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War, Remembrance, And Katýn:
How Public Memory Sites Affirm National Identity, Adele Partington

History and Political Science | Senior Theses

The nation of Poland had a well-established national identity based on its culture, religion, language, and history prior to its occupation by the USSR, but this identity was suppressed in the sixty years of Soviet control from 1939 to 1989. After achieving their independence, Poles reexamined their history and identity, in addition to choosing which aspects of Soviet history and identity to keep or do away with. This thesis examines the relationship between public memory sites in or about Poland and the affirmation of the Polish national identity after Polish independence from the Soviet Union in 1989. Building on the …