1956 1.6: Polish Hammers

1956 1.6: Polish Hammers

1956 Episode 1.6 examines the tumultuous fallout of Khrushchev’s February speech in the context of Poland.


What was the Polish experience of living in the Soviet orbit? Here we set the scene and trace a bit of the background. It’s a tragic kind of story if you happen to be a Pole, or care about the sovereignty of independent states, but it also makes for fascinating listening. Here we look at a specific example of a revolutionary study, which tore the lid off of Soviet occupied Poland and which exposed its worst excesses to the world. The release of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘞𝘢𝘭𝘬, adopted in 2010 as the film 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘞𝘢𝘺 𝘉𝘢𝘤𝘬, proved to be an indication of things to come in 1956.


The Soviet-Polish relationship both before, during and after the Second World War was a difficult one, fraught with historical grievances, mutual distrust and grand ambitions. After all that had occurred in this portion of the world over the centuries, it was perhaps inevitable that the two peoples could never live peacefully side by side, yet the policies enacted by Stalin immediately following the victories of the Red Army in Poland from late 1944 nonetheless make for startling listening.


Stalin’s approach to Poland was to treat it as the troublesome if necessary little brother of Moscow – to be dominated by its larger neighbour, and always to be suspected and feared. Poles suffered terribly under Soviet rule from 1944-1989, and in the episode we’ll provide the background details for one of the most notable chapters in this 45 year history, as we explain how the Poles responded to news of Khrushchev’s speech.


Remember history friend, if you want extra content and to support my ventures then make sure you head to Patreon! Hours of additional content and other goodies await!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jaksot(744)

#24: 1912-1914 - Anglo-German Relations III

#24: 1912-1914 - Anglo-German Relations III

By late 1912, it appeared the period of Anglo-German detente was over. The Kaiser assembled a War Council, and apparently planned for a war of domination. In fact, appearances were deceptive, and alth...

21 Elo 20241h 13min

#23: 1911-1912 - Anglo-German Relations II

#23: 1911-1912 - Anglo-German Relations II

By late 1911, Germany had been embarrassed by the Second Moroccan Crisis, and the Anglo-French Entente had once again rallied. We might have expected Germany to double down on its provocative naval ca...

19 Elo 20241h 1min

#22: 1905-1911 - Anglo-German Relations I

#22: 1905-1911 - Anglo-German Relations I

Everyone knows the story of Britain and Germany before 1914. Or at least, they think they do.Anglo-German relations following the Russo-Japanese War seemed bound to enter a period of hostility, enable...

16 Elo 202454min

#21: 23 July 1914 - The First Ultimatum

#21: 23 July 1914 - The First Ultimatum

Austria-Hungary finally delivered its ultimatum to Serbia nearly four weeks after the assassination of Franz Ferdinand. The journey had been incredibly slow, and the outcome was nothing like the fait ...

14 Elo 202435min

#20: 20-22 July 1914 - France In Russia

#20: 20-22 July 1914 - France In Russia

On 20 July, the French President, Premier, and other statesmen docked at Kronstadt, aboard the fittingly named France.It began a tremendous spectacle of Franco-Russian cooperation, just as rumours wer...

12 Elo 202438min

#19: 19-22 July 1914 - Finalising Fatalism

#19: 19-22 July 1914 - Finalising Fatalism

As the French sailed for St Petersburg, the Austro-Hungarian government gathered in Vienna for a meeting of historic importance. It was here on 19 July 1914 that the infamous ultimatum to Serbia was f...

9 Elo 202433min

#18: 16-20 July 1914 - France at Sea

#18: 16-20 July 1914 - France at Sea

As the French President and Premier made their way to Russia, on board the France, they tried their best to keep up to date with what was happening outsides the confines of their vessel. Troubling rum...

7 Elo 202425min

#17: 15-18 July 1914 - Secrecy and Haste

#17: 15-18 July 1914 - Secrecy and Haste

With the Austro-Hungarian government on the same page at long last, it remained to follow through with the ultimatum. To Berchtold, this meant moving as quickly and as secretly as possible, so that on...

5 Elo 202454min

Suosittua kategoriassa Historia

olipa-kerran-otsikko
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
mayday-fi
huijarit
mystista
rss-ikiuni
tsunami
konginkangas
totuus-vai-salaliitto
rouva-diktaattori
rss-i-dont-like-mondays-2
historiaa-suomeksi
rss-kirkon-ihmeellisimmat-tarinat
rss-subjektiivinen-todistaja
rss-sattuu-sita-suomessakin
sotaa-ja-historiaa-podi
historian-nurkkapoyta
apinan-vuosi
rss-peter-peter
maailmanpuu