Pan Tadeusz
Page 36
this page Like a child the Jews are sticking needles in: A relic of the Medieval canard about the murder of Christian children by Jews.
this page “I object!”: By formally objecting in such a way, the Bailiff renders the foray technically illegal.
BOOK IX
this page a Pole by birth: Under Russian rule, some Poles russified, that is to say, adopted a Russian identity along with a more Russian-sounding name, often for reasons of personal advancement – thus, Płutowicz changed his name to Plut (which, incidentally, means “swindler” or “rogue” in Russian).
this page Mickiewicz and Mr. Zan: as at certain other points in the poem, here Mickiewicz playfully includes not just himself but his close friends too – in this case Tomasz Zan (1796–1850), one of his fellow Philomaths in Vilna. See also, for instance, Book IV, this page.
this page These lines contain adapted quotations from a popular poem entitled Remarks on Death that is Inescapable and Shared by All, published anonymously in Vilna in 1766 and written by Józef Baka (1707–1780), a Jesuit priest.
this page It’s not clear why Robak (or Mickiewicz) says “Lieutenant,” since Rykov is a captain.
this page lit his pipe with a banknote: A common practice among tsarist officers.
this page gefreiter: Corporal (a German loan word in Russian, in which it is actually “yefreitor”).
BOOK X
this page Engagements fought by the Russian army: the Siege of Ochakov (1788) and the Siege of Izmail (1790) took place in the second Russo-Turkish War; the Battle of Novi (1799) and the Battle of Eylau (1807) were fought against Napoleon.
this page Galicia was the southeastern part of Poland stretching from Kraków to Lwów (present-day Lviv in western Ukraine); it was taken over by the Austrians in the partitions. Great Poland (Wielkopolska) is the western region of the country, centered on Poznań, which had gone to Prussia during the partitions.
BOOK XI
this page Karol Otto Kniaziewicz (1762–1842), Kazimierz Małachowski (1765–1854), Romuald Giedrojć (1750–1824) and Michał Grabowski (1773–1812) were all high-ranking officers serving under Dąbrowski.
this page gravis notae maculae: “The inscription of a black stain”: Lithuanian law inscribed such wrongdoings in its court records.
this page Queen Jadwiga of Poland (1373/7–1399) married Jogaila of Lithuania, who was baptized as Władysław (later reigning as King Władysław II Jagiełłó) and accepted the conversion of Lithuania to Catholicism; this marriage was instrumental in uniting Poland and Lithuania.
this page Lengthy conflicts between Poland and the Teutonic Knights ended with the Poles’ victory at the Battle of Grunwald in 1410.
this page A Polish saying that derives from Lithuania: “Wart Pac pałaca, a pałac Paca”: “Pac is worthy of his palace, his palace is worthy of him.”
this page There were two Battles of Podhajce (today’s Pidhaitsi in western Ukraine), both against the Tartars, in 1667 and 1698.
BOOK XII
this page the Swedish War: In the seventeenth century.
this page kontuz, arkas, blemas: Various traditional dishes no longer served at the time the story takes place.
this page Gerwazy, unsure how to address Dąbrowski (the word “general” sounded foreign to Polish ears at this time), first tries a couple of Old Polish terms for military leaders.
this page Dumouriez was a French officer sent to help the Bar Confederacy.
this page The “Tartars and Turks” Maciej mentions are probably the Mamelukes and Janissaries incorporated into Napoleon’s army. The depredations by the Napoleonic forces that he mentions are historically attested.
this page A polonaise marking the Third of May Constitution of 1791. The latter was celebrated with a great ball in Warsaw.
EPILOGUE
Opening lines: Mickiewicz is writing about the situation of the Polish émigrés in Paris. The “iron fence” (l. 9) refers to the fact that some Polish émigrés were interned by the French government, while “told to yield our soul” echoes French efforts to encourage Poles to naturalize and thus give up their national identity.
this page These stories are taken from folk songs and literary tales. The story about the mythic cranes in ll. 102–106 has not been identified.
MICKIEWICZ’S EXPLANATIONS
The title: Wasil Sanguszko: In fact Mickiewicz means Dymitr Sanguszko, a sixteenth century noble who fled the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth when found guilty of serious crimes; he was tracked down and killed in Bohemia in 1554.
Stanisław Stadnicki: An early seventeenth century noble whose violent, long-running feud with another family ended in his death in 1610.
this page “Little Russia” is a historical term for the southwestern territories of the Russian Empire.
this page Lizdejko: In Lithuanian Lizdeika, an archpriest of Lithuanian legend.
this page Seweryn Goszczyński (1801–1876) was a Polish poet. The Castle of Kaniów was a narrative poem published in 1828.
this page The “revolution” Mickiewicz mentions is the 1830 uprising.
this page The “first war” is the beginning of the Kosćiuszko Uprising.
this page The legation referred to here was led by Jerzy Ossoliński (1595–1650), who in 1633 was sent to Pope Urban VIII by King Władysław IV.
this page Radziwiłł the Orphan: A sixteenth-century Marshal of Lithuania.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I’d like to offer my deepest gratitude to the Guggenheim Foundation for the fellowship I received in 2013 – 2014; the Lannan Foundation for a marvelous residency in Marfa, Texas in 2013; and Indiana University, from which I received a Henry Remak Endowed Professorship for 2014 – 2017. This support provided the time and resources I needed to devote myself to this project over the four years it took to complete.
I also wish to thank colleagues, students, and friends for innumerable stimulating conversations that allowed me to clarify my own ideas about Mickiewicz’s magnificent poem, what it means to read it in the 21st century both in Poland and beyond, and the task of rendering it into English.
Thank you to Ned for being my first and most important reader. To Jill, my brilliant editor and dear friend, without whom this publication would not have happened. And to my wife Isabelle, for her unfailing love and support throughout.
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