Polish victory
221-400: [REDACTED] Second Polish Republic The Polish–Ukrainian War , from November 1918 to July 1919, was a conflict between the Second Polish Republic and Ukrainian forces (both the West Ukrainian People's Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic ). The conflict had its roots in ethnic, cultural, and political differences between the Polish and Ukrainian populations living in
442-559: A Feldmarschall ( Field Marshal ) in the Austro-Hungarian Army . In the spring of 1916, in connection with the offensive against Italy , he was entrusted with the command of the XX. Corps, whose affections he won by his affability and friendliness. The offensive, after a successful start, soon came to a standstill. Shortly afterwards, Charles went to the eastern front as commander of Army Group Archduke Karl operating against
663-656: A Provisional People's Government of the Republic of Poland ( Tymczasowy Rząd Ludowy Republiki Polskiej ) in Lublin. On Sunday, 10 November at 7 a.m., Józef Piłsudski , newly freed from 16 months in a German prison in Magdeburg , returned by train to Warsaw. Piłsudski, together with Colonel Kazimierz Sosnkowski , was greeted at Warsaw's railway station by Regent Zdzisław Lubomirski and by Colonel Adam Koc . Next day, due to his popularity and support from most political parties,
884-656: A conflict with Poland , was friendly towards the Ukrainian government and sold it weapons in exchange for oil. France, on the other hand, strongly supported Poland in the conflict. The French hoped that a large, powerful Polish state would serve as a counterbalance to Germany and would isolate Germany from Soviet Russia. French diplomats consistently supported Polish claims to territories also claimed by Germany, Lithuania and Ukraine. France also provided large numbers of arms and ammunition, and French officers, most notably General Haller's forces, to Polish forces that were used against
1105-632: A French-led mission from the Entente arrived at the Ukrainian headquarters on February 22 and demanded that the Ukrainian cease hostilities under threat of breaking all diplomatic ties between the Entente and the Ukrainian government. On February 25 the Ukrainian military suspended its offensive. The Barthélemy mission proposed a demarcation line (February 28) leaving almost 70% of the East Galician territory to Ukrainians, and Lviv with oil fields to Poland. The Ukrainians would be supplied with half of
1326-519: A chance to compromise with Poland and obtain international recognition of the Ukrainian state by the Entente. The commission succeeded in getting the armistice treaty signed on 24 February 1919, and presented its proposals to the parties on 28 February, which was rejected by the West Ukrainian side. As a result of the failure to agree on the demarcation line, Polish-Ukrainian hostilities resumed on 2 March. Historian Christoph Mick states there
1547-455: A cold in town, which developed into bronchitis and progressed to severe pneumonia . Having suffered two heart attacks, he died of respiratory failure on 1 April, in the presence of his wife (who was pregnant with their eighth child) and nine-year-old former Crown Prince Otto , remaining conscious almost until his last moments. His last words to his wife were "I love you so much." He was 34 years old. His remains except for his heart are still on
1768-458: A failed attempt to resolve the Polish question as quickly as possible, Berlin set up the puppet Kingdom of Poland on 14 January 1917, with a governing Provisional Council of State and (from 15 October 1917) a Regency Council ( Rada Regencyjna Królestwa Polskiego ). The Council administered the country under German auspices (see also Mitteleuropa ), pending the election of a king . More than
1989-576: A government either de facto or de jure and did not have the right to represent any of the territories formerly belonging to the Austrian empire. After a long series of negotiations, on March 14, 1923, the Council of Ambassadors decided that Galicia would be incorporated into Poland "taking into consideration that Poland has recognized that in regard to the eastern part of Galicia ethnographic conditions fully deserve its autonomous status." After 1923, Galicia
2210-558: A graduate of high school received a big matura , which enabled them to seek university-level education. Before 1918, Poland had three universities: Jagiellonian University , the University of Warsaw and Lwów University . The Catholic University of Lublin was established in 1918; Adam Mickiewicz University , Poznań, in 1919; and finally, in 1922, after the annexation of the Republic of Central Lithuania , Wilno University became
2431-608: A holy service to his people. His chief concern was to follow the Christian vocation to holiness also in his political actions. For this reason, his thoughts turned to social assistance. On 31 January 2008, after a 16-month investigation, a Church tribunal recognized a second miracle attributed to Charles I. A "devout Baptist " from Orlando , Florida was allegedly cured after several recent converts to Roman Catholicism in Louisiana prayed for Charles's intercession. In 2011,
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#17327756823962652-402: A major reform which introduced two main levels of education: common school ( szkoła powszechna ), with three levels – 4 grades + 2 grades + 1 grade; and middle school ( szkoła średnia ), with two levels – 4 grades of comprehensive middle school and 2 grades of specified high school (classical, humanistic, natural and mathematical). A graduate of middle school received a small matura , while
2873-537: A military hero. When Nazi Germany took over it made his memory into that of a traitor. For decades after 1945, both popular and academic interest practically disappeared, but attention has slowly returned. Helmut Rumpler, the head of the Habsburg commission of the Austrian Academy of Sciences , described Charles as "a dilettante, far too weak for the challenges facing him, out of his depth, and not really
3094-659: A month before Germany surrendered on 11 November 1918 and the war ended, the Regency Council had dissolved the Provisional Council of State and announced its intention to restore Polish independence (7 October 1918). With the notable exception of the Marxist -oriented Social Democratic Party of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania ( SDKPiL ), most Polish political parties supported this move. On 23 October
3315-480: A national culture, including efforts toward standardization of the Ukrainian language, and the establishment and support of Ukrainian cultural institutions such as scientific societies, theater, and a national museum in Lviv; beginning in the early 20th century, a national consciousness developed among the broader Ruthenian population, which was mainly rural. Multiple incidents between the two nations occurred throughout
3536-537: A peacemaker during the war, especially after 1917. The cause or campaign for his canonization began in Vienna in 1949. On 25 April 1951, the cause was transferred to Rome, and Charles was declared " servant of God ", the first step in the process. At the beginning of the cause for canonization in 1972 his tomb was opened and his body was discovered to be incorrupt . On 14 April 2003, the Vatican's Congregation for
3757-496: A politician." Others have seen Charles as a brave and honourable figure who tried to stop the war in which his Empire was drowning. Anatole France , the French novelist, stated: This war without end is criminal. What is abominable is that they do not want to end it. No, they do not want. Do not try to tell me that there was no way to end it. Emperor Charles offered peace; he is the only decent man to have appeared in this war, and he
3978-493: A propaganda war with each side accusing the other of war crimes and brutality. During fights over Lviv, Polish nurses who assisted wounded soldiers were said to have been captured by Ukrainian forces and tortured before being executed, while Ukrainians sources claimed that Polish soldiers shot Ukrainian medical patrols and accused Poles of rape and bloodlust. When Poles captured Lviv, a mixed group of Polish criminals released from prisons, militiamen and some regular soldiers pillaged
4199-496: A question of military control. Fighting between Ukrainian and Polish forces was concentrated around the declared Ukrainian capital of Lviv and the approaches to that city. In Lviv, the Ukrainian forces were opposed by local self-defence units formed mostly of World War I veterans, students and children. However, skillful command, good tactics and high morale allowed Poles to resist the poorly planned Ukrainian attacks. In addition,
4420-550: A result, although the Poles had fewer total troops than did the Ukrainians, in particularly important battles they were able to bring in as many soldiers as did the Ukrainians. On December 9, 1918, Ukrainian forces broke through the outer defences of Przemyśl in the hope of capturing the city and thus cutting off Polish-controlled Lviv from central Poland. However, the Poles were able to quickly send relief troops and by December 17
4641-594: A series of three Silesian Uprisings . The most critical military conflict of that period, however, the Polish–Soviet War (1919-1921), ended in a decisive Polish victory. The Second Polish Republic was a parliamentary democracy from 1919 (see Small Constitution of 1919 ) to 1926, with the President having limited powers. The Parliament elected him, and he could appoint the Prime Minister as well as
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#17327756823964862-521: A share of 1.6% (solely identifying with a non-Polish ethnic group) or 3.8% (including those identifying with both the Polish ethnicity and with another ethnic group) in 2011. The first spontaneous flight of about 500,000 Poles from the Soviet Union occurred during the reconstitution of sovereign Poland. In the second wave, between November 1919 and June 1924, some 1,200,000 people left the territory of
5083-579: A sovereign state at the end of the First World War in Europe in 1917–1918. The victorious Allies of the First World War confirmed the rebirth of Poland in the Treaty of Versailles of June 1919. It was one of the great stories of the 1919 Paris Peace Conference . Poland solidified its independence in a series of border wars fought by the newly formed Polish Army from 1918 to 1921. The extent of
5304-438: A threat to Lviv itself until May 1919. During this time, according to Italian and Polish reports, Ukrainian forces enjoyed high morale (an Italian observer behind Galician lines stated that the Ukrainians were fighting with the "courage of the doomed") while many of the Polish soldiers, particularly from what had been Congress Poland , wanted to return home because they saw no reason to fight against Ruthenians over Ruthenian lands;
5525-519: A twenty-day siege. Open organised Polish resistance ended on 6 October 1939 after the Battle of Kock , with Germany and the Soviet Union occupying most of the country. Lithuania annexed the area of Wilno , and Slovakia seized areas along Poland's southern border – including Górna Orawa and Tatranská Javorina - which Poland had annexed from Czechoslovakia in October 1938. Poland did not surrender to
5746-651: A vaccine against typhus. Bronisław Malinowski counted among the most important anthropologists of the 20th century. In Polish literature , the 1920s were marked by the domination of poetry. Polish poets were divided into two groups – the Skamanderites ( Jan Lechoń , Julian Tuwim , Antoni Słonimski and Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz ) and the Futurists ( Anatol Stern , Bruno Jasieński , Aleksander Wat , Julian Przyboś ). Apart from well-established novelists ( Stefan Żeromski , Władysław Reymont ), new names appeared in
5967-552: The 1938 Polish ultimatum to Lithuania ). On top of this, there were natural disasters, such as the 1934 flood in Poland . Interbellum Poland was unofficially divided into two parts – better developed "Poland A" in the west, and underdeveloped "Poland B" in the east. Polish industry was concentrated in the west, mostly in Polish Upper Silesia , and the adjacent Lesser Poland 's province of Zagłębie Dąbrowskie , where
6188-516: The Belgian Army , as intermediary. However, the Allies insisted on Austrian recognition of Italian claims to territory and Charles refused, so no progress was made. Foreign minister Graf Czernin was only interested in negotiating a general peace which would include Germany; Charles himself went much further in suggesting his willingness to make a separate peace. When news of what became known as
6409-607: The Black Sea on the cruiser HMS Cardiff , and on 19 November 1921 they arrived at their final exile, the isolated, heavily guarded Portuguese island of Madeira . The couple and their children, who joined them on 2 February 1922, lived first at Funchal at the Villa Vittoria, next to Reid's Hotel , and later moved to a modest residence in Quinta do Monte . Charles never left Madeira. On 9 March 1922 he caught
6630-683: The Bolsheviks because of a successful defense put up by the Ukrainian Galician Army , which stalled the Polish military offensive. In attempt to end the war, in January 1919 an Allied commission led by a French general was sent to negotiate a peace treaty between the two sides, prompting a ceasefire. In February it recommended that the West Ukrainian People's Republic surrender a third of its territory, including
6851-612: The Carpathians up to the city of Nowy Sącz in the West, as well as Volhynia , Carpathian Ruthenia and Bukovina (the last two territories were also claimed by Hungary and Romania respectively). Although, the vast majority of the population of the Western-Ukrainian People's Republic were Ukrainians, few settlements, namely Lviv, had Polish majorities. In Lviv, the Ukrainian residents enthusiastically supported
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7072-789: The Croatian Sabor and Ban ; however, the suggestions were always vetoed by the Hungarian Parliament , which did not want to share power with other nations. After Emperor Charles's manifesto of 14 October 1918 was rejected by the declaration of the National Council in Zagreb, President of the Croatian pro-monarchy political party Pure Party of Rights Dr. Aleksandar Horvat [ hr ] with Ivo Frank and other parliament members and generals went to visit
7293-677: The Entente on the Western front , numbering 60,000 troops, was well equipped by the Western Allies and partially staffed with experienced French officers specifically to fight the Bolsheviks and not the forces of the Western Ukrainian People's Republic . Despite this, the Poles dispatched Haller's army against the Ukrainians in order to break the stalemate in eastern Galicia. The Allies sent several telegrams ordering
7514-671: The First World War , but was unsuccessful. Despite Charles's efforts to preserve the empire by returning it to federalism and by championing Austro-Slavism , Austria-Hungary hurtled into disintegration: Czechoslovakia and the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs were proclaimed, and Hungary broke monarchic ties to Austria by the end of October 1918. Following the Armistice of 11 November 1918 , Charles "renounced any participation" in government affairs, but did not abdicate. However,
7735-538: The German Empire , being much more developed and prosperous. Frequent border closures and a customs war with Germany also had negative economic impacts on Poland. In 1924, Prime Minister Władysław Grabski , who was also the Economic Minister, introduced the złoty as a single common currency for Poland (replacing the marka), which remained a stable currency. The currency helped Poland to control
7956-623: The Imperial Russian rouble , the Austrian krone , the Polish marka and the Ostrubel ) and with little or no direct infrastructural links. The situation was so bad that neighbouring industrial centres, as well as major cities, lacked direct railway links because they had been parts of different jurisdictions and different empires. For example, there was no direct railway connection between Warsaw and Kraków until 1934. This situation
8177-802: The Polish People's Republic and the Third Polish Republic , the historical state is referred to as the Second Polish Republic . In the Polish language, the country is traditionally referred to as II Rzeczpospolita ( Druga Rzeczpospolita ), which means the Second Republic . After more than a century of partitions between the Austrian , the Prussian , and the Russian imperial powers, Poland re-emerged as
8398-628: The Polish nation and challenging the legitimacy of the communist government in Warsaw. In 1990, the last president in exile, Ryszard Kaczorowski , handed the presidential insignia to the newly elected President , Lech Wałęsa , signifying continuity between the Second and Third republics. Karl I of Austria Charles I ( German : Karl Franz Josef Ludwig Hubert Georg Otto Maria , Hungarian : Károly Ferenc József Lajos Hubert György Ottó Mária ; 17 August 1887 – 1 April 1922)
8619-577: The Republic ; however, republika is a general term, while Rzeczpospolita traditionally refers exclusively to Polish states. Additionally, between 8 November 1918 and 16 August 1919, the Journal of Laws of the State of Poland referred to the country as the State of Poland ( Polish : Państwo Polskie ). Following the end of the Second World War , and the establishment of the later states of
8840-705: The Republic of German-Austria was proclaimed the following day, and in April 1919 the National Assembly formally dethroned the Habsburgs and banished Charles from German-Austria for life. Charles spent the early part of his exile in Switzerland . He spent the remaining years of his life attempting to restore the monarchy. He made two attempts to reclaim the Hungarian throne in 1921; but failed due to
9061-538: The Russians and Romanians . Charles succeeded to the thrones on 21 November 1916 upon the death of his great-uncle, Emperor Franz Joseph. On 2 December 1916, he assumed the title of Supreme Commander of the Austro-Hungarian Army , succeeding Archduke Friedrich . His coronation as King of Hungary occurred on 30 December. In 1917, Charles secretly entered into peace negotiations with France . He employed his brother-in-law, Prince Sixtus of Bourbon-Parma , an officer in
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9282-594: The San line as a future demarcation line. In this situation, General Barthelemy presented his compromise proposal on 28 January 1919. The armistice line was to run along the Bug River to Kamionka Strumiłłowa , then along the border of the districts to Bóbrka , then along the Bóbrka-Wybranka railway line, westwards to Mikołajów (leaving Mikolajiv on the Ukrainian side), then along the railway line Lviv- Stryi to
9503-629: The Second World War in September 1939 ended the sovereign Second Polish Republic. The German invasion of Poland began on 1 September 1939, one week after Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union signed the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact . On that day, Germany and Slovakia attacked Poland, and on 17 September the Soviets attacked eastern Poland . Warsaw fell to the Nazis on 28 September after
9724-589: The Sich Riflemen led the group of young Ukrainian officers in a decisive action and during the night of October 31 – November 1, the Ukrainian military units, consisting of 1,400 soldiers and 60 officers, took control over Lviv . The West Ukrainian People's Republic was proclaimed on November 13, 1918, with Lviv as its capital. The timing of proclamation of the Republic caught the Polish ethnic population and administration by surprise. The new Ukrainian Republic claimed sovereignty over Eastern Galicia, including
9945-564: The Sixtus Affair leaked in April 1918, Charles denied involvement until French Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau published letters signed by him. This led to Czernin's resignation, forcing Austria-Hungary to give Berlin full control of its armed forces, factories, and railways. The Austro-Hungarian Empire was wracked by inner turmoil in the final years of the war, with escalating tension between ethnic groups. As part of his Fourteen Points , U.S. President Woodrow Wilson demanded that
10166-553: The Soviet Union (0.8%) was virtually nonexistent. Czechoslovakia accounted for 3.9%, Latvia for 0.3%, and Romania for 0.8%. By mid-1938, after the Anschluss with Austria , Greater Germany was responsible for as much as 23% of Polish foreign trade. Piłsudski's regime followed the conservative free-market economic tradition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth throughout its existence. Poland had one of
10387-399: The Soviet Union . It had access to the Baltic Sea via a short strip of coastline known as the Polish Corridor on either side of the city of Gdynia . Between March and August 1939, Poland also shared a border with the then- Hungarian governorate of Subcarpathia . In 1938, the Second Republic was the sixth largest country in Europe. According to the 1921 census , the number of inhabitants
10608-408: The Ukrainian National Council ( Rada ), consisting of Ukrainian members of the Austrian parliament and regional Galician and Bukovynan diets as well as leaders of Ukrainian political parties, was formed. The council announced the intention to unite the West Ukrainian lands into a single state. As the Poles were taking their own steps to take over Lviv and Eastern Galicia, Captain Dmytro Vitovsky of
10829-476: The Ukrainian People's Republic the military help in the Kyiv offensive against the Red Army in exchange for the acceptance of Polish–Ukrainian border on the river Zbruch. Following this agreement, the government of the West Ukrainian People's Republic went into exile in Vienna, where it enjoyed the support of various West Ukrainian political emigrees as well as soldiers of the Galician army interned in Bohemia. Although not officially recognized by any state as
11050-403: The Zbruch River into Central Ukraine. The Polish and Ukrainian forces struggled on the diplomatic as well as military fronts both during and after the war. The Ukrainians hoped that the western allies of World War I would support their cause because the Treaty of Versailles that ended the first world war was based on the principle of national self-determination . Accordingly, the diplomats of
11271-444: The (West) Ukrainians keeping the Drohobych oil fields and the Poles keeping Lviv. The Ukrainian side agreed to this proposal but it was rejected by the Poles on the grounds that it didn't take into consideration the overall military situation of Poland and the circumstances on the eastern front. The Bolshevik army broke through the UPR forces and was advancing to Podolia and Volhynia. The Poles argued that they need military control over
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#173277568239611492-402: The 1939 Statistical Yearbook of Poland , the total length of the railways in Poland (as of 31 December 1937) was 20,118 km (12,501 mi). Rail density was 5.2 km (3.2 mi) per 100 km (39 sq mi). Railways were very dense in the western part of the country, while in the east, especially Polesie , rail was non-existent in some counties. During the interbellum period,
11713-412: The Barthelemy Line, was to be purely military and not affect the decisions of the Paris Peace Conference in any way. An integral part of the convention was to be a supplementary treaty concerning the Boryslav-Drohobychian Oil Basin [ pl ] . It was to remain on the Polish side of the truce line under the management of an international commission, with 50% of oil production to be transferred to
11934-418: The Bourbon-Parma castle of Schwarzau in Austria on 21 October 1911. Charles's great-uncle, the 81-year-old Emperor Franz Joseph , attended the wedding. He was relieved to see the second-in-line to the throne in a suitable marriage, and was in good spirits, even leading the toast at the wedding breakfast. Archduchess Zita soon conceived a son, and Otto was born 20 November 1912. Seven more children followed in
12155-413: The Causes of Saints , in the presence of Pope John Paul II , promulgated Charles of Austria's " heroic virtues ". Charles thereby acquired the title " venerable ". On 21 December 2003, the Congregation certified, on the basis of three expert medical opinions, that a miracle in 1960 occurred through the intercession of Charles. The miracle attributed to Charles was the scientifically inexplicable healing of
12376-455: The Croatian Sabor (parliament) ended the union and all ties with Hungary and Austria, proclaimed the unification of all Croatian lands and entered the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs . The curiosity is that no act of Sabor dethroned King Charles IV, nor did it acknowledge the entering in a state union with Serbia, which is today mentioned in the preamble of the Constitution of Croatia . The Lansing note effectively ended any efforts to keep
12597-419: The Czechoslovak authorities would have led to the complete economical and political isolation of the Western Ukrainian People's Republic. On May 14, 1919, a Polish general offensive began throughout Volhynia and Eastern Galicia. It was carried out by units of the Polish Army , aided by the newly arrived Blue Army of General Józef Haller de Hallenburg . This army, composed of Polish forces which had fought for
12818-500: The Empire allow for autonomy and self-determination of its peoples. In response, Charles agreed to reconvene the Imperial Parliament and allow for the creation of a confederation with each national group exercising self-governance. However, the ethnic groups fought for full autonomy as separate nations, as they were now determined to become independent from Vienna at the earliest possible moment. The new foreign minister Baron Istvan Burián asked for an armistice on 14 October based on
13039-426: The Empire together. One by one, the nationalities proclaimed their independence; even before the note the national councils had been acting more like provisional governments. Charles's political future became uncertain. On 31 October, Hungary officially ended the personal union between Austria and Hungary. Nothing remained of Charles's realm except the predominantly German-speaking Danubian and Alpine provinces, and he
13260-436: The Fourteen Points, and two days later Charles issued a proclamation that radically changed the nature of the Austrian state. The Poles were granted full independence with the purpose of joining their ethnic brethren in Russia and Germany in what was to become the Second Polish Republic . The rest of the Austrian lands were transformed into a federal union composed of four parts: German, Czech, South Slav , and Ukrainian. Each of
13481-405: The Hungarian parliament formally nullified the Pragmatic Sanction , an act that effectively dethroned the Habsburgs in Hungary. After the second failed attempt at restoration in Hungary, Charles and his pregnant wife Zita were arrested by the Hungarian authorities and imprisoned in Tihany Abbey . On 1 November 1921 they were transported down the Danube aboard the gunboat HMS Glowworm , across
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#173277568239613702-407: The Jewish and Ukrainian parts of the city, and abusing local civilians. According to historian Norman Davis the Poles killed approximately 340 civilians, 2/3 of them Ukrainians and the rest Jews. According to Christoph Mick, only Jews were killed during these events and Ukrainians, while subject to hostile acts, were not murdered. Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic , at
13923-429: The Jewish victims of the violence and were able to recruit a Jewish battalion into their army. Some factions blame these atrocities on the Blue Army of General Haller. This is unlikely as this French-trained and supported fighting force did not leave France and the Western Front until April 1919, well after the rioting. On November 9 Polish forces attempted to seize the Drohobych oil fields by surprise, but, outnumbered by
14144-507: The Jews from all spheres of social, economic, and cultural life in Poland". The government in response organised the Camp of National Unity (OZON), which in 1938 took control of the Polish Sejm and subsequently drafted anti-Semitic legislation similar to the Anti-Jewish laws in Germany, Hungary, and Romania. OZON advocated mass emigration of Jews from Poland, numerus clausus (see also Ghetto benches ), and other limitations on Jewish rights. According to William W. Hagen , by 1939, prior to
14365-411: The National Council of the Principality of Cieszyn (established in November 1918), the Republic of Zakopane and the Polish Liquidation Committee (28 October). Soon afterward, the Polish–Ukrainian War broke out in Lwów (1 November 1918) between forces of the Military Committee of Ukrainians and the Polish irregular units made up of students known as the Lwów Eaglets , who were later supported by
14586-487: The People's Assemblies of Western Ukraine and Western Belarus (22 October 1939), annexed eastern Poland partly to the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic , and partly to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (November 1939). Polish war plans ( Plan West and Plan East ) failed as soon as Germany invaded in 1939. The Polish losses in combat against Germans (killed and missing in action) amounted to ca. 70,000 men. Some 420,000 of them were taken prisoners. Losses against
14807-413: The Poles into defensive positions. According to an American report from the period of January 13 – February 1, 1919, Ukrainians eventually managed to surround Lviv on three sides. The city's inhabitants were deprived of water supply and electricity. Ukrainian army also held villages on both sidelines of the railway leading to Przemyśl . Ukrainian forces continued to control most of eastern Galicia and were
15028-431: The Poles to halt their offensive, as using the French-equipped army against the Ukrainians specifically contradicted the conditions of the French assistance, but these were ignored, with the Polish side arguing that the Ukrainians were Bolshevik sympathizers. At the same time, on May 23, Romania opened a second front against Ukrainian forces, demanding their withdrawal from the southern sections of eastern Galicia, including
15249-466: The Poles were able to skillfully buy time and wait for reinforcements through the arrangement of cease-fires with the Ukrainians. While Poles could count on widespread support from the civilian population, the Ukrainian side was largely dependent on help from outside the city. Other uprisings against Ukrainian rule erupted in Drohobych , Przemyśl , Sambir and Jarosław . In Przemyśl, local Ukrainian soldiers quickly dispersed to their homes and Poles seized
15470-404: The Polish 18th Lancer Regiment near Chojnice. This arose from misreporting of a single clash on 1 September 1939 near Krojanty , when two squadrons of the Polish 18th Lancers armed with sabers surprised and wiped out a German infantry formation with a mounted saber charge. Shortly after midnight the 2nd (Motorized) Division was compelled to withdraw by Polish cavalry, before the Poles were caught in
15691-472: The Polish Army (see Battle of Lwów (1918) , Battle of Przemyśl (1918) ). Meanwhile, in western Poland, another war of national liberation began under the banner of the Greater Poland uprising (1918–1919) . In January 1919, Czechoslovak forces attacked Polish units in the area of Trans-Olza (see Polish–Czechoslovak War ). Soon afterwards, the Polish–Lithuanian War (ca 1919–1920) began, and, in August 1919, Polish-speaking residents of Upper Silesia initiated
15912-476: The Polish Government constructed several new lines, mainly in the central part of the country (see also Polish State Railroads Summer 1939 ). Construction of the extensive Warszawa Główna railway station was never finished due to the war, while Polish railways were famous for their punctuality (see Luxtorpeda , Strzała Bałtyku , Latający Wilnianin ). In the interbellum, the road network of Poland
16133-590: The Polish Parliament created the State Road Fund, the purpose of which was to collect money for the construction and conservation of roads. The government drafted a 10-year plan, with road priorities: a highway from Wilno, through Warsaw and Kraków, to Zakopane (called Marshal Piłsudski Highway), asphalt highways from Warsaw to Poznań and Łódź, as well as a Warsaw ring road. However, the plan turned out to be too ambitious, with insufficient money in
16354-529: The Polish economy by the German and Russian occupying powers, and the sabotage performed by retreating armies, the new republic was faced with the task of economically unifying disparate economic regions, which had previously been part of different countries and different empires. Within the borders of the Republic were the remnants of three different economic systems, with five different currencies (the German mark ,
16575-410: The Polish forces were outnumbered by two to one and lacked ammunition. Despite being initially outnumbered, the Poles had certain advantages. Their forces had many more and better-trained officers resulting in a better disciplined and more mobile force; the Poles also enjoyed excellent intelligence and, due to their control of railroads behind their lines, were able to move their soldiers quite quickly. As
16796-642: The Polish offensive began. Short of ammunition and facing an enemy now twice its size, the Ukrainian Galician Army and ZUNR leadership were pushed back to the line of the Zbruch river on 16–18 July, after which ZUNR was occupied by Poland. Although the Ukrainian infantry had run out of ammunition, its artillery had not. This provided the Ukrainian forces with cover for an orderly retreat. Approximately 100,000 civilian refugees and 60,000 troops, 20,000 of whom were combat ready, were able to escape across
17017-734: The Polish-born Brazilian Sister Maria Zita Gradowska of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul . Sister Maria Zita had suffered from pains in her legs since her youth, and later on would suffer from problems with her venous circulation and swellings, for which she was repeatedly treated over the years, but her health issues would not go away for good. In 1957 she became the Mother Superior of Santa Cruz Hospital in Canoinhas , but
17238-520: The Polish–Soviet War, Marshal Piłsudski led an intentionally modest life, writing historical books for a living. After he took power through a military coup in May 1926, he emphasised that he wanted to heal Polish society and politics of excessive partisan politics. His regime, accordingly, was called Sanacja in Polish. The 1928 parliamentary elections were still considered free and fair, although
17459-534: The Red Army (which invaded Poland on 17 September) added up to 6,000 to 7,000 of casualties and MIA, 250,000 were taken prisoners. Although the Polish Army – considering the inactivity of the Allies – was in an unfavourable position – it managed to inflict serious losses to the enemies: 20,000 German soldiers were killed or MIA, 674 tanks and 319 armored vehicles destroyed or badly damaged, 230 aircraft shot down;
17680-464: The Red Army lost (killed and MIA) about 2,500 soldiers, 150 combat vehicles and 20 aircraft. The Soviet invasion of Poland, and lack of promised aid from the Western Allies, contributed to the Polish forces defeat by 6 October 1939. A popular myth is that Polish cavalry armed with lances charged German tanks during the September 1939 campaign. This often repeated account, first reported by Italian journalists as German propaganda , concerned an action by
17901-811: The Regency Council appointed Piłsudski as Commander in Chief of the Polish Armed Forces. On 14 November, the Council dissolved itself and transferred all its authority to Piłsudski as Chief of State ( Naczelnik Państwa ). After consultation with Piłsudski, Daszyński's government dissolved itself and a new government formed under Jędrzej Moraczewski . In 1918, the Kingdom of Italy became the first country in Europe to recognise Poland's renewed sovereignty. Centres of government that formed at that time in Galicia (formerly Austrian-ruled southern Poland) included
18122-672: The Regency Council appointed a new government under Józef Świeżyński and began conscription into the Polish Army . In 1918–1919, over 100 workers' councils sprang up on Polish territories; on 5 November 1918, in Lublin , the first Soviet of Delegates was established. On 6 November socialists proclaimed the Republic of Tarnobrzeg at Tarnobrzeg in Austrian Galicia . The same day the Socialist, Ignacy Daszyński , set up
18343-592: The Republic's sixth university. There were also three technical colleges : the Warsaw University of Technology , Lwów Polytechnic and the AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków, established in 1919. Warsaw University of Life Sciences was an agricultural institute. By 1939, there were around 50,000 students enrolled in further education. 28% of students at universities were women, which
18564-585: The Second Polish Republic in its final years is frequently referred to as Piłsudski's colonels . Interwar Poland had a large army of 270,000 soldiers on active duty: in 37 infantry divisions, 11 cavalry brigades, and two armored brigades, plus artillery units. Another 700,000 men served in the reserves. At the outbreak of the war, the Polish Army was able to put in the field almost one million soldiers, 4,300 guns, around 1,000 armored vehicles including in between 200 and 300 tanks (the majority of
18785-573: The Second World War . The Polish government-in-exile was established in Paris and later London after the fall of France in 1940. When, after several regional conflicts, most importantly the victorious Polish-Soviet war , the borders of the state were finalised in 1922, Poland's neighbours were Czechoslovakia , Germany , the Free City of Danzig , Lithuania , Latvia , Romania and
19006-629: The South Slav national council declared an independent South Slav state on 29 October 1918. From the beginning of his reign, Charles I favored the creation of a third, Croatian, political entity in the Empire, in addition to Austria and Hungary. In his Croatian coronation oath in 1916, he recognized the union of the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slavonia with Rijeka and during his short reign supported trialist suggestions from
19227-452: The USSR for Poland. It is estimated that some 460,000 of them spoke Polish as the first language. According to the 1931 Polish Census : 69% of the population was Polish, 14% were Ukrainian, around 10% Jewish, 3% Belarusian, 2% German and 3% other, including Lithuanian, Czech, Armenian, Russian, and Romani. The situation of minorities was a complex subject and changed during the period. Poland
19448-671: The Ukrainian People's Republic were also responsible for rapes, looting, and massacres in Zhytomir , in which 500–700 Jews lost their lives. After two months of heavy fighting the conflict was resolved in March 1919 by fresh and well-equipped Polish units under General Edward Rydz-Śmigły . Thanks to fast and effective mobilization in December 1918, the Ukrainians possessed a large numerical advantage until February 1919 and pushed
19669-405: The Ukrainian defenders with heavy losses, although the poor mobility of the Ukrainian troops prevented them from taking advantage of this victory. On February 14, Ukrainian forces began another assault on Lviv. By February 20, they were able to successfully cut off the rail links between Lviv and Przemysl, leaving Lviv surrounded and the Ukrainian forces in a good position to take the city. However,
19890-441: The Ukrainian forces managed to push the Poles back approximately 120–150 km. they failed to secure a route to Czechoslovakia. This meant that they were unable to replenish their supply of arms and ammunition, and the resulting lack of supplies forced Hrekov to end his campaign. Józef Piłsudski assumed the command of the Polish forces on June 27 and started yet another offensive, helped by two fresh Polish divisions. On June 28,
20111-521: The Ukrainian side. Poland and WUNR were only to be able to record the volume of production and pay for oil supplies. The project secured Entente interests in the oil basin and was the first step towards its neutralisation. At the time of the proposal, the territory of the basin was under the control of the Ukrainian Galician Army . For the West Ukrainian government, the terms of the Armistice Convention were unfavourable; however, they offered
20332-479: The Ukrainian state were suppressed and any existent violence or terrorism initiated by the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists was emphasised to create the image of a "brutal Eastern savage". The Second Polish Republic was mainly flat with an average elevation of 233 m (764 ft) above sea level , except for the southernmost Carpathian Mountains (after the Second World War and its border changes,
20553-489: The Ukrainians being annihilated. Immediately after capturing the city, some in the local Jewish militia attacked Polish troops, while at the same time elements of the Polish forces as well as common criminals looted the Jewish and Ukrainian quarters of the city , killing approximately 340 civilians. The Poles also interned a number of Ukrainian activists in detention camps. The Ukrainian government provided financial assistance to
20774-530: The Ukrainians were forced back. On December 27, bolstered by peasant troops sent to Galicia from Eastern Ukraine in the hopes that the Western Ukrainians would be able to form a disciplined force out of them, a general Ukrainian offensive against Lviv began. Lviv's defences held, and the eastern Ukrainian troops mutinied. From January 6-January 11, 1919 a Polish attack by 5,000 newly recruited forces from formerly Russian Poland commanded by Jan Romer
20995-603: The Ukrainians, they were driven back. The Ukrainians retained control over the oil fields until May 1919. On 6 November, a new Ukrainian polity was proclaimed in the Northern half of the region of Bukovina : Ukrainian Bukovina under President Omelyan Popovych [ uk ] . The new state had its capital at Chernivtsi . It was dissolved on 11 November, when the Romanian Army occupied Chernivtsi. The Ukrainian administration and its military support retreated from
21216-445: The West Ukrainian People's Republic hoped that the West would compel Poland to withdraw from territories with a Ukrainian demographic majority. Opinion among the allies was divided. Britain, under the leadership of prime minister David Lloyd George , and to a lesser extent Italy were opposed to Polish expansion. Their representatives maintained that granting the territory of the Western Ukrainian People's Republic to Poland would violate
21437-415: The armored vehicles were outclassed tankettes ) and 745 aircraft (however, only around 450 of them were bombers and fighters available to fight as of 1 September 1939). The training of the Polish Army was thorough. The non-commissioned officers were a competent body of men with expert knowledge and high ideals. The officers, both senior and junior, constantly refreshed their training in the field and in
21658-539: The average elevation of Poland decreased to 173 m (568 ft)). Only 13% of territory, along the southern border, was higher than 300 m (980 ft). The highest elevation in the country was Mount Rysy , which rises 2,499 m (8,199 ft) in the Tatra Range of the Carpathians, approximately 95 km (59 mi) south of Kraków . Between October 1938 and September 1939, the highest elevation
21879-579: The border of the disputed territory in the Eastern Carpathians . The Stryi - Lavochne railway line was to remain in Ukrainian hands. This was to be a temporary line, until the matter was settled by the Paris Peace Conference . The Polish side accepted this solution, but the Ukrainian delegation insisted on the 'San line'. As a result of the Ukrainian disapproval, the Entente delegation made another attempt at mediation. This
22100-515: The bridges over the River San and the railroad to Lviv, enabling the Polish forces in that city to obtain significant reinforcements. After two weeks of heavy fighting within Lviv, an armed unit under the command of Lt. Colonel Michał Karaszewicz-Tokarzewski of the renascent Polish Army broke through the Ukrainian siege on November 21 and arrived in the city. The Ukrainians were repelled, the entire Ukrainian Sich Riflemen regiment sent to support
22321-708: The bulk of coal mines and steel plants was located. Furthermore, heavy industry plants were located in Częstochowa ( Huta Częstochowa , founded in 1896), Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski ( Huta Ostrowiec , founded in 1837–1839), Stalowa Wola (brand new industrial city, which was built from scratch in 1937 – 1938), Chrzanów ( Fablok , founded in 1919), Jaworzno , Trzebinia (oil refinery, opened in 1895), Łódź (the seat of Polish textile industry), Poznań ( H. Cegielski – Poznań ), Kraków and Warsaw ( Ursus Factory ). Further east, in Kresy , industrial centres included two major cities of
22542-654: The characteristic features of the Polish economy in the interbellum was the gradual nationalisation of major plants. This was the case for the Ursus Factory (see Państwowe Zakłady Inżynieryjne ) and several steelworks, such as Huta Pokój in Ruda Śląska – Nowy Bytom, Huta Królewska in Chorzów – Królewska Huta, Huta Laura in Siemianowice Śląskie , as well as Scheibler and Grohman Works in Łódź. According to
22763-864: The city of Lviv and the Drohobych oil fields. The Ukrainians refused as the truce did not correspond to ethnology of the country or the military situation, and broke diplomatic ties with Poland. In mid-March 1919, the French marshal Ferdinand Foch , who wanted to use Poland as an operational base for an offensive against the Red Army, brought the issue of Polish–Ukrainian war before the Supreme Council and appealed for large-scale Polish-Romanian military operation which would be conducted with Allied support, as well as sending Haller's divisions to Poland immediately to relieve Lviv from Ukrainian siege. Another Allied commission, led by South African General Louis Botha , proposed an armistice in May that would involve
22984-472: The city the day before. By the end of November 1918, Polish forces controlled Lviv and the railroad linking Lviv to central Poland through Przemyśl, while Ukrainians controlled the rest of Eastern Galicia east of the river San , including the areas south and north of the railroad into Lviv. Thus, the Polish-controlled city of Lviv (Lwów) faced Ukrainian forces on three sides. Immediately after
23205-451: The collapse of Austria-Hungary, Polish forces had captured the Kholm ( Polish : Chełm ) area; shortly thereafter the Austrian commandants in southwestern Volhynia ( Volodymyr-Volynskyi and Kovel ) handed over the government to the local Polish national committees. In November–December 1918, the Poles also advanced into Podlachia and Western Polesia , but were stopped in western Volhynia by
23426-466: The commander of the small British guard detachment at Eckartsau, Lieutenant Colonel Edward Lisle Strutt . As the imperial train left Austria on 24 March, Charles issued another proclamation in which he confirmed his claim of sovereignty, declaring that: [W]hatever the national assembly of German Austria has resolved with respect to these matters since 11 November is null and void for me and my House. The newly established republican government of Austria
23647-582: The complex nationality situation in Galicia at the turn of the 20th century. As a result of the House of Habsburg 's relative leniency toward national minorities, Austria-Hungary was the perfect ground for the development of both Polish and Ukrainian national movements. During the 1848 Revolution , the Austrians, concerned by Polish demands for greater autonomy within the province, gave support to Ruthenians ,
23868-584: The counties inhabited by the Hutsul minority, that there was permanent starvation. Farmers rebelled against the government (see: 1937 peasant strike in Poland ), and the situation began to change in the late 1930s, due to the construction of several factories for the Central Industrial Region , which gave employment to thousands of rural and small town residents. Beginning in June 1925, there
24089-646: The death of Crown Prince Rudolph in 1889, the Emperor's brother, Archduke Karl Ludwig , Charles' grandfather, was next in line to the Austro-Hungarian throne. However, his death in 1896 from typhoid made his eldest son, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the new heir presumptive . Archduke Charles was raised a devout Catholic . He spent his early years wherever his father's regiment happened to be stationed; later on, he lived in Vienna and Reichenau an der Rax . He
24310-524: The defunct throne and accepted the status of ordinary citizens. Another law passed on the same day abolished all nobility in Austria. In Switzerland, Charles and his family briefly took residence at Castle Wartegg near Rorschach at Lake Constance , and later moved to Château de Prangins at Lake Geneva on 20 May. Following the restoration of the Kingdom of Hungary , encouraged by Hungarian royalists ("legitimists"), Charles sought twice in 1921 to reclaim
24531-532: The demarcation line proposed by the allied states. On 19 January 1919, by the order of General Franchet d'Esperey , a peacekeeping mission under the command of General Joseph Barthelemy arrived in Kraków . Initially, the mission familiarised itself with the Polish position, which opted for the Bug - Świca [ pl ] line. It then travelled to Lviv, meeting with the Ukrainian delegation. The Ukrainians opted for
24752-799: The east (located in the Dzisna county of the Wilno Voivodeship ); and Mukocinek near Warta River and Meszyn Lake to the west (located in the Międzychód county of the Poznań Voivodeship ). Almost 75% of the territory of interbellum Poland was drained northward into the Baltic Sea by the Vistula (total area of drainage basin of the Vistula within boundaries of the Second Polish Republic
24973-649: The eastern half of the interwar territory of Poland was settled diplomatically in 1922 and internationally recognised by the League of Nations . Over the course of the First World War (1914-1918), the German Empire gradually dominated the Eastern Front as the Imperial Russian Army fell back. German and Austro-Hungarian armies seized the Russian-ruled part of what became Poland . In
25194-489: The eleventh one planned to be opened in the autumn of 1939. Furthermore, in 1935, Polish engineers began working on TV services. By early 1939, experts of the Polish Radio built four TV sets. The first movie broadcast by experimental Polish TV was Barbara Radziwiłłówna , and by 1940, a regular TV service was scheduled to begin operation. Interbellum Poland was also a country with numerous social problems. Unemployment
25415-470: The emperor on 21 October 1918 in Bad Ischl , where the emperor agreed and signed the trialist manifesto under the proposed terms set by the delegation, on the condition that the Hungarian part does the same since he swore an oath on the integrity of the Hungarian crown. The delegation went the next day to Budapest where it presented the manifesto to Hungarian officials and Council of Ministers who signed
25636-583: The enrollment of Jews into universities. The political movement National Democracy ( Endecja , from the abbreviation "ND") often organised anti-Jewish business boycotts. Following the death of Marshal Józef Piłsudski in 1935, the Endecja intensified their efforts, which triggered violence in extreme cases in smaller towns across the country. In 1937, the National Democracy movement passed resolutions that "its main aim and duty must be to remove
25857-553: The equivalent to a cheque which a street thug has forced me to issue at gunpoint [...] I do not feel bound by it in any way whatsoever." Instead, on 12 November, the day after he issued his proclamation, the independent Republic of German-Austria was proclaimed, followed by the proclamation of the First Hungarian Republic on 16 November. An uneasy truce-like situation ensued and persisted until 23 to 24 March 1919, when Charles left for Switzerland, escorted by
26078-480: The excruciating pain in her right leg. It is then that she decided to say a prayer of intercession and promised to start the next day with a novena to beg for the grace of beatification for the Servant of God. After praying, she did not feel the pain anymore and was able to easily fall asleep. From then on she was able to resume her duties as Mother Superior and would not suffer from any health problems with her legs for
26299-410: The fighting between the Polish and West Ukrainian army. In 1918, the Entente countries sought to form a common anti-Bolshevik front, which was to include the Polish, White Russian , Romanian and Ukrainian armies. The outbreak of Polish-Ukrainian hostilities in Lviv on 1 November thwarted these plans, so the Entente states began to press both the Poles and Galicians to seek a settlement and adopt
26520-613: The form of the state and "relinquish[ed] every participation in the administration of the State." He also released his officials from their oath of loyalty to him. On the same day, the Imperial Family left Schönbrunn Palace and moved to Schloss Eckartsau , east of Vienna. On 13 November, following a visit with Hungarian magnates, Charles issued a similar proclamation—the Eckartsau Proclamation—for Hungary. Although it has widely been cited as an "abdication",
26741-563: The former Russian Partition and the Austrian Partition of eastern Poland. In 1921, one-third of citizens of Poland remained illiterate (38% in the countryside). The process was slow, but by 1931 the illiteracy level had dropped to 23% overall (27% in the countryside) and further down to 18% in 1937. By 1939, over 90% of children attended school. In 1932, Janusz Jędrzejewicz , the Minister for Religion and Education, carried out
26962-475: The four parts was to be governed by a federal council, and Trieste was to have a special status. However, U.S. Secretary of State Robert Lansing replied four days later that the Allies were committed to the political independence of the Czechs, Slovaks and South Slavs, and that autonomy inside the Empire was no longer enough. In fact, a Czechoslovak provisional government had joined the Allies on 14 October, and
27183-477: The government of West Ukraine, it engaged in diplomatic activity with the French and British governments in the hopes of obtaining a favourable settlement at Versailles. As a result of its efforts, the council of the League of Nations declared on February 23, 1921, that Galicia lay outside the territory of Poland and that Poland did not have the mandate to establish administrative control in that country and that Poland
27404-630: The government with the Sejm ' s (lower house's) approval, but he could only dissolve the Sejm with the Senate 's consent. Moreover, his power to pass decrees was limited by the requirement that the Prime Minister and the appropriate other Minister had to verify his decrees with their signatures. Poland was one of the first countries in the world to recognise women's suffrage . Women in Poland were granted
27625-413: The interbellum – Zofia Nałkowska , Maria Dąbrowska , Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz , Jan Parandowski , Bruno Schultz , Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz , Witold Gombrowicz . Among other notable artists there were sculptor Xawery Dunikowski , painters Julian Fałat , Wojciech Kossak and Jacek Malczewski , composers Karol Szymanowski , Feliks Nowowiejski , and Artur Rubinstein , singer Jan Kiepura . Theatre
27846-628: The invaders, but continued fighting under the auspices of the Polish government-in-exile and of the Polish Underground State . After the signing of the German–Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Demarcation on 28 September 1939, Polish areas occupied by Nazi Germany either became directly incorporated into Nazi Germany, or became part of the General Government . The Soviet Union, following Elections to
28067-406: The island, resting in state in a chapel devoted to the Emperor in the Portuguese Church of Our Lady of the Mount , in spite of several attempts to move them to the Habsburg Crypt in Vienna. His heart and the heart of his wife are entombed in Muri Abbey , Switzerland. Historians have been mixed in their evaluations of Charles and his reign. In the interwar period , he was celebrated in Austria as
28288-443: The issue of a possible link between Germany and the West Ukrainian People's Republic, insisting that the Germans were financially supporting the West Ukrainian government and the Bolshevik revolution in Russia in order to sow a wave of political unrest and chaos in the region. However, the Ukrainians objected to such claims, arguing that the Poles only sought to portray the West Ukrainian People's Republic as pro-German and sympathetic to
28509-461: The late 19th century and the early 20th century. In 1903, both Poles and Ukrainians held separate conferences in Lviv: the Poles in May and Ukrainians in August. Afterwards, the two national movements developed with contradictory goals, which was a cause of the later clash. The ethnic composition of Galicia underlaid the conflict between the Poles and Ukrainians there. The Austrian province of Galicia consisted of Ruthenian Voivodeship territory that
28730-408: The lecture hall, where modern technical achievement and the lessons of contemporary wars were demonstrated and discussed. The equipment of the Polish Army was less developed technically than that of Nazi Germany and its rearmament was slowed by confidence in Western European military support and by budget difficulties. The Polish command system at the level of the entire Polish military and the armies
28951-572: The lowest taxation rates in Europe, with 9.3% of taxes as a distribution of national income. Piłsudski's regime was also heavily dependent on foreign investments and economies, with 45.4% of Polish equity capital controlled by foreign corporations. After the Great Depression , the Polish economy crumbled and failed to recover until Ignacy Mościcki 's government introduced economic reforms with more government interventions with an increase in tax revenues and public spending after Piłsudski's death. These interventionist policies saw Poland's economy recover from
29172-436: The majority of citizens lived in the countryside (75% in 1921). Farmers made up 65% of the population. In 1929, agricultural production made up 65% of Poland's GNP. After 123 years of partitions, regions of the country were very unevenly developed. The lands of the former German Empire were the most advanced; in Greater Poland , Upper Silesia and Pomerelia , farming and crops were on a Western European level. The situation
29393-448: The manifesto and released the king from his oath, creating a third Croatian political entity ( Zvonimir's kingdom ). After the signing, two parades were held in Zagreb, one for the ending of the K.u.K. monarchy, which was held in front of the Croatian National Theater , and another one for saving the trialist monarchy. The last vote for the support of the trialist reorganization of the empire was, however, too late. On 29 October 1918,
29614-508: The massive hyperinflation . It was the only country in Europe able to do this without foreign loans or aid. The average annual growth rate ( GDP per capita ) was 5.24% in 1920–29 and 0.34% in 1929–38. Hostile relations with neighbours were a major problem for the economy of interbellum Poland. In the year 1937, foreign trade with all neighbours amounted to only 21% of Poland's total. Trade with Germany, Poland's most important neighbour, accounted for 14.3% of Polish exchange. Foreign trade with
29835-456: The mid-1930s, Poland had 340,000 km (211,266 mi) of roads, but only 58,000 had a hard surface (gravel, cobblestone or sett ), and 2,500 were modern, with an asphalt or concrete surface. In different parts of the country, there were sections of paved roads, which suddenly ended, and were followed by dirt roads. The poor condition of the roads was the result of both long-lasting foreign dominance and inadequate funding. On 29 January 1931,
30056-426: The modern Third Polish Republic. Historically, Poland was almost always a multiethnic country. This was especially true for the Second Republic, when independence was once again achieved in the wake of the First World War and the subsequent Polish–Soviet War , the latter war being officially ended by the Peace of Riga . The census of 1921 shows 30.8% of the population consisted of ethnic minorities, compared with
30277-476: The name of the East Slavic people that later was recognized as Ukrainians ; their goal was to be recognized as a distinct nationality. Schools teaching Ruthenian language were established, Ruthenian political parties formed and attempts were begun to revive their national culture. In the late 1890s and the first decades of the next century, the populist Ruthenian intelligentsia adopted the term Ukrainians to describe their nationality. They endeavored to promote
30498-880: The national budget to pay for it. In January 1938, the Polish Road Congress estimated that Poland would need to spend three times as much money on roads to keep up with Western Europe . In 1939, before the outbreak of the war, LOT Polish Airlines , which was established in 1929, had its hub at Warsaw Okęcie Airport . At that time, LOT maintained several services, both domestic and international. Warsaw had regular domestic connections with Gdynia - Rumia , Danzig - Langfuhr , Katowice-Muchowiec , Kraków-Rakowice-Czyżyny , Lwów-Skniłów , Poznań-Ławica , and Wilno-Porubanek . Furthermore, in cooperation with Air France , LARES , Lufthansa , and Malert , international connections were maintained with Athens , Beirut , Berlin, Bucharest , Budapest , Helsinki , Kaunas , London, Paris, Prague , Riga , Rome, Tallinn , and Zagreb . Statistically,
30719-413: The natural confidante in such matters. He asked if the rumor was true and when told it was not, he replied, "Well, I had better hurry in any case or she will get engaged to someone else." Archduke Charles traveled to Villa Pianore, the Italian winter residence of Zita's parents, and asked for her hand; on 13 June 1911, their engagement was announced at the Austrian court. Charles and Zita were married at
30940-488: The next decade. Charles, whose father had died in 1906, became heir presumptive after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand , his uncle, in Sarajevo in 1914, the event which precipitated World War I . The old Emperor took steps to initiate Charles in affairs of state, but the outbreak of World War I interfered with this political education. Charles spent the first phase of the war at headquarters at Teschen , but exercised no military influence. Charles then became
31161-410: The next two years. He seemed to have made his mind up much more quickly, however, and became even more keen when, in the autumn of 1910, rumours spread about that I had got engaged to a distant Spanish relative, Jaime, Duke of Madrid . On hearing this, the Archduke came down post haste from his regiment at Brandeis and sought out his [step]grandmother, Archduchess Maria Theresa , who was also my aunt and
31382-434: The oil fields from the Poles and returning them to the Ukrainians who would honor their contracts. On June 25, 1919, the Allied Council legitimized Polish control over Eastern Galicia through the resolution that approved military occupation by Polish forces, including Haller's Army, up to the river Zbruch and authorized the Polish government to establish an interim civil administration, which would preserve as far as possible
31603-487: The oil production. The proposal was accepted by the Poles. The Allied demands, which included the loss of significant amount of Ukrainian-held and inhabited territory, were however deemed to excessively favor the Poles by the Ukrainians, who resumed their offensive on March 4. On March 5 Ukrainian artillery blew up the Polish forces' ammunition dump in Lviv; the resultant explosion caused a panic among Polish forces. The Ukrainians, however, failed to take advantage of this. During
31824-435: The open by German armored cars. The story arose because some German armored cars appeared and gunned down 20 troopers as the cavalry escaped. Even this failed to persuade everyone to reexamine their beliefs—there were some who thought Polish cavalry had been improperly employed in 1939. Between 1945 and 1990, the Polish government-in-exile operated in London, presenting itself as the only legal and legitimate representative of
32045-499: The opposition of Hungary's Calvinist regent Admiral Miklós Horthy . Charles was exiled for a second time to the Portuguese island of Madeira , where he soon fell ill and died of respiratory failure in 1922. Charles was born on 17 August 1887, in the Castle of Persenbeug , in Lower Austria . His parents were Archduke Otto Franz of Austria and Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony . At the time, his great-uncle Franz Joseph reigned as Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary . Upon
32266-420: The orders of their officers, in particular, those of the Poznań regiments and Haller's army. Following the demands of the Entente , the Polish offensive was halted and Haller's troops assumed defensive positions. On June 8, 1919, the Ukrainian forces under the new command of Oleksander Hrekov , a former general in the Russian army, started a counter-offensive, and after three weeks advanced to Hnyla Lypa and
32487-577: The outbreak of the war, there were approximately one million radios (see Radio stations in interwar Poland ). The administrative division of the Second Republic was based on a three-tier system, referring to the administrative division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . On the lowest rung were the gminy , local town and village governments akin to districts or parishes. These were then grouped together into powiaty (akin to counties), which, in turn, were grouped as województwa ( voivodeships , akin to provinces). This administrative system passed into
32708-464: The pains in her right leg also gradually became worse. By the end of 1960 she was unable to leave her bed. Despite wanting to resign her position as Mother Superior because of this, she was unable to, as there was an insufficient number of sisters. Around this time, another sister, who was an assistant of Sister Maria Zita, received printed leaflets about the life of Emperor Karl, which included prayers for his beatification . Naturally, Sister Maria Zita
32929-463: The past, but in the east of the province, Ruthenians (Ukrainians) were the majority of the peasants. Poles and Jews were responsible for most of the commercial and industrial development in Galicia in the late 19th century. Throughout the 19th and the early 20th centuries, the local Ukrainians attempted to persuade the Austrians to divide Galicia into Western (Polish) and Eastern (Ukrainian) provinces. The Austrians eventually agreed in principle to divide
33150-469: The politicians received (such as accusations of corruption or the 1919 Polish coup attempt ), made them increasingly unpopular. Major politicians at this time, in addition to General Piłsudski, included peasant activist Wincenty Witos (Prime Minister three times) and right-wing leader Roman Dmowski . Ethnic minorities were represented in the Sejm ; e.g. in 1928 – 1930 there was the Ukrainian-Belarusian Club, with 26 Ukrainian and 4 Belarusian members. After
33371-479: The population, Poles made up 34% of the population, and Jews about 8%. In city of Lwów (Lviv), the population in 1910 was approximately 60% Polish and 12% Ukrainian. Poles considered Lviv to be one of Poland's cultural capitals and not having a control over the city was unthinkable for them. The religious and ethnic divisions corresponded to social stratification . Galicia's leading social class were Polish nobles or descendants of Rus' gentry who had been Polonized in
33592-704: The powers of money, it is pitiless and inhuman. Paul von Hindenburg , the German commander in chief, commented in his memoirs: He tried to compensate for the evaporation of the ethical power which emperor Franz Joseph had represented by offering völkisch reconciliation. Even as he dealt with elements who were sworn to the goal of destroying his empire he believed that his acts of political grace would affect their conscience. These attempts were totally futile; those people had long ago lined up with our common enemies, and were far from being deterred. Catholic Church leaders have praised Charles for putting his Christian faith first in making political decisions, and for his role as
33813-426: The principle of national self-determination and that hostile national minorities would undermine the Polish state. In reality, the British policy was dictated by unwillingness to harm Russian interests in the region and alienate the future Russian state through preventing possible union of Eastern Galicia with Russia. In addition, Britain was interested in Western Ukraine's oil fields. Czechoslovakia, itself involved in
34034-410: The pro-Piłsudski Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government won them. The following three parliamentary elections (in 1930 , 1935 and 1938 ) were manipulated, with opposition activists sent to Bereza Kartuska prison (see also Brest trials ). As a result, the pro-government party Camp of National Unity won huge majorities in them. Piłsudski died just after an authoritarian constitution
34255-412: The proclamation. The city's significant Jewish minority accepted or remained neutral towards the Ukrainian proclamation, while the city's Polish majority was shocked to find themselves in a proclaimed Ukrainian state. Since the West Ukrainian People's Republic was not internationally recognized and Poland's boundaries had not yet been defined, the issue of ownership of the disputed territory was reduced to
34476-405: The province of Galicia. In October 1916, Emperor Karl I promised to do so once the war had ended. Due to the intervention of Archduke Wilhelm of Austria , who adopted a Ukrainian identity and considered himself a Ukrainian patriot, in October 1918 two regiments of mostly Ukrainian troops were garrisoned in Lemberg (modern Lviv). As the Austro-Hungarian government collapsed, on October 18, 1918,
34697-468: The recession. The basis of Poland's gradual recovery after the Great Depression was the mass economic development plans of the new government (see Four Year Plan ) under economist Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski , which oversaw the building of three key infrastructural elements. The first was the establishment of the Gdynia seaport, which allowed Poland to completely bypass Gdańsk (which was under heavy German pressure to boycott Polish coal exports). The second
34918-423: The region – Lwów and Wilno ( Elektrit ). Besides coal mining, Poland also had deposits of oil in Borysław , Drohobycz , Jasło and Gorlice (see Polmin ), potassium salt ( TESP ), and basalt ( Janowa Dolina ). Apart from already-existing industrial areas, in the mid-1930s an ambitious, state-sponsored project called the Central Industrial Region was started under Minister Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski . One of
35139-402: The region, as Poland and both Ukrainian republics emerged from the collapse of the Russian and Austrian empires . The war started in Eastern Galicia after the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and spilled over into the Chełm and Volhynia regions formerly belonging to the Russian Empire. Poland won the disputed territory on 18 July 1919. The origins of the conflict lie in
35360-545: The rest of her life. Pope John Paul II declared Charles "Blessed" in a beatification ceremony in St. Peter's Square on 3 October 2004. The Pope also declared 21 October, the date of Charles's marriage in 1911 to Princess Zita, to be Charles's feast day . At the ceremony, the Pope stated: The decisive task of Christians consists in seeking, recognizing and following God's will in all things. The Christian statesman, Charles of Austria, confronted this challenge every day. To his eyes, war appeared as "something appalling". Amid
35581-611: The right to vote on 28 November 1918 by a decree of General Józef Piłsudski. The major political parties at this time were the Polish Socialist Party , National Democrats , various Peasant Parties , Christian Democrats , and political groups of ethnic minorities (German: German Social Democratic Party of Poland , Jewish: General Jewish Labour Bund in Poland , United Jewish Socialist Workers Party , and Ukrainian: Ukrainian National Democratic Alliance ). Frequently changing governments (see 1919 Polish legislative election , 1922 Polish legislative election ) and other negative publicity
35802-399: The sea should exist, (5) there should be a renunciation of war indemnities, (6) occupied territories should be evacuated, and (7) there should be an examination of rival claims. The best outcome to the war, according to Pope Benedict XV, was an immediate restoration of the status quo without reparations or any form of forced demands. Although the plan seemed unattainable due to the severity of
36023-411: The second largest Jewish population in the world, with one-fifth of all the world's Jews residing within its borders (approx. 3,136,000). The urban population of interbellum Poland was rising steadily; in 1921, only 24% of Poles lived in the cities, in the late 1930s, that proportion grew to 30%. In more than a decade, the population of Warsaw grew by 200,000, Łódź by 150,000, and Poznań – by 100,000. This
36244-534: The sites of internationally acclaimed universities and other institutions of higher education. Although Polish Jews were some of the biggest supporters of Second Republic leader Józef Piłsudski , even after he returned to politics and staged a coup in 1926 , after his death in 1935 Pilsudskites ruling the Republic began to openly discriminate against its Jewish (and, to a lesser extent, its Ukrainian) citizens, restricting Jewish entry into professions and placing limitations on Jewish businesses. The official name of
36465-513: The start of the Second World War. Other achievements of interbellum Poland included Stalowa Wola (a brand new city, built in a forest around a steel mill), Mościce (now a district of Tarnów , with a large nitrate factory), and the creation of the central bank Bank Polski SA . There were several trade fairs, with the most popular being Poznań International Fair , Lwów's Targi Wschodnie , and Wilno's Targi Północne . Polish Radio had ten stations (see Radio stations in interwar Poland ), with
36686-423: The state was referred to as: Republik Polen in German , Польська Республіка ( transcription : Polʹsʹka Respublika ) in Ukrainian , Польская Рэспубліка ( transcription : Poĺskaja Respublika ) in Belarusian , and Lenkijos Respublika , in Lithuanian . Between 14 November 1918 and 13 March 1919, the state was referred to in Polish as Republika Polska , instead of Rzeczpospolita Polska . Both terms mean
36907-460: The state was the Republic of Poland . In the Polish language , it was referred to as Rzeczpospolita Polska ( abbr. RP ), with the term Rzeczpospolita being a traditional name for the republic when referring to various Polish states, including the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (considered to be the First Polish Republic, Pierwsza Rzeczpospolita ), and later, the current Third Polish Republic . In other regionally-used official languages,
37128-552: The streets and dispersed crowds that could turn to Polish demonstrations. Ukrainian soldiers patrolled the streets with firearms and machine guns aimed at pedestrians; Polish sources claim that the Ukrainians shot bystanders who were looking at them from windows or building entrances, while Ukrainians claimed Poles were shooting at their soldiers from windows and behind gateways. Polish fighters also often dressed in civilian clothing when shooting at Ukrainian soldiers. According to historian Christoph Mick, both Poles and Ukrainians engaged in
37349-531: The temporary capital of Stanislaviv . This resulted in a loss of territory, ammunition and further isolation from the outside world. The Ukrainian lines were broken, mostly due to the withdrawal of the elite Sich Riflemen . On May 27 the Polish forces reached the Złota Lipa – Berezhany - Jezierna [ pl ] - Radziwiłłów line. The Polish advance was accompanied by a large wave of anti-Jewish violence and looting by disorganized Polish mobs, as in Lviv in 1918, and by Polish military units operating against
37570-495: The territorial autonomy and liberties of the inhabitants. On November 21, 1919, the Highest Council of the Paris Peace Conference granted Eastern Galicia to Poland for a period of 25 years, after which a plebiscite was to be held there, and obliged the Polish government to give territorial autonomy to the region. This decision was suspended on 22 December 1919 and never implemented. On April 21, 1920, Józef Piłsudski and Symon Petliura signed an alliance , in which Poland promised
37791-468: The throne of Hungary, but failed largely because Hungary's regent , Admiral Miklós Horthy (the last commander of the Imperial and Royal Navy ), refused to support Charles's restoration. Horthy's action was declared "treasonous" by royalists. Critics suggest that Horthy's actions were more firmly grounded in political reality than those of Charles and his supporters. Indeed, neighbouring countries had threatened to invade Hungary if Charles tried to regain
38012-466: The throne. Princess Zita however, claimed that Charles had come to a verbal agreement with the French prime minister and foreign minister Aristide Briand (who had supported Charles' peace efforts in 1917) regarding a Habsburg restoration in Hungary, which meant it would receive French recognition and military backing if successful. In the event of the attempt failing, Briand would deny all involvement, which he indeed did during both attempts. Later in 1921,
38233-474: The time of the assassination of his uncle in 1914, obtained no insight into affairs of state, but led the life of a prince not destined for a high political position. In 1911, Charles married Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma . They had met as children but did not see one another for almost ten years, as each pursued their education. In 1909, his dragoon regiment was stationed at Brandýs nad Labem in Bohemia, from where he visited his aunt at Franzensbad . It
38454-404: The time of the cease-fire, the Poles had been able to organize a relief force of 8,000–10,000 troops which by March 12 reached Przemyśl and by March 18 had driven the Ukrainian forces from the Lviv-Przemyśl railroad, permanently securing Lviv. On January 6–11 of 1919 a small part of the Ukrainian Galician Army invaded Transcarpathia to spread pro-Ukrainian sentiments among residents (the region
38675-408: The time officially known as the Republic of Poland , was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 7 October 1918 and 6 October 1939. The state was established in the final stage of World War I . The Second Republic ceased to exist in 1939, after Poland was invaded by Nazi Germany , the Soviet Union , and the Slovak Republic , marking the beginning of the European theatre of
38896-459: The town of Brody . They came to within two days' march of Lviv. The successful Chortkiv offensive halted primarily because of a lack of arms – there were only 5–10 bullets for each Ukrainian soldier. The West Ukrainian government controlled the Drohobych oil fields with which it planned to purchase arms for the struggle, but for political and diplomatic reasons weapons and ammunition could only be sent to Ukraine through Czechoslovakia . Although
39117-524: The troops of gen. M. Osetsky. As Polish units tried to seize control of the region, the forces of the Ukrainian People's Republic under Symon Petlura tried to recover the territory of Kholm Governorate already controlled by the Polish troops. According to Richard Pipes , the first major pogrom in this region took place in January 1919 in the town of Ovruch , where Jews were robbed and killed by regiments of Kozyr-Zyrka affiliated with Symon Petlura's government. Nicolas Werth claims that armed units of
39338-427: The tumult of the First World War, he strove to promote the peace initiative of my Predecessor, Benedict XV . The main points of Pope Benedict XV 's peace plan were: (1) the moral force of right ... be substituted for the material force of arms, (2) there must be simultaneous and reciprocal diminution of armaments, (3) a mechanism for international arbitration must be established, (4) true liberty and common rights over
39559-467: The upper Stryi river, defeating five Polish divisions. Although the Polish forces had been forced to withdraw, they were able to prevent their forces from collapsing and avoided being encircled and captured. Thus, in spite of their victories, the Ukrainian forces were unable to obtain significant amounts of arms and ammunition. By June 27 the Ukrainian forces had advanced 120 km. along the Dnister river and on another they had advanced 150 km, past
39780-473: The war thus far, it appealed to Charles, perhaps as a way to fulfill and preserve his role as Catholic Emperor of Austria and Apostolic King of Hungary. The beatification nevertheless raised controversy over the mistaken claim that Charles authorised the use of poison gas by the Austro-Hungarian Army during World War I . The Emperor actually forbade its use. Pope John Paul II, who was born Karol Józef Wojtyła in Wadowice (then part of Austrian Poland ),
40001-492: The war, Polish Jews were threatened with conditions similar to those in Nazi Germany. The pre-war government also restricted the rights of people who declared Ukrainian nationality, belonged to the Eastern Orthodox Church and inhabited the Eastern Borderlands of the Second Polish Republic. Poland was consequently refusing to grant Ukrainians any form of autonomy . The goal was to completely Polonize them, including changing their religion to Roman Catholicism . Ukrainian
40222-447: The western Ukrainian military, much to the horror of Lloyd George and President Wilson . During the winter of 1918–1919, a diplomatic offensive by the Polish government tried to tilt the opinions of the Allies in favor of fully backing the Polish cause and to counter German disinformation campaign, which aimed to weaken French, British and American support of the new Polish state. Government officials in Poland and abroad repeatedly raised
40443-471: The whole of Eastern Galicia to secure the Russian front in its southern part and strengthen it by a junction with Romania. The Poles launched an attack soon afterward using a large force equipped by France (Haller's Army), which captured most of the territory of the West Ukrainian People's Republic. Urgent telegrams by the Western allies to halt this offensive were ignored. Czechoslovakia, which had inherited seven oil refineries from prewar Austrian times and which
40664-444: The word itself was never used in either proclamation. Indeed, he deliberately avoided using the word abdication in the hope that the people of either Austria or Hungary would vote to recall him. Privately, Charles left no doubt that he believed himself to be the rightful emperor. He wrote to Friedrich Gustav Cardinal Piffl , the Archbishop of Vienna : I did not abdicate, and never will [...] I see my manifesto of 11 November as
40885-474: Was Emperor of Austria , King of Hungary , and the ruler of the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from November 1916 until the monarchy was abolished in April 1919. He was the last of the monarchs belonging to the House of Habsburg-Lorraine to rule over Austria-Hungary . The son of Archduke Otto of Austria and Princess Maria Josepha of Saxony , Charles became heir presumptive of Emperor Franz Joseph when his uncle Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
41106-427: Was assassinated in 1914 . In 1911, he married Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma . He is venerated in the Catholic Church , was beatified by Pope John Paul II on 3 October 2004, and is known to the Catholic Church as Blessed Karl of Austria . Charles succeeded to the thrones in November 1916 following the death of his great-uncle, Franz Joseph. He began secret negotiations with the Allies, hoping to peacefully end
41327-517: Was 180,300 km (69,600 sq mi), the Niemen (51,600 km or 19,900 sq mi), the Oder (46,700 km or 18,000 sq mi) and the Daugava (10,400 km or 4,000 sq mi). The remaining part of the country was drained southward, into the Black Sea , by the rivers that drain into the Dnieper ( Pripyat , Horyn and Styr , all together 61,500 km or 23,700 sq mi) as well as Dniester (41,400 km or 16,000 sq mi) The beginning of
41548-599: Was 25.7 million. By 1939, just before the outbreak of World War II, this had grown to an estimated 35.1 million. Almost a third of the population came from minority groups : 13.9% Ukrainians ; 10% Ashkenazi Jews ; 3.1% Belarusians ; 2.3% Germans and 3.4% Czechs and Lithuanians . At the same time, a significant number of ethnic Poles lived outside the country's borders. The Second Republic maintained moderate economic development. The cultural hubs of interwar Poland – Warsaw , Kraków , Poznań , Wilno , and Lwów – became major European cities and
41769-461: Was 5,529 km (3,436 mi), including: 140 km (87 mi) of coastline (out of which 71 km (44 mi) were made by the Hel Peninsula ), the 1,412 km (877 mi) with Soviet Union, 948 kilometers with Czechoslovakia (until 1938), 1,912 km (1,188 mi) with Germany (together with East Prussia ), and 1,081 km (672 mi) with other countries (Lithuania, Romania, Latvia, Danzig). The warmest yearly average temperature
41990-414: Was Lodowy Szczyt (known in Slovak as Ľadový štít ), which rises 2,627 m (8,619 ft) above sea level. The largest lake was Lake Narach . The country's total area, after the annexation of Trans-Olza, was 389,720 km (150,470 sq mi). It extended 903 km (561 mi) from north to south and 894 km (556 mi) from east to west. On 1 January 1938, total length of boundaries
42211-440: Was a customs' war, with the revanchist Weimar Republic imposing a trade embargo against Poland for nearly a decade; it involved tariffs and broad economic restrictions. After 1933 the trade war ended. The new agreements regulated and promoted trade. Germany became Poland's largest trading partner, followed by Britain. In October 1938, Germany granted a credit of 60,000,000 RM to Poland (120,000,000 zloty , or £ 4,800,000) which
42432-424: Was also a nation of many religions. In 1921, 16,057,229 Poles (approx. 62.5%) were Roman (Latin) Catholics , 3,031,057 citizens of Poland (approx. 11.8%) were Eastern Rite Catholics (mostly Ukrainian Greek Catholics and Armenian Rite Catholics ), 2,815,817 (approx. 10.95%) were Orthodox , 2,771,949 (approx. 10.8%) were Jewish, and 940,232 (approx. 3.7%) were Protestants (mostly Lutheran ). By 1931, Poland had
42653-411: Was also informed, however, as she did not care much for the Habsburg dynasty, she did not do anything with this information. She told the other sisters that her bedridden state and the coming absence of another sister worried her, and she was again advised to ask for the intercession of the Emperor, but she did not plan on doing so. That evening however, when lying in bed, she was unable to sleep because of
42874-432: Was approved in the spring of 1935. During the last four years of the Second Polish Republic, the major politicians included President Ignacy Mościcki , Foreign Minister Józef Beck and the Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Army , Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły . The country was divided into 104 electoral districts , and those politicians who were forced to leave Poland founded Front Morges in 1936. The government that ruled
43095-446: Was carried out by the Inter-allied Commission for Poland [ pl ] subcommittee set up on 15 February 1919 and headed by Joseph Noulens . The sub-commission consisted of General Joseph Barthelemy ( France ) as chairman, Colonel Adrian Carton de Wiart ( UK ), Dr Robert Howard Lord ( United States ) and Major Giovanni Stabile ( Italy ). The subcommittee presented a draft truce convention on 15 February 1919. The truce, along
43316-423: Was challenged even there by the German Austrian State Council. His last Austrian prime minister, Heinrich Lammasch , advised him that he was in an impossible situation, and his best course was to temporarily give up his right to exercise sovereign power. On the day of the Armistice of 11 November 1918 , Charles issued a carefully worded proclamation in which he recognized the Austrian people's right to determine
43537-420: Was construction of the 500-kilometre rail connection between Upper Silesia and Gdynia, called the Polish Coal Trunk-Line , which served freight trains with coal. The third was the creation of a central industrial district named COP – Centralny Okręg Przemysłowy ( English : Central Industrial Region). Unfortunately, these developments were interrupted and largely destroyed by the German and Soviet invasion and
43758-430: Was declared of age, and Prince Zdenko von Lobkowitz was appointed as his chamberlain . During the next few years, he carried out his military duties in various Bohemian garrison towns. Charles's relations with his great-uncle were not intimate, and those with his uncle Franz Ferdinand were not cordial, with the differences between their wives increasing the existing tension between them. For these reasons, Charles, up to
43979-410: Was dense, but the quality of the roads was very poor – only 7% of all roads were paved and ready for automobile use, and none of the major cities were connected with each other by a good-quality highway. In 1939 the Poles built only one highway: 28 km of straight concrete road connecting the villages of Warlubie and Osiek (mid-northern Poland). It was designed by Italian engineer Piero Puricelli. In
44200-400: Was dependent on its contracts for oil with the Ukrainian government, demanded that the Poles send the Czechoslovaks the oil that had been paid for to the Ukrainian government. The Poles refused, stating that the oil was paid for with ammunition that had been used against Polish soldiers. Although the Czechoslovaks did not retaliate, according to Polish reports the Czechoslovaks considered seizing
44421-401: Was described by Melchior Wańkowicz in his book Sztafeta . In addition to this was the massive destruction left after both the First World War and the Polish–Soviet War . There was also a great economic disparity between the eastern (commonly called Poland B ) and western (called Poland A ) parts of the country, with the western half, especially areas that had belonged to Prussia and
44642-453: Was due not only to internal migration, but also to an extremely high birth rate. From the 1920s, the Polish government excluded Jews from receiving government bank loans, public sector employment, and obtaining business licenses. From the 1930s, measures were taken against Jewish shops, Jewish export firms, Shechita as well as limitations being placed on Jewish admission to the medical and legal professions, Jews in business associations and
44863-454: Was during one of these visits that Charles and Zita became reacquainted. Due to Franz Ferdinand's morganatic marriage in 1900, his children were excluded from the succession. As a result, the Emperor pressured Charles to marry. Zita not only shared Charles's devout Catholicism, but also an impeccable royal lineage. Zita later recalled: We were of course glad to meet again and became close friends. On my side feelings developed gradually over
45084-425: Was high, and poverty in the countryside was widespread, which resulted in several cases of social unrest, such as the 1923 Kraków riot , and 1937 peasant strike in Poland . There were conflicts with national minorities, such as the Pacification of Ukrainians in Eastern Galicia (1930) , relations with Polish neighbours were sometimes complicated (see Soviet raid on Stołpce , Polish–Czechoslovak border conflicts , and
45305-407: Was immensely popular in the interbellum, with three main centres in the cities of Warsaw, Wilno and Lwów. Altogether, there were 103 theatres in Poland and a number of other theatrical institutions (including 100 folk theatres). In 1936, different shows were seen by 5 million people, and main figures of Polish theatre of the time were Juliusz Osterwa , Stefan Jaracz , and Leon Schiller . Also, before
45526-446: Was in Kraków among major cities of the Second Polish Republic, at 9.1 °C (48.4 °F) in 1938; and the coldest in Wilno (7.6 °C or 45.7 °F in 1938). Extreme geographical points of Poland included Przeświata River in Somino to the north (located in the Braslaw county of the Wilno Voivodeship ); Manczin River to the south (located in the Kosów county of the Stanisławów Voivodeship ); Spasibiorki near railway to Połock to
45747-407: Was internationally recognized as part of the Polish state. The government of the West Ukrainian People's Republic then disbanded, while Poland reneged on its promise of autonomy for Eastern Galicia. In an attempt to stop the war, a French general Marie Joseph Barthélemy [ de ] proposed a demarcation line, known as the Barthelemy Line [ pl ] , that was supposed to cease
45968-419: Was merely the occupying military power of Galicia, the sovereign of which were the Allied Powers (pursuant to the Treaty of Saint-Germain signed with Austria in September 1919) and whose fate would be determined by the Council of Ambassadors at the League of Nations. The Council of Ambassadors in Paris stated on July 8, 1921, that so-called "West Ukrainian Government" of Yevhen Petrushevych did not constitute
46189-424: Was much worse in parts of Congress Poland , the Eastern Borderlands , and what was formerly Galicia , where agriculture was quite backward and primitive, with a large number of small farms, unable to succeed in either the domestic or international market. Another problem was the overpopulation of the countryside, which resulted in chronic unemployment. Living conditions were so bad in several eastern regions, such as
46410-433: Was named after Karl. During a private audience with Archduke Rudolf (Karl's son), his sons and their families and Empress Zita (whom the Pope addressed as ‘’his Empress’’ and bowed his head before) he told them the following: Do you know why I was named Charles at baptism? Because my father had great admiration for Emperor Charles I, of whom he was a soldier. From the beginning, Emperor Charles conceived of his office as
46631-412: Was never realised, due to the outbreak of war. Germany would deliver factory equipment and machinery in return for Polish timber and agricultural produce. This new trade was to be in addition to the existing German-Polish trade agreements. In 1919, the Polish government introduced compulsory education for all children aged 7 to 14, in an effort to limit illiteracy, which was widespread, especially in
46852-606: Was no systematic violence nor massacres of ethnic Poles by Ukrainians during the course of this war but that both sides blamed each other for bloodshed. When Ukrainian forces first captured Lviv they refused to take hostages, tolerated Polish recruitment centers and were even prepared to enter negotiations with the Polish side, but were met with armed resistance. Polish historians, however, describe numerous examples during which Ukrainian troops used terror to subdue Poles into compliance. Ukrainian authorities tried to intimidate Polish population in Lviv by sending soldiers and armed trucks into
47073-526: Was not aware of this "Manifesto of Feldkirch " at this time—it had been dispatched only to King Alfonso XIII of Spain and to Pope Benedict XV through diplomatic channels—and politicians in power were irritated by the Emperor's departure without explicit abdication. The Austrian Parliament responded on 3 April with the Habsburg Law , which dethroned and banished the Habsburgs. Charles was barred from ever returning to Austria. Other male Habsburgs could only return if they renounced all intentions of reclaiming
47294-407: Was not listened to. There was, through him, a chance that could have been seized... Clemenceau called the emperor a "rotten conscience," it's ignoble. Emperor Charles sincerely wanted peace, and therefore was despised by the whole world. [...] A king of France, yes a king, would have had pity on our poor, exhausted, bloodlet nation. However democracy is without a heart and without entrails. When serving
47515-408: Was obsolete. The generals in command of armies had to ask permission from the high command. The Polish military attempted to organize fronts made of army groups only when it was already too late during the Polish Defensive War in 1939. After regaining its independence, Poland was faced with major economic difficulties. In addition to the devastation brought by the First World War, the exploitation of
47736-458: Was occupied by Hungarians and Czechoslovaks). Ukrainian troops fought with Czechoslovak and Hungarian local police. They succeeded in capturing some Hungarian-controlled Ukrainian settlements. After some clashes with Czechoslovaks, the Ukrainians retreated because Czechoslovakia (instead of Ukrainian People's Republic ) was the only country that traded with the Western Ukrainian People's Republic and that supported it politically. Further conflict with
47957-427: Was part of Poland from 1434, and was seized by Austria in 1772, during the First Partition of Poland . The land included the territory of historical importance to Poland, including the ancient capital of Kraków , and had a majority Polish population, but the east Galicia included the heartland of the historic territory of Galicia-Volhynia and had a Ukrainian majority. In Galicia, Ukrainians made up approximately 58% of
48178-441: Was privately educated, but, contrary to the custom ruling in the imperial family, he attended a public gymnasium (the Schottengymnasium ) for the sake of demonstrations in scientific subjects. On the conclusion of his studies at the gymnasium, he entered the army, spending the years from 1906 to 1908 as an officer chiefly in Prague , where he studied Law and Political Science concurrently with his military duties. In 1907, he
48399-491: Was repulsed by Western Ukrainian forces near Rava-Ruska , north of Lviv. Only a small number of troops together with Romer were able to break through to Lviv after suffering heavy losses. Between January 11 and January 13, Polish forces attempted to dislodge Ukrainian troops besieging Lviv from the south while at the same time Ukrainian troops attempted another general assault on Lviv. Both efforts failed. In February 1919, Polish troops attempting to capture Sambir were defeated by
48620-414: Was restricted in every field possible, especially in governmental institutions, and the term "Ruthenian" was enforced in an attempt to ban the use of the term "Ukrainian". Ukrainians were categorised as uneducated second-class peasants or third world people, and rarely settled outside the Eastern Borderland region due to the prevailing Ukrainophobia and restrictions imposed. Numerous attempts at restoring
48841-416: Was the second highest share in Europe. Polish science in the interbellum was renowned for its mathematicians gathered around the Lwów School of Mathematics , the Kraków School of Mathematics , as well as the Warsaw School of Mathematics . There were world-class philosophers in the Lwów–Warsaw school of logic and philosophy. Florian Znaniecki founded Polish sociological studies. Rudolf Weigl invented
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