The Heritage of the Past and the Idea of Change in the City of the Pre-industrial Era
Jagiellonian University, Kraków
27–29 May 2024
Looking at the history of Polish cities in the pre-industrial era, it is easy to see the dynamics of the changes they underwent. These changes affected not only the organization of municipal self-government institutions, but also the law itself, as well as the customs and religious aspects of urban life. However, the term “reform” used in the title implies the intentionality of the change itself, including its preparation, its introduction and, above all, its implementation. Reform thus requires a confrontation with the legacy of the past. This can take a profound (critical) form, but also an everyday form, inherent in the choices made by individuals and communities. The clash between beliefs in the value of past experiences, solutions, guidelines or established ways of acting, and ideas of modification, improvement, renewal, and departure from established models, has provoked the expression of opinions and the adoption of opposing positions, motivated by different interests. This clash of positions naturally required the development of arguments. For example, the idea of old law being a good law [K. Grzybowski, R. Clanchy] could be challenged by the idea of rejecting bad customs [W. Uruszczak]. These changes affected various aspects of urban life. The concept of citizenship justified the empowerment of the bourgeoisie to co-decide on public matters. From there, it was only a step towards a justifiable grab for power, at least in terms of legislation [K. Kamińska] or expenditure control [H. Samsonowicz]. The utopian belief that the whole of human life could be normativised took the form, especially in the old city, of the imposition of patterns of behaviour. This occurred, for example, in guild statutes, but also in resolutions regulating attire, ceremonial procedures or the display of wealth [M. Bogucka]. On the other hand, the sanctions for violating these new standards suggest that the change was not fully accepted by society.
It is in this context that we encourage to undertake a several-track reflection:
- Identifying and reflecting on the moderated changes (legal, religious, and social) in the former city's organism;
- Describing the individual and collective attitudes towards the reforms undertaken, identifying their sources, promoters, and opponents, and (if possible) reconstructing the discussions and arguments;
- Characterising the implementation process of these reforms, identifying successes and failures, and attempting to answer the question of their causes.
Conference Patrons: Mayor of the City of Krakow, Rector of the Jagiellonian University, Dean of the Faculty of Law and Administration of the Jagiellonian University and the Polish Society for the History of Law