Patriotic Consumption. The origins and development of Polish vegetarianism

Abstract

The development of vegetarianism in Poland took place in partitioned Poland in the period covering the last quarter of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century until World War I. In this period there was no Polish state, and Poles were nominal citizens of Austria-Hungary, the German Empire and Russia: the countries that had partitioned the Republic of Poland-Lithuania in the late eighteenth century. Under these circumstances Poles took up Western vegetarianism and adjusted it to their particular needs. Many Polish vegetarians viewed vegetarianism as a way to improve the condition of the Polish nation, and believed that the adoption of a vegetarian lifestyle created an area of personal freedom, which was especially dear to Poles in view of the political oppression they faced under the rule of the partitioning countries. Vegetarianism played an important role in bringing together Poles scattered over more than three states.