"Germans on the Polish throne" - special issue of "Polityka" on the King of Saxony

The latest issue of the "Pomocnik Historyczny" series of biographies in the weekly newspaper Polityka is out now: "Under the King of Saxony or Germans on the Polish Throne".

The Saxon period generally has a gloomy image: drunkenness and gluttony, degeneracy and corruption of the elites, political dependence on foreign powers, etc. The Electors of Saxony from the Wettin dynasty, August II and August III, embody the role of the villains. The Wettins were the longest ruling family in Europe. It is assumed that they did not save the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth because they failed as elective kings of the Rzeczpospolita.

Was this really the case? Recent historical research recognizes the strengths of the personal union of Saxony, Poland and Lithuania. The first public library was opened and the Collegium Nobilium was founded - a school that trained future state reformers. The Polish Enlightenment has its roots precisely in this Saxon era.

This issue focuses on how the Saxons influenced the fate of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which reforms they tried to implement here and with what success, how they modernized Warsaw, and what they left behind. We also present a selection of the most prominent figures of this dynasty, which ruled Saxony for almost 830 years.

The German Historical Institute in Warsaw is a partner of this publication.

10
Feb
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