Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw (, AGAD) is one of
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
's three
national archive
National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention.
Conceptual development
From the Middle Ages i ...
s. It holds records ranging from 12th century until
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. The current headquarters is located in Raczyński Palace located at Długa 7 Street in Warsaw.
History
The archive was founded in 1808.
A large portion of the archive was intentionally destroyed by
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
in 1939 and in 1944. In the aftermath of the suppression of the
Warsaw Uprising
The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...
of 1944, the archives were not only deliberately set ablaze, but the
Nazi German
Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...
troops also entered each of the nine accessible fire-proof vaults in the underground shelter and meticulously burned one after another (entrance to the 10th was blocked by rubble, thus saving its contents).
Official names
The archive went through several name changes:
*National General Archive (Polish: Archiwum Ogólne Krajowe) (1808-1816)
*Central Archives of the Polish Kingdom (Polish: Archiwum Główne Królestwa Polskiego) (1816-1889)
*Warsaw Central Archive of Historical Records of the Polish Kingdom (Polish: Warszawskie Archiwum Główne Akt Dawnych Królestwa Polskiego) (1889-1918)
*Central Archives of Historical Records (Polish: Archiwum Główne Akt Dawnych) (since 1918)
Archive Directors
*Walenty Skorochód Majewski (1808–1835)
*Feliks Bentkowski (1838–1852)
*Walenty Hubert (1853–1875)
*Adolf Pawiński (1875–1896)
*Teodor Wierzbowski (1897–1919)
*
Stanisław Kętrzyński
Stanisław Kętrzyński (; 10 September 1878 in Lviv, Lwów, Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungary – 26 May 1950 in Warsaw, Poland) was a Polish historian, diplomat and freemason.
He was the son of Polish historian Wojciech Kętrzyński.
During ...
(1919–1920)
*
Józef Siemieński
Józef Siemieński (born 2 March 1882 in Skrzydłów near Radomsko – 14 October 1941 in Auschwitz) was a Polish archivist, historian of law.
Siemieński was from 1925 until 1939 director of the Central Archives of Historical Records (AGAD) in W ...
(1920–1939)
*Adam Stebelski (1939–1953)
*Michał Wąsowicz (1954–1976)
*Kazimierz Krzos (1976–1979)
*Mieczysław Motas (1979–1981)
*
Edward Potkowski
Edward Potkowski (10 May 1934 in Rybnik - 31 July 2017) was a Polish people, Polish historian. His specialization includes Middle Ages, history of the medieval period and paleography.
Edward Potkowski was born on 10 May 1934 in Rybnik.Jan Tyszkie ...
(1981–1986)
*Władysław Stępniak (1986–1997)
*Hubert Wajs (from 1997)
See also
*
National Digital Archives
National Digital Archives (, ) are the national archives of Poland, collecting and digitising audiovisual materials.
National Digital Archives are one of three central State Archives (), other two being Central Archives of Historical Records an ...
Further reading
*
*
*
*
References
{{Authority control
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
Archives in Poland
Muranów (City Information System area)