The article deals with the appropriation of postcolonial studies to look at Central Europe and Galicia. Beginning with the concept of“internal colonialism“, we follow the evolution of postcolonial theory from a basically economy-based concept into a poststructuralist cultural theory, presenting the development and uses of its central concepts, such as Orientalism or othering. Based on some examples, we also highlight its previous appropriation to Central Europe and the political implications it carries in this region.

This article analyzes the heuristic value of the possible application of postcolonial approaches to nineteenth-century Habsburg Galicia. It critically reviews some contemporary usages of “postcolonial” in Ukrainian historiography, and political and literary criticism. The article finds original postcolonial historical approaches to be of great heuristic value, especially for practitioners of social history. Using “postcolonial” tools, historical research may yield new insights into the history of nineteenth-century Galicia

The independence of newly born (or reborn) states at the end of 1918 raised the question of the future of the aristocratic families who had built their position in the pre‑war empires. An interesting example of such dilemmas arose in Poland. This was connected with the fate of two originally German‑speaking families. One of them was a branch of the imperial Habsburg family that settled in Żywiec (German: Saybush) in western Galicia. The other: rich and powerful family of Hofburg von Pless having their main seat in Pszczyna (German: Pless) in Prussian Upper Silesia. They were both members of the absolute elite of European aristocracy, being related to many noble and royal families and playing important roles in the political and economic life of Austro‑Hungary and Germany. What they also had in common was the fact, that their estates were located in a borderland between different ethnic and national groups. After the end of World War One, almost all these properties became part of the independent Polish state. As a result, the new administration treated the families with serious distrust. However, their national choices were different: the Habsburgs of Żywiec started to consider themselves as pure Polish, while the Hofburgs radically adhered to their German self‑identity. This article shows what the criteria were behind these choices.