Polish-Czech relations in the research activities of Walery Goetl (1889–1972)

The paper discusses the issue of the Polish-Czechoslovak cooperation in the field of nature conservation and the geology of the Tatra Mountains in the interwar period and the period after the Second World War. A prominent figure in the field, Walery Goetel fostered the cooperation between Poland and Czechoslovakia.

The research aim of the article was to present the broadly understood speleological activity of the brothers Tadeusz and Stefan Zwoliński. The text presents biographies of both described characters, then the individual stages of their speleological activity are analyzed in detail, and in the end the legacy of the Zwoliński brothers is characterized. The speleological activity of the Zwoliński brothers lasted several dozen years in total: it began during the Austro-Hungarian period, was continued with many successes in the interwar period and ended after the Second World War in the Polish People’s Republic. At the threshold of their activity, only 44 caves in the Polish Tatras were known. The activity of the Zwoliński brothers finally brought the knowledge of nearly 120 new cave facilities. Their various publications also provided a model for the development of cave documentation and influenced the tourist and scientific activities carried out there. The article is a contribution to further research on the history of Polish speleology.