/toy 44U THE TRUTH ABOUT POLAND GENERAL INFORMATION 1. Poland’s Place in Europe Poland is the sixth country in Europe both as regards area (150,470 square miles) and population (35,500,000). Among all the nations of the world, Poland ranks eleventh in population and twenty-sixth in area. Poland’s frontier is 2,250 miles long. Of this only forty-five miles is Baltic sea-coast. This 2% gateway to the world is totally inadequate for Po- land’s needs, compared to Germany’s 21%, France’s 60%, Spain’s 65%, America’s 71%, Great Britain’s 100%. In the 15th Century, Poland was the largest state in Europe, as the follow- ing table shows: In the 11th Century, Poland’s area was. . . . 130,888 s.m. In the 15th Century, Poland’s area was. . . . 430,502 In the 18th Cent., before the 1st partition 392,664 In the 18th Cent., before the 2nd partition 200,772 Contemporary Poland . . 150,470 " 2. Poland, a Democracy After regaining her independence in 1918, Poland adopted a parliamentary form of Government. The first par- liament of reborn Poland, elected by universal suffrage of both sexes, estab- lished the Constitution in 1921. This Constitution made the Government and the President of the Republic re- sponsible to parliament as the pre- dominant power. In 1935, the Con- stitution of Poland was amended by a small majority, the power of the executive strengthened, that of parlia- ment restricted. Even so the President of Poland had far less power than the President of the United States. Free- dom of religion, of press and speech was granted and even in the days of greatest State interference with indi- vidual initiative, more than half the Polish press openly criticised the Pol- ish Government, showing that consti- tutional rights were not impaired. Universal suffrage gave men and women above 21 the right to vote in secret ballot irrespective of race and creed. 3. Government of Poland After the invasion of Poland by Germany and Russia, President Mos- cicki, in accordance with the Consti- tution, transmitted his powers to Wladyslaw Raczkiewicz, then in Paris. In September, 1939, President Racz- kiewicz took the oath of office at the Polish Embassy there, and appointed [ 3 ] The Truth About Poland General Sikorski to be Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief. In Decem- ber 1939, the Polish National Council, an advisory body acting in the absence of an elected parliament, was appointed and Ignacy Paderewski elected as its chairman. When France collapsed in 1940, the Polish Government was transferred from Angers to London. The following year the Polish National Council was expanded to include repre- sentatives of all Polish political parties. The Government submits its budget to the National Council and consults it on all Major policies. The National Coun- cil has the right to make representa- tions to the Government on all matters affecting the welfare of the Polish nation. 4. Composition of the Polish Government After General Sikorski ’s tragic death on July 4th, 1943 President Raczkie- wicz called upon Stanislaw Mikolajczyk, who had been acting as Prime Minister in General Sikorski’ s absence, to form a Government. Prime Minister Mikolaj- czyk’s cabinet consists of Jan Kwapin- ski, deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry, Commerce and Shipping; Tadeusz Romer, Minister of Foreign Affairs; General Marian Kukiel, Minis- ter of National Defense; Wladyslaw Banaczyk, Minister of Home Affairs; Stanislaw Kot, Minister of Information; Ludwik Grosfeld, Minister of Finance; Jan Stanczyk, Minister of Labor and Social Welfare; Waclaw Komarnicki, Minister of Justice; Marian Seyda, Minister of State (Peace Conference Planning); Karol Popiel, Minister of State (Polish Administrative Plan- ning) ; the Rev. Zygmunt Kaczynski, Minister of Education; Henryk Stras- burger, Polish Minister in the Middle East. The Peasant and Labor parties each have one more member in this Gov- ernment than they had in that of Gen- eral Sikorski. The Peasant Party is represented by three members: Miko- lajczyk, Banaczyk and Kot; the Polish Labor Party by three members: Kwa- pinski, Stanczyk and Grosfeld; the National Liberal Party by two members : Kaczynski and Popiel; the National Democratic Party by two members: Komarnicki and Seyda; three members belong to no party: Romer, Kukiel and Strasburger. Of the thirteen members of the Gov- ernment, two are peasants, two are labor men, three are professors, three are newspapermen; one is a lawyer, one is a soldier and one is a career diplomat as follows: Two Peasants: Prime Minister Mikolajczyk, the son of a small farmer, organizer of rural co-operatives and a prominent leader of agricultural labor; Minister of the Interior Banaczyk, a small farmer. Two Labor Men: Deputy Prime Minister Kwapinski, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Shipping, an agricultural laborer who fought the Czar and was exiled to Siberia; Minister of Labor and Social Welfare Stanczyk, a miner and labor leader. Three Professors: Minister of Information Kot, pro- fessor of the history of Polish civiliza- [ 4 ] The Truth About Poland tion; Minister of Justice Komarnicki, son of a farmer, Professor of Law; Minister of Polish Affairs in the Mid- dle-East Strasburger, Professor of Eco- nomics, protagonist of parliamentary union with Czechoslovakia. Three Newspapermen: Minister of State Popiel, son of a working man; Minister of State Seyda, son of a storekeeper, fought German imperialism for forty years and was exiled by Germany before the last war; Minister of Education, Rev. Kaczynski, head of the Polish Catholic Press Agency, very active in the Polish under- ground movement in 1939-1940. One Lawyer: Minister of Finance Grosfeld, coun- sel and financial adviser to Polish labor unions. One Soldier: Minister of National Defense Gen- eral Kukiel, Professor of Military History. One Diplomat: Minister of Foreign Affairs Romer, career diplomat, former Ambassador to Japan and Russia. 5. Poland*s Vitality From 1920 to 1937, the average increase of Poland’s population was 14.9 per thousand, the total increase 26.9 per cent. During the same period the population of Germany increased by 13.0 per cent. But for the war the population of Poland would have ex- ceeded that of France before 1950 and equalled that of Germany by 1975. 6. Language and Religion in Poland Language Polish 69.0% Ukrainian 13.8% Yiddish and Hebrew 8.2% White Ruthenian 3.2% German 2.3% Russian 0.4% Other and not given 2.5% Religion Roman Catholic 64.9% Greek-Orthodox 12.0% Greek-Catholic 10.3% Hebrew 9.5% Protestant 2.7% Not given 0.2% After 1918, in independent Poland, political and civil rights were granted to all national minorities. They had their own representatives in parliament and in local-government, their own educational system and full freedom of cultural and religious development. In 1939 there were in Poland 3,000 Ukrainian schools maintained by the Government. Ukrainians in Poland dif- fer greatly as regards religion and lan- guage from the Ukrainians in Soviet Russia. Among the White Ruthenians, national development is slow. Polish efforts to raise the national culture of White Ruthenians were successful only in part. For instance, a certain num- ber of high schools, organized by Poles for White Ruthenians, had to be closed for lack of pupils. 7. Population of Polish Cities Warsaw 1,289,000 Lodz 672,000 Lwow 318,000 The Truth About Poland Poznan 272,000 Krakow 259,000 Wilno 200,000 Bydgoszcz 141,000 Czestochowa 138,000 Katowice 1 34,000 Sosnowiec . 130,000 Lublin 122,000 Gdynia 120,000 Chorzow 110,000 Bialystok 107,000 8. Density of Rural Population In Poland the density of gainfully occupied rural population per 100 acres of farmland compared as follows with other countries: Persons per 1,000 acres of Year Country farmland 1931 Poland 154 1931 Yugoslavia 146 1933 Germany 132 1930 Czechoslovakia 129 1930 Hungary 120 1931 France 89 1931 Great Britain 26 9. Poles Abroad Some nine million Poles and people of Polish descent are living abroad: In the United States (ap- proximately) 4,500,000 In Germany (mostly in Si- lesia and East Prussia) . . 1,450,000 In Soviet Russia (approxi- mately — not including 1,500,000 Polish citizens deported to Russia in 1939-1941) 1,000,000 In France 600,000 In Brazil (some two-thirds in the State of Parana) .... 300,000 In Lithuania (mostly around Kovno) 200,000 In Canada 150,000 In Rumania 80,000 In Latvia 75,000 In Argentine 70,000 In Paraguay 18,000 10. How the Poles Voted In Poland the number of voters had increased from 12,989,000 in 1922 to 14.907.000 in 1925. Then it rose to 15.791.000 out of a population of 35,500,000. This represents an elector- ate of 44.5%. In the United States with a population of 131,669,275 the vote cast in the last presidential elec- tion was 49,815,312 or 37.8% of the total population. The most striking thing about the Polish electorate was the very small number of extremists. The extreme right and communists combined, never amounted to more than 4% of the total votes cast in any election. Nearly half the votes (46.4%) were cast for liberal and progressive candidates. The Center, made up of middle-class democrats, polled 28.6% of the votes and the minorities (Jews, Ukrainian, White Ruthenians, etc.) 21%. In the last election under Marshal Pilsudski’s administration the opposition parties polled 53% of the votes, but were so divided among themselves that they never had a working majority in the parliament. { 6 ] The Truth About Poland POLISH HISTORY 11. First Two Dates in Polish History Recorded Polish history began with two dates: 963, when German hordes, under Margrave Gero, invaded Poland: — Germany’s first attempt to get "Lebens- raum” by aggression; 966, when King Mieszko I, together with his people, adopted Christianity. 12. Poland—Defender of Christianity At Lignica in 1241, Polish troops under Duke Henry the Pious stopped the invasion of Western Europe by Tartar hordes. Henry the Pious was killed. In this battle the Tartars used choking vapors that had an effect similar to that of poison gas. 13. Grunwald In 1410 the united armies of Poland and Lithuania defeated the Teutonic Order of the Knights of the Cross in the Battle of Grunwald. By that vic- tory the "Drang nach Osten” was stopped, but that great Polish success was unexploited and it was not be- fore another war of 13 years, which Poland had to fight in the middle of the century, that she could enjoy three hundred years of almost uninterrupted peace from the German side. The lesson should not be forgotten: partial or unexploited victories over the Ger- mans, give only short-lived and pre- carious peace. 14. Polish-Lithuanian Union and the Polish Commonwealth In 1385 Poland entered into a union with her northeastern neighbor, Lithu- ania. This union was strengthened by the Act of Horodlo (1413) which proclaimed: "Let those be united to us by love and made equal, who are bound to us by common faith and identical laws and privileges. We pledge our im- mutable and solemn word never to desert them.” In 1569 the complete union of Po- land and Lithuania was achieved by the Act of Lublin, and the Common- wealth of Poland came into being. On the same occasion the constitutional position of the Ruthenian provinces including Volhynia and Ukraine, as parts of the Commonwealth, was definitely fixed. The principles of this union were virtually those of the United States. Under an elected King and one Parliament, local state government existed. Moreover, Poland and Lithuania kept separate armies under separate Commanders-in-Chief. Other provinces of the Polish Common- wealth were East Prussia, Livonia, Courland. They enjoyed wide auton- omy. The Ruthenian and Lithuanian upper classes had the same rights as the Polish gentry. 15. Cracow University Cracow University was founded in 1364 and in the fifteenth century be- came the great intellectual center of Central-Eastern Europe. The father of modern astronomy, Mikolaj Kopernik, [ 7 ] The Truth About Poland was its most famous student. Attract- ing distinguished scholars and thou- sands of students from many European countries, it prepared the Golden Age of Polish literature and culture. 16. Polish Democracy and the Polish "Habeas Corpus ” "The old Polish state”—writes the distinguished American historian, Robert H. Lord, Chief of the Polish Division of the American Delegation at the Paris Peace Conference — "was an experiment of a highly original and interesting character. It was a republic both in name and in fact, although nominally it had a king as its first magistrate. It was the largest and most ambitious experiment with a republican form of government that the world has seen since the days of the Romans. Moreover, it was the first experiment on a large scale with a federal republic down to the appearance of the United States. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries this republic was the freest state in Europe, the state in which the greatest degree of constitutional, civic and intellectual liberty prevailed.” 200 years before the English "Ha- beas Corpus” Act, Poland guaranteed liberty of the person by the "Neminem Captivabimus” Act of 1430, as well as personal property rights. No one could be arrested without a warrant from legal authority. 17. Freedom of Worship In 1573, by the Confederation of Warsaw, Poland established freedom of conscience and worship at a time when religious persecution was rife. Ever since, Poland has been the refuge in Europe of oppressed religious mi- norities. Already in 1264 the Statute of Kalisz had been granted to the Jews in Poland by Boleslaus the Pious. The only document of its kind in all Europe giving them cultural autonomy and their own coinage. From the 15th Century onward, Jewish religious schools flourished and won world-wide recognition. 18. Poland Saves Europe From Islam In 1683, the Polish King, Jan So- bieski, ran the risk of Russian aggres- sion to go to the assistance of Vienna, besieged by the Turks. By his victory, one of the world’s decisive battles, Poland saved Europe for Christianity. A "Te Deum” was sung in the Cathe- dral of St. Stephen in Vienna, and these words were uttered from the pulpit: "There was a man sent from God whose name was John.” Later, Poland signed a pact of perpetual friendship with Turkey, the only State that never recognized the partitions of Poland, keeping an empty seat at all diplomatic receptions for the "tempo- rarily absent” Polish ambassador. 19. Partitions of Poland In 1772 occurred the first partition of Poland, by her three neighbors, Russia, Prussia and Austria: absolute monarchies unwilling to have on their frontiers a free and democratic Poland. In 1793, Russia and Prussia carried out a second, and in 1795, together with Austria, a third partition of Poland, which for 123 years disappeared from the map of Europe. Jefferson called the partitions of Poland "a crime”; Wilson, "one of the great crimes of history.” It was also condemned spontaneously by the "Peoples Commissars” of the communist regime in 1919 in Mos- [ 8 ] The Truth About Poland cow. They termed it: "contemptible imperialism." 20. Constitution of the Third of May On the Third of May, 1791, after the first partition, the Polish Parlia- ment passed a Constitution inspired by the ideals of the American Declara- tion of Independence and the French Declaration of the Rights of Men. It was the first written democratic Con- stitution in Europe establishing the rights of the middle classes and of the peasants. The absolute rulers of Prussia, Austria and Russia regarded this Constitution as a threat to their Divine Right to rule, and hastened to stifle Poland’s democracy. The par- titions of 1793 and 1795 resulted. Thaddeus Kosciuszko, on his return from America in 1794, led the first Polish insurrection which preceded the third partition. He was wounded and captured. Thanks to the rights granted by the Third of May Constitution to Polish peasants, they formed a large proportion of the insurgents. 21. 123-Year Struggle for Freedom Poland had 12 million inhabitants at the time of the third partition. The country was devastated, the people ter- rorized by armies of occupation, repre- senting three empires with a total population of 85 million. Despite this enormous disproportion of strength, the Poles time and again rose in arms against their oppressors. Risings took place in 1794, 1830, 1848, 1863, 1905. During all the 123 years of partition, Poles fought on the battlefront of Lib- erty all over the world for the freedom of other peoples. In the United States, in Belgium, Italy, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, the Argentine, Bolivia, Peru Poles fought for the cause of human freedom under their war cry "For Our Freedom and For Yours." When Po- lish patriots put "your” liberty on a par with "ours,” it was no mere ges- ture, but a forceful expression of their conviction that the only guarantee of freedom for any nation is the freedom of all nations. 22. "Eighteenth Decisive Battle of the World ” In 1920, Russian Red armies attacked Poland and marched as far as the suburbs of Warsaw. Polish armies, without any assistance from the west- ern powers, defeated the Red armies and single handed saved Western Eu- rope from communism. The importance of that victory was emphasized by Lord D’Abernon, who called the battle of Warsaw "The Eighteenth Decisive Bat- tle of the World.” The Polish-Russian war was ended by the Treaty of Riga, signed on March 17, 1921. This treaty definitely established Poland’s eastern boundaries. The Treaty of Riga was a compromise between Poland’s past and her present. Offered even more terri- tory by Lenin, Poland exercised a statesmanlike restraint and Lenin, the dictator of Russia, called the Treaty of Riga "a voluntary and just agreement to stand for all time.” Victorious Po- land gave up to Russia nearly two- thirds of the pre-partition territories in the east. The frontier included the cities of Wilno (94% of Poles) and Lwow (87.8% of Poles) but nowhere did it extend to the frontiers of the 18th Century, not to speak of the 14th or 16th Centuries. 1,500,000 Poles C9] The Truth About Poland { were left in Russia and 134,000 Rus- sians were left in Poland. Poland’s eastern frontiers are the boundary of Western civilization, as witnessed by architectural styles, peasant costumes, folklore, music, dances, decorative art and literary taste. 23. What Is the "Curzon Line”? Some of Poland's opponents claim that ethnographically the so-called "Curzon line” really constitutes Po- land’s eastern frontier. This line was proposed in 1920 by Lord Curzon, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, as an armistice line in the war with the Russians. When, in 1939, the Germans and Russians divided Poland, the frontier established by the two in- vaders, followed the "Curzon line,” go- ing beyond it to the West at several points. The claim that ethnographically this line is Poland’s eastern frontier is absurd. The territories between the so-called "Curzon line” and the east- ern frontier of Poland are inhabited by 6,396,000 Poles, 4,530,000 Ukrain- ians, 1,122,000 White Ruthenians, 134,000 Russians, 89,000 Germans and 84,000 Lithuanians. POLAND’S ECONOMIC PROGRESS 24. After the First World War Poland was devastated during the first world war. The total number of buildings destroyed in Poland by all sorts of invaders was 1,785,305, in- cluding 6,586 schools, 1,969 churches, 40% of all the railway bridges and stations were destroyed. After the war Poland received very little financial assistance from abroad (about 15 cts. per inhabitant p.a., Germany received $1.10 per inhabitant p.a.) yet, during the twenty years between the two wars, she achieved significant progress. Take the soil, a basic factor: 11,362,000 acres of fallow land were brought under cultivation, and 8,027,500 acres of large estates were parcelled into small farms. In 1918, Poland had 1,750 locomotives, 3,043 passenger cars and 30,000 freight cars. In 1939 she had well over 5,500 locomotives, 11,350 passenger cars and 164,000 freight cars. 1,250 miles of new railroad track had been laid. In the same time the length of Polish highways had been increased by 30%. In 1918 Poland did not possess a single ship, in 1939 she had more than 500 merchant and passenger vessels sailing the seven seas. 25. Education in Poland Between 1918 and 1937 there were opened in Poland 23,604 new primary schools for children from seven to four- teen years of age. All these schools had libraries as well as assembly rooms, lecture and recreation halls. In 1938-9, 5,402,300 children—ninety-one out of every hundred—attended school. Uni- versal and compulsory education had brought illiteracy in the lower age brackets down to a fraction of one per cent. Just before the war, Poland had 27 Universities and other academic in- stitutions, 74 teachers’ training colleges, 2,230 High Schools, 103 technical training schools, 28,722 primary schools and 1,651 kindergartens. [ io] The Truth About Poland 26. Poland, a Land of Small Holdings A) Ownership of land in Poland. According to the census of 1931 the entire area of cultivated land, orchards and gardens, meadows and pastures was 63,232,145 acres, of which 11,- 411,281 acres or 18.04% were larger holdings of 123.6 acres (50 hectares) each and more, and 48,198,207 acres or 76.22% were small holdings of less than 123.6 acres; the remaining 3,585,- 238 acres or 5.74% were owned by State and local governments. Peasant ownership of farm land in 1931 con- stituted three-fourths of the whole util- ized area. Moreover, between 1931 and 1938, 1,799,095 acres of large holdings were parcelled, thus increasing the peas- ant holdings to 50,007,303 acres, or 79.07% of all utilized land in Poland, and decreasing large holdings to 15.21%. In other words five-sixths of all agricultural holdings in Poland are in the hands of peasants and only one- sixth in the hands of large landowners. So Poland is predominantly a land of small and not of large holdings. In Great Britain, for instance, large es- tates of more than 123.6 acres (50ha.) constitute about 68%, and small es- tates of less than 123.6 acres only about 31% of the utilized land. By 1948 all large estates would have been parcelled. B) Ownership of livestock by large and small holdings (1937) in thou- sands of heads: Horses % Cattle % Pigs % Sheep end Goats % Large holdings 396 10.69 736 7.20 436 5.96 435 12.49 Small holdings 3,309 89.31 9,491 92.80 6,983 94.04 3,048 87.51 Total 3,705 100 10,227 100 7,419 100 3,483 100 27. Poland's Share in World Agricultural Production United States . Grain (Wheat, rye, barley, oats) (millions of tons) 32.36 Potatoes (millions of tons) 8.98 Sugar (thousands of tons) 1,174 Horned Cattle and Pigs (millions of heads) 110.35 Great Britain. . 2.90 4.66 550 13.08 Poland 12.53 34.28 418 18.27 France 12.84 14.99 800 22.87 Germany 20.84 46.32 1,500 46.07 28. Poland*s Industrial Progress Despite the world economic crisis Poland’s industrial progress was far from negligible. Between 1925 and 1938 the number of electric plants in- creased almost threefold; the installed power was doubled. Poland occupied 7th place in world coal output and 4th place in world coal exports. In zinc Poland held the 5th place in the world. For her 2,638,000 spindles and 69,000 looms Poland imported 128,000,000 lbs. of cotton and 68,000,000 lbs. of wool yearly. She exported textiles to [ Hi ITHU JL'o: •; i'i "Pultusk O 1 POLAND Frontiers of 1772 Frontiers of 1939 c-nv.v •: f)S UjvV1 ,r»oleP; The Truth About Poland more than 30 countries. Among Po- land’s main industrial exports were: weaving and spinning machinery, wool- en, linen, cotton textiles, plywood, wood articles, furniture, pianos, glass and china, leather and leather goods, gloves, electric appliances, chemicals, drugs, perfumery, canned meats, seed, medical herbs, liquors, etc. Some of these articles were exported to 42 countries. 29. Labor and Social Security Assuming per capita production in 1928 as 100, the output rose to 129 in 1937. Polish labor was organized in 298 trade unions which in 1937 con- cluded 727 collective working agree- ments with employers. Polish labor managed to maintain the real value of wages, despite the economic crisis. Al- though in 1937 nominal wages dropped 34% from 1933 levels, the same period saw a decrease in industrial wholesale prices of 39%, and in agricultural prices of 46%. The general purchas- ing power of wages rose 6%. The Polish system of social security was based upon compulsory insurance of all working people. Health insurance covered 2,171,000 persons; accident insurance 2,183,000 persons; disability and old age pensions 2,523,000 per- sons; unemployment insurance 1,690,- 000 persons. Social insurance provided hospitals, child care, rest—maternity — anti-tubercular centers in every city, health control centers, etc. Social leg- islation restricted the employment of women and minors, and controlled the prevention of accidents, provided paid holidays for workers, etc. This social security legislation was one of the first steps taken by reborn Poland and labor unions were recognized by act of Par- liament in 1919. Some of the social measures adopted by the First Polish Parliament in 1921, were voted by the French Parliament in 1935 during the period of social reconstruction under the Premiership of Leon Blum. Finally the Polish death-rate was steadily decreasing, from 16.7 per 1,000 inhabitants in 1925, it fell to 15.5 in 1930, and to 14.0 in 1937. 30. Poland’s Occupational Structure Manual and skilled wage earners constitute 28.6% and white collar workers 4.3% of the total population. In the various occupation groups the percentage of non-salaried "independ- ents” is as follows: agriculture, 85.2%; industry 32.7%; commerce 72.8%; communications 15%; other occupa- tions 8.3%. This proves that Poland was a land of small and medium individual enterprise, an essential char- acteristic of liberal economy. 31. Poland’s Cooperative System Poland had 11,720 cooperative so- cieties with more than 3,000,000 mem- bers, divided into Agricultural, Con- sumers and Credit Unions. During the 20 years of Poland’s independent existence the number of cooperatives trebled. In 1928 for instance 24% of cheese exports was handled through cooperatives, in 1938 this percentage had risen to 99.4%. 32. Poland’s Progress on the Sea Poland’s most striking achievement was the construction and development of the port of Gdynia on the Baltic [ 14 ] The Truth About Poland Sea. In 1924, the number of incoming and outgoing vessels was 58 with a total tonnage of 10,167. In 1938, it was 12,990 with a total tonnage of 9,174,000 tons. Together with Danzig, which was smaller, the total tonnage exceeded 17,800,000, constituting the 5th port in Europe and the largest on the Baltic. The shift of exports and imports by land to exports and imports by sea is most significant. The value of Polish imports by sea increased from 27.4% in 1928 to 65.5% in 1937; similarly the value of Polish exports by sea rose from 25.2% in 1928 to 66.27% in 1937. This was due to the establishment of maritime connections with more than forty countries. Polish merchant vessels called at more than 200 ports. POLISH CULTURE 33. Poland's Contribution to World Culture and Civilization Some idea of Poland’s contribution to world culture and civilization may be gathered from this much too brief list of famous Poles: Mikola j Kopernik (Copernicus) (1473-1543) the discoverer of the solar system, of the earth’s rotation about the sun and father of modern astronomy; Jan Dlugosz (1413-1480), distin- guished historian; Jan Sniadecki (1756- 1830), astronomer and famous mathe- matician who worked with Oxford University; Jozef Hoene-W r o n s k i (1778-1853), philosopher and famous mathematician, discoverer of differen- tial equations; August Cieszkowski (1814-1894), famous philosopher ; Zygmunt Wroblewski (1845-1888) and Karol Olszewski (1846-1915), scientists who first liquefied air; Ignacy Lukasiewicz (1822-1882), philosopher and mathematician, inventor of the petroleum lamp; Stefan Kopec (mur- dered by the Germans), discovered the hormone of insects; Maria Sklodowska- Curie (1867-1934), Nobel prize win- ner, discovered radium and polonium; R. Waigiel, discovered anti-typhoid serum; Dr. Kazimierz Funk (b. 1884), first introduced the term "Vitamin” (his book on the subject published in New York is a recognized authority) ; Baudouin de Courtenay (1845-), Jan Rozwadowski (1867-), and Tadeusz Zielinski (1859-), world-famous phi- lologists; Dr. L. Zamenhof (1859- 1917), created Esperanto; Joachim Le- lewel (1786-1861) and Oswald Balcer (1858-), famous historians. Jan Kucha- rzewski (1876) is Poland’s most dis- tinguished contemporary historian. 34. Painters Piotr Michalowski (1801-1855) and Aleksander Orlowski (1777-1832), ex- cellent painters and draughtsmen; Jan Matejko (1838-1893), creator of a series of monumental visions of Po- land’s glorious past; Artur Grottger (1837-1867), painter of tragic insur- rection of 1863 and the Siberian de- portees; Juliusz Kossak (1824-1899), famous battle painter; Jozef Chelmon- ski (1850-1914), realist painter; Leon Wyczolkowski (1852-1937), greatest Polish impressionist; Jacek Mal- czewski (1855-1929), the Polish [ 15 ] The Truth About Poland Rubens; Julian Falat (1855-1929), landscape painter and aquarellist; Stan- islaw Wyspianski (1869-1907), lead- ing painter of "Young Poland"; Pro- fessor Stanislaw Noakowski (1867-), distinguished architect; J. Mehoffer (b. 1869) , famous designer of stained glass windows; Wladyslaw Skoczylas (1883- 1934), illustrator of Polish folklore. School of St. Luke, eleven painters under a modernized spell of El Greco, responsible for the seven historical paintings in the Polish Pavillion at the New York World’s Fair. Jan Rosen (b. 1891), the painter of frescos in Poland, Italy and U.S.A., Feliks Topolski, the Rembranditian draughtsman. 35. Sculptors Wit Stwosz (1438-1533), great mas- ter of the XV century, who carved the altar in St. Mary’s Church, Cracow, removed by the Germans to Nurem- berg; Ksawery Dunikowski (b. 1876) and Edward Witting (b. 1877), whose monuments to aviators stand in War- saw and Paris; Stanislaw Ostrowski (b. 1878), sculptor of the equestrian statue of King Jagiello before his vic- tory over the Prussians at Grunwald, at the World’s Fair in New York, 1938. 36. Composers and Musicians Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849), one of the greatest composers, whose music is essentially Polish; Stanislaw Moniuszko (1819-1872), the father of the Polish opera; Ignacy Paderewski (1860-1941), who earned fame as a pianist before he rose to symbolize Polish patriotism and Statesmanship; Henryk Wieniawski (1835-1880), and Karol Szymanowski (1883-1937), dis- tinguished composers of modern sym- phonies. Barcewicz, Bronislaw Huber- man, Zygmunt Stojowski, Pawel Ko- chanski, Wanda Landowska, Artur Rubinstein, Jozef Hoffman, Witold Malcuzynski, J. Michalowski and Jozef Sliwinski are Polish performers whose names are familiar to music-lovers in Europe and America. Emil Mlynarski and Artur Rodzinski are well-known Polish conductors, while among Polish singers of international repute Ada Sari, Sembrich-Kochanska, the de Reszke brothers, Adam Didur and Jan Kiepura deserve mention. 37. Literature Mikola j Rey (1505-1569), founder of Poland’s national literature; Jan Kochanowski (1530-1584), the great Polish lyrical poet; A. Frycz Modrzew- ski (1503-1572), political thinker and social reformer; L. Gornicki (1527- 1603), distinguished writer; Piotr Skarga (1536-1612), Jesuit writer and greatest Polish orator; Ignacy Krasicki (1735-1801), distinguished fabulist; Aleksander Fredro (1793-1876), greatest Polish dramatist; Adam Mic- kiewicz (1799-1855), Juliusz Slowacki (1809-1849) and Zygmunt Krasinski (1812-1859), Polish national bards; Henryk Sienkiewicz (1846-1916), Po- land’s great historical novelist, Nobel prize winner; Boleslaw Prus (1847- 1912), distinguished novelist; Zofia Nalkowska (1885-), distinguished writer and dramatist; Stanislaw Wys- pianski (1869-1907), poet, dramatist, painter; Stefan Zeromski (1864-1925), modern novelist on social problems; Wladyslaw Reymont (1868-1925), au- thor of "The Peasants,” a monumental rural epic, Nobel prize winner; Ta- deusz-Boy Zelenski (1874-1942), [ 16 ] li, The Truth About Poland murdered by the Germans, famous writer and translator of French litera- ture; Karol Hubert Rostworowski (1877-1938), dramatist and poet; Zo- fia Kossak-Szczucka (b. 1890), famous historical novelist; Joseph Wittlin, novelist and poet. Among contempo- rary Polish poets mention should be made of Stanislaw Balinski, Jan Le- chon, Kazimierz Wierzynski, Julian Tuwim, Antoni Slonimski and I. K. Galczynski. 38. The Theatre Modern Polish dramatic art dates from the XVIth Century and in 1765 the actor-manager Boguslawski founded the first national theatre in Warsaw. The most popular plays of the Polish stage are those by Adam Mickiewicz, Juliusz Slowacki, Zygmunt Krasinski, Stanislaw Wyspianski, Aleksander Fredro, Stefan Zeromski. Contemporary writers are Gabriela Zapolska, Adolf Nowaczynski, Waclaw Grubinski, Zyg- munt Nowakowski, Antoni Cwojdzin- ski, Hubert Rostworowski. The plays of Shakespeare, Shaw, Sheriff and Ches- terton are also popular in Poland. During the 20 years of Polish inde- pendence there were no less than 652 performances of Shakespeare’s tragedies and comedies. G. B. Shaw was acted 569 times and three of his plays were produced in Poland before being acted in Great Britain. '‘Pygma- lion” beat all records, running for 179 performances. 39. Architecture Architecture in old Poland developed under Gothic influences, the Polish style being known as Vistula Gothic. In the 16th century, Renaissance, and later a sedate Baroque style predomin- ated. Modern Polish architecture was moulded by national reconstruction and urban and industrial planning. The schools of architecture in Warsaw and Lwow became centres of progressive architectural thought, based on the na- tional style evolved during the later half of the 19th century. In the plan- ning of new and the modernizing of old urban areas, special regard was had for the rest and recreation of children, and an effort was made to preserve natural beauties and buildings of his- toric interest. Thus the old Market Place of Warsaw was rennovated and repainted in its original pattern of color. The Renaissance town of Za- mosc was rebuilt around its beautiful Town Hall, not unlike Williamsburg, Va., in U. S. A. A score of other old towns were thus restored, in- cluding three most beautiful and dear to all the Poles: Cracow, Wilno and Lwow, where Polish culture was born and whence it radiated. HOW THE WAR CAME TO POLAND 40. Why Hitler Attacked Poland? From 1934 to 1939 Hitler repeat- edly urged Poland to join Germany in an attack on Soviet Russia, promising her large territorial gains in Eastern Europe. Poland rejected all of Hit- ler’s proposals. Furthermore, Poland’s vitality and the decline of the German population made it obvious that by 1975 the Poles would have become equal to the Germans and that time was working against German suprem- [ 17 ] The Truth About Poland acy. Indeed 1939 was the year in which the strength of the German man- power in relation to the Polish man- power was at its maximum. That year was chosen long before for aggression against Poland. crossing the frontier at 14 points from East Prussia, West Prussia, Silesia, Mo- ravia and Slovakia. Germany bombed all Polish airfields and 61 towns within the first few hours. 41. September 1, 1939 At dawn on September 1, 1939, German land and air armies attacked Poland without any declaration of war, 42. Unequal Forces The relative strength of Polish and German forces in September, 1939, was as follows: Poland German y Infantry 31 divisions 70 divisions Panzer units 1 division 14 divisions Planes 443 4320 Fire power ratio 1 72 43. 35 Days of Polish-German War The German-Polish war lasted 35 days, from September 1 to October 5, 1939. At Kock the last of the major engagements of the war was fought on October 5 th. The siege of Warsaw, capital of Poland, lasted 19 days in spite of heavy air and artillery bom- bardment. Warsaw surrendered on September 27, when the armies had exhausted all ammunition, the water supply was cut, and 200 large fires were raging in the city. 44. Sept. 17, 1939—the Critical Day September 17, 1939, was the most critical day of the German-Polish war. On September 14, German panzer units had been stopped thanks to the resist- ance of the Polish armies and to the extension of German supply lines. The Poles began to organize effective re- sistance along the marshes of Polesie and in Galicia. But at dawn on Sep- tember 17, without any declaration of war, Soviet Russia despite her non- aggression treaty with Poland attacked the rear of the Polish armies fighting Germany. On September 28, Ger- many and Russia signed an agreement dividing Poland between themselves for "all times,” along the Ribbentrop- Molotov line. POLISH ARMY IN EXILE 45. Polish Army in France Very shortly after the cessation of organized fighting by Polish forces against the German invaders, a Polish army was formed in France by General Sikorski. This army consisted of 43/2 infantry divisions, an armored brigade and the Carpathian brigade, some 100,000 men in all. The first and sec- ond divisions took part in the battle of France; the Carpathian Brigade fought in Norway and was the first to enter Narvik. [ 18 ] The Truth About Poland 46. Polish Army in England After the collapse of France, Gen- eral Sikorski succeeded in evacuating a large part of the Polish troops to England, where Poland now has an army corps including an armored divi- sion, a rifle brigade, a parachute brig- ade and other units. 47. Polish Army in the Middle East When the Polish-Russian Treaty was signed in July, 1941, a number of Polish prisoners of war in Russia were released, and a new army was organ- ized on Russian soil under General Anders. Before being equipped it was transferred to the Middle East at the request of the Soviet Govern- ment. With the Carpathian Brigade now expanded to a Division, it forms a separate army corps. Polish ground forces in the Middle East number some 75,000 men, fully trained and equipped with the most modern American and British armament. 48. Polish Air Force After the fall of Poland, Polish fighter squadrons were set up in France, while bomber crews were train- ing in Britain. When Hitler attacked in the West, 133 Polish fighter pilots, fighting with the British and French Air Forces faced his air armada. They won 55 victories, losing 15 men. Yet the most glorious achievement of the Polish Air Force was in the Battle of Britain, when it destroyed 195 enemy machines out of the total of 2,366 brought down by the Royal Air Force. Since then, Polish fighter and bomber squadrons have been continu- ally engaged and up to March, 1943, had destroyed more than 526 enemy aircraft, 7 U-boats and dropped more than 6,000 tons of bombs on 42 targets in Germany and German occupied ter- ritories. In Tunisia, Polish airmen brought down 79 enemy planes as compared with 527 downed by the American air forces. Since 1939 Polish pilots have shot down more than 1.000 German planes. A considerable number of Polish airmen also serve as pilots in the Allied armies. The Polish Air Force now numbers more than 12.000 men. 49. The Polish Navy The Polish Navy has been fight- ing since the outbreak of the war alongside of the British Royal Navy. Polish sailors have taken part in many important naval actions, in- cluding the evacuation of Dunkirk, the spirited attack on the ‘'Bismarck,” the landing at Dieppe, and the recent operations off the North African coast. They have played their full part in the Battle of the Atlantic and carry on an unceasing vigil with the fleets of the United Nations in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Thus the destroyer “Garland” fought a 6-day battle against Nazi planes and U-boats in convoying American and British munitions to Russia. The officers and crew of this "Very Gallant Ship” were saluted by the officers and crew of the flagship of the convoy and received high British and Polish decorations. Poland has to its credit a sizable bag of U-boats. The “Slazak” (Silesian) of the Polish Navy, has shot down more enemy planes than any other war vessel of its class in all Allied fleets. Poland’s Mer- chant Navy is also in constant service on all seas and has carried much lend- lease material in convoys to Russia and elsewhere. [ 19 ] The Truth About Poland POLAND FIGHTS ON 50. German Reign of Terror In his message to Poland, broadcast on May 3, 1941, Prime Minister Churchill said: ’'Every day Hitler’s firing parties are busy in a dozen lands. Monday he shoots Dutchmen, Tuesday Norwe- gians, Wednesday French and Belgians stand against the wall, Thursday it is the Czechs who must suffer, and now there are the Serbs and the Greeks to fill his repulsive bill of execution. But always, all of the days, there are the Poles.” 51. 8,000,000 Poles Sacrificed for Freedom The struggle of the Polish Nation for freedom and integrity of Poland cost the Nation 8,000,000 victims. During that time: 3.200.000 Poles were murdered by the Germans. 2,000,000 Poles were sent to forced labor in Germany. 1.600.000 Poles were deported from Western Poland to the Gov- ernment General. 1.500.000 Poles were deported by Sov- iets to Russia. In 1942 alone 348 villages were burned to the ground and ploughed under like Lidice; 1,080 villages evacu- ated and all the inhabitants either killed or deported. 52. Directorate of Civilian Resistance Underground resistance on the Po- lish Home Front is directed by the Polish Government in London, through its representative in Poland who con- veys its instructions to the Directorate of Civilian Resistance responsible for the organization of sabotage, the trial and execution of German criminals. 53. Religious and Cultural Persecu- tion in Poland Seven Polish dioceses have been suppressed: Poznan, Gniezno, Wloc- lawek, Plock, Pelplin, Lodz, Katowice; seven Bishops deported or imprisoned, ninety per cent of the clergy thrown into concentration camps. A large number of priests have been executed by the Gestapo. In Oswiecim alone 1,500 priests have died of maltreat- ment; churches are closed and many millions of Catholics are entirely de- prived of religious services, in a coun- try where more than 70% of the peo- ple are Catholics. Polish Universities, professional and technical institutions, high schools and all private schools are closed. Libraries, museums, scien- tific collections and laboratory equip- ments have been looted and taken to Germany. All books dealing with Polish culture were burned. German specialists, mostly university professors, who had been received in Poland as cherished guests, supervised the looting of Polish universities, academies, re- search institutes and museums. The Germans consider that Poles do not require learning . . . Governor Gen- eral Frank said: "The Poles do not need universities or secondary schools, the Polish territories are to be trans- formed into an intellectual desert.” [ 20 ] The Truth About Poland Forster, Gauleiter of the "Warthe- land,” the western provinces of Poland illegally incorporated in the Reich, said: **I promise you that in ten years from now not so much as a single sheaf of wheat will grow on Polish soil." Wer- ner Best, in "Zeitschrift fuer Politik" of June 2nd, 1942, wrote: "Historical experience has shown that the destruc- tion and elimination of a foreign na- tionality is not in the least against the laws of life, provided that destruction and elimination are complete." 54. Economic Pillage The confiscation of public and pri- vate property in Poland has been com- plete. The Germans not only took all real estate away from the Poles, they confiscated all stores and workshops, even household furniture and personal effects, furs, jewelry, clothing, etc. The eviction of the small farmers is continuing apace. Poles are replaced by German colonists, imported from Russia and the Baltic States. The Poles, who are only used as slave labor, are exploited by the Germans; they receive less pay and the "Polenabzug," a flat 15% on their gross earning is de- ducted in addition to taxes, social in- surance, dues and contributions to the Arbeitsfront, from which they derive no benefits. Their pay on the average is half of what Germans get for the same work, but their hours are longer and no holidays are allowed. Food ra- tions are less than half the German rations and no fuel is sold to Poles. When slow-downs—an essential fea- ture of underground resistance—occur ration cards are withdrawn. Workers, whose output falls to 60% of the nor- mal German production, receive no ration cards and must starve with their families. Workers whose output is 68% receive of the concentration camp ration; those whose production is 80% receive 50% of the German ration. 55. More Than 110 Underground Newspapers Although the publication, circulation and possession of a secret newspaper is punishable by death, more than 110 underground newspapers are read by at least 3,000,000 people. Some have four editions daily, and news broad- casts from London and New York are printed within an hour. Even photo- graphs are smuggled into Poland and published in the secret press. In spite of the danger most of the distribution is done by women and children. 56. Resistance and Sabotage Pending the opening of an allied offensive in Europe, the home front in Poland keeps up a continuous warfare. In the course of a single month in 1943, 100 locomotives were damaged, 17 trains derailed, 340 trucks destroyed, 7 oil wells rendered useless, 18 mili- tary transports attacked, more than 500 Germans killed, including Wil- helm Krueger, the Polish Heydrich. Poland also maintains two under- ground universities and several hun- dred schools. 57. Secret Courts in Poland Poland, the only occupied nation that has no Quisling, Hacha or Vlas- sov, administers justice under enemy [ 21 ] The Truth About Poland occupation by secret courts. A recent Bulletin, announces the execution of communication of the Directorate of 59 sentences on German Gestapo of- Civilian Resistance printed in No. 464 ficers in the single month of May, of the underground daily Information 1943. POLAND’S POST-WAR PLANS 58. General Principles The present war is a struggle for Christian civilization. The people of Poland believe that the postwar or- ganization of the world should be based on Christian morality, interna- tional democracy, and political and economic collaboration. This order should be established and enforced throughout the world by international institutions and an international force, and cannot be the prerogative of a few powerful nations. Poland, the first real democracy in Europe, is deeply attached to her parliamentary system, based on broad democratic representa- tion of the people. Recognition will be given to private property and free enterprise, but "jungle” economy will not be tolerated. The "average man” will be at home in Poland. Poland will be a land of the middle class, of workers and farmers, an average man’s approximation to the ideal of the Four Freedoms. Racial minorities will be given full liberty of cultural develop- ment and will exercise the equality of rights and of obligations. 59. Central and Eastern European Federation Poland expects the Nations of Cen- tral and Eastern Europe to form a commonwealth sufficiently strong to withstand German aggression, which has plagued it for centuries. Such a commonwealth would facilitate the economic development of Central and Eastern Europe, promote neighborly trade-exchanges with Russia and act as a stabilizing element on the continent. It would be a potent factor of Russia’s security in the west. The Governments of Poland, Czechoslovakia, Jugoslavia and Greece have formed a Central- Eastern European Planning Board, the nucleus of cooperation along these lines. The Board has various committees working on the agricultural, industrial, financial, educational and social pro- blems envolved. Other committees will be organized as need arises to deal with every aspect of the mutual advantages to be derived from the close collabora- tion of 110 million people, who will become a first class power in the World Council. This power will be used solely for the preservation of peace and raising of the standard of living of its peoples. It will serve European culture and Christian civili- zation for which that culture stands. It is democratic and in the terms of the Polish-Czech declaration of No- vember 11, 1940, the Constitution of the individual States included in the Confederation will guarantee to citizens of those States the following rights: a. Religious Freedom. b. Personal Liberty. [ 22 ] The Truth About Roland c. Freedom of Learning. d. Freedom of Speech and of the Press. e. Freedom of Organization and As- sociation. f. Equality of all citizens before the Law. g. Free admission of all citizens to all State functions. h. Independence of courts of law, control of government by repre- sentative national bodies elected by means of free elections. There are 1 5 million Americans who are descendents of the peoples consti- tuting the proposed commonwealth. They will link the Eastern European Commonwealth to the United States in a bond of mutual understanding and identical ideology. 60. Polish-Youth Manifesto "Manifesto of Young Poles,” under the heading "Character”: "Every Polish youth must have as the injmost passion of his soul an aspi- ration for spiritual growth. He must cultivate his inner life, steadfastly lift- ing up his heart to those imperishable values, human and divine, which teach us the way of life: 'He chat would save his life must lose it.’ This inner life, well ruled, but ardent as a living flame, must find expression in our out- ward life. Let us not forget the words of that great Pole, Stanislaw Szczepa- nowski: 'Our regeneration begins within our heart, not within our mind. It depends, not on the degree of our culture and enlightenment, but on our growth in character. Changed lives, not changed opinions are the witnesses of regeneration.’ ” Printed in U.S.A. Published by the Polish Information Center, 745 Fifth Avenue, New York, N. Y.