World War II

The purpose of the article is to present the fate of the so-called "indomitable" soldiers [żołnierze wyklęci] and their myth, cultivated from 1989 onwards. In 1945, these soldiers, refusing to accept new orders in a country led by communists supported by the USSR, decided to continue the fight. At the end of the war there were 120,000-180,000 of them out of which 13,000-17,000 fought in partisan units. Two years later, there were only about 2,000 of them left. They represented different social groups and attitudes.

The appreciation of the year 1945 began almost immediately after the war, and lasts until today, while generating strong tensions in both public life and historiography in Hungary. Debates concerning the politics of memory were crystalized especially about the question if 1945 represented a liberation (of the German yoke) or an occupation (by the Soviets). Recent research, of which this contribution summarizes the results, has considerably enriched the literature with new points of view on the intermediate period of 1944 – 1945.

In his study the author deals with the exiting World War II from several viewpoints. First he analyses the heritage from the exiting World War I, that is those efforts which did not succeed after 1918, but became an inspiration for the post-1945 period, such as the international influence of the United States, the international justice system, the foundation of the UN and European integration. In the second part he focuses on the specifics of the exiting World War II such as the occupation, brutality and the global dimension.

This article is an introduction to the thematic issue of Forum Historiae 2/2018 dedicated to the subject of exiting wars in France and Central European countries in 19th and 20th centuries. In addition to introducing the main research questions and hypotheses, which the authors of the issue worked with, and to the outline of their main conclusions, the editors also provide a brief comparison of exiting wars in East-Central Europe in 20th century.

The Slovak National Uprising was one of the most important events in the 20th-century history of Slovakia. Although historians have seriously examined this topic, they have predominantly concentrated on its political and military aspects. Much less attention has been paid to the everyday life of common people living in the territory taken by the insurgents. The author has produced this paper with an ambition to bring more detailed pieces of information about everyday life during the Slovak National Uprising.

During World War II Polish poets fought with weapon and pen against the occupants both on the domestic front and the battlefields abroad. They fought in all Polish armies, regular and conspiratorial formations, in General Anders's army as well as in General Berling's army. Their poetry encouraged the Polish people to fight and nourished patriotic feelings in a society distressed by the war in an occupied country, ghettos, detention camps, prisons and concentration camps.

The most numerous section of the Slovak society in the interwar period of 1918-1938 was formed by farmer families. Although agriculture was the most important branch of the national economy, it lagged behind the developed European countries. At the end of the 1930s, modern technologies found way also to the Slovak farmer families. This new phenomenon was clearly visible in the most fertile regions in the south and west of Slovakia. However, the Vienna Arbitration deprived the Slovak agriculture of its best land.

Family exists at every stage of human development and in every system. Family is the basic social unit consisting of the spouses, their children and other relatives, tied by blood and social bonds. The most important task of the family is the organisation and maintenance of their household, taking care of basic needs and emotional life of its members as well. One of the external features enabling to recognise members of a particular family is a common surname or a name traditionally shared by the family.

The Second World War had a damaging impact upon many Polish families. As a result of the decision carried out by the Allies, the Poles settled in the territory of the Second Polish Republic (Rzeczpospolita II) were forced to leave their homes. The tragic circumstances related to their expulsion, the difficult journey to other lands and conditions under which they were rebuilding their existence in a new, unknown land, were described in diaries and memoirs. In this paper the writer subjects these texts to a detailed analysis.

The Second World War affected the Jewish population in a specific way. In a critical state appeared especially the traditional Jewish family and, in fact, it ceased to exist. It is possible to speak about torsos of families – children without parents, spouses without their partners and other family members. The return to a society exhibiting complicated social relations, harsh socio-economic conditions and a post-war psychosis was tremendously difficult for the Jews. In this context, they had three possible options: to preserve their identity, to get assimilated, or to emigrate.