The collection of the Chessmen Museum contains various chess sets from Poland. These games are made of wood and their folkloric pieces date back to the times of the communist Eastern Bloc. The Russians are not the only ones who have ruled Poland in the past 300 years.
Poland was in the hands of a number of countries during the communist era. Its borders have been moved around by the great European leaders more than once. In the seventeenth century Poland was a powerful monarchy, but halfway through the eighteenth century it had become a vassal state under the reign of Russian czarina Catherine the Great. Polish citizens are inspired by the American Declaration of Independence and demand more freedom. This does not go unpunished: in 1795 Russia, Austria and Prussia divide the country between them.
Odious Russians
At the end of the nineteenth century German emperor William II, emperor of Austria-Hungary Franz-Joseph I and Russian Czar Alexander III rule the originally Polish territories. Under their rule aristocrat Jozef Pilsudski, born in 1867, is sent into exile in Siberia because of his socialist philosophy. He would hate Russian uniforms forever. Pilsudski is not the only who wants change: revolutionist movements pop up all over Europe.
In Poland, rebellion varies per occupied region. The czar for example, is a much more despised man because of his repressive leadership than the liberal Austrian emperor. The czar does not allow education or administration in the Polish language, while the Austrian emperor doesn’t mind. In the Polish-Austrian territory a group of anti-Russia revolutionaries gather together, with Pilsudski as their leader. He founds a secret task force and starts a guerrilla war against the czar, whose power is already waning by then. The bombings by the guerrilla force cost hundreds of Polish people their lives. This terrorism provokes a separation within the Socialist Party and Pilsudski and his men continue their work under the name of the Revolutionary Fraction.
Jozef Pilsudski
Pilsudski, a self-taught man when it comes to military skills and strategies, multiplies his number of soldiers. In Austria he sets up military schools and even shooting clubs, which in reality are Polish troops. In 1914 World War I breaks out and the shooting clubs are changed into the Polish Legion. The soldiers join the Austrian and German armies to fight the Russians and obtain Polish independence. Or so they think. Pilsudski’s men stand out because of their courage and the emperors name Pilsudski commander of Polish army affairs in the temporary government of the Polish territories.
But when the former super powers lose the war and the emperors lose their authority because of internal revolutions, a power vacuum arises in Poland. The allies are convinced that Pilsudski is the man to step into the void and create a barrier in Eastern Europe. In 1918, on the 11th of November, Pilsudski is named commander-in-chief of the military forces and three days later he is officially in command. Pilsudski dream has finally come true and he is now the leader of the independent republic of Poland.
Hitler puts an end to independence
Polish independence wasn’t long-lasting. Poland is surrounded by neighboring countries with a big thirst for revenge after their humiliation during World War I. It’s only a matter of time until things take a turn for the worst. The rise of the German Third Reich is the end of Polish independence. In 1938 Hitler’s tanks enter the country and World War II commences. Pilsudski does not live to see the awful years of war Poland has to endure. He dies in 1935.
After Hitler’s defeat the Russian army comes to Poland’s ‘rescue’. But instead of liberating the country the Russians wreck it and they support the appointment of various communist dictators in the years that follow. This continues until the revolutions of the year 1989. It is in Poland that for the first time in Eastern Bloc history, democratic elections are held. The Polish don’t consider this the most significant moment of their independence though. They still celebrate their National Day of Independence on the 11th November, the day that Pilsudski was named leader of the country.
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