Provisional Government of National Unity
The Provisional Government of National Unity (
Background
When Poland was conquered by Germany in 1939, a new government-in-exile was established in Paris (and moved to London after 1940 Nazi invasion of France). The government-in-exile was recognized by the British government, and controlled the main Polish resistance force, the Armia Krajowa (Home Army).
In 1943, the PPR and some other left-wing resistance groups formed the KRN as a national government of Poland, in rivalry to the exile government. In July 1944, the KRN proclaimed the Polish Committee of National Liberation (the "Lublin Committee" or PKWN) in territory liberated from Germany by the Soviet Army. The exile government denounced this, but was powerless to interfere, especially after the Armia Krajowa was largely destroyed in the 1944 Warsaw Uprising.
Poland was not covered by the
Establishment
The TRJN was a result of negotiations held in Moscow from 17 June to 21 June 1945, between the PPR (Polish communists), the Soviet Union, and Mikołajczyk, who had created the Polish People's Party (Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe, PSL) as the political vehicle for his participation. The PSL was a centrist organization and continuation of the prewar Polish agrarian movement. The pre-war People's Party also supported Mikołajczyk.
The TRJN government was composed of:
- Prime Minister: Edward Osóbka-Morawski (Polish Socialist Party)
- Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Regained Territories: Władysław Gomułka(PPR)
- Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform: Stanisław Mikołajczyk (PSL)
The entire government was composed of:
- PPR: 7 ministers
- Socialist Party: 6 ministers
- People's Party: 3 ministers
- PSL: 3 ministers
- Democratic Party: 2 ministers
The exile government did not recognize the TRJN.[1]
Subsequent events
On 21 June, General
The TRJN was already bound by the "Treaty of Friendship, Mutual Help, and Cooperation" with the USSR which the Provisional Government had signed on 21 April. Which established friendly relations with the Soviet Union and cemented Poland as part of the Eastern Bloc.
On 5 July 1945, the TRJN was recognized by the United States. It was soon also recognized by the other major Allies, France and the United Kingdom. It was not recognized by the Vatican.
On 6 July, while the Polish government-in-exile maintained its existence, both the United States and the United Kingdom formally withdrew the recognition of it.
On 10 July, Osóbka-Morawski announced the expulsion of all Germans from Poland.
From 17 July to 2 August, a delegation from the TRJN attended the 1945 Potsdam Conference.
On 16 August, a Soviet-Polish border agreement was signed in Moscow. Before the end of August, Poland agreed to cede the
On 16 October, delegates of the TRJN signed the
The 'free and fair' elections promised by the TRJN were postponed until the communists were sure they could control the election process. In the meantime, they increased repressions of opposition members, who were bribed, threatened, delegalised, or even murdered. In the words of Gomułka, the goal of the communists was to be the "
Two great reforms carried out by TRJN were the nationalization decree and the Three-Year Plan (of 1947–49), both issued in 1946. The nationalization decree gave the government control over every enterprise which employed more than 50 people; by the end of the year, 90% of the country's industry was controlled by the government.
Notes of Stalin's Speech during a Reception at the Kremlin on 23 June 1944
"Mr. Zurawski is right to say that blood is being shed between the Polish and Russian people. For centuries, Poland and Russia were at war with each other, and only Germany benefited. The Poles occupied Moscow twice - the Russians abandoned them. In the past, Poles had many reasons to hate Russia. Russia is more responsible for the centuries-long relationship between Poland and Russia because it is stronger than Poland. Old Tsarist Russia and its people carried out a policy of repression against the Poles. Russia needs new people to change the policies of Tsarist Russia."[2]
Dissolution
The communists dominated
See also
- Polish Committee of National Liberation (Polish: Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego; PKWN) - 1944 and 1945
- Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland (Polish: Rząd Tymczasowy Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej; RTRP) - 1945
- Polish People's Party (1945–49)
- Polish People's Republic (Polish: Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa; PRL) - 1944 to 1952 (unofficially), 1952 to 1989 (officially)
- People's Army of Poland (Polish: Ludowe Wojsko Polskie; LWP)
- Polish government-in-exile
References
- ISBN 0-7146-8444-9Page 7
- ^ during a Reception at the Kremlin, Notes of Stalin's Speech (23 June 1944). "Notes of Stalin's Speech during a Reception at the Kremlin on 23 June 1944".
Further reading
- ISBN 0-231-05351-7