THE POLISH MIDDLEAGES IN SCIENTIFIC WORK OF GERARD LYABUDA (1916–2010)

Abstract

The article analyzes the scientific activity of the outstanding historian-medievalist Gerard Lyabuda (1916–2010), one of the organizers of Polish historical science in the post-war period. It is noted that the professional formation of a research scientist was influenced by the intellectual environment of Pomerania during the interwar period – the region where the historian was born and worked – the work of Polish medievalists Kazimierz Tymenecki, Henryk Lovmianski, Zygmund Wojciechowski, discussions among Polish and German historians regarding the complex of medieval Polish- German relations. It is noted that the first scientific works were written by the historian in the interwar period while studying at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. The basic works of Gerard Lyabuda appeared already in the 40’s and 50’s of the 20’th century. He was a co-author of general works on the history of the Polish early Middle Ages, as well as individual monographs. Using mainly positivist methodological approaches, the scientist reproduces in detail the territory of settlement of the Western Slavs, their mutual relations, language, and culture. Based on a significant source base, statebuilding processes on Polish lands in the early Middle Ages are analyzed, and the influence of internal and external factors on them is determined. Considerable attention is paid to Polish-German relations, which at that time, according to the author, were characterized by both conflict and understanding between the subjects of international medieval law. The dynamics of the formation of the Polish-German border in the medieval era are revealed and the factors that contributed to its establishment are determined. Separate scientific explorations are devoted to Pomerania, the historical homeland of the scientist. The scientist claims that the specified territory was in the sphere of influence of the early medieval Polish state, starting from the reign of Mieszko I, i.e. the 10’th century. However, later, due to the unfavorable internal political situation, which was determined by the struggle of Polish princes for power, the German presence increased here. It is claimed that the interweaving of various ethnic, religious, and mental influences in this border region determined its historical fate. It is indicated that the scientific school of Gerard Lyabuda produced a generation of medievalist researchers who continued the work of their teacher. Their scientific research considered the fundamental aspects of the study of the past, initiated by Gerard Lyabuda – a demanding attitude to the laboratory of scientific research, the variability and multidimensionality of any interpretation of the past.