Beyond the Revolutionary Motto? Three Polish Accounts of Fraternity in the Long Nineteenth Century

This article explores why, in references in Polish political discourse to the revolutionary triad "liberty, equality, fraternity," the concept of fraternity was often supplanted by other categories. To address this question, the authors examine the shifting interpretations and reformulations of fraternity found within nineteenth-century Polish discourse, focusing specifically on three leftist frameworks that articulated communist, nationalist, and associationist variants of fraternity. Their analysis reveals that fraternity acquired a distinctive significance in the Polish context, evolving into a higher-order concept. Its meaning was shaped by the unique circumstances of a nation deprived of statehood.