Editing Sorbs (section)

==Relations with other Slavic nations==
===Relations with Poland===
====Medieval period====
[[File:Polska 992 - 1025.png|thumb|Lusatia was part of the Polish state between 1002 and 1031 under the rule of [[Bolesław I the Brave|Bolesław I]].]]
[[Bolesław I the Brave]] had taken control of the marches of [[Lusatia]] (Łużyce), Sorbian [[Meissen]] (Miśnia), and the cities of Budziszyn (Bautzen) and Miśnia in 1002, and refused to pay the tribute to the [[Holy Roman Empire|Empire]] from the conquered territories. The Sorbs sided with the Poles, and opened the town gates and allowed Bolesław I into Miśnia in 1002.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Wojciechowski|first=Zygmunt|year=1948|title=Bolesław Chrobry i rok 1000|journal=Przegląd Zachodni|language=pl|issue=3|page=248}}</ref> Bolesław, after the Polish-German War (1002–1018), signed the [[Peace of Bautzen]] on 30 January 1018, which made him a clear winner. The Polish ruler was able to keep the contested marches of Lusatia and Milsko not as fiefs, but as part of Polish territory.<ref>Jasienica, Pawel (2007) (in Polish). Polska Piastow. Proszynski Media. {{ISBN|978-83-7648-284-2}}</ref><ref>Bernhardt, John W (1993). Itinerant Kingship and Royal Monasteries in Early Medieval Germany, c. 936–1075. Cambridge University Press. {{ISBN|0-521-52183-1}}</ref> The Polish prince Mieszko destroyed about 100 Sorbian villages in 1030 and expelled Sorbians from urban areas, with the exception of fishermen and carpenters who were allowed to live in the outskirts.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.rastko.rs/rastko-lu/uvod/ndjordjevic-luzicani.html| title=Лужички Срби, њихова историја и култура| publisher=// rastko.rs| access-date=2016-10-24}}</ref> In 1075–1076, Polish King [[Bolesław II the Bold]] sought the restoration of Lusatia from [[Duchy of Bohemia|Bohemia]] to Poland.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=131}} In the following centuries, at various times, parts of Lusatia formed part of [[Piast dynasty|Piast]]-ruled fragmented Poland.

====18th century====
The 18th century saw increased Polish-Sorbian contacts during the reign of Kings [[Augustus II the Strong]] and [[Augustus III of Poland]] in Poland and Lusatia. Sorbian pastor {{ill|Michał Frencel|dsb|v=sup}} and his son polymath {{ill|Abraham Frencel|hsb|v=sup}} took their cues from Polish texts in their Sorbian Bible translations and philological works, respectively.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=240}} Also Polish-born Jan Bogumił Fabricius established a Sorbian printing house and translated the catechism and [[New Testament]] into Sorbian.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=242}} Polish and Sorbian students established contacts at the [[University of Leipzig]].{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=240}} Polish dignitaries traveled through Lusatia on several occasions on their way between [[Dresden]] and [[Warsaw]], encountering Sorbs.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=243}} Some [[Szlachta|Polish nobles]] owned estates in Lusatia.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=243}}
[[File:Neschwitz Schlosspark Barockschloss 02.jpg|thumb|[[Baroque architecture|Baroque]] Palace of [[Aleksander Józef Sułkowski]] in [[Neschwitz]] ({{langx|hsb|link=no|Njeswačidło}}, {{langx|pl|link=no|Nieswacidło}})<ref>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|title=Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich, Tom VII|year=1886|language=pl|location=Warszawa|page=117}}</ref>]]

The first translation from Sorbian into another language was a translation of the poem ''Wottendzenje wot Liepska teho derje dostoineho wulze wuczeneho Knesa Jana Friedricha Mitschka'' by {{ill|Handrij Ruška|hsb|v=sup}} into Polish, made by Stanisław Nałęcz Moszczyński, a Polish lecturer at the University of Leipzig, and published by the famous Polish traveler [[Jan Potocki]].{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=244}}

A distinct remnant of the region's ties to Poland are the 18th-century [[milepost]]s decorated with the [[coat of arms of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]] located in various towns in the region.

====19th century====
Polish-Sorbian contacts continued in the 19th century. Noted advocate for the preservation of Polish culture and language in [[Masuria]], [[Gustaw Gizewiusz]], during his visits in [[Budissin]] and Leipzig, came into close contact with Sorbian publicist {{ill|Jan Pětr Jordan|hsb|v=sup}}, and then Jordan published a study on the situation of the Poles in Masuria, including a collection of documents and journal articles from 1834–1842.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Sukertowa-Biedrawina|first=Emilia|year=1958|title=Z zagadnień walki o szkołę polską w diecezji ełckiej w pierwszej połowie XIX wieku|magazine=Komunikaty Mazursko-Warmińskie|language=pl|issue=1|page=65}}</ref> In the 1840s, [[Romanticism in Poland|Polish Romantic]] poet {{ill|Roman Zmorski|pl|v=sup}} befriended the Sorbian writer [[Jan Arnošt Smoler]] in [[Wrocław]], and then he settled in Lusatia, where he got to know other leading Sorbian national revival figures {{ill|Křesćan Bohuwěr Pful|hsb|v=sup}}, {{ill|Jaroměr Hendrich Imiš|hsb}} and {{ill|Michał Hórnik|hsb|v=sup}}.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=88}} Zmorski then issued the Polish newspaper ''Stadło'' in Budissin, translated four Smoler's poems into Polish, and published articles about the Sorbs in other Polish press.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|pp=88–89}} Michał Hórnik declared his sympathy and admiration for the Poles, popularised knowledge of [[Nicolaus Copernicus]] and [[Tadeusz Kościuszko]] through Sorbian press, reported on the events of the Polish [[January Uprising]] of 1863–1864 and made contacts with Poles during visits to Warsaw, [[Kraków]] and [[Poznań]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Wojtal|first=Józef|year=1973|title=Michał Hornik – budziszyński przyjaciel Polski i popularyzator dzieł Kopernika|journal=Śląski Kwartalnik Historyczny Sobótka|publisher=[[Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich]]|location=Wrocław|language=pl|volume=XXVIII|issue=2|pages=184–186}}</ref> Polish historian {{ill|Wilhelm Bogusławski|pl|v=sup}} wrote the first book on Sorbian history ''Rys dziejów serbołużyckich'', published in [[Saint Petersburg]] in 1861. The book was expanded and published again in cooperation with Michał Hórnik in 1884 in [[Bautzen]], under a new title ''Historije serbskeho naroda''. Polish historian and activist {{ill|Alfons Parczewski|pl|v=sup}} was another friend of Sorbs, who from 1875 was involved in Sorbs' rights protection, participating in Sorbian meetings in Bautzen. Parczewski joined the [[Maćica Serbska]] organization in 1875, supported Sorbian publishing, wrote articles about Sorbs in Polish press and collected Sorbian magazines and books, which now form part of the Adam Asnyk Regional Public Library in [[Kalisz]].{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=91}} It was thanks to him, among others, that [[Józef Ignacy Kraszewski]] founded a scholarship for Sorbian students. His sister {{ill|Melania Parczewska|pl|v=sup}} joined the Maćica Serbska in 1878, wrote articles about Sorbs in Polish press and translated Sorbian poems into Polish.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=91}}

====Early 20th century====
[[File:Klettwitz kath. Kirche Herz Jesu.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Sacred Heart church in [[Klettwitz]] (Klěśišća), built by Polish Catholics in the 1900s<ref name=lpn/>]]
In the early 20th century, Polish slavist and professor {{ill|Henryk Ułaszyn|pl|v=sup}} met several prominent Sorbs, including [[Jan Skala]], [[Jakub Bart-Ćišinski]] and [[Arnošt Muka]].{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|pp=91–92}}

After [[World War I]] and the restoration of independent Poland, Polish linguist [[Jan Baudouin de Courtenay]] supported the Sorbs' right to self-determination and demanded that the [[League of Nations]] assume protection over them.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Orzechowski|first=Marian|year=1976|title=Kwestia serbołużycka w polskiej myśli politycznej w latach 1939–1947|journal=Śląski Kwartalnik Historyczny Sobótka|publisher=Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich, Wydawnictwo [[Polish Academy of Sciences|Polskiej Akademii Nauk]]|location=Wrocław|language=pl|volume=XXXI|issue=2|page=379}}</ref> In the interbellum, the Poles and Sorbs in Germany closely cooperated as part of the [[Association of National Minorities in Germany]], established at the initiative of the [[Union of Poles in Germany]] in 1924. Sorbian journalist, poet and activist [[Jan Skala]] was a member of the press headquarters of the Union of Poles in Germany, and was one of the authors of the ''Leksykon Polactwa w Niemczech'' ("Lexicon of Poles in Germany").<ref>{{cite journal|last=Smołka|first=Leonard|year=1978|title=Centrala prasowa Związku Polaków w Niemczech (1923–1939)|journal=Kwartalnik Historii Prasy Polskiej|language=pl|volume=XVII|issue=2|pages=52, 59}}</ref> In 1935–1936, Sorb Jurij Cyž was employed as a legal advisor of the First District of the Union of Poles in Germany, before he left for Poland under pressure of the Nazi authorities of Germany.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=133}} There were also notable Polish communities in Lusatia, such as [[Klettwitz]] ({{langx|hsb|link=no|Klěśišća}}, {{langx|pl|link=no|Kletwice}}).<ref name=lpn>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Leksykon Polactwa w Niemczech|year=1939|language=pl|publisher=Związek Polaków w Niemczech|location=Opole|page=364}}</ref>

In Poland, Antoni Ludwiczak, founder of the [[folk high school]] in [[Dalki, Gniezno]], offered Sorbs five tuition-free spots for each course at the school, however, after the [[Nazi Party]] came to power in Germany in 1933, enrollment of Sorbs in the school was almost completely halted.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=93}} Several Sorbs studied in Poland in the interbellum.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=94}} In 1930, the Association of Friends of the Sorbs was established in Poznań with Henryk Ułaszyn as its president.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=92}} Similar associations, the Polish Association of Friends of the Sorbian Nation (''Polskie Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Narodu Łużyckiego'') at the [[University of Warsaw]] and the Association of Friends of Lusatia (''Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Łużyc'') in [[Katowice]] were established in 1936.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=133}} The Warsaw-based organization gathered people not only from the university. Its president was Professor Stanisław Słoński, and the deputy president was Julia Wieleżyńska. The association was a legal entity. The association in Warsaw issued the Polish-language ''Biuletyn Serbo-Łużycki'' ("Sorbian Newsletter"), which reported on Serbian affairs. The association in Katowice was led by {{ill|Karol Grzesik|pl|Karol Grzesik (1890–1940)}}, who was murdered by the Russians in the [[Katyn massacre]] during [[World War II]].{{sfn|Pałys|2008|pp=133–134}}<ref>{{cite book|title=Listy katyńskiej ciąg dalszy. Straceni na Ukrainie.|year=1994|location=Warszawa|publisher=Niezależny Komitet Historyczny Badania Zbrodni Katyńskiej, Polska Fundacja Katyńska, Centralna Biblioteka Wojskowa|page=30|language=pl}}</ref>

[[File:Pomnik.Jana.Skali-Namyslow.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Jan Skala]] monument in [[Namysłów]], Poland]]
During [[World War II]], the Poles postulated that after the defeat of Germany, the Sorbs should be allowed free national development either within the borders of Poland or Czechoslovakia, or as an independent Sorbian state in alliance with Poland.<ref>Orzechowski, pp. 380–381</ref> On 22 January 1945, Jan Skala was murdered by a Soviet soldier in [[Dziedzice, Namysłów County|Dziedzice]], and his grave at the local cemetery is now a [[Cultural property protection in Poland|Polish protected cultural heritage monument]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://zabytek.pl/pl/obiekty/g-254345|title=Grób Jana Skali|website=Zabytek.pl|author=Joanna Banik|access-date=5 November 2023|language=pl}}</ref> There is also a memorial to Skala in nearby [[Namysłów]]. In 1945, Polish troops fought against German forces in several battles in Lusatia, including the largest [[Battle of Bautzen (1945)|Battle of Bautzen]]. There are memorials to Polish soldiers in Bautzen (''Budyšin''), [[Crostwitz]] (''Chrósćicy'') and [[Königswartha]] (''Rakecy'') with inscriptions in Sorbian, Polish and German.

After 1945, the Sorbs that historically lived in the eastern part of Lusatia (now again part of Poland) were [[Flight and expulsion of Germans from Poland during and after World War II|expelled]], as they were German citizens. Eastern Lusatia was resettled by Poles expelled from [[Territories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union|former eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union]] and has by now lost its Sorbian identity.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bpb.de/apuz/304341/verwaistes-erbe-die-lausitz-und-die-sorbische-kultur-in-polen | title=Verwaistes Erbe | date=31 January 2020 }}</ref>

====After World War II====
Prołuż founded in [[Krotoszyn]], expanded to all Poland (3,000 members). It was the biggest non-communist organization that dealt with foreign affairs. This youth organization was created during the Soviet occupation and its motto was "Polish guard over Lusatia" (Polish: ''Nad Łużycami polska straż''). Its highest activity was in the region of [[Greater Poland]]. After the creation of [[East Germany]], Prołuż was dissolved, and its president historian from Poznań Alojzy Stanisław Matyniak was arrested.<ref>"Prołuż Akademicki Związek Przyjaciół Łużyc" Jakub Brodacki. Polska Grupa Marketingowa 2006 {{ISBN|83-60151-00-8}}</ref>

In 1946, the establishment of a gymnasium for Sorbs in [[Zgorzelec]], Poland, was initiated, and the registration of Sorbian students at Polish universities resumed.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Pałys|first=Piotr|year=2002|title=Próby utworzenia w Zgorzelcu w latach 1946–1948 gimnazjum łużyckiego|magazine=Rocznik Lubuski|language=pl|location=Zielona Góra|volume=XXVIII|issue=1|page=90|issn=0485-3083}}</ref> Despite the readiness to accept Sorbian youth in 1946, the gymnasium was not opened as the Sorbs had not yet obtained border passes to Poland.<ref>Pałys, p. 92</ref> The launch of the gymnasium was postponed by a year and free boarding and scholarships were prepared for the Sorbs, but in view of the continued lack of border passes to Poland and the establishment of a Sorbian gymnasium in Bautzen, the idea was abandoned.<ref>Pałys, pp. 94–95</ref>

One of the main centers of pro-Sorbian initiatives in post-war Poland was Wrocław, with a branch of the Prołuż organization, and several articles about the Sorbs were published in local press.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=134}} In 1946, Associations of Friends of Lusatia were founded in [[Opole]] and [[Prudnik]].{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=136}} In 1947, eight Sorbian students established the "Lusatia" Association of Sorbian Students of Higher Education of Wrocław, with eight more joining the following year.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|pp=134–135}} Also local press in Katowice, Opole and Prudnik published articles about the Sorbs and Lusatia.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=135}}

In Opole, the "Lusatian Days" (''Dni Łużyckie'') are organized annually, and the ''Pro Lusatia. Opolskie Studia Łużycoznawcze'' yearbook is published since 1999.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=136}} The Polish-Sorbian Association Pro Lusatia was established in Poland in 2004.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=136}}

After a proposal to rebuild a pre-war statue of [[Otto von Bismarck]] in Bautzen (''Budyšin'') appeared in 2021, the Sorbs objected and the Serbski Institut, in an open letter, reasoned the objection with the Bismarck government's repressions of the Sorbs, Poles, as well as [[Danes]] and [[French people|French]], and Bismarck's calls for the extermination of Poles.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.serbski-institut.de/offener-brief-zum-beschluss-des-hauptausschusses-des-bautzener-stadtrats-vom-6-oktober-2021-zur-wiedererrichtung-eines-bismarck-denkmals/|title=Offener Brief zum Beschluss des Hauptausschusses des Bautzener Stadtrats vom 6. Oktober 2021 zur Wiedererrichtung eines Bismarck-Denkmals|website=Serbski institut|author=Joanna Banik|date=11 October 2021|access-date=15 October 2023|language=de}}</ref>

===Relations with Czechia===
[[File:Kamenzer St.-Marien-Kirche (12).JPG|thumb|upright|Golden [[Coat of arms of the Czech Republic|Czech Lion]] at the top of the St. Mary's church in [[Kamenz]] ({{langx|hsb|link=no|Kamjenc}}, {{langx|cs|link=no|Kamenec}})]]
Lusatia was partly or wholly part of the Czech Duchy or Kingdom (also known as Bohemia in the west) at various times between 1075 and 1635, and several remnants of Czech rule can be found in the region. When Lusatia returned from German to Bohemian (Czech) rule, Sorbs were allowed to return to cities, offices and crafts, and the Sorbian language could be used in public.{{sfn|Golecka|2003|p=58}} As result, it was in the lands under Czech rule that the Sorbian culture and language persisted, while the more western original Sorbian territory succumbed to Germanization policies. One of the remnants of Czech rule in the region are the many town coats of arms that include the [[Coat of arms of the Czech Republic|Czech Lion]], as in [[Drebkau]] (''Drjowk''), [[Görlitz]] (''Zhorjelc''), [[Guben]] (''Gubin''), [[Kamenz]] (''Kamjenc''), [[Löbau]] (''Lubij'') and [[Spremberg]] (''Grodk'').

In 1706 the Catholic Sorbian Seminary was founded in [[Prague]].{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=241}} In 1846, the {{ill|Serbowka|hsb|v=sup}} organization was founded by Sorbian students in Prague, and it issued the ''{{ill|Kwětki|hsb|v=sup}}'' magazine until 1892.

Calls for the incorporation of Lusatia into [[Czechoslovakia]] were made after Germany's defeats in both world wars. In 1945, the Czechs established a gymnasium for the Sorbs in [[Česká Lípa]], then relocated to [[Varnsdorf]] in 1946 and to [[Liberec]] in 1949, however, the Sorbs took their high school diploma in Bautzen after a Sorbian high school was established there.<ref>Pałys, pp. 89–90</ref>

===Relations with Yugoslavia===
First permanent cultural and political contacts between Sorbs and [[South Slavs]] were established in the mid-19th century, and the contacts reached in their peak in the early 20th century.<ref name=ds>{{cite magazine|last=Sokolović|first=Dalibor|year=2012|title="Srbska Lužica" - efemeryda czasopiśmiennictwa sorabistycznego na Bałkanach|magazine=Pro Lusatia|location=Opole|language=pl,en|volume=11|pages=15, 20}}</ref> In 1934, the first and only issue of the ''Srbska Lužica'' newspaper was published by consortium Srbska Lužica in [[Yugoslavia]].<ref name=ds/>

In November 1945, Yugoslavia declared support for the freedom aspirations of the Sorbs.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=149}} On 1 January 1946, the Sorbian National Council appointed Jurij Rjenč as its plenipotentiary representative in [[Belgrade]], soon confirmed by the Yugoslav authorities after his arrival and meetings with several Yugoslav officials.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=149}} The Military Mission of Yugoslavia (VMJ) to the [[Allied Control Council]] established contacts with Sorbian national activists and declared it imperative to legally guarantee the cultural and national rights of the Sorbs, merge Upper and Lower Lusatia into one administrative district, and to halt the settlement of German displaced persons in Sorbian villages.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=150}} The Military Mission of Yugoslavia assisted Sorbian activists in Berlin with accommodation and catering, and contributed to the rebuilding of the [[Serbski dom]] in Bautzen, the chief cultural institution of Sorbs.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=151}}