Poland

Poland is an ancient nation that was conceived near the middle of the 10th century. Its golden age occurred in the 16th century. During the following century, the strengthening of the gentry and internal disorders weakened the nation. In a series of agreements between 1772 and 1795, Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland amongst themselves. Poland regained its independence in 1918 only to be overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. It became a Soviet satellite state following the war, but its government was comparatively tolerant and progressive. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union "Solidarity" that over time became a political force and by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the presidency. A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe, but Poland currently suffers low GDP growth and high unemployment. Solidarity suffered a major defeat in the 2001 parliamentary elections when it failed to elect a single deputy to the lower house of Parliament, and the new leaders of the Solidarity Trade Union subsequently pledged to reduce the Trade Union's political role. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. The establishment of a Polish state is often identified with the adoption of Christianity by its ruler Mieszko I, in 966, when the state covered territory similar to that of present-day Poland. The Kingdom of Poland was formed in 1025, and in 1569 it cemented a long association with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania by signing the Union of Lublin, forming the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

The commonwealth collapsed in 1795, and Poland's territory was partitioned among the Kingdom of Prussia, the Russian Empire, and Austria. Poland regained its independence as the Second Polish Republic in 1918, after World War I, but was later occupied by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union during World War II. Poland lost over six million citizens in World War II, emerging several years later as the People's Republic of Poland within the Eastern Bloc under Soviet influence.

During the Revolutions of 1989, communist rule was overthrown and Poland became what is constitutionally known as the "Third Polish Republic". Poland is a unitary state, made up of sixteen voivodeships (Polish: województwo). Poland is a member of the European Union, NATO, United Nations, World Trade Organization, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).




Our site provides visitors with photographs and brief outlines of villages and towns in Poland; offers news from Poland in English; alongwith details of places of interest, tourist attractions, and major cities throughout Poland such as Gorzow, Krakow; Poznan and Szczecin. If you want to know something about Poland this is the place for you! If you want to locate photographs - either contemporary or historic - of any location in Poland do contact us. We might well be able to help. Our aim is to allow English speakers the chance to see photographs of most locations with over 5,000 residents in Poland, and villages of all sizes in Wielkopolska (Greater Poland) and Western Pomerania.

You might want to try searching for towns and places of interest using the search box below. If you can't find what you are looking for don't despair, we might have added it recently and it might not yet have been indexed. If this is the case try the links above or contact us and make a request for information on any aspect of life in Poland or photographs of any village, town or city in western Poland.


Krakow (Cracow) lies in the southern part of Poland on the Vistula River in a valley at the foot of the Carpathian Plateau. It is a capital of Lesser Poland Voivodeship, as well as the third largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland.

The city covers an area of 327 square kilometres (126.2 square miles). It lies in a region of temperate climate. The population of Krakow is around 750,000 and 1,400,000 in the metropolitan area. The population density is 2,314 inhabitants per square kilometre.

The name of the city is derived from the name Krakus, the legendary founder of the city, the ruler of the Lechitian (Polish) tribe. Although the town originated in the 7th century, the first mention of Prince Krakus dated back to 1190. Krakow got the city rights on June 5, 1257.

For centuries Krakow was the capital of Poland (from 1038 to 1596), the seat of kings, drawing great scholars and artists from the whole world. It still remains the spiritual heart of Poland. In 2000 Krakow gained the status European Capital of Culture. It has 28 museums and public art galleries, some of the best in the country. It is a major centre of local and international tourism. Seven million visitors come here every year. To the most famous landmarks belong Main Market Square with St. Mary's Basilica and the Sukiennice Cloth Hall, the Wawel Castle, the National Art Museum, the Zygmunt Bell at the Wawel Cathedral, and the medieval St Florian's Gate with the Barbican along the Royal Coronation Route. The historic centre of the town (Old Town, Kazimier and the Wawel Castle) was inscribed in a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978.

Krakow is ranked as the fourth industrial city in the country, with metallurgic, tobacco, and pharmaceutical industries dominating. The share of the private sector in Krakow industry has considerably increased over the past decade-and-a-half. International investment, tourism and the property market have grown toward the Western European average. Administratively, Kraków is divided into 18 administrative districts, each with a degree of autonomy within its own municipal government.

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