Polish Democratic Society ( Polish. Towarzystwo Demokratyczne Polskie ) is a Polish political organization of the Great Emigration. It represented a large group of Polish émigré intelligentsia of democratic views. The Polish Democratic Society presented its program in two manifestos. The main goal of the society was declared activities to restore the Polish statehood by the forces of the Polish people .
History
The Polish Democratic Society was established on March 17, 1832 in Paris after the separation of a small group from the Polish National Committee, which operated in France from 1831 to 1832. The Polish Democratic Society was founded by Tadeusz Krempovsky and Alexander Pulasky, who released the so-called “ Small Manifesto” . In this manifesto, they blamed the Polish gentry for defeating the November uprising , which failed to resolve the peasant question and proposed radical social reforms in the future independent Poland. After the restoration of independent Poland, the society promised to give the peasants land without any compensation to the landowners. The manifesto announced that the future Poland would be a democratic state.
At the beginning of 1836, the main body of the society was created - Centralization, consisting of five democratically elected members, which led the various sections of the organization. Centralization has developed the text of the new Manifesto. The draft of the new Manifesto was adopted by 1.135 votes and proclaimed on January 4, 1836 in Poitiers . The new manifesto became known as the “Great Manifesto” ( “The Poité Manifesto” ). Unlike the first manifesto, he presented more conservative views: the charges against the Polish gentry were no longer emphasized in it. After the “Great Manifesto”, an organization with more radical views called the Bulk of the Polish People separated from the Polish Democratic Society.
Since 1840, the Polish Democratic Society began to engage in the preparation of the uprising, which was planned to be organized in all three parts of divided Poland.
The newspaper Demokrata Polski was the press organ of the Polish Democratic Society.
In 1846, some members of the Polish Democratic Society took part in the Krakow Uprising .
After the European revolutions, the centralization of society moved to London , where its activities were controlled by Wojciech Daras.
In 1862, the activity of the Polish Democratic Society was discontinued.
Famous personalities of society
- Meroslavsky, Ludvik (1814-1878) - the general.
- Rettel, Leonard (1811–1885) - Polish politician, rebel, writer, poet, translator.
Source
- The History of Poland from Ancient Times to the Present, Scientific Publishing House, Warsaw, 1995, p. 181, ISBN 83-01-11764-8
- Historia Polski, Tom II, Warszawa, Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, 1959, p. 85