Description
Book SynopsisExamines the 1980 Solidarity revolution in Poland, the government's subsequent establishment of martial law in response, in 1981, and the eventual transition to democracy in 1989. The 1980 general strike in Poland and the establishment of the independent Solidarity movement, which sought to create a state based on civic freedom, were symptoms of a crisis of the communist system. On December 13, 1981, General Wojciech Jaruzelski on behalf of the ruling Communist Party imposed martial law, effectively quashing Solidarity. Jaruzelski won the battle, but Solidarity continued its revolution in secret and Poland remained politically destabilized. Elections held in June 1989 ended with the defeat of the Communists and the establishment in September of a coalition government in which half of the parliamentary seats went to Solidarity, whose representative was also appointed prime minister. The revolution inaugurated in 1980 by the dockworkers of Gdansk had come to fruition. Revolution and Counterrevolution in Poland, 1980-1989: Solidarity, Martial Law, and the End of Communism inEurope recounts and analyzes the events of this formative decade in Polish history, with particular emphasis on the martial law period. Drawing on extensive archival research, Andrzej Paczkowski examines the origin and form of the Solidarity revolution, the course of the Communist counterrevolution, and the final victory won by Solidarity along with its international repercussions. Andrzej Paczkowski is professor of political studies at the Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw. Christina Manetti, PhD, is a translator and independent researcher of Polish history.
Trade ReviewAn important book that must be read by all scholars who study this period. * JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY CENTRAL & EASTERN EUROPE *
Makes an invaluable contribution to the literature on the last decade of communism in Poland..It is essential reading for anyone seeing to understand Solidarity, martial law and the end of communism from the perspective of both the authorities and of society. * EUROPEAN HISTORY QUARTERLY *
Expertly translated by Christine Manetti, it is an exciting story meticulously told and important to remember as post-Solidarity Poland continues to struggle with its legacies . [Paczkowski] is careful in his scholarship, sticking closely to an immense range of both primary and secondary sources, mostly Polish. He is straightforward in his prose and sober in his judgments. His account is neither a hagiography nor a demonology and is therefore all the more convincing. * JOURNAL OF COLD WAR STUDIES *
A welcome event for English-speaking scholars of East Central Europe. * JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY HISTORY *
Table of ContentsPreface Abbreviations Poland - "The Weakest Link" The Solidarity Revolution: Act One, 1980-81 "Defend Socialism as If It Were Poland's Independence" The Last Days Before "Night of the General" and Day One Breakthrough Reprisals and the Public Mood The World Looks On Battle Over Operation "Renaissance" and Lech Walesa Underground Civil Resistance "The Anesthetic Has Worn Off" The End of the Campaign and Walesa's Release The Church between Eternity and Solidarity Independent Society The Party Returns to the Ring The End of Martial Law Solidarity's Revolution: The Finale, 1988-89 Escape from the Soviet Bloc and the Fall of the Empire Conclusion: The Decade of Struggle and Its Legacy Notes Selected Bibliography Index
