„ARCHEION” JOURNAL

ANNUAL PUBLICATION OF POLISH ARCHIVES SINCE 1927

Abstract

World War I and the resulting new geopolitical map of Europe fundamentally changed the situation of Poland. Disintegration of multinational European powers: the Russian Empire, Prussia, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire resulted in emergence of new European nation states: Poland, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland. Revival of the sovereign state of Poland, after Polish lands had remained under the rule of foreign powers for more than 120 years, has galvanized the community of Polish historians and archivists. The most urgent tasks undertaken by the community after establishment of the sovereign Polish state in 1918 were to secure the archival holdings that had been severely damaged and scattered as a result of warfare, to recover the archival materials that were removed from the Polish territories by the partitioning powers, and to undertake efforts leading to organization of Polish archival service[1].

These most important tasks were reflected in the provisions of the Decree on the Organization of State Archives and Care for Archival Materials, issued by the highest state authorities on February 7, 1919 - the first legislative act in the field of archives in the history of modern Poland[2].

[1] See more: Archiwa w Niepodległej. Stulecie Archiwów Państwowych 1919-2019, red. nauk. E. Rosowska, Warszawa 2019;  Motas M., Powstanie  polskiej  państwowej  służby  archiwalnej   przed odzyskaniem niepodległości, „Archeion” t. 69, 1979, s. 39–56; Motas M. W sześćdziesiątą rocznicę objęcia archiwów i archiwaliów przez władze polskie na jesieni 1918 r. w byłej Kongresówce, „Archeion”, t. 67, 1979, s. 97–107.

[2] Mencel T., Dekret o archiwach i opiece nad archiwami z 7 lutego na tle ówczesnego ustawodawstwa archiwalnego w Europie, [in:] Sześćdziesięciolecie polskich archiwów państwowych. Materiały  z  sesji,  Łódź  10  XI  1979  r.,  red.  nauk.  A.  Tomczak,  M. Przeczek, Warszawa 1981.