Roman Franciszek Rybarski (1887-1942) należał do wybitnych teoretyków i działaczy Narodowej Demokracji. Pozostawił szereg prac z zakresu ekonomii, prawa i polityki. Wśród tych ostatnich szczególne miejsce zajmują Naród, jednostka i klasa oraz Siła i prawo. Był prezesem Klubu Narodowego w Sejmie w latach 1928-1935 oraz przywódcą frakcji liberalnej zwanej grupą „starych” lub „profesorską” w Stronnictwie Narodowym. W artykule przedstawiono jego poglądy dotyczące problematyki ustrojowej. W pierwszym okresie istnienia niepodległej Rzeczypospolitej do 1922 r. Rybarski zdecydowanie opowiada się za ustrojem demokracji parlamentarnej i ideą państwa narodowego. Wybory 1922 r. i porażka w Zgromadzeniu Narodowym przy wyborze prezydenta Gabriela Narutowicza oraz tragiczne skutki jego śmierci powodują, że Rybarski, jak i inni działacze endeccy, dostrzegają że do niedawna tak bliski im parlamentaryzm staje się zgubny dla Polski. Rozpoczyna się jego krytyka, Rybarski podkreślał, że konstytucja doprowadza do krańcowości i absurdu zasadę rządów parlamentarnych. Niezadowolenie przeniosło się na wszystkie klasy i warstwy. Domagano się zmian, które stawały się koniecznością chwili.

Roman Rybarski’s political activity in the Second Republic of Poland

In this paper an analysis of Roman Rybarski’s political activity has been done, who was one of the most prominent leader of national camp. In a special way his contribution in polish political thought is outlined. In his political biography an important date was 1919, when R. Rybarski was appointed as an expert of polish delegation to Paris peace conference. After his return, he activated himself politically, linking with numerous national camp organizations. Formulating not only economic program but also his views on nation and society, thus he became an important ideologist of national camp. In period 1928–1935 he sat as a deputy in second and third term Sejm, where he performed the function of National Club chairman. In this paper are also other issues raised, such as R. Rybarski collaboration with Roman Dmowski, as well as tensions and political discrepancies between them.

The disobedient women – leaders of the National Organization for Women. A sketch for a group portrait of the National Democracy women activists 1919–1929)

The significance and scale of Endek influence in the nineteenth and twentieth century were not the outcome of stricly party organizations. A social movement, which had been built up since the partition era, reflected the strength of the nationalist camp. Vigorous associations – both secret and conspiratorial – united both men and women of various social backgrounds, economic positions, and professionial affiliations. This included the National Organization of Women (NOK) – founded in 1919 – which was one of the largest and most influential women’s groups in the Second Polish Republic. The following article is an attempt to present selected aspects of the biographies of NOK leaders, which collectively make up a collective portrait of Natinal Democratic women of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The analysis includes such elements as: the intellectual climate of the era, the significance of the partitions in female political activism in indepent Poland, and the role of the Catholic faith (both in its individual and social dimensions). It is also indispensable to discuss the circumstances of the NOK’s founding and the motives propelling Polish women toward activism in the public sphere: first, in the electoral campaign to the Constituent Diet (1919) on behalf of the National Democratic movement, and, secondly, through involvement in the association’s actitivities. In this context, it is wortwhile to pose a question about the roles of men and women in the ranks of the National Democratic movement. This is an issue that deserves to be investigated since the members of NOK, in response to the needs of a newly-independent Polish state, rejected the notion of gender conflict, aiming instead to build a community in which the activism of men and women could be mutually complementary.

Members of Polish University Corporations – a Collective Picture

This article is to present a collective portrait of the members of the pre-war fraternity organisations. These students’ corporations were ideological and educational and they had a hierarchical structures. The author tried to demonstrate that students who actively participated in the university life by joining different associations and ideological and/or educational organisations, were more likely to get involved in political activities, publicity and journalism in the future. Moreover they worked underground in various military formations after 1939.