Role of the Rural Population of the Poznań Region (Wielkopolska) in Shaping the Non-Agricultural Labour Market in the Years 1870-1914

Abstract

Research into the non-agricultural labour market in the Poznań region (Wielkopolska) in the second half of the 19th century has encountered considerable methodological difficulties arising from the threefold partition of Polish territory and the distinct economic policies of each annexing power. The Prussian partition zone was particularly shaped by the interplay of economic and nationality policy factors: agrarian policy assigned the Posener Land the role of a grain chamber, while nationality policy deliberately prevented the rise in purchasing power of the Polish population that would have been a precondition for industrialization.
This article analyzes the role of the rural population of Greater Poland (Posener Land) in shaping the non-agricultural labour market in 1870-1914, examining the agrarian preconditions of the labour force reserves and the influence of Prussian economic and nationality policy on the industrialization process of the region.
The study draws on Polish and German economic-historical literature, in particular the research of Borowski on emigration and differentiation of the Greater Poland village, Łuczak on Greater Polish industry and handicrafts, Jakóbczyk on Greater Poland history in the 19th century, and the source collection Wielkopolska 1851-1914.
The analysis shows that the phased peasant emancipation (1811-1858) in the Posener Land created a considerable reserve army of labour in the countryside, since the poorest rural population was excluded from the emancipation process and a large share of farms was too small to sustain a peasant family. The well-known West-Ostgefälle wage differential kept wage levels permanently low in the region. Despite favorable labour force reserves, industrialization was consciously hampered by Prussian nationality policy - the Prussian government preferred to allocate capital to the Settlement Commission and anti-Polish measures rather than industrial investment. The labour surplus found its outlet mainly in emigration and Pendelwanderung to western industrial regions, facilitated by the well-developed transport network of the Posener Land.