Polish politician, statesman, and co-founder and chief ideologue of the National Democracy political movement
1864 CE
to 1939 CE
Roman Stanisław Dmowski (August 9, 1864 – January 2, 1939) is a Polish politician, statesman, and co-founder and chief ideologue of the National Democracy ("ND": in Polish, "Endecja") political movement.
He sees the aggressive Germanization of Polish territories controlled by the German Empire as the major threat to Polish culture and therefore advocates a degree of accommodation with another power that had partitioned Poland, the Russian Empire.
He favors the re-establishment of Polish independence by nonviolent means, and supports policies favorable to the Polish middle class.
During the First World War, in Paris, through his Polish National Committee, he is a prominent spokesman to the Allies for Polish aspirations.
He is a principal figure instrumental in the postwar restoration of Poland's independent existence.
Dmowski never wields significant political power, except for a brief period in 1923 as Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Nevertheless, he is one of the most influential Polish ideologues and politicians of his time.
A controversial personality most of his life, Dmowski believes that only a homogeneous Polish-speaking and Roman Catholic-practicing nation will be preferable as opposed to Piłsudski’s vision of Prometheism, which seeks a multi-ethnic Poland reminiscent of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth instead.
As a result, his thinking marginalizes other ethnic minority groups living in Poland, particularly those in the Kresy (which includes Jews, Lithuanians, and Ukrainians).
He remains a prototype of Polish nationalism and has been frequently referred to as "the father of Polish nationalism".
Throughout most of his life, he is the chief ideological opponent of the Polish military and political leader Józef Piłsudski and of the latter's vision of Poland as a multinational federation against German and Russian imperialism.
