In Polish culture the term

is used with regard to a variety of literary works written mostly in the seventeenth century: metaphysical poetry, memoirs of the landed gentry, the so-called Sarmatian poetry, religious poetry and epics, and burgher and plebeian literature. Many works of that period were commissioned by the great nobles who did not care about publication; thus, it became a custom to preserve the handwritten copies of literary works, and some of them were published only in the nineteenth century. The archives, however diminished by World War II, yield new discoveries even in the twenty-first century.

In Poland, the sixteenth century brought an end to the Jagiellonian dynasty and ushered in the Vasa dynasty (after the death of King Stefan Batory). The seventeenth century

3579 words

Citation: Nowicka-Struska, Anna. "Polish Baroque Literature". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 10 October 2009 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=7205, accessed 22 November 2024.]