Resistance to Authoritarianism in Poland's Recovered Territories, 1945-1950
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Abstract
In the aftermath of World War II, Poland underwent a number of radical changes, not least of which were the imposition of a communist-dominated government and the annexation of the “Recovered Territories” from Germany. Throughout the postwar period, resistance to the emerging communist regime was prevalent across Poland, but the Recovered Territories are often dismissed as the exception to this trend. However, it is erroneous to believe that resistance was absent from the Recovered Territories. It could be found in many different forms, from political resistance and other nonviolent means to violent resistance, and was conducted by people from a wide variety of backgrounds. While there were a number of reasons that resistance activity in the Recovered Territories was less prominent than in other regions of Poland in the postwar period, it is incorrect to portray it as of no consequence or absent from the region.
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