Poland Study & Guide - AllRefer - Poland Information

* Chronology of Important Events
* COUNTRY PROFILE
o Country
o GEOGRAPHY
o SOCIETY
o ECONOMY
o TRANSPORTATION
o GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
o NATIONAL SECURITY
* INTRODUCTION
* Historical Setting
o EARLY HISTORY UNTIL 1385
+ The Origins of Poland
+ The Medieval Era
# Fragmentation and Invasion, 1025-1320
# The Later Piasts
+ Integration into European Civilization
o THE JAGIELLON ERA, 1385-1572
+ The Polish-Lithuanian Union
+ The "Golden Age" of the Sixteenth Century
# Poland-Lithuania as a European Power
# The Government of Poland-Lithuania
# Poland-Lithuania in the Reformation Era
# The Polish Renaissance
# The Eastern Regions of the Realm
o THE NOBLE REPUBLIC, 1572-1795
+ The Elective Monarchy
+ The Deluge, 1648-67
+ Decay of the Commonwealth
+ The Three Partitions, 1764-95
# First Partition
# National Revival
# Destruction of Poland-Lithuania
o PARTITIONED POLAND
+ The Napoleonic Period
+ The Impact of Nationalism and Romanticism
+ The Era of National Insurrections
+ The Time of "Organic Work"
+ Social and Political Transformation
o INDEPENDENCE WON AND LOST, 1914-45
+ World War I
# War and the Polish Lands
# Recovery of Statehood
+ Interwar Poland
# Formative Years, 1918-21
# From Democracy to Totalitarianism
# Poland's International Situation
+ World WarII
# The Outbreak of War
# German and Soviet Rule
# Resistance at Home and Abroad
# Soviet Liberation of Poland
o THE POLISH PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC
+ Consolidation of Communist Power
+ From Stalinism to the Polish October
+ The Gathering Crisis of People's Poland, 1956-80
# The Gomulka Years
# Consolidation of the Opposition in the 1970s
+ The Birth of Solidarity
+ The Jaruzelski Interlude
# Martial Law
# Poland at an Impasse
# Collapse of the Communist Regime
# Toward the Round-Table Talks
+ The 1989 Elections and Their Aftermath
* The Society and Its Environment
o PHYSICAL SETTING
+ Topography
+ Drainage
+ Climate
o ENVIRONMENT AND POLLUTION
+ Environmental Conditions and Crises
+ Environmental Groups
+ Government Environmental Policy
o DEMOGRAPHY
+ Languages
+ Population Growth and Structure
+ Population Density and Distribution
o THE SOCIAL ORDER
+ Ethnic Groups
# Jews
# Germans
# Ukrainians and Belarusians
# Gypsies
+ The Intelligentsia
+ The Working Classes
# Agricultural Workers
# Industrial Workers
+ Social Relationships
+ The Role of Women
o HOUSING
+ Communist Housing Policy
+ Polish Housing in Practice
+ Housing after 1989
o RELIGION
+ The Polish Catholic Church and the State
# Church and State Before 1945
# The Early Communist Decades
# Relations in the 1970s and 1980s
# Church and State after 1989
+ The Polish Catholic Church and the People
+ Other Churches
# The Greek Catholic Church
# The Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession
# The Old Catholic Churches
# The Polish Ecumenical Council
o EDUCATION
+ The Education Tradition
+ Eras of Repression
+ The Drive for Education Reform
+ Structure of the Education System
o HEALTH AND WELFARE
+ Health Conditions
+ The Health Care System
+ Health Issues
# AIDS
# Narcotics
# Alcoholism
+ The Welfare System
# Structural Change
# Welfare Benefits
* The Economy
o NATURAL RESOURCES
+ Minerals and Fuels
+ Agricultural Resources
+ Labor Force
o THE ECONOMY UNDER THE COMMUNIST SYSTEM
+ System Structure
+ Development Strategy
o DEVELOPMENT OF THE CENTRALLY PLANNED ECONOMY
+ Establishing the Planning Formula
+ Retrenchment and Adjustment in the 1960s
+ Reliance on Technology in the 1970s
+ Reform Failure in the 1980s
o AFTER THE FALL OF THE COMMUNIST SYSTEM
+ Marketization and Stabilization
# Required Short-Term Changes
# The Shock Strategy
# Initial Results
# Long-Term Requirements
+ Macroeconomic Indicators for 1990-91
# Price Increases
# Impact on Productivity and Wages
# Statistical Distortions
# Agricultural Imbalances
# Causes of Decline
+ The External Balance of the Economy
+ The Privatization Process
+ Economic Policy Making in the 1990s
o STRUCTURE OF THE ECONOMY
+ Fuels and Energy
# Coal
# Oil and Gas
# Power Generation
+ Extractive and Manufacturing Industries
# Light Industry
# Automotive Industry
# Construction Machinery
# Shipbuilding
+ Agriculture
# Organization under State Planning
# Private and State Farms
# Postcommunist Restructuring
+ Fishing and Forestry
# Fishing
# Forestry
+ Transportation and Communications
+ Banking and Finance
# The State Banking System
# Banking Reform, 1990-92
# Insurance and Securities Reform
# New Financial Institutions
# Foreign Loans and Money Supply
o FOREIGN TRADE
+ The Foreign Trade Mechanism
+ Postcommunist Policy Adjustments
# The End of the Soviet Era
# The Role of Currency Exchange
+ Foreign Investment
o ECONOMIC PROSPECTS
* Government and Politics
o POLITICAL SETTING
+ The Round Table Agreement
+ The Mazowiecki Government
+ Popular Election of a President
+ The Bielecki Government
+ The Parliamentary Elections of October 1991
+ The Olszewski Government
+ The Pawlak Interlude
+ The Suchocka Government
o THE CONSTITUTION
+ The Constitution of 1952
+ Constitutional Revisions after April 1989
o GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE
+ Presidency
+ Sejm
+ Senate
+ Supreme Control Chamber
+ Council of Ministers
+ Regional and Local Government
+ Judicial System
# The National Judicial Council
# The Supreme Court
# Lower Courts
# The Supreme Administrative Court
# The Constitutional Tribunal
# The State Tribunal
# The Prosecutor General
# The Commissioner for Citizens' Rights
o POLITICAL PARTIES
+ Solidarity
+ Center Alliance
+ Democratic Union
+ Liberal-Democratic Congress
+ Beer-Lovers' Party
+ Peasant Alliance
+ Christian National Union
+ Party of Christian Democrats
+ Confederation for an Independent Poland
+ PZPR and Successor Parties
+ Polish Peasant Party
o POLITICS AND THE MEDIA
+ The Early Opposition Press
+ Liberalization in the 1980s
+ The End of Press Censorship
+ Book Publishing
+ Radio and Television
o FOREIGN RELATIONS
+ Soviet Union and Russia
+ Other Former Soviet Republics
# Baltic States
# Belarus
# Ukraine
# Southern Neighbors and the Visegr�d Triangle
+ Germany
+ The United States
+ Other Western Countries
+ International Organizations
* National Security
o DEVELOPMENT OF THE ARMED FORCES
+ From Medieval Times to World War I
+ The Interwar Years
+ World War II
+ The Communist Era
# Postwar Consolidation
# Defining the Military's Postwar Role
# Martial Law
# Transition and Reform
o NATIONAL SECURITY POLICY
+ Threat Perception
+ Military Doctrine
+ Strategy and Tactics
+ Military Cooperation and Exchanges
o DEFENSE ORGANIZATION
+ The Communist Tradition
+ Evolution and Restructuring
# Civilian Command Structure
# Military Command Structure
# The Military Prosecutor
# Lines of Authority
+ National Security Agencies
+ Armed Services
# Ground Forces
# Navy
# Air and Air Defense Forces
# Territorial Defense Forces
o MILITARY MANPOWER
+ The Military and Society
+ Recruitment and Service Obligations
+ Military Training and Education
# Conscript Training
# Officer Education
# Reserves and Mobilization
o DEFENSE AND THE NATIONAL ECONOMY
+ Military Budget
+ Arms Procurement
# Arms Imports
# Domestic Arms Production
# Arms Exports
o LAW AND ORDER
+ Internal Security
# Security Service
# Militia Forces
# Border Troops
+ Crime
+ Penal System
+ Under Communism
# Postcommunist Reform
* Appendix. Tables
* Glossary