Poland (Cherry, Plum, and Chrysanthemum)

Polish Democratic Republic Polska Rzeczpospolita Demokratyczna Timeline: Cherry, Plum, and Chrysanthemum OTL equivalent: Poland
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem:  Warszawianka
Location of Poland
Capital		Warsaw
Official language		Polish
Ethnic groups		Poles; Byelorussians; Germans; Silesians; Ukrainians; Russians
Religion		Christianity; Irreligion; Judaism
Demonym		Polish
Government		Unitary state; Single-party socialist state
-	State Chairman	Leszek Miller
-	Premier	Mateusz Piskorski
Legislature		Sejm Ludowy of Poland
Establishment
-	Independence from the Russian Empire	October 9, 1918
-	Independence from the German Empire	November 6, 1918
-	Establishment of the Polish Democratic Republic	January 19, 1947
Population
-	estimate	39,126,092
Currency		Altyn (ALT)
Time zone		CET (UTC+1)
Internet TLD		.pl
Calling code		+48

Poland (Polish: Polska), officially the Polish Democratic Republic (Polish: Polska Rzeczpospolita Demokratyczna), is a country in Central Europe, bordered by East Germany to the west; Czechoslovakia to the south; the Soviet Union to the east; and Lithuania to the north. With a population of nearly 38.5 million people, Poland is the most populous communist and Eastern Bloc country in Europe after the Soviet Union. The total area of Poland is 388,634 sq km, making it the third largest country by area in Europe after the Soviet Union and Scandinavia. Poland's capital and largest metropolis is Warsaw. Other major cities include the industrial city of Łódź and cultural city of Kraków. Poland is a founding member of the United Nations, the Comecon, and the Warsaw Pact, a member of WTO and CSCE and participates in cooperation with the European Community through the Helsinki Initiative.

History

World War I (1914–1918)

World War I divided the entity into two conflicting sides, the Allied Powers and the Central Powers. The political situation in Poland quickly changed as both sides offered pledges of concessions and future autonomy in exchange for Polish loyalty and army recruits. As the war settled into a long stalemate, the issue of Polish self-rule gained greater urgency. The Germans formed the Polish Legions under Józef Piłsudski to assist the Central Powers in defeating the Russian Empire as the first step toward full independence for Poland. Much of the heavy fighting on the war's Eastern Front took place on the territory of the former Polish state and total of 2 million Polish troops fought with the armies of the three occupying powers.

On the other side, the Russians started to grant more autonomy to the Congress Poland and led to the appointment of Wacław Bajkowski as the first Prime Minister of Kingdom of Poland in 1915. Bajkowski viewed to form an autonomous Polish state under Russian rule as an initial step toward reunification of Poland.

U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt made the independence of Poland a war goal in his Thirteen Points, and this goal was endorsed by the Allies in spring 1918. The Allies broke the resistance of the Central Powers by autumn 1918, as Austria-Hungary disintegrated and the German Empire collapsed. Piłsudski, who did not wish to be allied with the losing Central Powers, forbade his soldiers to swear an oath of loyalty to the Central Powers. He then was arrested and imprisoned at Magdeburg on July 1917. His arrest greatly enhanced his reputation among Poles, making him a popular hero and the most determined leader for future united Polish state.

In October 1918, an uprising broke out in Warsaw and the Polish Provisional Government was established with Roman Dmowski as its chairman. A similar uprising also happened in Lublin where the revolutionaries overthrown the Kingdom of Poland on November 6, 1918 and set up a revolutionary government under Ignacy Daszyński. In November 8, 1918, Piłsudski was released from his internment by the revolutionaries. Three days later, Dmowski ceded all responsibilities to him and Piłsudski took over control as the provisional Chief of State. Soon all the local governments that had been created in the last months of the war, including the Lublin Government, pledged allegiance to the central government in Warsaw.

Second Polish Republic (1918–1939)

Poland reaffirmed its independence after a series of military conflicts, the most notable being the Polish–Soviet War (1919–21). Vladimir Lenin, leader of new Soviet Russia, saw Poland as the bridge to spread the revolution into Europe, while Piłsudski envisioned to create a federation called "Międzymorze". Polish first major military thrust was carried out into Ukraine in 1920 and in May Polish-Ukrainian forces reached Kiev. Just a few weeks later, however, the Polish offensive was met with a Soviet counter-offensive, and Polish forces were forced to retreat by the Red Army. However, Polish-Ukrainian forces gained a great victory the Soviet at the Battle of Lublin. The Peace of Lviv concluded the war on March 27, 1921, resulted to an independent Ukraine.

Further readings