The Historical Institute of the University of Wrocław and the Institute of National Remembrance in Wrocław are honoured to invite you to participate in an international conference titled The end of the empires. Formation of post-war order in Central and Eastern Europe in 1918-1923, to be held in Wrocław on 22-23 November 2018. The starting point for the discussion will be the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I and the restoration of Poland’s independence. The organizers also intent to focus on the state-forming processes of nations forged from the ruins of the Russian and Austro-Hungarian Empires in the context of shaping the eastern border of the Polish state.

World War I resulted in the final collapse of the “Viennese order”, which not only necessitated a search for other paths to consensus, but also created conditions for the new states that emerged on the foundations of the 19th-century processes involved in forming nations. The defeat of the occupying forces gave Poland the independence it longed for, but the “awakening” of nations that remained part of the First Republic led to a revision of existing relations and adoption of a full spectrum of attitudes ranging from cooperation and acceptance to conflict. Internal transformations in Russia and Germany, which became either enemy or an ally in the independence aspirations of the young republics, played a tremendous role. International conditions and the positions of Western states were also crucial.

During the sessions we propose focusing on the following issues:

1) in the face of a new order in Europe:
– Germany’s defeat, the collapse of the Russian Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire;
– “fighting for independence”; the process of building new state structures against the backdrop of the international situation;
– the impact of international law on transformations in Central and Eastern Europe: (the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, Wilson’s Fourteen Points, the Treaty of Versailles, the Treaty of Riga, meetings of the Council of Ambassadors);

2) new states and their internal problems:
– political aspects (conflicts resulting from different concepts and modes of action, building a state apparatus);
– military aspects (fighting for state borders, supplying armies, military cooperation);
– economic aspects ((re)construction of the economic basis for the functioning of the state);
– social aspects (attitudes of the population, the issue of national identity, everyday life);

3) implementation of independence aspirations and relations between states:
– political aspirations and conceptions for shaping the borders of the state and relations with new neighbors;
– the attitudes of Russia and Germany towards the changes taking place on the map of the Eastern Europe;
– cooperation between nations in the struggle for their own state and regional security.

The issues listed above are intended to suggest the main directions of discussion and provide inspiration to attendees, but other proposals related to the central theme of the conference are also welcome.

Further information: https://endofempires19181923.wordpress.com/

There is no conference fee, and conference materials, meals (lunches, coffee breaks, official dinner), and accommodations will be provided. In addition, travel costs will be co-financed for lecturers from abroad.

Your proposal (in English, Ukrainian, Polish or Russian) should be submitted by 15 April 2018 via the registration form below: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeKutrxYvhBzGXFP9k-GyX3dTGtqCtOUM1DdqRttoCUyI-3QA/viewform?usp=sf_link

We reserve the right to reject an application.

Academic Advisory Board:
Prof. Piotr Cichoracki, University of Wrocław, Poland
Prof. Stanisław Ciesielski, University of Wrocław, Poland
Prof. Krzysztof Kawalec, Institute of National Remembrance, Poland
Prof. Leonid Zaszkilniak, Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, Ukraine

Please do not hesitate to contact us in case of any questions: rozpad.imperiow1918.1923@gmail.com

Organizing Committee:
Prof. Grzegorz Hryciuk
Prof. Robert Klementowski
Prof. Filip Wolański
Magdalena Gibiec
Dorota Wiśniewska