Portal:Poland

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Welcome to the Poland Portal — Witaj w Portalu o Polsce

Cityscape of Kraków, Poland's former capital

Poland is a country in Central Europe, bordered by Germany to the west, the Czech Republic to the southwest, Slovakia to the south, Ukraine and Belarus to the east, Lithuania to the northeast, and the Baltic Sea and Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast to the north. It is an ancient nation whose history as a state began near the middle of the 10th century. Its golden age occurred in the 16th century when it united with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to form the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. During the following century, the strengthening of the gentry and internal disorders weakened the nation. In a series of agreements in the late 18th century, Russia, Prussia and Austria partitioned Poland amongst themselves. It regained independence as the Second Polish Republic in the aftermath of World War I only to lose it again when it was occupied by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. The nation lost over six million citizens in the war, following which it emerged as the communist Polish People's Republic under strong Soviet influence within the Eastern Bloc. A westward border shift followed by forced population transfers after the war turned a once multiethnic country into a mostly homogeneous nation state. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union called Solidarity (Solidarność) that over time became a political force which by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the presidency. A shock therapy program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe. With its transformation to a democratic, market-oriented country completed, Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004, but has experienced a constitutional crisis and democratic backsliding since 2015.

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From Polish history – show another

A statue at the Palace of Culture and Science (1955) in Warsaw, holding a book of works by Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels and Vladimir Lenin

The history of Poland from 1945 to 1989 was shaped by the influence of Soviet Communism and opposition to it from the Roman Catholic Church, trade unions and other groups. In the aftermath of World War II, forces of Nazi Germany were driven from Poland by the advancing Red Army of the Soviet Union. A liberalizing thaw in Eastern Europe followed the death of Stalin in early 1953, sparking the desire for further reform. De-Stalinization, however, left Poland's communist party in a difficult position. In the 1970s, Edward Gierek's economic program brought a rise in living standards and expectations, but it faltered unexpectedly because of worldwide recession and increased oil prices following the 1973 world oil crisis. The election of the Polish-born John Paul II to papacy in 1978 triggered radical changes in the political atmosphere of the country. In 1980, electrician Lech Wałęsa and his independent Solidarity trade union led a wave of strikes at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk. The 1989 Round Table talks resulted in a semi-free parliamentary election and a Solidarity-led coalition government, sparking off a succession of mostly peaceful transitions from Communist rule across Central and Eastern Europe. (Full article...)

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Emilia Plater

Emilia Plater (1806–1831) was a Polish–Lithuanian noblewoman and revolutionary. Born in Vilnius, then in the Russian Empire, and brought up in Polish patriotic tradition, she fought in the November Uprising, during which she raised a small unit, participated in several engagements, and received the rank of a captain in the Polish-Lithuanian insurgent forces. Near the end of the uprising, she fell ill and died. Although she did not participate in any major engagements, her story became widely publicized. She is considered a national heroine in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus, venerated by a number of Polish artists as a representative of women fighting for the Polish cause. (Full article...)

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A wisent in the Białowieża Forest

The Białowieża Forest, an ancient woodland straddling the Polish-Belarusian border, is one of the last and largest remaining parts of the immense primeval forest which once spread across the European Plain. It is home to the wisent (pictured), elk, wild boars, konik horses, and other animals. Its name, Puszcza Białowieska in Polish and Belavezhskaya Pushcha in Belarusian, comes from the village of Białowieża located in the forest. Historically it belonged to Polish kings and, later, Russian emperors who used it as royal hunting grounds or food reserve for the army. It has been protected since 1538 when King Sigismund I instituted death penalty for poaching the wisent. Today parts of the forest on both sides of the border are protected as national parks, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Biosphere Reserve. (Full article...)

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Did you know – show different entries

... that the textile company Többens and Schultz (plant pictured), owned and operated by two major war profiteers in the Warsaw Ghetto, supplied the German army with uniforms, socks, and other garments?
... that the autobiographical novel A Brief Stop on the Road from Auschwitz, set partly in German-occupied Poland, ends with the suicide of the author's father?
... that the Lithuanian-Polish border is the only land border that the Baltic States share with a country that is not a member of the Russian-aligned Commonwealth of Independent States?
... that the inactive Polish A.B. Dobrowolski Polar Station is still occasionally visited by explorers of the Antarctic?

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Poland now

Recent events

On 6 December, Stanisław Tym (pictured), a prominent comedian and satirist, died at the age of 87.
On 27 October, the discovery of a previously unknown waltz in A minor attributed to Frédéric Chopin, found at the Morgan Library & Museum in New York, was announced.
On 14 September, southwestern Poland was hit by severe floods caused by heavy rains brought by Storm Boris.

Ongoing

Constitutional crisis • Belarus–EU border crisis • Ukrainian refugee crisis • Polish presidency of the Council of the EU

Upcoming

Presidential election on 18 May 2025

Holidays and observances in February 2025
(statutory public holidays in bold)

Valentine's Day, 14 February
Fat Thursday (Polish doughnuts pictured), 27 February

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Reënactment of the Battle of Berlin

Credit: Cezary p

The Battle of Berlin reënacted in 2008 at the Modlin Fortress north of Warsaw. The historical Battle of Berlin, which took place between 16 April and 2 May 1945, was the final major offensive of the European Theatre of World War II. Polish First Army fought in Berlin as part of the 1st Belorussian Front of the Soviet Army.