A time-line of Poland and LithuaniaWorld News | Politics | History | Editor(Copyright © 1999 Piero Scaruffi) |
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558 AD: defeated by the Avars the Slavs move east from the Russian steppes 575: the East Slavs inhabit western Russia, the South Slavs inhabit the Balkan peninsula, the West Slavs inhabit Poland, Czechoslovakia and Prussia 650: West Slavs settle in the area between the Oder and the Vistula 800: the East Slavs inhabiting western Russia, the South Slavs inhabit the Balkan peninsula, the West Slavs inhabit Poland, Czechoslovakia and Prussia 810: The Bulgars destroy the Avars 950: the Polanie tribe conquers the other Slavic tribes (Wislanie, Pomorzanie, Mazovianee) and its chief, Piast, names his state Polska (Poland) 966: Mieszko I, ruler of Poland, founds the Piast dynasty with capital in Gniezno and converts to Christianity 992: Mieszko I dies and is succeeded by his son Boleslaw Chrobry 999: Poland becomes a Christian kingdom 999: the Western world is paralyzed by fear of the millennium 1000: German emperor Otto III absorbs Poland within his sphere of control 1000: an independent Polish Church is set up with Episcopal see in Poznan 1025: Boleslaw Chrobry is crowned first Polish king by the Pope 1102: Boleslaw III becomes king of Poland 1138: Boleslaw III Krzywousty dies and his kingdom is divided among his sons, starting the progressive disintegration of Poland 1172: German emperor Friedrich I Barbarossa defends the independence of the Polish dukes 1226: Konrad Mazowiecki asks the Teutonic Knights, a Crusading Order based in Germany, to help subdue the pagan north-eastern tribes of Prussia 1236: Mindaugas (Mindowe) unites the tribes of Lithuania with capital in Trakai 1237: the land of the Teutonic Knights is called Livonia (Latvia and Estonia) 1241: the Mongols invade Poland and defeat a joint army of Henry of Slesia and the Teutonic Knights at the battle of Liegnitz/Wahlstatt 1250: the first Jewish settlers emigrate to Poland 1253: Mindaugas of Lithuania, the last pagan ruler of Europe, converts to Christianity 1290: the Teutonic Knights conquer all of Prussia 1295: Vytenis unifies Lithuania 1300: Wenceslas II of Bohemia becomes king of Poland 1316: Vytenis' brother, the pagan archduke Gediminas, expands Lithuania to Kiev and Chernigov and the Black Sea, founds the Gediminaiciai dynasty, moves the capital to Vilnius 1320: Wladyslaw I Lokietek reunites the kingdom of Poland 1333: Kazimierz III becomes king of Poland and enacts economic and social reforms, moving the capital to Krakow 1341: Gediminas dies and is succeeded by his son Algirdas who continues Lithuania's expansion to the Baltic Sea 1350: Wieliczka salt mine near Krakow 1364: the University of Krakow (first Polish university) is founded 1370: Kazimierz III dies, ending the Piast Dynasty, and his nephew Louis I d'Anjou, becomes king 1377: Algirdas of Lithuania dies and is succeeded by his son Jogaila/Jagiello 1382: Pauline monks from Hungary build the monastery of Czestochowa 1386: The marriage between the Polish queen Jadwiga, daughter of Louis I, and Lithuanian archduke Jogaila, who converts to Catholicism, changes name to Wladyslaw II and de-facto unites Catholic Poland and pagan Lithuania into one Catholic kingdom (the Lithuanians are the last European people to convert to Christianity) 1392: the archduke Vytautas (Witold) of Lithuania conquers Belorussian, Russiam and Ukrainiam territories, pushing the borders of Lithuania to the Black Sea 1399: Vytautas of Lithuania is defeated by the Mongols and has to end his Russian campaigns 1410: The Teutonic Knights are defeated by the Polish-Lithuanian army at the battle of Tannenberg/Gruenwald 1413: Jagiello unites Poland and Lithuania with the Treaty of Union at Horodlo 1423: the Teutonic Knights retreat into eastern Prussia (Livonia) 1434: Jagiello dies and is succeeded by his son Wladyslaw III 1440: Wladyslaw III becomes king of Hungary 1444: the Polish-Hungarian army is defeated by the Ottomans at Varna, Wladyslaw III is killed and Poland loses Hungary 1447: formal union of Poland and Lithuania under Kazimierz IV 1466: Kazimierz IV's Polish army defeats the Teutonic Knights and annexes western Prussia to Poland 1471: Kazimierz IV is elected king of Bohemia 1490: king Wladyslaw of Poland-Lithuania becomes king of Bohemia and Hungary 1506: Zygmunt II Stary becomes king 1526: Ludwig Jagiellonian dies at the battle of Mohacs and the Jagiellonians lose Hungary and Bohemia 1543: Nicholas Copernicus publishes "De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium" and defends the heliocentric theory 1561: the Teutonic state of Livonia collapses, and its territory is divided between Poland (the Latvians), Sweden and Russia 1565: Poland and Lithuania are formally united under king Zygmunt/Sigismund ("Union of Lublin"), last of the Jagiellonians 1569: the Polish-Lithuanian parliament ("Sejm") creates a Royal Republic, in which the king is chosen by the Sejm ("Union of Lublin") 1572: Sigismund dies and the Royal Nobility Republic (Rzeczpospolita Szlachecka) of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth is born 1573: Henryk Walezy (Henry Valois of Bourbon) becomes the first elected king and grants religious equality to all faiths 1576: Transylvanian voivod (prince) Stefan Batory is elected king of Poland-Lithuania 1579: the Jesuits establish the university of Vilnius 1582: Batory conquers Livonia (Estonia and Latvia) from Russia 1586: Batory dies and the Swedish crown prince, Zygmunt Vasa, is elected king of Poland-Lithuania 1595: at the synod of Brest the Ruthenian (Byelorussian and Ukrainian) Orthodox church recognises the supremacy of the Pope 1596: King Zygmunt/Sigismund III Vasa moves Poland-Lithuania's capital from Krakow to Warszaw 1648: 200,000 Jews are slaughtered during the Ukrainian Cossak rebellion in Poland-Lithuania 1654: Russia declares war on Poland and captures Minsk and Vilna 1655: Sweden invades Poland-Lithuania ("First Northern War"), causing the death of millions, while Russia, Denmark, and the Empireside with Poland-Lithuania 1660: Sweden is defeated by king Jan Kazimierz (end of the first Northern War) 1667: Ukraine is divided along the Dnieper between Poland-Lithuania and Moscow (treaty of Andruszowo) 1672: the Ottomans invade southern Ukraine 1683: Vienna, under siege by the Ottomans, is saved by the Polish-Lithuanian army 1697: August, the Elector of Saxony, is elected king of Poland-Lithuania, and Poland is virtually united with Saxony 1700: Poland declares war on Sweden, and Russia allies with Poland 1706: Poland surrenders to Sweden 1717: Poland becomes a Russian protectorate 1721: Sweden surrenders Estonia to Russia 1742: Slesia is annexed by the German Empire 1764: Stanislaw Poniatowski, supported by Russia's empress (and former lover) Ekaterina, becomes king of Poland, thereby ending the union with Saxony 1772: The anti-Russian movement "Confederation of Bar" is crushed by Russia that partitions one fourth of Poland with Prussia and Austria (Galicia, Lvev, Krakow) 1791: The Polish parliament ratifies a democratic constitution 1792: Ekaterina of Russia instigates a rebellion against the constitution 1793: Ekaterina of Russia invades Poland, abrogates the constitution and partitions half of Poland between Russia and Prussia, obtaining western Ukraine and most of Lithuania while Prussia obtains Danzig 1794: Polish hero Tadeusz Kosciuszko starts a national uprising for Polish independence, but Russia and Prussia invade the country 1795: A third partition divides the whole of Poland between Russia (that takes all of Lithuania and Ukraine) and Prussia (that takes Warszaw), thereby removing Poland from the map 1807: Napoleon defeats Prussia and creates a Duchy of Warszaw 1815: At the Congress of Vienna the Duchy of Warszaw is partitioned among Russia, Austria and Prussia and the Russian tsar Alexander I grants semi-autonomy to the "Congress Kingdom" of Poland Nov 1830: Polish patriots rebel against Russian occupation Nov 1831: Poland declares its independence but Russia invades it 1832: Russia reconquers Poland and declares Poland a region of the Russian empire governed by the czar's viceroy Jan 1863: Polish patriots rise up against Russian occupation 1865: Russia turns the kingdom of Poland into the Vistula Province, forbids the use of the Polish and Lithuanian languages and persecutes the Catholic church 1890: millions of Poles emigrate to the United States 1905: The Russian revolution also takes place in Russia-occupied Poland 1914: Jozef Pilsudski organizes the "Polish Riflemen's League" that fights with the Austro-Hungarian empire and against Russia during World War I 1917: Russia grants independence to Poland, after the USA entered World War I listing Polish independence as one of the requirements 1918: Lithuania declares its independence from Russia 1919: at the treaty of Versailles the independence of Poland is recognized (with territory recovered from Austria and Germany) by the world powers and Pilsudski becomes its head of state 1920: Jozef Pilsudski defeats the Soviet army and Poland annexes western Ukraine and western Belarus 1920: Britain, France and the USA decide that the German city of Danzig should become a free city, neither German nor Polish Mar 1921: The treaty of Riga between Poland and Russia establishes their borders and assigns Galicia (Lviv) to Poland 1926: Pilsudski stages a coup and proclaims himself dictator of Poland 1935: Pilsudski dies and general Edward Rydz-Smigly becomes de facto Poland's leader Mar 1939: Hitler's Germany invades Bohemia and Moravia so that Poland is encircled by Germany except the east Sep 1939: Stalin's Soviet Union and Hitler's Germany partition Poland 1945: Poland's borders are reshaped with Poland gaining Pomerania, Slesia and part of East Prussia from Germany plus the free city of Danzig/ Gdansk and the Soviet Union gaining Lviv/Lwow, Vilnius/Wilno and Brest (respectively to Ukraine, Lithuania and Belarus), causing the exodus of 3.5 million Germans and 1.5 million Poles 1946: Vladislav Gomulka's Communists seize power in Poland Jul 1946: Polish police and ordinary people kill 42 Jews in Kielce (the "Kielce pogrom") 1948: Gomulka is overthrown as party leader and replaced by Boleslaw Bierut 1955: The Soviet Union forms the Warsaw Pact to counterbalance NATO with Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Rumania 1956: Vladislav Gomulka is released from jail and becomes the leader of Poland again Jun 1956: Workers riot in Poznan demanding "Bread and Freedom" and the police kills 300 of them March 1968: Students demonstrate in Poland Oct 1968: Bierut dies and is replaced by Gomulka, who briefly grants more freedom of speech (the "Polish October") Dec 1970: Workers strike and riot in Gdansk, and Gomulka is replaced with Edward Gierek 1974: The Polish geneticist Waclaw Szybalski coins the term "synthetic biology" 1978: the Polish cardinal Karol Wojtyla becomes Pope John Paul II, first non-Italian Pope in centuries Jun 1979: Pope John Paul II visits Poland and supports the anti-communist movement 1980: Lech Walesa of Solidarnosch leads Polish workers in a strike Dec 1981: Poland's leader Jaruzelski declares martial law and Solidarnosch leaders are arrested Jun 1982: John Paul II, the Polish-born pope, visits Poland Nov 1982: Lech Walesa is released from prison 1989: Adam Michnik founds the newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza Apr 1989: The Communist Party and Lech Walesa's Solidarity Movement agree to hold free parliamentary elections ("Contract Sejm") Jun 1989: Solidarnosch wins the first free elections in Poland Aug 1989: US economist Jeffrey Sachs begins advising Solida rity on capitalist reforms Aug 1989: Tadeusz Mazowiecki is appointed prime minister, leading he first non-communist government in the Soviet bloc, with Leszek Balcerowicz in charge of economic reforms Jan 1990: Poland introduces "shock therapy", a program for the rapid privatization of all state property and assets 1990: Lech Walesa is elected president of Poland 1991: Lithuania declares its independence from the Soviet Union 1995: Walesa loses presidential elections to Aleksander Kwasniewski 1997: a democratic Constitution is ratified by the Polish parliament 1999: Poland joins NATO 2001: The twins Lech and Jaroslaw Kaczynski found the Law & Justice Party 2004: Poland joins the European Union 2005: Lech Kaczynski beats Donald Tusk in presidential elections 2007: Donald Tusk is appointed prime minister of Poland 2007: Poland posts the highest growth rate of any European economy (6.8%) 2008: Poland's economy grows 15.8% throughout the Great Recession of 2008-11 Aug 2008: Following Russia's invasion of Georgia, the USA and Poland sign a treaty for a missile defense May 2009: Dalia Grybauskaite becomes the first female president of Lithuania Apr 2010: Polish president Lech Kaczynski and other Polish officials die in a plane crash near the Russian city of Smolensk 2013: Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Poland's economy has grown faster than any other former communist country 2014: Ewa Kopacz is appointed prime minister of Poland, replacing Donald Tusk May 2015: Andrzej Duda of the right-wing Law & Justice Party wins presidential elections Oct 2015: Jaroslaw Kaczynski's conservative Law and Justice party wins elections and euroskeptic Beata Szydlo becomes prime minister (for the first time since communism, a single party owns both parliament and presidency) 2016: The Polish government (i.e. the Law and Justice Party) establishes the National Media Council to appoint heads of national television and radio 2016: The Polish government rules that the National Council of the Judiciary which appoints justices must be elected by parliament (i.e. by the Law and Justice Party) Dec 2017: Beata Szydlo is forced to resign by Jaroslaw Kaczynski and is succeeded by her finance minister Mateusz Morawiecki of the same Law & Justice Party Jun 2018: Poland’s right-wing Law and Justice Party forces the retirement of many Supreme Court justices, including top judge Malgorzata Gersdorf, in an attempt to take over the justice system Oct 2019: Jaroslaw Kaczynski's conservative Law and Justice party wins a record 43.6% of the vote in parliamentary elections 2020: Protests rock Poland after the right-wing government bans abortion Nov 2021: Migrants from the Middle East and Asia try to enter Poland from Belarus, causing a crisis between the two countries 2021: Czechia's GDP per capita is $26800, Slovakia's GDP per capita is $21300, Hungary's GDP per capita is $18700, Poland's GDP per capita is $18,000, Romania's is $14900, Bulgaria's is $12,200 versus Turkey's is $9600, Russia's $12200 and the euro zone's $44600 Oct 2023: The Law and Justice Party loses a parliamentary election against Donald Tusk's center-leftist coalition, despite controlling a nationwide network of television, radio stations and many regional newspapers |
| (Copyright © 1999 Piero Scaruffi) |