France, Germany and Poland  Immediately After the First World War

The international situation in Europe after the First Wolrd War was characterized by completely new relations. Part of a new complex configuration of forces was the German-French-Polish arrangement. The article presents the grounds for the position of each country in relation to the other two, as well as the process of shaping the relations between them at the beginning of the interwar period. The close relations of Poland and France agreed with the logics of the Versailles system directed against Germany. Although there were some discrepancies between the two countries, the cooperation prevailed until the turn which happened in the German and French policies in the years 1924–1925.
 

France Towards the War and Peace Between Poland and Bolsheviks (1919–1921)

After World War I, Poland was aiming at establishing its eastern borders and needed a European ally in Russian matters. Taking into account the anti-Bolshevik attitude of France, there existed a chance of promoting the Polish policy in the East, but the goals of the French and Polish foreign policies differed significantly when it came to Russia. After World War I, France failed to introduce a successful political strategy in the east of Europe. Its critical stance towards the Bolsheviks undoubtedly resulted from an accurate assessment of the Soviet authority and the threat it posed for Europe, but also from the reluctance with which they treated the tsarist debts towards France. This problem remained a burden on the relations between France and Russia for the years to come, even after 1924. For Poland, both the Bolsheviks, criticized by France, and the “White” generals, whom France supported, posed a threat to independence and to the conception of the Polish border in the east.
 

Poland and the Little Entente  in the League of Nations

Distrustful of the new world order and placed within the frames of a collective system of security, the countries of the East-Central Europe developed, within the League of Nations, their own interpretation of new diplomacy. Seeking the way to acquire a real influence on the European scene, sometimes even trying to create their own diplomatic tradition, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Yugoslavia and Poland transferred their local conflicts, like e.g. the Czechoslovakian-Polish conflict, onto the European forum. At the same time, new actors and new challenges in the international system provided numerous opportunities for genuine cooperation invisible to the public opinion, e.g. in the very delicate issue of national minorities. The analysis of the actions of Poland and the Little Entente in Geneva enables to shed light on ambiguities – not inevitable, but nevertheless present – in the new international system.
 

Russia (and USSR): The Irritating Factor  in the French-Polish Relations in the 20th Century

During World War I the French authorities based their policy towards Poland on their current relations with the Russian ally. That is why France did not support the idea of Polish independence before spring 1917. Over the next two decades the priorities of Paris were to separate Germany from Russia and to strengthen Poland so that it could replace Russia in its role of the Eastern ally which would enfeeble Germany. It was in the interest of Paris that Warsaw had no conflicts in the East. After the French-Soviet diplomatic relations were established in 1924, the place of the Soviet Union in Europe became the bone of contention in the French-Polish relations. France wanted to include the Soviet Union in the policy of European security, which caused Poland’s resentment. After 1944, the French-Polish relations were determined by the efforts on the part of France to increase its influence in the Eastern Europe. After 1989, together with the emergence of the pro-American policy of Warsaw, France became again more distanced towards Poland’s Eastern policy which provoked conflicts with Russia.
 

The French, Polish and Soviet Triangle Between 1918 and 1926: A Conflict or a Chance for Cooperation? A Look From the Perspective of Academic Contacts

I think it is very difficult to give a straightforward answer to the question from the title. How-
ever, it is possible to notice some common areas of academic relations. The chief point of reference to these considerations will be the staff of the Jagiellonian University. On the threshold of Poland’s independence, the common ground for cooperation were the Paris and Riga Conferences, the Bureau of Congress Work at the Polish Delegation, and the Polish-Soviet Joint Re-evacuation and Special Committees. The Jagiellonian University graduates and staff took up administrative positions at the diplomatic posts in Moscow and Paris. Contacts were established between universities, professors and students. Scholarships were given and anniversaries of universities and other academic institutions were observed. A great number of people who graduated from the Polish universities in Galicia continued their education in Paris. Likewise, graduates from the universities of the Russian Empire went on to study in Kraków or the Third Republic.
 

In the Columns of Tygodnik Illustrowany: France as A Phenomenon Which Shaped Polish Identity in the Years  1918–1928

Using the phenomenological methods developed by Edmund Husserl and his followers, the author of the article, after differentiating between the “life-world” and the “real world,” tries to characterize the phenomenon of France and present the ways it functioned in Tygodnik Illustrowany [The Illustrated Weekly] in the years 1918–1928. Analyzing the articles, the author focused not so much on historical events, but on the sense they presented to the writers and on their influence on Polish identity after regaining independence. The French phenomenon embodied not only the dreams of the 19th-century Poles but also the expectations of the contemporaries. Initially, France was perceived by the Poles as their chief ally in the struggle for the highest spiritual values and as a political and civilizational archetype, but soon it became regarded as a beneficiary of Polish cultural achievements. Dreams were shared of combining the Polish spirit with the French intellect. All in all, France was a significant reference point in recognizing Poland’s own problems.
 

France and Poland Towards the Spanish Civil War, 1936–1939

The article is a description of the relations between Poland and France against the background of the Spanish Civil War. Another aim of the text is to present the relations of the French and Polish governments with the Spanish Republican and Nationalist governments. Besides the issues of the diplomatic games, the involvement of the two countries in the Non-Intervention Committee or the question of acknowledging either of the two governments by Paris or by Warsaw, the very question of the influence of France and Poland on the Spanish conflict was also described. What is meant here is the transport of weapon to Spain, in which the two countries participated. The French and Polish policies towards the Spanish War were influenced by the British policy of appeasement, which towards the end of the 1930s was the main determinant of the attitude of the Western powers towards the Third Reich. The proceedings of the Non-Intervention Committee failed to prevent the involvement of many European countries in the Spanish conflict, which led to the victory of Franco, supported by Italy and Germany.
 

Poles in the Communist Resistance Movement in France

During the Second World War, the underground Polish organizations in France divided into those which acknowledged the authority of the Polish government-in-exile in London and those of pro-communist orientation. After the fall of France in 1940, the “language-speaking groups” of Polish communists in the Main-d’Œuvre immigrée became active, initially within the occupied France. A critical moment for the communist resistance in France was the German aggression on the Soviet Union in June 1941. In 1943, the French communists’ accession to the Conseil National de la Résistance coincided with the hitherto internationalist poetics being replaced with patriotic slogans also among the Polish communists. In April 1944, the Polish Committee of National Liberation in France was formed. In northern France most of the Polish immigrants identified themselves with the Polish government-in-exile in London. The communist influence was visible among the Polish workers in southern France, and it was the biggest in Paris and the whole pre-war Paris consular district.
 

UNRRA, IRO and the French Authorities Towards the Problem of the Transformation of Polish Displaced Persons  Into Political Refugees (1944–1950)

In the postwar world, the problem of refugees, exiles, displaced persons and fugitives – different groups of forced migrants – became one of more important issues. Focusing on just a single aspect of it, which is the fate of the Polish DPs in France and the French occupation zone, we want to show how resignation from returning to their home country influenced this numerous group of people under the pressure of the Yalta policy practiced by particular countries. The hesitation about being repatriated to Poland led to the emergence of highly emotional and uncompromisingly anti-communist attitudes. The manifestation of such a behaviour in the years following the war was incomprehensible for the French, just like the decision to remain in exile. French economy needed hands to work and was eager to see the DPs as economic migrants but not as political refugees. It was not until the 1950s when the progressing Cold War created better conditions for the migrants to settle, to establish their own organizations, and also to gear up for ideological struggle.
 

The French Socialists and the Polish People’s Republic: From the Mutual Distrust Until the End of the 70’s

The topic of the relations between the French Socialists and Poland from the end of World War II until the end of 1970s is relatively unknown. The French Socialist Left approached the Polish Communist Left with distrust, even downright aversion. A big disappointment for SFIO was the forced unification of Polish Socialists and Communists in 1948, because up to this point the French had counted on keeping their Polish Comrades in the Western orbit. When the Iron Curtain was dropped, the French Socialists could only observe from a distance the excesses of the Polish People’s Republic government. From as early as 1950s on, the French Socialists created numerous doctrinal analyses concerning the perspectives of a possible “real socialist” reform. Interestingly, when the period of easing of the tensions in international relations (Détente) came, the right-wing French Socialists made an effort to improve the relations with Warsaw, which had been significantly enfeebled by the years of the Cold War.
 

The French Left and Polish Solidarity

The 1980 strikes in the cities on the Baltic coast of Poland and the birth of Solidarity stirred the
public opinion of the Western world regardless of political views. From this moment on until
the end of the 1980s, the French Left (i.e. the political parties, the press and the trade unions representing this orientation) observed the Solidarity. The press provided up-to-date coverage of the developments and commented on French attitudes. The French trade unions CFDT and FO quickly became interested in establishing contacts with Solidarity, which acquired special importance during the Martial Law in Poland. In the period after 13th December 1981, for the ruling Socialist Party the situation might have been especially complicated because ministers from the French Communist Party were present in the government, and the reluctance of the PCF leaders towards Solidarity contributed to a governmental crisis. This period is still very vividly remembered in France.
 

The Changes in the Strategic Culture of France after Cold War

France’s international stance, its objective attributes of power and an ambitious foreign policy agenda make this country one of the most interesting case studies in strategic culture. This field of research was developed in the U.S. in the late 1970s when the term “strategic culture” appeared in broader academic debate. Making use of the aforementioned analytical tool, the author examines the strategic environment of post-Cold-War France on three levels: (1) the form of participation in international alliances, (2) the professionalization of the military and its impact on the bond between the people and the army, and (3) the readiness to use the military force outside its own territory. The three areas of analysis have been carefully selected because they adequately reflect, as shown in the paper, the most substantial changes in France’s foreign security policy after the collapse of the bipolar world system.
 

The French Overseas Departments and Territories: the Heritage of the French Colonial Past. An Outline of a Problem

In the colonial era, the French Republic, which currently possesses thirteen overseas dependent territories, created an empire extending to every part of the globe. The present-day Overseas France comprises areas of various status and autonomy. The topic of the article are the French overseas departments and territories (DOM-TOM), which constitute an integral part of France and the European Union. The article presents the characteristics and evolution of the DOM-TOM local government. It defines the notions of department and overseas territory and explains differences between these two units and their metropolitan counterparts. It presents the genesis and shape of Overseas France, of which the DOM-TOM is the biggest component from the point of view of both territory and population. The article was based chiefly on Polish and French academic publications, as well as legal acts and statistics. Obviously, it provides only a general outline of the problem.