Georg Brandes about Lviv

Unlike other European travellers, the Danes visited Lviv not so often, let alone leaving memories about the city. Due to its geographical remoteness and various historical factors, Lviv appeared on the mental map of Northern European travellers quite rarely. The latter were more attracted to the famous cultural centers (Paris, London, Rome, Berlin) or to the Russian capitals (Moscow and Petersburg), which were important for the diplomatic and economic interests of the Danish Kingdom.

Individual visits still happened, though. In the autumn of 1898, Georg Brandes (1843-1927), a famous Danish writer and literary critic, visited Lviv. He was most famous for his literary studies and his work entitled Main Currents in Nineteenth-Century Literature (1872-1890). In addition, the Danish "travelling critic", as he was often referred to by researchers, preferred personal acquaintance with the peoples of Europe and with their literatures in particular. Therefore, his travel texts became a certain "discovery" of the states and peoples of Eastern Europe, which had not been always present on the political or mental map of some Europeans, especially the Danes. Thanks to him, the Danes learned about the Ukrainian, Polish and Russian realities of the long 19th century.

In his travels and publications, Georg Brandes paid special attention to the Poles and their desire to restore the Polish state. Polish researcher Michalina Petelska claims that the Dane's six visits to Polish cities became the basis for the formation and evolution of his views on the "Polish issue." Polish researcher Michalina Petelska claims that the Dane's six visits to Polish cities became the basis for the formation and evolution of his views on the "Polish issue." "Russian and Prussian Poland" (prussiske og russiske Polen), in his opinion, differed from Galicia (Galizien), because, despite the region’s poverty, he met "free Poles" there. Also, Brandes' travel impressions go beyond classic ethnographic descriptions and cover various topics and problems of cultural and social life in these areas. Georg Brandes visited Poznań in 1881, Warsaw in 1885, 1886 and 1887, Warsaw and Pawłowice in 1894, Krakow and Lviv in 1898 (Petelska, 2017).

"A Journey to Lemberg" (November 19-26, 1898) became a kind of addition to the travel impressions about the Polish terrains, which had been previously published under the title "Indtryk fra Polen" (1888). This travelogue was first published in the Danish magazine Vagten in 1899. Later, these travel memories were published in a multi-volume collection of Brandes' works (volume 10). In May 1899, the Polish translation was published by the Lviv newspaper Słowo Polskie; as early as 1900 the travelogue was also published separately.

For Brandes, Lviv was a city of the Polish state, which had not been present on the political map of Europe since 1795, but still existed in his imagination and in the dreams of his Polish friends (in the Danish original, the author often uses the Polish name of the city, Lwow). Lviv is also mentioned as a regional center: the "capital of Galicia" (Galiziens Hovedstad). The Danish traveller did not forget the political realities of the time (belonging to the Austro-Hungarian Empire), which is why he also called Lviv and Galicia "Austrian Poland" (østerrigsk Polen).

Georg Brandes began his acquaintance with Galicia as a region in Krakow, where he arrived on November 16 from Berlin. However, he stayed there for a rather short time, and as early as November 18 he left for Lviv by train. As the Danish traveller mentioned, he was disturbed by reporters on the way: "they were looking for the man who was expected in Lviv" (that is, him), and also tried to interview him. The road to Lviv was filled with communication, as were the days of the famous Dane's stay in the city.

It is Lviv's press (both Ukrainian and Polish) that is another source of information about Georg Brandes' visit to Lviv. For example, the Gazeta Lwowska paid a lot of attention to this visit and in some places even expanded the information given in the Danish travelogue. It was by this newspaper (Gazeta Lwowska, 1898, No. 261) that as early as November 17 Lviv residents were informed about the arrival of a famous Danish writer "as a guest of the city." In subsequent issues, the reporters of this newspaper very thoroughly described all the events in which Georg Brandes participated (Gazeta Lwowska, 1898, No. 261-271). Brandes' visit itself was made upon invitation from the well-known  Literary and Artistic Circle  (Koło Literacko-Artystyczne) in Lviv. Therefore, among those who met Brandes at the Lviv railway station were the president of the Circle Józef Wereszczyński, the president of the Society of Polish Journalists (Towarzystwo Dziennikarzy Polskich) Liberat Zajączkowski, lawyers prof. August Bálasits and Antoni Wereszczyński. Then the visitor went by public transport to the Grand Hotel, where accommodation was booked for him (Gazeta Lwowska, 1898, No. 264).

The first day of Georg Brandes' stay in Lviv began with meeting "prominent/famous personalities" (hovedpersonnerne), namely, the President of Lviv Godzimir Małachowski, the Governor of Galicia Count Leon Piniński, the Marshal of the Galician Sejm Count Stanisław Badeni, Prince Adam Sapieha, Count Włodzimierz Dzieduszycki, historian and collector Władysław Łoziński. He briefly characterized each of them, highlighting their achievements and manifestations of Polish patriotism.

The visit of the famous Dane was part of the ceremonial opening of the monument to the Polish king Jan III Sobieski (mindefester for Sobieski). The detailed description of this celebration in the travelogue conveys Brandes' fascination with the "Poles being in love with the past" (polakkernes kærlighed til fortiden), the traditional clothes of those present, and the patriotic speeches of the clergy and representatives of the authorities (den historische-patriotiske tale). In Lviv, Brandes as a Scandinavian Protestant found himself in a completely different religious context. For example, at the festive reception in the City Hall after the inauguration of the monument, Brandes was so surprised by the presence of as many as 3 archbishops (!) that he ironically compared Lviv to Rome.

According to the travelogue, his acquaintance with the city took place mainly through meetings with representatives of various circles. At first, Brandes became acquainted with the political, public and religious figures of the city and later with other communities.

Brandes praised the level of science and education in Lviv (megen lærdom og kunskab fandtes i Galizien) due to personal communication with famous Lviv scientists, in particular with August Bálasits, Antoni Małecki and Witold Ziembicki. He was most impressed by a young man (not specifying the latter’s name), who had learned Danish on his own and had a copy of the Ancient Danish Folk Songs by the famous ethnographer Sven Grundtvig with him. The attention of the Danish traveller was also attracted by the artist Jan Styka and the Racławice panorama.

Feedback about communication with the Lviv press was less positive. Brandes writes that he had the opportunity to meet all types of journalists, "from the best to the worst." The most negative assessment was granted to the "Ruthenian press" (den ruthenske) because of the "arrival of three Ruthenians" (en deputation af tre Rutherenere). It was about a personal visit by Mykhailo Hrushevsky and Ivan Franko, who wanted to invite the famous Danish writer to take part in the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the new Ukrainian literature (the 100th anniversary of the publication of the Eneida (Aeneid) by Ivan Kotliarevsky in 1798), which was organized by  the Taras Shevchenko Scientific Society . It is known that Georg Brandes at first accepted the invitation, but then refused because of his Polish friends' negative reaction to this idea. In a letter to the Ruthenians, the Dane explained his refusal by the fact that his visit to Lviv was at invitation from the Polish community and thus he wanted to avoid taking sides due to his ignorance of the Polish-Ruthenian conflict history. It is quite obvious that Brandes had no idea about the  "new era"  as well as no clear notion about interethnic relations in Lviv. This refusal in a certain way influenced the analysis of Brandes' work by Franko, who, by the way, was well acquainted with his work (Franko, 1897; Franko, 1986).

The newspaper "Dilo" also did not ignore this event: in its "News" column, Brandes' desire to attend the event at the Ruska Besida location was briefly mentioned (Діло, 1898, № 250). After Brandes refused, the periodical described the Dane's visit to Lviv and the Poles' efforts to please him quite ironically: "We cheered him so that if Mickiewicz himself had risen from the grave, we couldn't have cheered him more!", and all this was aimed at prompting the Dane to write about them positively (Діло, 1898, № 255, 257). Apart from that, in this periodical a few isolated references to the participation of the Danish writer in various celebrations organized by the "Polish society" can be found as well as a short remark about his departure (Діло, 1898, № 257). It is quite obvious that the scarcity of these newspaper notes and their critical nature were due to Brandes' refusal to accept Hrushevsky's and Franko's invitation.

Among the numerous Lviv figures (mostly men), the Danish traveller also paid attention to Lviv women (et par ord om Damerne i Lwow), who, in his opinion, were perhaps "not so beautiful as those in Russian Poland" and had fewer rights and freedoms than women in France and "young girls from the North." Anyway, he was impressed by their gesture as he was given an "address" with 2,000 signatures during the inauguration of the monument to Jan Sobieski. As usual, Brandes also mentioned famous women who impressed him with their knowledge of art and foreign languages. He mentioned Wanda Młodnicka and her daughter, Maryla Wolska, who was a poet. It is interesting that Brandes continued communication with these women, as evidenced by letter collections and materials about his visit to Lviv from the private archives of Młodnicka and Wolska (see Inwentarz BJ, nr. 11435-11862).

At the end of his stay in Lviv, Georg Brandes also had the opportunity to visit various organizations existing in the city. For example, a visit to the Polish Sokół Association (Polskie Towarzystwo Gimnastyczne "Sokół") led to his acquaintance with the president, Dr. Antoni Dziędzieliewicz, while a visit to the Veterans' Association (Towarzystwo Weteranów) contributed to his acquaintance with Tadeusz Czapelski, who was familiar with his Warsaw friends.

According to a detailed biography compiled by Danish researchers, Georg Brandes also delivered a lecture entitled "On Reading" in the City Hall on November 26. Brandes was quite delighted to meet Prince Adam Czartoryjski, who was present at his lecture. It is interesting that the lecture was delivered in German and as soon as 1899 the text was translated and published in Polish in one of Lviv’s publishing houses and used as part of a fundraising campaign for the future monument to Mickiewicz (Fita, 2004, 135-142). 745 Rhenish guldens were obtained from the sale of tickets for the event (Gazeta Lwowska, 1898, Nr. 272).

Meetings on the last day of Brandes' stay in Lviv were very emotional. The visitor was in a hurry, but he still managed to implement his long-standing plans and to meet with the famous engineer Franciszek Rychnowski visiting his laboratory. A short time before leaving the city, Brandes also managed to visit Karol Brzozowski, a famous engineer, translator, poet and participant in the Polish uprising of 1863. It is known that Brzozowski worked and lived in various parts of the then Ottoman Empire for many years: he was engaged in building telegraph lines in the Balkans, compiling topographic maps, studying archaeological sites in the mountains of Kurdistan, conducting agricultural experiments on the banks of the Tigris River; he also was the Spanish vice-consul in Ottoman Syria. Brandes mentions in his travelogue that he saw Brzozowski at one of the public events and promised to visit him again before leaving Lviv.

No less crowded and emotional was his farewell at the railway station, when he was leaving Lviv by the evening train. In addition to those who met him on the first day, a delegation of the Veterans' Association, Jan Styka and Tadeusz Czapelski came to say goodbye to the famous Danish visitor at the Lviv railway station (Gazeta Lwowska 1898, Nr. 271).

George Brandes' stay in Lviv was full of communication and various events. As he states himself, "the autumn of 1898 in Galicia was a continuous procession of public and private events." Unfortunately, due to such a tight schedule the Dane did not have opportunities neither for walks nor for describing the city itself or its architecture.

Brandes recalled that all his days had been so planned from morning till late at night that he "didn't have an hour left for solitude." It seems that only on the last day he managed to realize his own wishes and to meet with people he was personally interested in. Therefore, in the description of the Danish writer, Lviv of 1898 has a very "human face", which is composed of images of numerous personalities (mostly Poles). Also, these "travel impressions" create an image of the city, which is the center of Polish patriotism; a city of science and art; a city where many extraordinary educated and active personalities live; a city where numerous organizations and associations function.

The human potential of Lviv (as well as other Polish cities) was another argument in favour of the restoration of the Polish state, which the city’s Polish community tried to show to Georg Brandes as a foreigner, a famous writer and a cosmopolitan in different ways.

1. Georg Brandes,  "Indtryk fra Polen" , Samlede Skrifter, 1899-1910 (Onlineudgave fra Arkiv for Dansk Litteratur).
2. Georg Brandes, "Lwów (Minder fra et Ophold i Galicien)", Vagten. Tidsskrift for Litteratur, Kunst, Videnskab, Politik. Aargang 1899. 
3. Józef Brandes,  Lwów , Z upoważnienia Autora przełożyła z oryginału Józefa Klemensiewiczowa (Lwów Nakładem Księgarni H. Altenberga, 1900).
4. Gazeta Lwowska, 1898, Nr. 261-272.
5. Діло, 1898, Nr. 250, 255, 257.
6. Inwentarz rękopisów Biblioteki Jagiellońskiej: nr 11435-11862.  Archiwum Domowe Pawlikowskich. Cz. II.  
7. Piotr de Bończa Bukowski, "Georg Brandes Between Nations and Narration: Indtryck fra Polen from a New Perspective",  Tijdschrift voor Skandinavistiek, 36(2), 2018/19, p. 125-131. 
8.  "Georg Brandes" , Lwów i jego mieszkańcy, Wydanie specjalne tygodnika Przekrój, 1991.
9. Stanisław Fita, "Pomnik Adama Mickiewicza we Lwowie. W setną rocznicę odsłonięcia", Rocznik Towarzystwa Literackiego Imienia Adama Mickiewicza, 39, 2004, s. 135-142.
10. Iwan Franko, "Ein Dichter des Verrathes", Die Zeit, 1897, Nr. 136.
11. Włodzimierz Karol Pessel, "Bieguny północne. Georga Brandesa wrażenia z Polski w świetle historii kultury duńskiej", Przegląd Humanistyczny, 56 /1 (430), 2012, s. 97-112.
12. Michalina Petelska, Georg Brandes i Polacy czyli o fenomenie wzajemnego zainteresowania z Polską w tle (Gdańsk: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Gdańskiego, 2017).
13. Michalina Petelska,  Georg Brandes and Poland , 2020.
14. Alois Woldan, John Czaplicka, "The Imagery of Lviv in Ukrainian, Polish, and Austrian Literatures: From the Sixteenth Century to 1918", Harvard Ukrainian Studies, 24, 2000, p. 75-93.
15. Patryk Zakrewski, Michalina Petelska (wywiad),  Georg Brandes — krytyk w podróży do nieistniejącego kraju , 2018.
16. Василь Івашків,  "Брандес Ґеорґ" , Наукове товариство імені Шевченка. Енциклопедія: електронна версія (Київ-Львів, 2015).
17. Іван Франко, Юрій Брандес, Зібрання творів у 50 т., Т.31, (Київ, 1986), с. 378-384.