Józef Krzyczkowski i Zespół Społeczno-Narodowy

Abstract

The article reflects on the life and work of economist and politician Józef Krzyczkowski (1901-1989), with a special focus on his ties with organizations such as the National Economy Club and the Social National Club. The author examines Krzyczkowski’s professional career using data collected at the Warsaw School of Economics Archives and the Central Archives of Modern Records in Warsaw. Krzyczkowski’s social and economic activities in the period between the two world wars and after WW II were of special interest to Jarosz-Nojszewska. She also delves into the wartime experiences of Krzyczkowski, who commanded Polish Home Army troops in Kampinos Forest in his capacity as Lt. Col. “Szymon.” The main part of the article is dedicated to Krzyczkowski’s involvement in economic discussion clubs in the 1930s. This is the least researched period of his life, Jarosz-Nojszewska says. Krzyczkowski co-founded an organization called the National Economy Club. After the death of Poland’s erstwhile leader Marshal Józef Piłsudski, Krzyczkowski founded another organization called the Social National Club, which published its own weekly periodical entitled Zespół. The Social National Club called for far-reaching political and economic changes in Poland, as reflected by its key publication Podstawy doktryny społeczno-narodowej (The Fundamentals of the Social National Doctrine). The publication provoked criticism of the National Economy Club community, whose members were accused of disseminating communism, especially by those with conservative views. The dispute reached the courtroom, but it remained unresolved due to the outbreak of WW II.