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Poland, officially the Republic of Poland (Rzeczpospolita Polska), is a country in Central Europe. Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north. The total area of Poland is ,[1] making it the 69th largest country in the world and the 9th largest in Europe. Poland has a population of over 38 million people,[1] which makes it the 34th most populous country in the world and the most populous Eastern European Member State of the EU. The establishment of a Polish state is often identified with the adoption of Christianity by its ruler Mieszko I, in 966 (see Baptism of Poland), when the state covered territory similar to that of present-day Poland. In 1025, Poland became a kingdom and in 1569, it cemented a long association with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, by signing the Union of Lublin, forming the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth collapsed in 1795 and Poland's territory was partitioned among Kingdom of Prussia, Russian Empire and Austria. Poland regained its independence as the Second Polish Republic in 1918, after World War I, but lost it again in World War II, then occupied by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. Poland lost over six million citizens in World War II, emerging several years later as the socialist People's Republic of Poland within the Eastern Bloc, under strong Soviet influence. During the Revolutions of 1989, communist rule was overthrown and Poland became what is constitutionally known as the "Third Polish Republic". Poland is a unitary state, made up of sixteen voivodeships. Poland is also a member of the European Union, NATO, United Nations, World Trade Organization, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
How places in Poland are organizedPoland has a complicated history. From 1569-1795 it was part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. We call the subdivisions during that time commonwealth voivodships. From 1815-1914 it was known as Congress Poland. We call the subdivisions during that time congress governorates. From 1918-1939 it was known as the Second Polish Republic. We call the subdivisions during that time second republic voivodships. From 1945-1989 it was known as the People's Republic of Poland. We call the subdivisions from 1945-1975 People's republic voivodships. The subdivisions of Poland from 1975-1998, and the ones that replaced them in 1999 are both called "modern voivodships". The Family History Library Catalog lists some places in Poland according to their second republic voivodships and others according to their people's republic voivodships. We follow their lead and title Polish place pages according to their second republic voivodship (preferred) or people's republic voivodship if known, with also-located-in links to the voivodships for other time periods if known. All places in PolandFurther information on historical place organization in PolandHistory
PrehistoryHistorians have postulated that throughout Late Antiquity, many distinct ethnic groups populated the regions of what is now known as Poland. The exact ethnicity and linguistic affiliation of these groups has been hotly debated; in particular the time and route of the original settlement of Slavic peoples in these regions has been the subject of much controversy. The most famous archeological find from Poland's prehistory and protohistory is the Biskupin fortified settlement (now reconstructed as a museum), dating from the Lusatian culture of the early Iron Age, around 700 BC. Piast dynastyPoland began to form into a recognizable unitary and territorial entity around the middle of the tenth century under the Piast dynasty. Poland's first historically documented ruler, Mieszko I, was baptized in 966, adopting Catholic Christianity as the nation's new official religion, to which the bulk of the population converted in the course of the next centuries. In the twelfth century, Poland fragmented into several smaller states. In 1320, Władysław I became the King of a reunified Poland. His son, Kazimierz III, is remembered as one of the greatest Polish kings. Poland was also a centre of migration of peoples and the Jewish community began to settle and flourish in Poland during this era (see History of the Jews in Poland). The Black Death which affected most parts of Europe from 1347 to 1351 did not reach Poland. Jagiellon dynastyUnder the Jagiellon dynasty Poland forged a union with its neighbour, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In 1410, a Polish-Lithuanian army inflicted a decisive defeat on the Teutonic Knights, both countries' main adversary, in the battle of Grunwald. After the Thirteen Years' War, the Knight's state became a Polish vassal. Polish culture and economy flourished under the Jagiellons, and the country produced such figures as astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus and poet Jan Kochanowski. Compared to other European nations, Poland was exceptional in its tolerance of religious dissent, allowing the country to avoid the religious turmoil that spread over Western Europe in that time. Seventy-five Tatar raids were recorded into Poland and Lithuania between 1474-1569. Some historians estimate that Crimean Tatar slave-raiding cost Poland one million of its population from 1494 to 1694. Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthA golden age ensued during the sixteenth century after the Union of Lublin which gave birth to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The szlachta (nobility) of Poland, far more numerous than in Western European countries, took pride in their freedoms and parliamentary system. During the Golden Age period, Poland expanded its borders to become the largest country in Europe. In the mid-seventeenth century, a Swedish invasion ("The Deluge") and the Cossacks' Chmielnicki Uprising which ravaged the country marked the end of the golden age. Numerous wars against Russia coupled with government inefficiency caused by the Liberum veto, a right which had allowed any member of the parliament to dissolve it and to veto any legislation it had passed, marked the steady deterioration of the Commonwealth from a European power into a near-anarchy controlled by its neighbours. Despite the erosion of its power, the Commonwealth was able to deal a crushing defeat to the Ottoman Empire in 1683 at the Battle of Vienna. The reforms, particularly those of the Great Sejm, which passed the Constitution of May 3, 1791, the world's second modern constitution and the first in Europe, were thwarted with the three partitions of Poland (1772, 1793, and 1795) which culminated in Poland's being erased from the map and its territories being divided between Russia, Prussia, and Austria. Partitions of PolandPoles would resent their fate and would several times rebel against the partitioners, particularly in the nineteenth century. In 1807, Napoleon I of France recreated a Polish state, the Duchy of Warsaw, but after the Napoleonic Wars, Poland was again divided in 1815 by the victorious Allies at the Congress of Vienna. The eastern portion was ruled by the Russian Czar as a Congress Kingdom, and possessed a liberal constitution. However, the Czars soon reduced Polish freedoms and Russia eventually de facto annexed the country. Later in the nineteenth century, Austrian-ruled Galicia, particularly the Free City of Kraków, became a centre of Polish cultural life. Reconstitution of PolandDuring World War I, all the Allies agreed on the reconstitution of Poland that United States President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed in Point 13 of his Fourteen Points. Shortly after the surrender of Germany in November 1918, Poland regained its independence as the Second Polish Republic (II Rzeczpospolita Polska). It reaffirmed its independence after a series of military conflicts, the most notable being the Polish–Soviet War (1919–1921) when Poland inflicted a crushing defeat on the Red Army.
The 1926 May Coup of Józef Piłsudski turned the reins of the Second Polish Republic over to the Sanacja movement. World War IIThe Sanacja movement controlled Poland until the start of World War II in 1939, when Nazi Germany invaded on 1 September and the Soviet invasion of Poland followed on 17 September. Warsaw capitulated on 28 September 1939. As agreed in the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, Poland was split into two zones, one occupied by Germany while the eastern provinces fell under the control of the Soviet Union. Of all the countries involved in the war, Poland lost the highest percentage of its citizens: over six million perished, half of them Polish Jews. Poland made the fourth-largest troop contribution to the Allied war effort, after the Soviets, the British and the Americans. The Polish expeditionary corps played an important role in the Italian Campaign, particularly at the Battle of Monte Cassino. At the war's conclusion, Poland's borders were shifted westwards, pushing the eastern border to the Curzon Line. Meanwhile, the western border was moved to the Oder-Neisse line. The new Poland emerged 20% smaller by . The shift forced the migration of millions of people, most of whom were Poles, Germans, Ukrainians, and Jews. Postwar Communist PolandThe Soviet Union instituted a new Communist government in Poland, analogous to much of the rest of the Eastern Bloc. Military alignment within the Warsaw Pact throughout the Cold War was also part of this change. The People's Republic of Poland (Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa) was officially proclaimed in 1952. In 1956, the régime of Władysław Gomułka became temporarily more liberal, freeing many people from prison and expanding some personal freedoms. A similar situation repeated itself in the 1970s under Edward Gierek, but most of the time persecution of communist opposition persisted. Labour turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union "Solidarity" ("Solidarność"), which over time became a political force. Despite persecution and imposition of martial law in 1981, it eroded the dominance of the Communist Party and by 1989 had triumphed in parliamentary elections. Lech Wałęsa, a Solidarity candidate, eventually won the presidency in 1990. The Solidarity movement heralded the collapse of communism across Eastern Europe. Democratic PolandA shock therapy programme of Leszek Balcerowicz during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into a market economy. As with all other post-communist countries, Poland suffered temporary slumps in social and economic standards, but became the first post-communist country to reach its pre-1989 GDP levels, which it achieved by 1995 due to its booming economy. Most visibly, there were numerous improvements in other human rights, such as the freedom of speech. In 1991, Poland became a member of the Visegrád Group and joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) alliance in 1999 along with the Czech Republic and Hungary. Poles then voted to join the European Union in a referendum in June 2003, with Poland becoming a full member on 1 May 2004. Research Tips
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