Radomskie obchody jubileuszu Jana Kochanowskiego, czyli o zarządzaniu tradycją [Radom's celebration of Jan Kochanowski's anniversary – on the management of tradition]

The article is about the celebration of Jan Kochanowski’s anniversary (450 anniversary of his birth and 400 of his death) in the eighties of the 20th century. On the basis of the gathered material (materials maintained in Archiwa Państwowe [State Archives] in Radom in Komitet Wojewódzki PZPR Wydział Propagandy [the Voivodship Committee of the United Polish Workers Party, the Department
of Propaganda]) it has been presented how the preparations to the celebration proceeded, how the social recognition was built on the oeuvre of the Renaissance poet, and also on how the memory and national heritage were managed. The analysis shows that anniversary celebrations in 1980-1984 were mostly instrumental, vulgar and drawn by the propaganda machine.