National Approach
National Approach
Poland’s Perspective
Poland did not participate in great geographical discoveries and as a consequence did not take part in expansion on the newly discovered territories. This fact significantly affects the Polish historians’ (and indirectly history teachers’) perception of the role of Christopher Columbus and the importance of his journey to the history of the world. In the Polish history curriculum, the historical figure of Columbus and the subject of his travel appear as part of a wide problem for expeditions taken by sailors and travellers in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries together with their discoveries. While discussing this topic at school, the following issues are emphasized: causes and course of major discovery expeditions; the inventions that made transatlantic travel possible; the factors that determined the decisions of different countries to start expansion to other continents; and finally the social, economic and cultural implications of the discoveries made at the time. So, the figure and biography of Christopher Columbus appear in history books alongside other great explorers and travellers like Marco Polo, Bartolomeu Diaz, Vasco da Gama, Amerigo Vespucci and Ferdinand Magellan. Thus, from the Poland’s perspective, the journeys of Columbus, in the same way as the discoveries made by other sailors, constitute mainly a turning point in the history of world. The expeditions set the end of the Middle Ages and beginning of modern period.
For the European countries (such as Spain, Portugal, England and France), which as a result of discovery began to expand into other continents, the Columbus' discoveries also mark the beginning of the European colonial period. In Polish publications and textbooks, this subject is much less noticeable. Among the consequences of the discoveries (including the discovery of America), the accent is put primarily to the aspects related to social changes resulted from the great discoveries (in the old continent, as well as in the conquered countries) in the areas of: world view, economic transformations, and political implications on the relationship between the countries participating in the conquest of the newly discovered lands.
Recently, however, somewhat increased interest in the subject of great discoveries and Christopher Columbus can be observed in Poland. This is caused by emerging hypotheses about the supposed Polish roots of the great explorer and his kinship with the Polish King Wladyslaw III of Varna. Such revelations, however, does not have too many supporters among Polish historians. The disbelieve results partly from the lack of convincing evidence to support the thesis of the Polish origins of Columbus and partly from the deeply-rooted image of King Wladyslaw of Varna as a young warrior and defender of the Christian faith, the ruler who died in the Battle of Varna in 1444. Nevertheless, Polish material presented in this training module is related to the subject of various theories concerning the origins of Christopher Columbus.
Polish Material
The discussed text comes from the popular historical magazine entitled “Centuries Speak” aimed primarily at young people. The article by Rafał Jaworski (“Christopher Kolumbski, the story of King Władysław on the distant island”) is a kind of a critical review of the book by Manuel Rosa entitled “Columbus. History unknown” which presents, among others, the theory of Polish roots of the discoverer of America.
Tasks
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1 |
In a few sentences, summarise the content of the article by Rafał Jaworski that you have read. a. How would you interpret the article subtitle "The story of King Władysław on the distant island”? |
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2 |
What theories about the origin of Columbus cited in the article?
a. What are the sources of difficulties in determining the true origin of Christopher Columbus? |
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3 |
What can be learnt from the article you have read about Wladislaw of Varna and the theories about his fortune after the Battle of Varna? |
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4 |
What about Christopher Columbus' Polish roots can be learnt from the article? How do the figures of Wladyslaw of Varna and Columbus link together? a. What arguments does M. Rose bring to support the thesis of Christopher Columbus' Polish roots? b. How does the author of the article, Rafał Jaworski, undermine the theory of Polish origins of Christopher Columbus? c. Take part in the discussion: Which of the points of view (presented by M. Rosa or R. Jaworski) regarding the theory of a relationship of Christopher Columbus with Władysław of Varna is more credible and convincing? |
Polish Material
The discussed text comes from the popular historical magazine entitled “Centuries Speak” aimed primarily at young people. The article by Rafał Jaworski (“Christopher Kolumbski, the story of King Władysław on the distant island”) is a kind of a critical review of the book by Manuel Rosa entitled “Columbus. History unknown” which presents, among others, the theory of Polish roots of the discoverer of America.
Methodological remarks:
the article has popular historical character. Its author is a
professional historian and an archivist. He is an employee of Branch of
Jan Kochanowski University in Piotrkow Trybunalski, Poland. The text is
written using simple and accessible language, but it refers to the
subject of critical evaluation of historical information sources that
may be too difficult for younger students to understand (because of the
specialist vocabulary used in the text and lack of possibility of
referring the learnt information to their own experience). Therefore,
the text of the article should be used in working with school children
aged between 15 and 19 years. In Poland, this corresponds to a level of
post-secondary school. However, the teacher aware of the capabilities
of students can use article in working also with young people in
secondary schools (Polish scholar system) if he or she considers that
they have the skills necessary to properly analyse the text of the
article. According to the Polish history core curriculum, the subject
matter of the article corresponds to the topics carried out on the
third level of education and on the extended range of teaching history
in the fourth stage of education.
Tasks
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1 |
In a few sentences, summarise the content of the article by Rafał Jaworski that you have read.
Methodological remarks: the task can be realized individually or in groups of two.
Solution to the task: The article refers to the publication "Columbus. Unknown History" by Manuel Rosa. This book contains information on the Polish origin of Christopher Columbus. The author of the Polish article argues with this thesis. In his text, he tries to demonstrate that the reasoning included in the Rosa’s book is not justified appropriately by historical sources and the conclusion about the Polish roots of Columbus are completely unreliable. a. How would you interpret the article subtitle "The story of King Władysław on the distant island”? Solution to the task: the subtitle, by using the word "story" and the style typical to the legends and fantastic stories, predetermines the author's attitude to the described in the article studies on the origins of Columbus. In the context of so phrased title and subtitle of the article, it is suggested to the reader that the alleged information about the kinship of the Polish King Wladyslaw of Varna and Christopher Columbus can be considered only as a kind of fairy tale for children. |
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2 |
What theories about the origin of Columbus cited in the article?
Methodological remarks: the task can be realized individually or in groups of two.
Solution to the task: a. What are the sources of difficulties in determining the true origin of Christopher Columbus? Solution to the task: It is very difficult to establish the facts about the people who came into the world a few centuries ago unless they are from royal families. The documents that can help to make such findings (certificate registry, census of the population, registration books, and personal questionnaires) have been disseminated only in the last 200-300 years (pp. 22-23). Historians do not have such sources from the fifteenth century when Christopher Columbus was born. Also, Columbus himself did not provide much information about his origin or ancestry in any documents (p. 22). |
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3 |
What can be learnt from the article you have read about Wladislaw of Varna and the theories about his fortune after the Battle of Varna?
Methodological remarks: the task can be realized individually or in groups of two. Solution to the task: Władysław III of Varna, the Polish and Hungarian king, was the son of the king Jogalia (Wladyslaw Jagiello) and Sophia (or Sonka) of Halshany (p. 23). He was killed during the Battle of Varna, but his body was never found. There are few historical sources that imply that the king was not killed on the battlefield, but went on voluntary exile. According to some sources, the king settled on Madeira, Portugal. One of the historical records links the figure of the king with Henrique Alemão (Henry the German) who lived that time on the island, and who was referred to as the "Polish Prince" (p. 24). But most probably Henry the German was a crook who only pretended to be a Polish king. The fact that the remains of Wladislaw of Varna were never discovered on the battlefield encouraged various types of cheats to such mystifications. Many of such "pseudo-kings" appeared during that times at the Polish lands (p. 25). |
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4 |
What about Christopher Columbus' Polish roots can be learnt from the article? How do the figures of Wladyslaw of Varna and Columbus link together?
Methodological remarks: the task can be realized in small groups of two or more. Solution to the task: the article refers to the theory presented in the book by M. Rosa where Christopher Columbus was supposed to be the son of Wladyslaw of Varna. The Polish and Hungarian king, after the disappearance during the Battle of Varna supposed to settle on Madeira and start a family acting under the name of Henry the German. In this way, the former king would become the father of the future explorer. a. What arguments does M. Rose bring to support the thesis of Christopher Columbus' Polish roots?
Methodological remarks: the task can be realized in small groups of two or more. Solution to the task: M. Rosa proves that Henry the German was the father of Christopher Columbus, because according to this author, Henry the German has the qualities that should characterize a father of a great explorer – i.e. a wide knowledge of sailing, astronomy, cartography; and the position that allows easy connections within the Portuguese political elite (p. 23). Henry the Germany himself is identified with the former Polish king Wladyslaw in several historical sources. Polish roots of Columbus are supposed to be confirmed also by the image of a bird on his ring which can be seen in one of the discoverer’s portraits from that period. Typical for the Slavs characteristic feature of appearance (reddish blond hair and blue eyes) is another argument for Columbus’ roots (p. 24). b. How does the author of the article, Rafał Jaworski, undermine the theory of Polish origins of Christopher Columbus?
Methodological remarks: the task can be realized in small groups of two or more. Solution to the task: The author of the article believes that Henry the German was one of the many crooks who after the disappearance of Wladyslaw of Varna in the Battle of Varna claimed to be the miraculously rescued Polish king (p. 25). The author also claims that there are no reliable sources that allow linking Henry the German with Władysław of Varna or consider Henry the German the likely father of Columbus. According to Jaworski, the historical research done by Rosa was conducted dishonestly and the book does not provide reliable evidence to support such a controversial theory. c. Take part in the discussion: Which of the points of view (presented by M. Rosa or R. Jaworski) regarding the theory of a relationship of Christopher Columbus with Władysław of Varna is more credible and convincing?
Methodological remarks: the task can be realized as a discussion between students moderated by the teacher at the group/class forum.
Solution to the task: students should have the opportunity to present and defend their views on the problem discussed in this task. Such a discussion can be an introduction to the tasks related to development of media-critical competences. |
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