TY - JOUR N2 - 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. L1 - http://journals.pan.pl/Content/125770/PDF/2022-HSRK-09.pdf L2 - http://journals.pan.pl/Content/125770 PY - 2022 EP - 164 DO - 10.24425/hsm.2022.142722 KW - identity questions KW - Habsburg KW - Hofburg KW - aristocracy KW - 1918 KW - postimperial transition A1 - Drozdowski, Mateusz PB - Polska Akademia Nauk Oddział PAN w Krakowie PB - Instytut Historii Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego VL - tom 52 DA - 2023.01.03 T1 - Question of identity of the aristocratic families in the new national states after 1918: An example of Habsburg & Hochberg families in Poland SP - 145 UR - http://journals.pan.pl/dlibra/publication/edition/125770 T2 - Historyka Studia Metodologiczne ER -