„Mieszkają w prawdziwym raju” (Możliwości badania jakości życia w Krakowie i we Lwowie w okresie autonomii galicyjskiej)

Abstract

After the political changes that took place in 1867 in Austria-Hungary, the administrative capital city of the province called Galicia and Lodomeria was Lviv, and the second big city – sometimes called the second capital – was Krakow. The latter had fewer citizens but was considered the centre of the Polish culture (the main residence of the oldest university and the academy of learning, the former capital of the country that accumulated the treasures of the national relics). Publicists, on the other hand, emphasized the superiority of Lviv with respect to its modern character as well as the prosperity and activity of its citizens. Is it possible to use the statistical data available to verify the higher standard of life in Lviv that is observed by the contemporary people? On the basis of the data available we may attempt such verification in the following four fields: health conditions, housing conditions, maintenance costs and the availability of municipal installations. The tabulated data may suggest that Lviv did overshadow Krakow with respect to the quality of life yet the differences between the two cities were not striking. The data is too fragmentary to serve as the basis for a convincing defence of this thesis. The attempt made in the article, however, points to the research possibilities. It also should encourage historians to further investigate the issue.