Spotkanie historyków w międzywojennym Wilnie. O VI Powszechnym Zjeździe Historyków Polskich

Abstract

The VI General Congress of Historians was held from 17 to 27 September 1935 in Wilno. As many as 618 participants attended it and over 50 papers were presented. Eight different sections worked on various problems, e.g.: social and economic issues, history of law, auxiliary sciences. The review of research on the past of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was conducted. The subject of sources was discussed - special attention was paid to the necessity of intensification of editorial activities as well as the need for the creation of a scientific station in Moscow, which would facilitate access to archives in the territory of the USSR. From the scientific point of view, the paper presented by Jan Rutkowski (Poznan) was of particular interest. It dealt with the research - extensively based on new sources: inventories and inspection documents - pertaining to income of great landed estates in Poland in modern times. Due to the situation in the Polish educational system - undergoing major changes in the mid-1930s - the problem of professional preparation of history teachers was raised. The postulate concerning prolongation of teaching practices under the supervision of experienced pedagogues was put forward. Better, activating teaching methods and correlation of material discussed during history lessons with other subjects were proposed. The congress in Wilno was not only a meeting of historians belonging to various generations, but it also pointed to new directions in research and proved great activity of historians belonging to the Wilno circle.