Referring to the concept of hegemony, the article focuses on memory politics regarding the “cursed soldiers”. It analyses how and why the conservative-nationalist right wing invented the “cursed soldier” figure and elevated it to the role of a key historical symbol in its hegemonic project of remodelling Polish collective memory in keeping with its ideology. Drawing on the concept of difficult heritage, the paper argues that hegemonic memory politics presupposes the transformation of the disputed heritage of the underground into a taken-for-granted symbol of the “cursed soldiers” representing a narrowly defined “Polishness”, and expressing the emotions of national pride, resentment and martyrdom. At the same time, on the basis of qualitative research, the article examines the process of the grassroots reception of this symbol, revealing selected aspects of its difficult nature.
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