A meeting around Jagoda Wierzejska’s book in Lviv
Was Lviv in 1918 a city of defence, uprising, or perhaps invasion? Or was it above all a city of people—those who found themselves in the midst of rapidly unfolding history?
These questions will be at the centre of a discussion on 23 April 2026 in Lviv during a meeting devoted to the book Lviv 1918–1919: a city of many sides, edited by Prof. Jagoda Wierzejska. The event will feature the editor alongside Dr Roman Melnyk, and will be moderated by Dr Vladyslava Moskalets at the Center for Urban History of East Central Europe.
The starting point for the conversation will be a book that, instead of offering a single, coherent narrative, proposes something more demanding—a polyphony of voices. The volume brings together memoirs of those involved in the fighting, civilian accounts, testimonies of Jewish residents, diplomatic reports, and official documents. Different languages, experiences, and ways of understanding the same events are placed side by side.
“This is not another history written from a single perspective. It is a polyphony—a collection of testimonies showing that Lviv was a city of many languages, religions, and aspirations.”
This perspective allows us to see Lviv not only as a site of political conflict, but as a space of everyday experience—of fear, chaos, improvisation, but also of solidarity. Instead of clear-cut divisions, it raises questions about memory: who tells history, how it is told, and what remains with us over time.
The meeting will offer an opportunity to reflect on how historical narratives are formed and why they continue to be contested—especially today, as the history of the region resonates once again in the context of current events.
