Zachowania honorowe podczas działań wojennych na Śląsku w latach 1806–1807 i 1813 na wybranych przykładach
Selected examples of honorable behavior during wartime activities in Silesia in 1806–1807 and 1813

Summary/Abstract: The army is an institution especially connected with the concept of honor. From the 16th to the 19th century there was no significant difference between honor and duty. Arousing a sense of honor was a method of enforcing discipline among the units, raising their morale and bringing the group of fighters together. Military honor has evolved, although some principles, such as loyalty, courage, fidelity, discipline, dedication, have remained unchanged. It is difficult to define the notion of an “honorable behavior” at the beginning of the 19th century because there are no normative sources concerning this period that are indispensable for thorough discussions – there were no codes of honor then, such as we know from the 20th century, whereas military regulations and lawbooks marginalized those issues, and later approached them too broadly. In this text a selection of honorable behaviors in Silesia during the Napoleonic Wars was presented. This period abounded in examples of courage, respect for the enemy, trust in the words of honor, as well as of battle cruelty, plunder, etc. I tried to highlight herein the examples of the honorable – at least in the opinion of the participants of the given events – behaviors, although since there was no definition, the selection had to be, perforce, subjective.

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