The many people gathered in this lecture theatre hold some very different convictions about the past, present and future. We cannot ignore the all too evident fact that the Polish, British and American nations today are all divided, polarized, riven . . . Riven to an extent I do not remember in half a century. We can no longer assume that it is normal to discuss the problems of pursuing the common good within shared human values. Institutions, communities, families and friends have been riven by the demagogues’ claims that whoever is not with us is against us; whoever thinks differently from ‘us’ serves the enemy; therefore ‘they’ must be barbarians, fanatics, criminals, or traitors. Politicians and journalists routinely sling historical terms such as ‘targowica’ as cheap insults. Historians are not immune from such pressures, especially when the politics of history and memory are an ideological fault-line. No doubt next year’s anniversary events will be especially difficult. For the moment, we are marking the centenary of 1918. Is it possible to discuss not only the facts, but also their significance, without party political point-scoring? I hope so. Polish historians and historians of Poland – the two are not the same, although there is a large overlap – are about as politically divided as any other professional group. They have, however, repeatedly shown themselves capable of calm and reasoned debate over emotive questions of the recent and not so recent past. Historians’ professional ethic obliges them to weigh up evidence carefully, and to subject narratives to sceptical criticism. It is impossible to lock the past in the past. The answer to the political manipulation of history is not less history, but better history. We can, I expect, look forward to some profound disagreements and lively polemics today. But I also trust that, both among our invited speakers and among the audience, that all arguments will be made ad rem, never ad personam. The subtitle of the conference is ‘one hundred years on’. Not all that long ago, only just beyond the limits of adult memory. A very few people can still remember those events from their childhood. Many more can remember the reminiscences of their parents or grandparents.

中文翻译：

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波兰复兴、重生、重获新生：一百年后

聚集在这个演讲厅里的许多人对过去、现在和未来有着截然不同的信念。我们不能忽视一个显而易见的事实，即今天的波兰、英国和美国国家都是分裂的、两极分化的、四分五裂的。. . 撕裂到我半个世纪都不记得的程度。我们不能再假设在共同的人类价值观中讨论追求共同利益的问题是正常的。机构、社区、家庭和朋友都因煽动者声称不与我们在一起的人反对我们而四分五裂；与“我们”想法不同的人为敌人服务；因此，“他们”必须是野蛮人、狂热分子、罪犯或叛徒。政治家和记者经常将诸如“targowica”之类的历史术语视为廉价的侮辱。历史学家不能免于这种压力，尤其是当历史和记忆的政治是意识形态的断层线时。毫无疑问，明年的周年纪念活动将特别困难。目前，我们正在纪念 1918 年的一百周年。是否有可能不仅讨论事实，而且讨论它们的意义，而不用党的政治计分？希望如此。波兰历史学家和波兰历史学家——两者并不相同，尽管有很大的重叠——在政治上的分歧与任何其他专业团体一样。然而，他们一再表明自己能够就最近和不那么近的过去的情感问题进行冷静和理性的辩论。历史学家的职业道德迫使他们仔细权衡证据，并使叙述受到怀疑的批评。过去不可能锁定过去。政治操纵历史的答案不是更少的历史，而是更好的历史。我预计，我们可以期待今天出现一些深刻的分歧和激烈的争论。但我也相信，无论是在我们受邀的演讲者中还是在观众中，所有争论都将是针对人的，而非针对个人的。会议的副标题是“一百年后”。不是很久以前，只是刚刚超出了成人记忆的极限。很少有人还记得他们童年的那些事。还有更多的人可以记住他们父母或祖父母的回忆。从不做广告。会议的副标题是“一百年后”。不是很久以前，只是刚刚超出了成人记忆的极限。很少有人还记得他们童年的那些事。还有更多的人可以记住他们父母或祖父母的回忆。从不做广告。会议的副标题是“一百年后”。不是很久以前，只是刚刚超出了成人记忆的极限。很少有人还记得他们童年的那些事。还有更多的人可以记住他们父母或祖父母的回忆。