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2300 BCE
Early Bronze Age in Poland
The Early Bronze culture settled in Poland. Archaeologists have found that there was a settlement in the village of Sadowie which is north of Kraków. This was approximately in 2300 BCE (Zdziebłowski, 2016). The image is from Koźmiński (2015) and is of some funeral urns that we found in the archaeological dig in Krotoszyce. -
700 BCE
Iron is Introduced to Poland
We know about Poland and the Iron Age because of an archaeological dig that took place in Biskupin, Poland. Biskupin was discovered by Walenty Szwajcer in 1933. There are a settlement village and a fortified stockade. (Harding, 2019).
The image is a reconstructed of the fortified settlement, and the photograph is by a blogger whose name is Monika (2011) http://scientika.blogspot.com/2011/05/biskupin-in-snow.html -
800
The Slavic tribes are united by the Polanie
The Polanie were a tribe in Poland that helped to unite the Slavs in these regions. Much of the history of this time is more legend than actual history. The image here is a painting by Viktor Vasnetsov from 1898, called "Warriors". In this picture, he depicts Lech, Czech and Rus, who were supposedly the founders of the Polish, Czech and Russian nations. https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/KingListsEurope/EasternPoland.htm -
962
The Polish state is founded by Duke Mieszko and the Piast Dynasty begins
Duke Mieszko is considered the great unifier of the tribes and clans in his region. The Piast dynasty would rule for five centuries until 1370. No credit was given for this painting; -
966
The Polish people under Duke Mieszko adopt Christianity as their state religion.
Duke Mieszko was baptized into the Catholic faith in 966 and because of this, the Holy Roman Emperor and other European rulers began to recognize Poland as part of Europe. The image is 'The Adoption of Christianity' by Jan Matejko, from the series 'History of Civilisation in Poland', photo: National Museum in Warsaw -
1025
The Kingdom of Poland is formed by its first king, Boleslaw the First.
This is the end of the Piast dynasty. The images are coins from this era that were commissioned by Boleslaw the First. Photo credit goes to Michael Niemczyk https://www.polishgreatness.com/The_Glory_of_the_Polish_Eagle.html -
1385
Poland and Lithuania unite to form the Polish- Lithuanian union. The Jagiellonian dynasty begins.
The Jagiellon Dynasty (1386 – 1572) was established by the marriage of Jogaila and the Queen of Poland (Jadwiga) in 1386. The image is a map of what Poland looked like during this time. -
The capital of Poland is moved from Krakow to Warsaw (the current capital).
The unification of Lithuania and Poland during this time made it more convenient for Warsaw to become the capital of Poland.It was closer to Lithuania and further away from Sweden and the Baltic Sea, both areas which were cause for concern for foreign invasion. The image is the defense wall from the Middle Ages located outside of Warsaw. The photo was taken by Jorge Láscar https://www.flickr.com/photos/jlascar/9632838798 -
A weakened Poland is divided between Prussia, Austria, and Russia in what is called the First Partition.
Prussian leader Frederik II decided to take Moldova and destroy Poland. He convinced Austria and Russia to agree to split the country between the three great powers: The First Partition of Poland. The image is of the map of the result of the First Partition https://historyofyesterday.com/the-partitions-poland-11993b86cefa -
Poland regains independence and establishes a new constitution with liberal reforms.
Poland’s first written constitution was proposed on May 3, 1791, making it the second oldest written constitution in the world. The Constitution decentralized state power and attempted to provide for a division of power. The image is a photo of the Polish Constitution from 1791.Source: https://www.slideshare.net/HalinaOstakowiczBazan/polish-constitution-of-may-3-1791 -
Napoleon invades and conquers Poland.
This image was in An Exhibition at the Czartoryski Museum, Cracow: October 23rd 2004 - January 15th, 2005 of Napoleon and the Poles. Many Polish believed that Napoleon was going to be a liberator after the First Partition, but he turned out to be a conquerer just like everywhere else. https://www.local-life.com/krakow/articles/napoleon-poland -
Poland comes under the control of Russia.
Russia took over Poland and made Poland part of the Russian Empire. The Russian tsar, Alexander I, took control of Poland, but still allowed the nation a degree of self-government. http://www.fsmitha.com/h3/h47-ru5.htm -
The Polish revolt against Russia, but are defeated.
This attempted at an insurrection was unsuccessful. Poland hoped to recreate the Polish-Lithuanian Alliance, but Poland's troops were poorly trained against the regular Russian Army. https://www.britannica.com/event/January-Insurrection -
World War I begins. Poland joins Austria to fight Russia.
Poland had to take a side because it acted as a "staging area" during WWI. This image is of Polish troops in WWI in 1914. No credit was given for this image: https://www.alamy.it/rifugi-delle-truppe-austriache-in-polonia-1914 -
World War I ends with Poland becoming an independent nation.
Poland regained its independence on November 11, 1918, after 123 years of partitions by Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Russia. The photo is of Józef Piłsudski, a Polish revolutionary, at a train-station, Warsaw, November 11, 1918. -
World War II begins when Germany invades Poland
Germany was successful because Poland's army was poorly equipped and trained. The image is of a cover page of the LA Times https://assets.sutori.com/user-uploads/image/83e22bde-9a09-44a9-8224-fc678904be5e/c31361f219c2b45eef520e016c3cf894.jpeg -
World War II comes to an end. Russia takes control of Poland.
Even though the Polish ultimately resisted Germany in Warsaw, and took control of the city, the Germans came back and burned the city in response to their defeat. This weakened Poland and allowed for Russia to come back and take control of the country. The image is of a Soviet tank entering Poland. -
Poland becomes a communist state under the rule of the Soviet Union.
Poland becomes a Communist People's Republic after Soviet-run elections, under the Stalinist leadership of Boleslaw Bierut. The image is of Bierut signing the charter making Poland a communist state. https://dzieje.pl/aktualnosci/boleslaw-bierut-najczarniejszy-charakter-komunistycznej-polski -
Karol Wojtyla is elected pope of the Catholic church. He becomes Pope John Paul II.
Pope, now St. John Paul the Great, was elected Pope on Oct. 16, 1978, when, after eight rounds of voting, he was elected the first non-Italian pope (& the first Polish pope ever) in 445 years. The image is of him waving to the crowd after being named Pope. http://natcath.org/NCR_Online/archives2/2003d/101003/101003a.htm -
Solidarity labor union becomes a political force.
The independent Polish trade union, Solidarność., was established in 1980 from a strike at the Lenin Shipyard demanding the rehiring of laid-off workers and an increase in wages. They also worked towards freedom of religious and political expression. The image is from 1980 at a strike at the Gdansk Shipyard. https://www.theguardian.com/world/from-the-archive-blog/2019/sep/18/the-birth-of-solidarity-in-poland-archive-1980 -
The Solidarity movement helps form non-communist coalition government.
The Solidarity Movement was prevalent from 1980-1989 and they led the Polish civil resistance which resulted in the first free and open election since 1946. The image is of a solidarity demonstration in Warsaw. No credit is given for the image: https://www.nonviolent-conflict.org/polands-solidarity-movement-1980-1989/ -
Elections are held and a new government is formed.
Elections were held in Poland that reestablished their Senate and the members of the Sejm. Poland was the 1st country in the Eastern Bloc to hold an election and form a new government. Tadeusz Mazowiecki led the government and a peaceful transition to democracy. The image is of Tadeusz Mazowiecki, Prime Minister of Poland in 1989. https://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/wjc-on-passing-of-tadeusz-mazowiecki-architect-of-poland-s-transition-to-democracy -
The Soviet Union begins removing troops from Poland.
The withdrawal of the Northern Group of Forces from Poland (45,000 troops) began on April 8, 1991, and ended in September 1993. The photo is by V.Kiselyov of Russian troops leaving Poland during this time. https://www.rbth.com/history/332046-how-ussr-pulled-its-troops -
Poland becomes a member of the European Union (EU)
This event is considered the end of the Cold War and began the expansion of Poland's economic and cultural relationship with Western Europe (Kolodziejczyk, 2016). The image is a Billboard in 2003 that urges people to vote for the EU membership (Gallup/Getty Images)
