Between literature and history: Giorgio d’Acandia and Italian polonophiles

This article deals primarily with La quistione polacca, an anthology of historical documents on Poland after the partitions compiled by Giorgio d’Acandia. Ever since its publication in 1916, in Italy this book has remained an important source of information about Poland and manifest proof of reciprocity of the Polish-Italian relations. Its direct effect was to raise the awareness of ‘the Polish question’ among the Italian politicians and to help them make up their minds about the justness of the struggle for Poland’s independence. The article assesses the content of the book and the selection criteria of its texts. It also presents a profile of the author Umberto Zanotti Bianco (Giorgio d’Acandia was a pseudonym), which features his contacts with Attilio Begey and the community of Italian polonophiles, his interest in Polish literature and culture, his worldview, grounded in Christianity, and, last not least, his philanthropic work and political activities.