A real center of local power in the Stalinist period – the District Committee of the Polish United Workers’ Party in Nidzica in 1948–1956

The article presents selected aspects of the history of the Polish United Workers’ Party in the Nidzica poviat in the years 1948–1956. The genesis of the Stalinist party in this poviat was characterized, i.e. selected aspects of the activities of the Polish Workers’ Party and its activities in 1946–1948. Attention was drawn to the extremely developed propaganda activity of the communist authorities, which used lies on a very large scale, promoting, inter alia, Soviet models in all areas of life, from political matters to the economy and the sphere of culture. The process of strengthening the position of the PPR in the Nidzica poviat was emphasized, which was related to, inter alia, with the destruction of the illegal opposition, as well as the Polish People’s Party and the Polish Socialist Party. The course of major political events of that period was also presented: the falsified people’s referendum in June 1946, the equally falsified parliamentary elections in January 1947, and the increasingly wider scope of political repressions against communist opponents. The process of creating the structures of the Polish United Workers’ Party and its leading activists was described, from December 1948 to 1956. Selected aspects of the PZPR’s activities in the political, social and economic fields were characterized. The consolidation of the hegemonic position of the PZPR in political life, socialist realism in the sphere of culture and the Stalinization of economic life, including activities for the collectivization of agriculture. Very strong ties between the party leadership and the local security apparatus, that is, above all, with the County Public Security Office, were emphasized. Attention was paid to the persecution of political opponents, and at the same time to various manifestations of social resistance against communists.

Financing and reconstruction of post-Teutonic castles after World War II. Nidzica, Kętrzyn, Giżycko – a selection of sources

The article presents the state of preservation of selected Teutonic castles after World War II, as a basis for considering the financing and restoration of several of them. Conservation and archival documentation is analyzed, supplemented by excerpts from interviews with former provincial conservationist Lucjan Czubiel. The role of the conservation office in the restoration of the castles was discussed, as well as the activities of the Monument Conservation Workshop. As a result of the research, it was possible to answer the questions: what were the difficulties of the Polish state in rebuilding these huge historic buildings? Why were these, and not other, objects chosen for funding? What procedures had to be met? What factors determined the effectiveness of the reconstruction and for what purposes were the castles used?