Aleksander Bronikowski, Hipolit Boratyński: A Historical Novel [1875]

Title: Hipolit Boratyński: A Historical Romance.

Author: Aleksander Bronikowski (1783–1834) [born Alexander August Ferdinand von Oppeln-Bronikowski, a German-language writer, major in the Polish Army of the Congress Kingdom, and a pioneer of the Polish historical novel].

Publisher: Warsaw, S. Lewental. Series: Library of the Finest Works of European Literature. Polish Literature.

Year of publication: 1875.

Format: 20 cm.

Volume: 526, [2] pp.

Binding: Period half-leather binding.

“Hipolit Boratyński” is one of Aleksander Bronikowski’s earliest novels; beginning in 1825, he published a series of historical romances set in Polish history in German. Set during the reign of Sigismund Augustus, the work introduces the reader to the world of the court and the nobility of the 16th-century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Bronikowski’s novels were quickly translated into Polish and enjoyed great popularity. *Hipolit Boratyński* was published in Polish in Warsaw as early as 1828–1829, in six volumes. The edition presented here, from 1875, was published in a single volume as part of the series “Biblioteka Najcelniejszych Utworów Literatury Europejskiej” (“Library of the Finest Works of European Literature”), published since 1873 by Salomon Lewental. Lewental was one of the most important Warsaw publishers of the second half of the 19th century. He took over the Glücksbergs’ publishing house, published *Kłosy* and *Tygodnik Romansów i Powieści*, and, through his affordable, carefully edited series, introduced the classics of Polish and foreign literature to a wide audience. The inclusion of Bronikowski’s novel in this series attests to the enduring place it held in the canon of 19th-century Polish literature.

Aleksander Bronikowski was born on February 28, 1783, in Dresden, into the family of a Saxon army officer. He served in the military, and in 1823, as a major in the Polish Army of the Congress Kingdom, he ended his military career and devoted himself to literature. Although he wrote exclusively in German, he identified as Polish and devoted nearly his entire body of work to Polish history. Beginning in 1825, he published over thirty works, including “The Mouse Tower on Lake Gople,” “Casimir the Great and Esterka,” “The Election,” and “Zawieprzyce.” He was influenced by Walter Scott, but was a greater realist than Scott. He adhered to historical facts and paid close attention to detail, creating a form of documentary historical novel. He preceded Józef Ignacy Kraszewski in the idea of a series of novels covering Polish history from legendary times to the 18th century. He died in Dresden on January 21, 1834.

Provenance: ownership stamp from the library of S. Skotnicki.

This is one of the most widely read Polish historical novels of the pre-Mickiewicz era, published in Lewental’s highly regarded series, in a period binding. A must-have for collectors of early Polish historical prose and scholars of the Warsaw publishing scene of the second half of the 19th century.

The text block is intact; the title page has a slight tear. The period half-leather binding shows natural signs of wear consistent with the piece’s age.

Catalog ID: 8649-20-A-W