Polonophile
A Polonophile is an individual who respects and is fond of Poland's culture as well as Polish history, traditions and customs. The term defining this kind of attitude is Polonophilia. The antonym and opposite of Polonophilia is Polonophobia.
History
Duchy and Kingdom of Poland
The history of the concept dates back to the beginning of the Polish state in 966 AD under Duke Mieszko I. It remained strong among ethnic minorities as in allied neighbouring countries and during Polonization of the Eastern Borderlands, Livonia and other acquired territories implied by the Polish Crown or the Polish government, thus also triggering Polonophobia.One of the first recorded potential Polonophiles were exiled Jews, who settled in Poland throughout the Middle Ages, particularly following the First Crusade. The culture and the intellectual output of the Jewish community in Poland had a profound impact on Judaism as a whole over the next centuries, with both cultures becoming somewhat interconnected and being influenced by each other. Jewish historians claimed that the name of the country is pronounced as "Polania" or "Polin" in Hebrew, which was interpreted as a good omen because Polania can be divided into three separate Hebrew words: po, lan, ya and Polin into two words: po ''lin''. That suggested that Poland was a good destination for the Jews fleeing from persecution and anti-Semitism in other European countries. Rabbi David HaLevi Segal expressed his pro-Polish views by stating in Poland, "most of the time the Gentiles do no harm; on the contrary they do right by Israel". Ashkenazi Jews willingly adopted some aspects of Polish cuisine, language and national dress, which can be seen in Orthodox Jewish communities around the world.
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
When Polish King Stephen Bathory captured Livonia, he granted the city of Tartu, now in Estonia, its own banner with the colours and layout resembling the Polish flag. The flag dates from 1584 and is still in use.When the Poles invaded the Tsardom of Russia in 1605, a self-identified prince, known as False Dmitry I, assumed the Russian throne. A Polonophile, he assured that King Sigismund III of Poland could control the country's internal and external affairs, secure Russia's conversion to Catholicism and thus make it a puppet state. Dmitry's murder was a possible justification for arranging a full-scale invasion by Sigismund in 1609. The Seven Boyars deposed reigning Tsar Boris Godunov to demonstrate their support for the Polish cause. Godunov was transported as a prisoner to Poland, where he died. In 1610, the Boyars elected Sigismund's underage son Władysław as the new Tsar of Russia, but he was never crowned. This period was known as the Time of Troubles, a major part in Russian history that remains relatively unmentioned in Polish historiography because of its implied Polonization policies.
File:Newrew - False Dimitry I swearing Sigismund III introduction of catholicism in Russia.jpg|thumb|right|upright|False Dmitry I swears an oath of allegiance to Sigismund III of Poland and promises conversion to Catholicism.
During the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Zaporizhian Cossack state was allied to the Catholic King of Poland, and the Cossacks were often hired as mercenaries. That had a strong impact on the Ukrainian language and led to the establishment of a functioning Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in 1596 at the Union of Brest. The Ukrainians, however, retained their Orthodox Christian faith and Cyrillic alphabet. During the Russo-Polish War of 1654–1667, the Cossacks were divided into the pro-Polish and pro-Russian factions. Petro Doroshenko, who commanded the army of Right-bank Ukraine, and Pavlo Teteria and Ivan Vyhovsky were open Polonophiles and allied to the Polish king. The Polish influence on Ukraine ended with the partitions of the late 18th century, when the territory of contemporary Ukraine was annexed by the Russian Empire.
Under John III Sobieski, the Christian coalition forces defeated the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Vienna in 1683, which ironically sparked admiration for Poland and its Winged Hussars in the Ottoman Empire. The Sultan named Sobieski the "Lion of Lehistan ". It also sparked admiration in Persia, with the Persians granting Sobieski the proud title of Ghazi. That tradition was cultivated when Poland disappeared from map for 123 years. The Ottoman Empire, along with Persia, was the only major country in the world not to recognise the Partitions of Poland. The reception ceremony of a foreign ambassador or a diplomatic mission in Istanbul began with an announcement sacred formula: "the Ambassador of Lehistan has not yet arrived".
After Partitions
The Partitions of Poland gave a rise to a new wave of Polonophilia in Europe and the world. Exiled revolutionaries such as Casimir Pulaski and Tadeusz Kościuszko, who fought for the independence of the United States from Great Britain, contributed to the sentiment that is relatively pro-Polish in North America.In Haiti, the leader of the Haitian Revolution and first head of state Jean-Jacques Dessalines, called the Poles the white Negroes of Europe. This was an expression of respect and empathy for the situation of the Poles, after Polish soldiers sent by Napoleon to suppress the Haitian Revolution defected to join the insurgents. The 1805 Haitian constitution granted the Poles Haitian citizenship.
Newly established Belgium, which declared independence from the Netherlands, was a very Polonophile country. Belgian diplomacy refused to establish diplomatic relations with the Russian Empire for annexing a large portion of Poland's eastern territories during the Partitions. Diplomatic relations between Moscow and Brussels were established only decades later.
The November Uprising in Congress Poland in 1830 against Russia prompted a wave of Polonophilia in Germany, including financial contributions to exiles, the singing of pro-Polish songs, and pro-Polish literature. During the January uprising in 1863, however, the pro-Polish sentiment had mostly vanished.
One of the strongest centres of Polonophilia in 19th-century Europe was Ireland. The Young Ireland movement and the Fenians saw similarities in both countries as "Catholic nations and victims of larger imperial powers". In 1863, Irish newspapers expressed wide support for the January uprising, which was then seen as a risky move.
Italians and Hungarians supported the Poles in the January Uprising most numerously, but other nations also showed sympathy for the uprising. In Sweden, various newspapers sympathized with the Poles, with some stating that Russia was a common enemy of Sweden and Poland, pro-Polish rallies were held, attended by Swedish parliamentarians, and funds were collected for arms for the Polish insurgents. Swedish King Charles XV strongly supported Swedish involvement in the fight on the Polish side, which, however, did not take place due to the restrained stance of the Swedish government, which declared willingness to fight for Poland only alongside Western European powers of Britain and France. An expedition of armed Polish volunteers from Western Europe assisted by foreigners of various nationalities, which stopped on the island of Öland and in Malmö on its way to Poland, was met with sympathy of the local Swedes.
Throughout modern history, France was long Poland's ally, especially after French King Louis XV married Polish Princess Marie Leszczyńska, the daughter of Stanislaus I. Polish customs and fashion became popular in the Versailles such as the Polonaise dress, which was adored by Marie Antoinette. Polish cuisine also became known in French as à la polonaise. Both Napoleon I and Napoleon III expressed strong pro-Polish sentiment after Poland had ceased to exist as a sovereign country in 1795. In 1807, Napoleon I established the Duchy of Warsaw, a client state of the French Empire that was dissolved in 1815 at the Congress of Vienna. Napoleon III also called for a free Poland and his wife, Eugénie de Montijo, astonished the Austrian ambassador by "unveiling a European map with a realignment of borders to accommodate independent Poland".
The closely related Sorbs, who were also under Polish rule in the Middle Ages, sympathised with the Poles and viewed them as allies in the resistance against Germanisation policies. 19th-century Sorbian activist declared his sympathy and admiration for the Poles, popularised knowledge of Nicolaus Copernicus and Tadeusz Kościuszko through Sorbian press, reported on the events of the January Uprising and made contacts with Poles during visits to Warsaw, Kraków and Poznań.
One of the most prominent and self-declared Polonophiles of the late 19th century was the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who was certain of his Polish heritage. He often expressed his positive views and admiration towards Poles and their culture. However, modern scholars believe that Nietzsche's claim of Polish ancestry was a pure invention. According to biographer R. J. Hollingdale, Nietzsche's propagation of the Polish ancestry myth may have been part of his "campaign against Germany".
In the early 20th century, a number of writers declared their admiration for the Poles, including Brazil's Ruy Barbosa, Japan's Nitobe Inazō and Britain's G. K. Chesterton. Nitobe Inazō called Poles a brave and chivalrous nation, and valued Polish devotion to history and patriotism. Ruy Barbosa advocated for Polish independence at the Hague Conventions of 1907.
A display of sympathy and gratitude towards Poland in Bulgaria was the unveiling of a memorial complex and symbolic mausoleum of King Władysław III of Poland in Varna. Władysław III commanded a coalition of Central and Eastern European countries at the Battle of Varna in 1444 in an attempt to repel the Ottoman invasion of Europe and liberate Bulgaria. Also, football club SK Vladislav Varna, the first ever Bulgarian football champion, was named after the Polish king.