Thomas M Pearson and Dr. Douglas Tobler, History

In 1980, BYU’s acquisition librarian purchased a large collection (96 boxes) of historical documents, which originated from the Lancut castle in southeastern Poland. The archive is a wonderful social, economic, and cultural record of the noble families that lived at the castle. The materials cover a wide span of time, ranging from the 15th century up until the onset of World War II, and include letters, maps, legal documents, genealogies, grants and charters, estate inventories, and other original documents. Because the archive has been in private hands for so many years, these materials have only recently become available for scholarly research. Even with the access we have now to view a microfilm copy of the archive at the library, research is still essentially limited to those who can read Polish. I served a two-year mission to Poland, and have enjoyed my ability to read and translate the language for research purposes.

Among the most significant documents in the collection are 29 letters signed personally by Polish kings, from Wladyslaw IV (1633) to Stanislaw August Poniatowski (1769). These 29 manuscripts represent a considerable body of evidence of the changing relationship between monarchy and nobility over 150 years. This is of particular historical importance because over this period of time, Poland’s vast land holdings which stretched as far east as the Black Sea were reduced by competing European powers to the point where Poland was on the brink of erasure from Europe’s maps. A major factor in Poland’s military and political collapse was the decentralization of power, which was transferred from the king to nobles; the nation was left divided and paralyzed in the face of invasion.

In my research I studied these 29 epistles, translating the excerpts germane to the aforementioned topic. I had great success with the letters written in Polish, but ran into some difficulty making sense of the letters written in High Renaissance Latin. I worked closely with the Classics department, but unclassical Latin is not their forte. In addition, I did significant background reading on my subject, as directed by my mentor.

In my preliminary study, I found evidence that supports the prevailing theory that in the 17th and 18th centuries Poland’s power structure shifted out balance. The bulk of the power rested in the hands of the nobles, not the crown, and the fragmented nation eventually fell to more centralized powers. The diminishing power of the king is reflected in the content and diction of these letters. For example, in the 1600’s the king used condescending language, but in the 1700’s he used flattering language in addressing the nobility. I have written up my findings as a 35 page paper, The Anachronism of Poland’s Seventeenth and Eighteenth Century Power Structure: Insights from Royal Correspondence in the Lancut Archive, which I intend to submit for publication in the Thetean, the History Department’s student journal, and elsewhere.

I have immensely enjoyed this opportunity, and plan to continue my research on the subject. In just two weeks, I will personally visit the castle at Lancut, enriching my understanding with a first-hand visit, and adding flourish and detail to the canvass of historical imagination.