For the Sake of Expansion
Research on Poland during the First World War
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Science and politcs are closely entangled. This is shown by an early example from German „Ostforschung“. During the First World War the German Empire occupied territories that since the Partitions of Poland had been under Russian rule. The head of the administration in the newly created Generalgouvernement Warschau created the „Landeskundliche Kommission“, an academic body whose research focused on the geographical distribution of ethnic groups in former Congress Poland. The commission’s purpose was to justify German rule in the conquered territories and to supply practical knowledge to the occupation authorities. Scientists also benefited: they obtained material support, and their prestige was enhanced.
(Osteuropa 1-2/2017, pp. 97–105)