these women was the result of various factors, but also a proof of acceptance of women’s new roles in the newly united – among others, through historical education – society. This applied particularly to those women’s roles that evoked social resistance, as they were linked to involvement in politics, which was viewed as a space for men’s activity. The article emphasizes comparative concepts to clearly delineate differences between what was typical of educational framing pre- and post-1918. The author analyzed 30 history textbooks written in the first and second decade of Poland Reborn, addressed to children and youth in primary, gymnasium and secondary schools. The article serves as a search for the answers to the following questions: 1. In what way were ambitious women rulers perceived in different political conditions, i.e. in a situation of formal equality of the political rights of women and men? 2. How different were textbooks in the Piłsudski-reformed schools from those used earlier? 3. To what extent did the reorientation of the educational ideal of the 1930s influence the image of the politically involved Polish queens of the Early Modern era?

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