Central Europe in Mickiewicz’s Thought and Deed during the European Revolution (1848-1849). The Croatian Tropes.

Original scientific article

Abstract

In the 40s of the 19th century Adam Mickiewicz (1798-1855) was considered one of the greatest writers of Polish Romanticism. On top of that, he was one of the most recognizable Poles in Europe with strong political involvement, known for opposing any forms of political despotism. In the era of the European Revolution of 1848-1849 he entered the realm of politics with significant impetus and among all else was counting on the Balkans to become one of the main stages of an antiAustrian campaign, being convinced that especially among the Croatians there is a strong potential and willingness to rebel. His ideas on this area collided with Austro-Slavism and several other views and were finally defeated with Jelačić’s policy. The collapse of the liberation movements in Central Europe for him was due to the consequence of the lack of profound cooperation between the enslaved nations and he saw it as a triumpf of destructive egoism over solidarity.