The Image of Wojciech Korfanty in the Plebiscite Cartoon Satire in the German “Pieron” Weekly (1920–1921)

Abstract

When the participants of the Versailles Conference decided that a plebiscite should be held in Upper Silesia to determine the state affiliation of this area, a propaganda battle broke out between Poles and Germans, which was also waged in the press. A special role was played at that time by the German illustrated weekly titled “Pieron”, whose collaborators tried to create the most negative possible image of Wojciech Korfanty, the Polish plebiscite commissioner, using satirical drawings. So far, no scientific work has been published that would attempt a comprehensive analysis of the images of Korfanty published in this magazine. The subject of the research is both the graphic layer of the drawings and the accompanying descriptions. The graphic satire of “Pieron” builds the character of Korfanty based on the stereotypical perception of the Polish nation by the Germans, highlighting all of its flaws. Korfanty is accused of brutality, incompetence, populism, breaking the law, dishonesty, and financial malfeasance. The number and aggressiveness of graphic satires clearly increased at the turn of 1920 and 1921 in the last weeks before the plebiscite. At that time, the authors of the graphics not only ridiculed Korfanty in a primitive way, but even called for his assassination, which may indicate a growing fear of the effective activities of the Pole. It is also worth noting that the hatred towards Korfanty expressed in the ruthless German propaganda won him supporters among Polish sympathizers, as evidenced by their broad mobilisation during the Third Silesian Uprising, which he initiated.