Polish socio-political movement in the Ukrainian lands: Regional specifics

Abstract

The research focuses on a comprehensive study of the regional specifics of the Polish socio-political movement in the Ukrainian lands during the «long» 19th century. The distribution of lands of the former Commonwealth between Austria, Russia and Prussia according to the decisions of the Congress of Vienna in 1815 began a new page in the history of the struggle of Poles for the revival of their own statehood. The policy of St. Petersburg, Vienna or Berlin on Polish citizens influenced on the level of consolidation of Poles, determined the organizational forms and program requirements, regional features of their activities. This affected both tactical goals and readiness for radical methods of struggle (uprisings, conspiracies, etc.), and also led to the daily practices of the Polish community, which ranged from latent opposition to the assimilation of a dual identity.
It should be emphasized that the potential opportunities for social activity of Poles in Ukraine were determined by the role assigned to these territories in state-building projects and mental mapping of the Austrian or Russian establishment. For the monarchy of the Habsburgs, the territories of Eastern Galicia throughout the 19th century remained a periphery that had elements of independence for ease of management, and Vienna’s government officials recognized Polish dominance in the region. This, in turn, created a favourable environment for the development of public activities, the creation of various cultural and social centres and in general the cultivation of Polish identity.
Instead, the status of the Poles of the Right Bank of Ukraine was transformed during the nineteenth century from flirting with the Polish elite of the region to the policy of final incorporation and integration, which made virtually any attempt at their public activity impossible. The authorities' efforts were aimed at eradicating Polish influence in the South-Western Territory, according to the ideas about the historical core of the Russian national-state project.
Thus, being part of various state systems with different imperial strategies led to the regionalization of the movement hampered the finalization of the Polish project and the consolidation of the Poles into a single modern nation.