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

German soldiers dismantling a Polish border checkpoint

The Polish September Campaign was the conquest of Poland by the armies of Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union and a small contingent of Slovak forces during World War II. The campaign began on 1 September 1939 following a German-staged attack in Gleiwitz (Gliwice). This military operation, which saw the first use of Blitzkrieg tactics, marked the start of World War II in Europe as the invasion led Poland's allies, including the United Kingdom and France, to declare war on Germany on 3 September. On 17 September, the Soviet Red Army invaded the eastern regions of Poland. The Soviets were acting in coöperation with Germany, realizing the secret protocol of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact which envisaged division of Central Europe into Nazi and Soviet spheres of influence. The campaign ended on 6 October 1939 with Germany and the Soviet Union occupying the entirety of Poland. (Full article...)

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A Negress

Credit: Anna Bilińska-Bohdanowicz

A Negress is an 1884 oil-on-canvas painting by the Polish artist Anna Bilińska-Bohdanowicz, depicting an unknown model. The subject is portrayed from the waist up and dressed in a white robe, but is part naked, with one breast exposed. The Japanese hand fan and the source of light that illuminates the figure and is reflected by highlights in the gold bijoux, create a warm and chamber-like atmosphere. Painted in Paris, the painting was looted during World War II. It was returned to the collection of the National Museum in Warsaw in 2012.

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... that painter Franciszek Ksawery Lampi specialized in Romantic depictions of attractive women (example pictured)?
... that Jacek Malczewski, a Symbolist painter, drew his inspiration from exotic and Biblical sources, but inadvertently translated them back into Polish folklore in his own art?
... that in the 1946 Wimbledon Championships Polish tennis champion Ignacy Tłoczyński was declared stateless by the Communist government of Poland because of his Allied affiliations in World War II?
... that Warsaw-born Canadian skier Karolina Wisniewska was the first Canadian to win four para-alpine medals at a single Paralympic Games?

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Witold Kiełtyka (Vitek)

Decapitated is a Polish death metal band. It was founded in 1996 by guitarist Wacław Kiełtyka (Vogg), drummer Witold Kiełtyka (Vitek, pictured) and vocalist Wojciech Wąsowicz (Sauron). The members' average age was 14 when they formed the band. One year later, they were joined by 13-year-old bassist Marcin Rygiel (Martin). In 2000, they released their debut album, Winds of Creation. Decapitated soon became one of Europe's finest technical death metal bands. In 2002 and 2004 the band released the albums Nihility and The Negation, respectively. In 2005, Sauron was replaced by Adrian Kowanek (Covan), and the band's fourth album, Organic Hallucinosis, was released in 2006. In 2007, their tour bus was involved in a road accident that killed Vitek and left Covan in a coma. In 2009, Vogg announced Austrian drummer Kerim Lechner (Krimh) as a new member. (Full article...)

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Silesian Planetarium in Chorzów

Chorzów is a city on the Rawa River in Upper Silesia and part of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, Poland's largest conurbation. Originally called Königshütte in German and Królewska Huta in Polish (both meaning "Royal Iron Works"), it was renamed Chorzów after a merger with a village of that name in 1934. Chorzów used to be one of the most important cities of the Upper Silesian Industrial Region with extensive industry in coal mining, steel, chemistry, manufacturing, and energy sectors. As heavy-industry establishments were either closed or scaled down, or restructured and modernized, the city has been evolving towards service economy. Chorzów is nationally famous for its Silesian Central Park, complete with amusement grounds, a cable line railway, a zoo, a sports stadium, and the largest and oldest planetarium in Poland (pictured). (Full article...)

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Poland now

Recent events

On 10 May, an unusually spectacular aurora borealis (pictured) was observed in large parts of Poland due to an intense solar storm.
On 8 April, local elections were held throughout Poland, with run-off votes in some municipalities held on 21 April.
On 9 January, police entered the Presidential Palace in Warsaw to arrest former Interior Minister Mariusz Kamiński (Law and Justice party) and his former deputy, both of whom had been sentenced to two year's jail for abuse of power. On 23 January, they were both were pardoned by the President Andrzej Duda.
On 9 January, Tadeusz Isakowicz-Zaleski, an Armenian and Roman Catholic priest, and former anti-Communist dissident, died at the age of 67.