DEPICTION OF THE COSSACK UPRISING OF 1630 UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF TARAS TRYASYLO IN POLISH HISTORIOGRAPHY OF THE LATE 19th – FIRST THIRD OF THE 20th CENTURIES

The article analyses the specifics of the approaches of Polish historians who worked in the period from the late 19th century to the beginning of the Second World War to the study of the history of the Cossack uprising of 1630 under the leadership of T. Triasylo and the peculiarities of his assessments. The study of the Polish perspective on the events of 1630 not only provides a beter understanding of these events from an alternative, often opposing, Polish viewpoint but also allows for an exploration of the distinctive features of the Polish perception of the Ukrainian people, both in their past and present. The author identifies the significant interest of Polish historians of that time in the problem of the history of the Cossack uprising of 1630 led by T. Triasylo. Among the reasons for the uprising, scholars have identified conflicts between registered and non-registered Cossacks, the struggle of the Cossacks for their estate rights, and especially the inter-confessional confrontation between Orthodox and Catholics. For numerous researchers, the image of the uprising was limited to the events of «Taras’ s Night», which became symbolic for the historical memory of the Polish and Ukrainian peoples and gained legendary features. More detailed descriptions of the military campaign of 1630 in the studies of T. Korzon and W. Tomkiewicz were often filled with attempts to downplay the scale of Polish losses and show it as a victory for the crown troops. In the depiction of the finale of the battle and the Pereyaslav Treaty, there were different assessments of them either as victories of Hetman Koniecpolski and his kind treatment of the supposedly defeated rebels, or as agreements that only postponed a new major war and failed to curb the Cossacks. The paper summarizes that these approaches were often driven by the efforts of Polish researchers to use history to «strengthen the hearts» of the Polish people during the stateless period and to foster patriotism in the interwar period.