EN
The reform camp associated with Stanislaw August Poniatowski was aware that the introduction of reforms depends on the support of the gentry. The past was to function as the key to changes in the mentality, teach responsibility for national matters and show the directions of the transformations of the system. In this context the Polish - Lithuanian issue gained particular significance. The aim was to change the conservative perspective expressed by the conviction that the traditional social and political system of the way Poland was ruled, is perfect. The task was particularly difficult since in the Saxon period, preceding the reign of Stanislaw August Poniatowski, traditional values significantly gained in popularity. Numerous herbals, calendars or the lives of the saints were published. The ideas were strengthened by the historical perspective defending the status quo of the system based on the principles of the Golden Liberty. The studies of Augustyn Koludzki, Benedykt Chmielowski and Szymon Majchrowicz, written in line with the conservative convention in period of late Enlightment have to be assessed as the expression of the anachronic way of thinking about the past.