Adam Kersten

A historian cited throughout this site

Adam Kersten (1930–1983) was born in Kutno, studied at the University of Warsaw and worked at Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin from 1955. He researched seventeenth-century Poland. His books covered the war with Sweden, Stefan Czarniecki, Warsaw under John Casimir and the siege of Jasna Góra¹.

Why read him on Jasna Góra?

Kersten compared Augustyn Kordecki's account with other evidence, examining negotiations and differences between the later narrative and surviving letters. His work shows how a famous event became a national symbol while still requiring source criticism. This site cites his specific studies of Kordecki and the siege alongside individual claims²³⁴.

From scholarship to film

In 1966 he published Sienkiewicz, The Deluge, History, comparing the novel with historical research. He co-wrote the screenplay of Jerzy Hoffman's film and led historical consultation. The Polish National Film Archive lists him with Hoffman and Wojciech Żukrowski among the screenwriters. He was neither a character in the novel nor a participant in the war: he helped later audiences study and imagine it¹⁵.

Beyond the seventeenth century

Kersten also took part in independent education and opposition publishing. In 1979 he founded the NOW-a 2 publishing house, attending even to the practical work of printing and distribution. That later chapter is outside the Deluge, but helps explain his commitment to independent historical inquiry¹.

Read about his adaptation work, earlier books and consultation in Adam Kersten’s film-crew profile.