Figure 2.--These Polish children in 1934 are posing for a First Communion portrait in their white outfits. Not all Polish boys in the 30s wore white outfits. |
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Here we will archive information on the activities persued by Polish boys and the destinctive costuming associated with those activities. Some clothing is specifically associated with specific activities. This has become more common as Polabd became more affluent in the 20th century. There are schoool, work, and play clothes as well as dress up outfits. This will include information on Polish choirs, dancing, music, schools, sports, and other activities. Poland like many countries of Eastern and Central Europe has undergone
cataclismic political changes in the 20th Century. The resulting political changes
have significangtly affected the educational system which of course
affected school uniform and dress.>We also have developed some information on Polish youth groups. Many of these outfits seem similar to clothing worn in other countrues, especially Germany and Russia. Germany has probably had more influential in the early 20th because of cultural affinities, especially Catholocism. This may have changed after World War II when Poland disappeared behind the Iron Curtain. But even here East Germany continued to be an important influence.
The Catholic Church in Poland has supported boy choirs as was the case in
western Europe. I have no information, however, about the tradition of boy
choirs in Poland. Modern Poland did not exist until after World War I. The
countries whivh had divided Poland (Ayustria, Germany (Prussia), and Russia
may not have permitted Poles to form oy choirs, but I am not sure about this.
The German occupation disrupted the brief independent existence of the Polish
Republic (1919-39). The communists despite their efforts to supress the
Catholic Church did allow boy choirs to form, but I have few details at this time.
Polish choirs developed some of the most destinctive costumes of all the
European choirs, making them easily recognizable. This may be due to the recent establishment of the Polish state making Poles especially interested in emphasizing their national identity.
We know little about Polish gfolk dancing. At his time we know nothing about folish folk dancing in Poland. Until 1919, Poland was under te control of Austria, Germany, and Russia. The language, culture, and other national aspirations were supressed to varying degrees by those empires. We are not sure to what extent this extended to folk culture like dancing. After 1919 the Polish government presumably promoted folk culture like dancing, but again we have few details. The NAZIs tried even more viciously to stamp out Polish cultural traditions, including music and dance. Persumably these were revived by both the Communist Government installed by the Soviets and todays democrtaic government. Hopefully one of our Polish readers will provide us some background information. Poland appears to have a Polish State Folk Song and Dance Ensemble called Mazowsze, but we do not know to whay extent their is a youth dance program in Poland. We do not know, for example, if there were school programs. Much of the limited information we have comes from Polish dance groups in the various countries to which Poles have migrated such as Australia, Canada, the United States, and many other countries. Often Polish churches played an important role in maintaining traditional custons in immigrant communityies. We note that Park Secondary School in Dagenham, England had a dance program. It was apparently promoted by the Ford Foundation. We do not know if the members were of Polish extraction or how common such programs were in Britain.
We note a Polish family on a beach vacation in 1916.
Poland is a largely Catholic country. The Church has played a major role in the country's history. During the five decades of Communist rule, the Church successfully resisted the Communists, the only national institution to do so. The Church was the principal naional institution during the 19th century when most of Poland was controlled by Orthodix Russia and Protestant Prussia. Poland until World war II had a large Jewish minority which was largely destroyed by the NAZI Holocaust. Poland aftr World War I acquired a large area in the East with a more diverse ethnic and religious make up than largely Catholic central Poland. Much of what is now Beylorusia was between the Wars a part of Poland. This included Lothuanians, Wjite Russians, Ukranians, and others. Thus the religious makeup of the country has been affected by the boundaries. After World War II the boundaries of Poland were essentialky shifted West and the Polish population to the east trnsported to the new boundaries given the country a much more purely Polish and Catholic make up.
I have little information on Polish school uniforms or Polish boys' schools in general. Hopefully some of the European visitors to this web site will provide some information. Poland like many countries of Eastern and Central Europe has undergone cataclismic political changes in the 20th Century. These changes were especially significant in Poland. Poland in the medieval era had been one of the most important countries in Europe, but as a result of the 18th century Polish partitions, Poland was reased from the map of Europe. This led in the 19th century to efforts by Austria, Germany, and Russia to supress Polish natioinalism and culture. Only in the 20th century was Poland reconstituted. The resulting political changes have significangtly affected the educational system which of course affected school uniform and dress.
HBU has very limited information on Polish youth groups at his time. The Scouts are the most important group. We do not know of any other groups in the early 20th century. The modern Polish nation came into existence only after World War I in 1919. We know nothing about Polish youth groups either before or after 1919 other than the Scouts. The NAZIs when they occupied western Poland in 1939 disbanded the couts and did not organize a pro-NAZI youth group as they did in the countries they occupied in many other countries. The Soviets organized Pioneer groups in the area that they occupied in 1939. After the Soviets liberated Poland in 1944, the Pioneers were reestablished by the Communist Government and the Scouts outlawed. Scouting was not restablished until 19??.
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