On 5 June 2014 Professor Jacek Kochanowicz gave his last lecture at Central European University. Upon the invitation of the former Head of the History Department, Prof. Nadia Al-Bagdadi, he reflected on his life as a scholar and on the circumstances and motivations that prompted him to become a historian. When he gave this lecture, Professor Kochanowicz knew that not much time was left to him. On 14 September 2014 he sent a finalized manuscript version of this lecture to colleagues and friends.
