The Other Prussia: Royal Prussia, Poland and Liberty, 1569–1772 (Cambridge Studies in Early Modern History)

This book focuses on the history of Royal Prussia -- the "other Prussia" -- which was part of the Polish state from 1454 to 1793. It studies the complex relationship between Germans and Slavs in the Polish-Prussian borderlands, and demonstrates the importance of national and historical myth-making for power politics. Analyzing the rivalry between the multinational, constitutionalist Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and its centralized, dynastic neighbor Brandenburg-Prussia, this study contributes to our understanding of the process of early modern nation-building and the formation of national identity. This book considers the phenomenon of nation-building before the age of modern nationalism. It focuses on royal (Polish) Prussia - the 'other' Prussia - a province of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1466 to 1772/3, and its major cities Danzig, Thorn and Elbing. As an integral part of the Polish state the Prussian estates took pride in their separate institutions and privileges. Although its urban elites became predominantly Protestant and German-speaking, they formulated a republican identity deliberately hostile to the competing monarchical-dynastic myth in neighbouring ducal Prussia, ruled by the Brandenburg-Hohenzollerns from 1618. After 1700, the Polish crown increasingly antagonized the Prussian burghers by its centralizing policies and its failure to protect the integrity of the Commonwealth's borders. The decline of Poland and the partitions of 1772-93 guaranteed that it was not the tradition of liberty but the Hohenzollern version of Prussian identity that survived into the modern era. Joint winner of the Orbis book prize, The American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies Frontmatter Preface (page xi) Gazetteer (page xv) Glossary (page xvii) List of abbreviations (page xix) Map I (page xx) Map 2 (page xxi) I Introduction (page 1) 2 The origins of Royal Prussia (page 20) 3 Royal Prussia and urban life in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (page 46) 4 History, myth and historical identity (page 71) 5 Political identity in the cities of Royal Prussia and the meaning of liberty (1650-1720) (page 96) 6 Loyalty in times of war (page 121) 7 Divergence: the construction of rival Prussian identities (page 147) 8 Centre versus province: the Royal Prussian cities during the Great Northern War (page 171) 9 Myths old and new: the Royal Prussian Enlightenment (page 189) 10 Conclusion (page 217) Bibliography (page 222) Index (page 268) "This book considers the phenomenon of nation-building before the age of modern nationalism. It focuses on royal (Polish) Prussia - the 'other' Prussia - a province of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1466 to 1772-3, and its major cities Danzig, Thorn and Elbing."--Jacket

a Study Of National Identity In Royal Prussia - The 'other Prussia', Part Of The Polish State From 1454 To 1793.