Romanticism in Poland, a literary, artistic and intellectual period in the evolution of Polish culture, began around 1820, coinciding with the publication of

Adam Mickiewicz Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (; 24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. A principal figure in Polish Ro ...

's first poems in 1822. It ended with the suppression of the January 1863 Uprising against the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

in 1864. The latter event ushered in a new era in Polish culture known as ''Positivism''. Czesław Miłosz
''The history of Polish literature.''
IV. ''Romanticism.'' Pages 195–280.

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...

. ''

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by facult ...

'', 1983. Polish Romanticism, unlike

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

in some other parts of Europe, was not limited to literary and

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

istic concerns. Due to specific Polish historical circumstances, notably the partitions of Poland, it was also an ideological, philosophical and political movement that expressed the ideals and way of life of a large portion of Polish society subjected to foreign rule as well as to ethnic and religious discrimination.

History

Polish

had two distinct periods in terms of its literary forms: 1820–1832, and 1832–1864. In the first period, Polish Romantics were strongly influenced by other European Romantics. Their art featured

emotion Emotions are mental states brought on by neurophysiology, neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or suffering, displeasure. There is currently no scientific ...

alism and irrationality, fantasy and imagination,

personality cults A cult of personality, or a cult of the leader, Mudde, Cas and Kaltwasser, Cristóbal Rovira (2017) ''Populism: A Very Short Introduction''. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 63. is the result of an effort which is made to create an id ...

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

and country life, and the propagation of ideals of freedom. The most famous writers of the period were

, Seweryn Goszczyński, Tomasz Zan and

Maurycy Mochnacki Maurycy Mochnacki (13 September 1803, in Bojaniec near Żółkiew – 20 December 1834, in Auxerre) was a Polish literary, theatre and music critic, publicist, journalist, pianist, historian and independence activist. One of the main theorists of ...

. In the second period, many of the Polish Romantics worked abroad, often banished from Poland by the occupying powers due to their politically subversive ideas. Their work became increasingly dominated by the ideals of political struggle for freedom and their country's

sovereignty Sovereignty is the defining authority within individual consciousness, social construct, or territory. Sovereignty entails hierarchy within the state, as well as external autonomy for states. In any state, sovereignty is assigned to the perso ...

. Elements of mysticism became more prominent. There developed the idea of the '' poeta wieszcz'' (the prophet). The ''wieszcz'' (bard) functioned as spiritual leader to the nation fighting for its independence. The most notable poet so recognized was

. His famous verse epic '' Pan Tadeusz'' describes his love for the partitioned homeland and people of his native country:

"O Lithuania, my country, thou
Art like good health; I never knew till now
How precious, till I lost thee. Now I see
Thy beauty whole, because I yearn for thee."
(— Opening stanza of ''Pan Tadeusz'', Kenneth R. Mackenzie translation)

Other notable Polish Romantic writers active abroad included

Juliusz Słowacki Juliusz Słowacki (; french: Jules Slowacki; 4 September 1809 – 3 April 1849) was a Polish Romantic poet. He is considered one of the " Three Bards" of Polish literature — a major figure in the Polish Romantic period, and the father of m ...

, Zygmunt Krasiński and

Cyprian Kamil Norwid Cyprian Kamil Norwid, a.k.a. Cyprian Konstanty Norwid (; 24 September 1821 – 23 May 1883), was a nationally esteemed Polish poet, dramatist, painter, and sculptor. He was born in the Masovian village of Laskowo-Głuchy near Warsaw. One of hi ...

. A number of Romantics remained active in divided and occupied Poland, including

Józef Ignacy Kraszewski Józef Ignacy Kraszewski (28 July 1812 – 19 March 1887) was a Polish writer, publisher, historian, journalist, scholar, painter, and author who produced more than 200 novels and 150 novellas, short stories, and art reviews, which makes him the ...

Wincenty Pol Wincenty Pol (20 April 1807 – 2 December 1872) was a Polish poet and geographer. Life Pol was born in Lublin (then in Galicia), to Franz Pohl (or Poll), a German in the Austrian service, and his wife Eleonora Longchamps de Berier, from a Fre ...

, Władysław Syrokomla, and

Narcyza Żmichowska Narcyza Żmichowska (Warsaw, 4 March 1819 – 24 December 1876, Warsaw), also known under her popular pen name Gabryella, was a Polish novelist and poet. She is considered a precursor of feminism in Poland. Life Żmichowska became governess for ...

. One of Polish Romanticism's unique qualities was its relation to and inspiration from

Polish history The history of Poland spans over a thousand years, from medieval tribes, Christianization and monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The political l ...

from before the invasion. Polish Romanticism revived the old " Sarmatic" traditions of Polish nobility, the szlachta.Andrzej Wasko
"Sarmatism or the Enlightenment: The Dilemma of Polish Culture"
''

The Sarmatian Review The ''Sarmatian Review'' () is an English-language peer-reviewed academic tri-quarterly journal devoted to Slavistics (the study of the histories, cultures, and societies of the Slavic nations of Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe). The ''Sa ...

'' XVII.2., 1997 Old traditions and customs were portrayed favourably in the Polish messianic movement and in the leading works of virtually all Polish national poets, most notably in '' Pan Tadeusz'', but also in the epic works of prose writers including Henryk Sienkiewicz's '' Trylogia''. This close connection between Polish Romanticism and the past became one of the defining qualities of the literature of Polish Romantic period, differentiating it from that of other countries who did not suffer the loss of statehood as was the case with Poland. Romantic ideas informed not only

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

but also

painting Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

and

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

. Polish Romantic painting is exemplified in the work of Artur Grottger, Henryk Rodakowski, or the equestrian master artist Piotr Michałowski (now at Sukiennice), and Jan Nepomucen Głowacki considered the father of Polish school of landscape painting, as well as the renowned historical painter

Leopold Loeffler Leopold Loeffler, also spelled Löffler, (October 27, 1827 – February 6, 1898), was a Polish realist painter of the late Romantic period popular in the second half of the 19th century under the foreign partitions of Poland. Lithographic re ...

invited to

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

by Matejko to teach the future luminaries of the Young Poland movement including Wyspiański, Tetmajer, Malczewski and Weiss among others. The music of Frédéric Chopin and Stanisław Moniuszko inspired the development of Polish Romantic movement in all fields of creative expression.

Notable Polish Romantic writers and poets

Feliks Bernatowicz Feliks is a variant spelling of the given name Felix (name), Felix, used in Poland and the Baltic states, as well as in the transliteration of the name Felix from Russian. Feliks may refer to: *Feliks Ankerstein (1897–1955), Polish Army major ...

(1786–1836) * Ryszard Berwiński (1819–1879) * Stanisław Bogusławski (?–d. 1870) *

Kazimierz Brodziński Kazimierz Brodziński (8 March 1791 in Królówka – 10 October 1835 in Dresden) was an important Polish Romantic poet. Life He was born in Królówka near Bochnia. He came from the low nobility. He was a student at schools in Tarnów, w ...

(1791–1835) * Antoni Czajkowski (1816–1873) *

Michał Czajkowski Michał Czajkowski ( uk, Mykhailo Chaikovsky; 29 September 180418 January 1886), also known in Turkey as Mehmet Sadyk Pasha ( tr, Mehmet Sadık Paşa), was a Polish writer and political émigré of distant Cossack heritage who worked both for th ...

(1804–1886) *

Adam Jerzy Czartoryski Adam Jerzy Czartoryski (; lt, Аdomas Jurgis Čartoriskis; 14 January 177015 July 1861), in English known as Adam George Czartoryski, was a Polish nobleman, statesman, diplomat and author. The son of a wealthy prince, he began his political c ...

(1770–1861) *

Jan Czeczot Jan Czeczot of Ostoja ( be, Ян Чачот, ''Jan Čačot,'' lt, Jonas Čečiotas, 1796–1847) was a Polish romantic poet and ethnographer. Fascinated by the folklore and the traditional folk songs of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a c ...

(1796–1846) *

Franciszek Salezy Dmochowski Franciszek Salezy Dmochowski (1801–1871) was a Polish writer, poet, translator, critic, journalist and publisher. He studied at the University of Warsaw. He took part in the distribution of illegal ''bibuła Polish underground press, devoted t ...

(1801–1871) * Gustaw Ehrenberg (1818–1895) *

Aleksander Fredro Aleksander Fredro (20 June 1793 – 15 July 1876) was a Polish poet, playwright and author active during Polish Romanticism in the period of partitions by neighboring empires. His works including plays written in the octosyllabic verse (''Zemst ...

(1791–1876) *

Antoni Gorecki Antoni Gorecki (1787 – 18 September 1861) was a Polish poet and writer, author of satires and short stories for children. He was born in 1787 in Vilnius, where he finished primary school. In 1802 he started studying at the Faculty of Li ...

(1787–1861) * Seweryn Goszczyński (1801–1876) *

Klementyna Hoffmanowa Klementyna Hoffmanowa, born Klementyna Tańska (23 November 1798 – 21 September 1845) was a Polish novelist, playwright, editor, translator, teacher and activist. She was the first woman in Poland to support herself from writing and teaching, ...

(1798–1845) * Teodor Tomasz Jeż (Zygmunt Miłkowski, 1824–1915) * Kajetan Koźmian (1771–1856) * Zygmunt Krasiński (1812–1859) *

(1812–1887) * Teofil Lenartowicz (1822–1893) * Jadwiga Łuszczewska (1834–1908) * Antoni Malczewski (1793–1826) *

(1798–1855) *

(1803–1834) *

(1821–1883) *

(1807–1882) * Mieczysław Romanowski (1834–1863) *

Henryk Rzewuski Henryk Rzewuski (3 May 1791 – 28 February 1866) was a Polish nobleman, Romantic-era journalist and novelist. Life Count Henryk Rzewuski was a scion of a Polish magnate family in Ukraine. He was the son of Adam Wawrzyniec Rzewuski, a Russian ...

(1791–1866) * Lucjan Siemieński (1807–1877) *

(1809–1849) * Władysław Syrokomla (1823–1862) *

Kornel Ujejski Kornel Ujejski (; September 12, 1823 in Beremyany, Galicia, Austria - September 19, 1897 in Pavliv near Lviv, Galicia, Austria), also known as Cornelius Ujejski, was a Polish poet, patriot and political writer of the Austrian Empire and Austria- ...

(1823–1897) * Maria Wirtemberska (1768–1854) * Józef Bohdan Zaleski (1802–86) * Tomasz Zan (1796–1855) *

(1819–1876)

Other notable figures

Aleksander Borkowski Dunin Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

(1811–1896) * Józef Borkowski Dunin (1809–1843) * Frédéric Chopin (1810–1849), composer * Edward Dembowski (1822–1846), philosopher, journalist and activist * Piotr Michałowski (1800–1855), painter * Stanisław Moniuszko (1819–1872), composer *

Stanisław Kostka Potocki Count Stanisław Kostka Potocki (; November 1755 – 14 September 1821) was a Polish nobleman, politician, writer, public intellectual and patron of the arts. Life Potocki was a son of General and starost of Lwów, Eustachy Potocki and Ann ...

(1755–1821), art patron, philosopher and intellectual * Andrzej Towiański (1799–1878), philosopher and Messianist religious leader * Kazimierz Władysław Wójcicki (1807–1879)

References

External links

Poland's Unique Take on Romanticism: Why Is It So Different?
Culture.pl {{DEFAULTSORT:Romanticism In Poland Cultural history of Poland 19th century in Poland Romanticism