Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland
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Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland (Polish: Rząd Tymczasowy Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej or RTRP) was created by Krajowa Rada Narodowa on the night of 31 December 1944. [1]
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[edit] Background
The Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland was created to take the place of the previous governmental body, the Polish Committee of National Liberation (Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego or PKWN). Because of its location in Lublin, the PKWN was also known as the "Lublin Committee". The establishment of the RTRP was an important step in strengthening the control of the Communists and Soviet Union in Poland.
[edit] The Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland created
On 1 January 1945, the Communist Lublin Committee became the Provisional Government of Republic of Poland. In London, the Polish government-in-exile protested. They issued a declaration that the Soviet Union had "taken over the sovereign political rights of the Polish nation." The Western governments of Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt also issued formal protest. But they tookno further action.
The Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland did not recognize the Polish government-in-exile. The RTRP proclaimed itself to be the legitimate Polish government. Initially, the RTRP was only officially recognized by the Soviet Union. But, before the Yalta Conference, Soviet dictator Josef Stalin conveyed his intention to the Western Allies that Poland was under the control of the Soviet Union and that he intended it to stay that way. The RTRP was given control of the Polish territories liberated by the Soviet Army as the army advanced westward.
The RTRP was chaired by the previous Prime Minister of PKWN, Edward Osóbka-Morawski. The Deputy Prime Ministers of the RTRP were Władysław Gomułka of the Polish Workers' Party (Polska Partia Robotnicza) and Stanisław Janusz from Stronnictwo Ludowe. The Minister of defense was Michał Rola-Żymierski. The Minister of Security was Stanisław Radkiewicz.
The Communists declared that the RTRP was to be a coalition. But, in fact, all key posts were controlled by Communists. Semi-official control of the RTRP was exercised by Soviet General Iwan Sierow. Some Polish Communists, like Władysław Gomułka or Edward Ochab, were opposed to this excessive Soviet control. However, they could do little to change the existing status quo.
On 18 January, the RTRP was relocated from Lublin to Warsaw.
From 30 January to 2 February, the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union — Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Josef Stalin, respectively — attended preliminary discussions on the Yalta Conference in Malta.
From 4 February to 12 February, the heads of government of the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union attended the Yalta Conference in the Crimea. At Yalta, the following "Joint Allied Declaration on Poland" was developed:
"The three heads of governments consider rhat the Eastern frontier of Poland should follow the Curzon line, with digressions from it in some regions of five to eight kilometers in favor of Poland. They recognize that Poland must receive substantial of accessions of territory in the north and west. They feel that the opinion of the new Polish Provisional Government of National Unity should be sought in due course on the extent of these accessions, and that the final delimitation of the Western frontier of Poland should thereafter await the Peace Conference." [2]
On 7 February, Churchill documented the following discussion while at Yalta:
"How soon," asked the President, "will it be possible to hold elections?" "Within a month," Stalin replied, "unless there is some catastrophe at the front, which is improbable." "I said that this would of course set our minds at rest, and we could wholeheartedly support a freely elected Government which would supersede everything else, but we must not ask for anything which would in any way hamper the military operations." [3]
On 21 April, the RTRP signed a 30-year pact of mutual friendsip (Układ o Przyjaźni, Wzajemnej Pomocy i Współpracy) with the Soviet Union. This treaty confirmed the change in Polish borders and granted control over internal security of Poland to the Soviet Union. This treaty also formed the basis for Poland's semi-official existence as a satellite state of the Soviet Union for the next 40 years.
On 23 April, Soviet diplomat Vyacheslav Molotov was in Washington, DC. President Harry S Truman and the State Department of the United State appealled to Molotov for a compromise on the "Polish question". On the same day, Prime Minister Edward Osóbka-Morawski of the RTRP announced the following at a press conference:
"We need people who agree with our foreign policy and with our social reforms. Only such a government can do its work properly. We need the collaboration of men who accept the Yalta decisions, not only formally, but in fact. We are making every effort to contact such people. What we do not want are Fascists . . . " [4]
[edit] Provisional Government of National Unity replaces the RTRP
On 28 June, the Provisional Government of Republic of Poland (Rząd Tymczasowy Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) was transformed into the more coalition-like Provisional Government of National Unity (Tymczasowy Rząd Jedności Narodowej). This was promised by Stalin at Yalta and done by him as gesture of good will towards the Western Allies and Polish government-in-exile in London.
[edit] See also
- Polish Committee of National Liberation (Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego or PKWN) - 1944/45
- Provisional Government of National Unity (Tymczasowy Rząd Jedności Narodowej or TRJN)- 1945/47
- Peoples' Army of Poland (Ludowe Wojsko Polskie or LWP)
- Polish government-in-exile
[edit] References
- ^ [Norman Davies|Davies, Norman, 1982 and several reprints. God's Playground. 2 vols. New York: Columbia Univ. Press. ISBN 0-231-05353-3 and ISBN 0-231-05351-7]
- ^ [Page 158, "The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan", Hans Dollinger, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 67-27047]
- ^ [Page 158, "The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan", Hans Dollinger, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 67-27047]
- ^ [Page 158, "The Decline and Fall of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan", Hans Dollinger, Library of Congress Catalogue Card Number 67-27047]
