POLSKA I EUROPA ŚRODKOWO-WSCHODNIA W KONCEPCJI "MITTELEUROPY" NAUMANNA I JEJ WSPÓŁCZESNA RECEPCJA W POLSCE

Abstract

The article is devoted to the outline of the concept and it’s daily reception in Poland. The text begins with a short presentation of the Friedrich Naumann’s biography and his political views. Special attention has been paid to the I world war period and to the influence of this conflict on Naumann’s idea. The author explains that Mitteleuropa was a specific German plan for the Middle and Eastern Europe, which was based on the german hegemony in this part of the world. Naumann proposed a creation of a group of countries which would have been a part of the german space. According to Naumann, economic influence was a fundament of political influence of the German Reich in the Middle and East Europe after the I world war. The book «Mitteleuropa» became a bestseller in Germany. Thanks to this success Naumann’s idea was widely discussed also by ordinary people and found a place in the social awarness. In modern Poland this idea became a symbol of the Germany’s desire of domination in Europe. Very often name “Mitteleuropa” is used as keyword which symbolize polish fear of the german power. Especially after the Poland’s accesion to the European Union the journalists and politicians (mainly from the right wing) have been used comparison between German ambitions from the beginning of the XX century and daily position of this country in the European Union. Key words: Germany, Poland, Friedrich Naumann, I world war, Middle Europe.