What does the 3rd of May Constitution look like in the context of European constitutional history? What is the monarchia mixta of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealthbased on ? Is freedom inscribed in the Polish national identity? We discuss all this with prof. Ulrike Müßig from the University of Pasava, who visited the University of Gdańsk as part of the 'Visiting Professors' programme.

Emma Roncsek: - In your recent lecture at the University of Gdańsk, you touched on the concept of European identity. What makes you, personally, feel European?

Professor Ulrike Müßig: - First of all, the fact that I'm here. Being invited by foreign universities as a visiting professor corresponds with the medieval idea of the universitas - a community of scholars and students who exchange ideas despite language barriers. Unfortunately, I don't speak Polish, and Polish people are so welcoming to speak English with me. The students here are very interested in listening, and they also ask brilliant questions; and I always engage in dialogue. This makes me feel part of the European academic community.

- You are here to participate in the project ‘Comparative Constitutional History in Central and Eastern Europe’. Could you tell me a bit more about this initiative?

- It was started by my colleague Michał Gałędek - the mastermind of the whole project, which is based on a comparative focus on constitutional formation and constitutional structures. We have scholars from Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Serbia, and Croatia. I was quite impressed with the diversity of scholars involved in this initiative and with the internationally renowned lead of Gdańsk. We need a lot of comparative understanding.

- So, the point is to bring your ideas together in an international environment?

- Yes, exactly. Europe is not a closed historiographical area, it's more like a frame of identification, made up of different historical regions, characterised by differences and disparities, as well as similarities and coincidences. Many processes are combined, others function individually. We're trying to understand the full picture, which will give us much insight. This project may help us use legal-historical arguments to make European integration work more efficiently. We need to be aware of historical traditions still present in contemporary law so that we ‘do justice’ to modern law.

- What differences have you noticed between Eastern and Western countries in general?

- German is my native language but I am also familiar with Latin, French, English, Spanish, and Italian. When I study the constitutional history of the West, I have the advantage of understanding the source material in its original languages. While dealing with Eastern and Middle European countries, I lack this immediate access to the sources. Materials from the 17th and 18th centuries are written in Slavic languages, which I don't speak. It took me a long time to understand the different influences on, and the effects of the formation processes in Polish-Lithuanian legal history compared to the Holy Roman Empire or France. Poland had a completely different understanding of the aristocracy: the nobles acted as counterparts to the king and real representatives of the nation, whereas in Versailles nobility acted in relation to the king, who was seen as the state’s sun, the single bearer of sovereignty.

- What made you focus on Central Europe?

- If you concentrate on Paris and London only, you have only half the picture. Especially when it comes to German legal history, there are so many connections with medieval Eastern Europe. It has different links with Slavia Orthodoxa and Slavia Latina that are necessary to understand.

- During your lecture, you discussed the European commitment to liberty. Poland's history offers some examples that support this idea. What is your view of the Polish perspective on freedom?

- I am a great fan of your Pope John Paul II. I have read some of his texts and I can relate to his Christian idea that man comes from God, which provides human beings with an extra metaphysical dimension that cannot be suppressed. I think this is one of the most important narratives of freedom that is alive in Polish society. The second narrative I would like to emphasise is the mixed version of monarchy, the monarchia mixta of the 17^th century Commonwealth of the Both Nations. The szlachta’s nobility was a legal status, a relatively modern concept. This status connected them to certain liberties, including the right to elect the king, participate in the Sejm, and, starting in 1652, exercise the liberum veto - which means even a single vote could block a decision, ensuring that no law could pass without unanimous consent. That was the second story of freedom.

The third is about the Solidarity movement. Based on the demonstrations of the 1970s and 1980s, when workers stood up on behalf of others, not just for their own demands at the Lenin shipyard, but also for workers in other industries, Solidarity affected the whole Eastern bloc. It's a challenge and a research question for me to understand how much this third narrative is derived from the other two.

- Do you think that Solidarity is a source of motivation for the Polish people today?

- Well, I don't know enough about Solidarity's actions in Poland today, but there is a legitimate leading role of Poland among the Central European countries for standing up for freedom in the 1980s. It's something unique that Poland has contributed to history. Perhaps, these very damaging experiences you had during the Second World War, the interwar period, the First World War and the stateless era were so unique in the context of constitutional history. We, legal historians, are very reluctant to say that a country has made the best of it, but somehow I think you have.

- You have published an article on ‘The American Revolution in Polish Journalism during the Great Sejm (1788-1792)’, and you plan to continue exploring the links between Polish and American republicanism and constitutionalism during your time in Gdańsk. What motivates you to study these two countries side by side?

- When I was a young professor, I had two small children. It was hard enough to finish manuscripts. We were the initiators of the German legal historians' conferences and I wanted to have a book ready before then. I sat down and wrote down everything I had researched on English, British, French, Italian, and German legal history. After a while, I received a very nice review by a young Polish scholar, prof. Anna Tarnowska from the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. She praised the book but also said that I had forgotten to analyse the Polish May Constitution of 1791. I took up the challenge, started reading, and realised all the peculiarities of the Great Sejm and how the rulers of Poland created a constitution to prove that their country was an independent state. Searching for more information, I found some English essays describing how the representatives of the Great Sejm were influenced by the discussions of the American Revolution.

Compared to the French Constitution of 1791 and the American Constitution of 1787, one could say that the Polish May Constitution is more old-fashioned. It is still a contract between the king and the noblemen who represent the nation. You don't have the idea of a legally constituted nation based solely on civil liberties and civil rights. From my point of view, there is also another idea of this constitution. The French and American constitutions, and other modern constitutions, are in a form of a single text that brings the whole political regime under the rule of law, to make it coherent. Even though the May Constitution of 1791 wasn't a modern text - it reflected a more traditional monarchical and aristocratic style of contract - it was the only document from that period that prioritised the authority of the constitution itself. This led me to the assumption that the Great Sejm must have studied American models. Gdańsk is such an open-minded, internationally oriented city, and one can imagine that some figures in the Great Sejm were similarly open-minded, eager to bring in and integrate these innovative international ideas into their political framework.

- How would you assess the state of Polish democracy today?

- As far as I know, the political challenges - the war in Ukraine and Gaza, climate change, energy prices - are of nightmarish proportions, putting great pressure on any government. On the other hand, you have a political situation specific to Poland. I sometimes ask my students what they would do if they were Donald Tusk. Would they try to ignore the decisions of the Constitutional Tribunal or would they accept them? There are so many complex and confusing questions. If they want to establish the rule of law and strengthen democracy, they have to follow the constitutional court. But if they have a constitutional court with some political heritage then they must deal with it. I think your government is doing its best. At least that is the impression of the Western press. Still, I'm at a disadvantage because I can't read your Polish newspapers right away. 

I would never say that national parties are right, but people are lazy, they like to feel comfortable. There is always a desire for easy answers. If you offer simple answers in a populistic manner that can be easily grasped, it is a challenge for democracies.

- Especially when it is so deeply rooted in the history of a country.

- It is something I would like to understand more. It's so brilliant to be hosted here, to be able to walk around, to take the tram, to listen to people, even if you don't understand the words, but you get the melody of the language. You see the different architecture, which I love, and you see the transition, especially in Poland. They have such a modern infrastructure, new buildings. A lot of money and energy has gone into it. And it still goes on.

- Another positive aspect is that there are more and more international academic initiatives, collaborations, new perspectives.

- Yes. It's really fascinating to have international academic friends, to be invited by them, to go out to a restaurant or to the theatre together. To talk to them. Sometimes, if you happen to know them for a long time, like I know prof. Michał Gałędek, you realise how common human life is and how specific the challenges can be.