People’s Republic of Poland
| Polish People's Republic | ||||||||||
| Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa | ||||||||||
| Member of the Warsaw Pact (1955-1989) | ||||||||||
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Anthem Mazurek Dąbrowskiego Poland Is Not Yet Lost |
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 Location of the Polish People's Republic in Europe.
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| Capital | Warsaw | |||||||||
| Languages |
Polish (official) Silesian, Kashubian, German |
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| Religion |
State Atheism (Official) Catholic, Polish Orthodox (Popular) |
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| Demonym | Pole, Polish | |||||||||
| Government | Unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist republic | |||||||||
| Head of State | ||||||||||
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President 1947–1952 |
Bolesław Bierut (first) |
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| • | 1989 | Wojciech Jaruzelski (last) | ||||||||
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Chairman of the Council of State 1952–1964 |
Aleksander Zawadzki (first) |
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| • | 1985–1989 | Wojciech Jaruzelski (last) | ||||||||
| Prime Minister | ||||||||||
| • | 1947–1952 | Józef Cyrankiewicz (first) | ||||||||
| • | 1989 | Tadeusz Mazowiecki (last) | ||||||||
| Historical era | Cold War | |||||||||
| • | Small Constitution | 19 January 1947 | ||||||||
| • | Workers' Party established | 16–21 December 1948 | ||||||||
| • | Constitution adopted | 22 July 1952 | ||||||||
| • | Democracy restored | 30 December 1989 | ||||||||
| Area | ||||||||||
| 312,685 km2 (120,728 sq mi) | ||||||||||
| Population | ||||||||||
| • | 1990 est. | 37,970,155 | ||||||||
| Currency | Polish złoty | |||||||||
| Calling code | +48 | |||||||||
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| Today part of |
 Poland
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Formerly:
Republic of Poland Rzeczpospolita Polska (1947–1952) |
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The Polish People's Republic (Polish: Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL) covers the history of Poland under Communist control between 1952 and 1990. The name was defined by the Constitution of 1952 which was based on the 1936 Soviet Constitution. Between 1947 and 1952, the name of the Polish state was the Republic of Poland (Rzeczpospolita Polska), in accordance with the temporary Constitution of 1947. At the time of its founding during final stages of World War II, Poland was regarded as a puppet entity set up and controlled by the Soviet Union, and over time, it developed into a satellite state of the Soviet Union.
The Soviet Union had much influence over both internal and external affairs, and Red Army forces were stationed in Poland (1945: 500,000; until 1955: 120,000 to 150,000; until 1989: 40,000). In 1945, Soviet generals and advisors formed 80% of the officer cadre of the Polish People's Army. The Polish United Workers' Party became the dominant political party, officially making the country a socialist republic.
At the Yalta Conference in February 1945, Stalin was able to present his western allies, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill, with a fait accompli in Poland. His armed forces were in occupation of the country, and his agents, the communists, were in control of its administration. The USSR was in the process of incorporating the lands in eastern Poland which it had occupied between 1939 and 1941.
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