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General information


Population : 38.6 milion people (34th in the World,9th in Europe)
Total Area : 321,679 km^2 (69th in the World,9th in Europe)
Official languages : Polish
Official currency : Polish złoty(PLN)
Capital : Warsaw
Population density : 123 people/km^2 (83rd in the World,23rd in Europe)
Top 5 biggest cities : Warsaw,Kraków,Łódź,Wrocław,Poznań

Poland is a representative democracy, with a president as a head of state, whose current constitution dates from 1997. Poland ranks in the top 20 percent of the most peaceful countries in the world, according to the Global Peace Index. The government structure centers on the Council of Ministers, led by a prime minister. The president appoints the cabinet according to the proposals of the prime minister, typically from the majority coalition in the Sejm. The president is elected by popular vote every five years.

Poland's current voivodeships (provinces) are largely based on the country's historic regions, whereas those of the past two decades (to 199😎 had been centred on and named for individual cities. The new units range in area from less than 10,000 square kilometres (3,900 sq mi) for Opole Voivodeship to more than 35,000 square kilometres (14,000 sq mi) for Masovian Voivodeship. Administrative authority at voivodeship level is shared between a government-appointed voivode (governor), an elected regional assembly (sejmik) and an executive elected by that assembly.




National sport : Football


Volleyball


National animal : European bison (Bison bisonasus)

White-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla)

White stork (Ciconia ciconia)



National Plant : Red poppy (Papaver rhoeas)






The significance of the 11th of November

On the 11th of November 1918, Germany signed the ceasefire that ended the First World War. On the same date, Józef Piłsudski took control of the puppet government and army, and thus effectively became the head of the Republic of Poland( also known as the Second Polish Republic). Poland thus reappeared as an independent state on the map of Europe, which it hadn’t been since 1795, when it was completely partitioned between its 3 neighbours at the time: the Habsburg Empire, the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia.

“Four generations were helplessly waiting to see an independent Poland, and finally the fifth generation is able to see it” ~ Jędrzej Moraczewski - first Prime Minister of the Second Polish Republic





It is time for a Polish legend/story that I found out about after playing the Hearts of Stone expansion for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.It is a story that some if you might have heard about, as it bares close resemblance to the story of Faust. I am talking of course about Pan Twardowski.



According to old legends, Pan Twardowski was a nobleman who lived in Krakow in the 16th century.He sold his soul to the devil in exchange for great knowledge and magical powers. However, Twardowski wanted to outwit the devil by including a special clause in the contract, stating that the devil could only take Twardowski's soul to Hell during his visit to Rome – a place the sorcerer never intended to go.Other variants of the story have Twardowski being sold to the devil as a child by his father.




With the devil's aid, Twardowski quickly rose to wealth and fame, eventually becoming a courtier of King Sigismund Augustus, who sought consolation in magic and astrology after the death of his beloved wife, Barbara Radziwiłł.He was said to have summoned the ghost of the late queen to comfort the grieving king, using a magic mirror.The sorcerer also wrote two books, both dictated to him by the devil – a book on magic and an encyclopedia.
After years of evading his fate, Twardowski was eventually tricked by the devil and caught not in the city, but at an inn called Rzym (Rome in Polish).While being spirited away, Twardowski started to pray to the Virgin Mary, who made the devil drop his victim midway to Hell.Twardowski fell on the Moon where he lives to this day. His only companion is his sidekick whom he once turned into a spider; from time to time Twardowski lets the spider descend to Earth on a thread and bring him news from the world below.



1936 film adaptation of Pan Twardowski



Olgierd von Everec, from Witcher 3 ; notice the similarities between him and Pan Twardowski from the film adaptation







Top 5 visited places by tourists


Kraków

Krakow main square



Krakow Old Town


Wawel Castle

Kraków is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River(Polish: Wisła) in the Lesser Poland (Polish: Małopolska) region, the city dates back to the 7th century.Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life and is one of Poland's most important economic hubs.

Kraków was named the official European Capital of Culture for the year 2000 by the European Union.Major landmarks include the 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.Kraków has 28 museums and public art galleries. Among them is the National Museum featuring works by Leonardo da Vinci and Rembrandt.





Warsaw

Palace of Science and Culture



Warsaw Old Town

Once described as Paris of the East, Warsaw was believed to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world until World War II.The German invasion in 1939, the massacre of the Jewish population and deportations to concentration camps led to the uprising in the Warsaw ghetto in 1943 and to the major and devastating Warsaw Uprising between August and October 1944. Warsaw gained the new title of a Phoenix City because of its extensive history and complete reconstruction after the severe damage it suffered in World War II, which left over 85% of its buildings in ruins.

The city is the seat of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra and the University of Warsaw. The historic city-centre of Warsaw with its picturesque Old Town in 1980 was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Other main architectural attractions include the Castle Square with the Royal Castle and the iconic King Sigismund's Column, St. John's Cathedral, Market Square, palaces, churches and mansions all displaying a richness of colour and architectural detail.


Gdańsk

Gdansk Waterfront



Gdansk Old Town

Gdańsk is the capital of Gdańsk Pomerania and the largest city of Kashubia. With its origins as a Polish stronghold erected in the 980s by Mieszko I of Poland, the city's history is complex, with periods of Polish rule, periods of Prussian or German rule, and periods of autonomy or self-rule as a "free city". In the early-modern age Gdańsk was a royal city of Poland. It was considered the wealthiest and the largest city of Poland, prior to the 18th century rapid growth of Warsaw. Between the world wars, the Free City of Danzig was in a customs union with Poland and was located between German East Prussia and the so-called Polish Corridor.

Gdańsk is home to the University of Gdańsk, Gdańsk University of Technology, the National Museum, the Gdańsk Shakespeare Theatre, the Museum of the Second World War, Polish Baltic Philharmonic and the European Solidarity Centre. The city also hosts St. Dominic's Fair, which dates back to 1260, and is regarded as one of the biggest trade and cultural events in Europe.


Auschwitz-Birkenau





Taking a break from the gorgeous cities of Poland, I have to mention this famous Nazi concentration camp. In my opinion, this is one of the most important landmarks in the entire world, solely because of its symbolism and significance. We should always strive to remember the mistakes of our past so that we never repeat them, and Auschwitz-Birkenau does that while reinforcing the old Roman motto: “Homo homini lupus.” (Man is a wolf to man.)


Malbork Castle

The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork located in the Polish town of Malbork, is the largest castle in the world measured by land area.It was originally built by the Teutonic Knights, a German Roman Catholic religious order of crusaders, in a form of an Ordensburg fortress. The Order named it Marienburg (Mary's Castle). The town which grew around it was also named Marienburg. In 1466, both castle and town became part of Royal Prussia, a province of Poland. It served as one of the several Polish royal residences, interrupted by several years of Swedish occupation, and fulfilling this function until Prussia claimed the castle as a result of the First Partition of Poland in 1772. Heavily damaged after World War II, the castle was renovated under the auspices of modern-day Poland in the second half of the 20th century and most recently in 2016. Nowadays, the castle hosts exhibitions and serves as a museum.









Top 3 locations suggested by the locals

Masuria







Poland’s Masuria Lakeland is an area of impressive natural beauty with more than 2,000 lakes, dense forests, organic farms and charming resort towns.Masuria is one of the best places in Poland to get out and experience the great outdoors. From kayaking along the picturesque Krutynia River and cycling through the area’s thick forests, to sailing and fishing on the country’s biggest lakes, there are plenty of activities to choose from.




Zakopane









Situated in the extreme south of Poland, this town is sometimes referred to as “the winter capital of Poland”. With an average of 2.5 million tourists/year, Zakopane is the best place in Poland for mountaineering and skiing.

This place always reminds me of ski jumping, and the awesome Polish crowd that cheered for Adam Małysz.


Wieliczka Salt Mine





Located on the outskirts of Krakow, the Wieliczka Salt Mine is considered one of the oldest companies in the world. Salt has been mined from the site continuously since the 13th century. The site features an underground city, all carved out of the rock salt, including a chapel that is said to have the best acoustics of any structure in Europe. Dozens of ancient sculptures carved from salt are augmented by new sculptures from contemporary artists.









Inventions Poland gave to the world


*Mine detector!





*Discovery of Radium and Polonium!





*Vodka!


*First mention of vodka is recorded in the Akta Grodzie from the Palatinate of Sandomierz in 1405.


*Bulletproof vest!





*The Witcher series! - a personal favorite of mine








Famous people from Poland

Marie Skłodowska Curie - was a Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person and only woman to win twice, the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two different sciences, and was part of the Curie family legacy of five Nobel Prizes. She was also the first woman to become a professor at the University of Paris, and in 1995 became the first woman to be entombed on her own merits in the Panthéon in Paris.
(1867-1934)

Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin - was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist of the Romantic era who wrote primarily for the solo piano. He gained and has maintained renown worldwide as a leading musician of his era, whose "poetic genius was based on a professional technique that was without equal in his generation." Chopin was born in what was then the Duchy of Warsaw and grew up in Warsaw, which in 1815 became part of Congress Poland. A child prodigy, he completed his musical education and composed his earlier works in Warsaw before leaving Poland at the age of 20, less than a month before the outbreak of the November 1830 Uprising.
(1810-1849)

Mikołaj Kopernik - was a Renaissance- and Reformation-era mathematician and astronomer who formulated a model of the universe that placed the Sun rather than the Earth at the center of the universe, likely independently of Aristarchus of Samos, who had formulated such a model some eighteen centuries earlier.
The publication of Copernicus' model in his book De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres), just before his death in 1543, was a major event in the history of science, triggering the Copernican Revolution and making an important contribution to the Scientific Revolution.
(1473-1543)

Lech Wałęsa - is a retired Polish politician and labour activist.[1] He co-founded and headed Solidarity (Solidarność), the Soviet bloc's first independent trade union, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and served as President of Poland from 1990 to 1995.
(born 1943)

Karol Józef Wojtyła - better known as Pope John Paul II , was head of the Catholic Church from 1978 to 2005.John Paul II is recognised as helping to end Communist rule in his native Poland and eventually all of Europe.John Paul II significantly improved the Catholic Church's relations with Judaism, Islam, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Anglican Communion. He upheld the Church's teachings on such matters as artificial contraception and the ordination of women, but also supported the Church's Second Vatican Council and its reforms.
(1920-2005)








Traditional food


Pierogi



Dumplings filled with a savory or sweet filling and cooked by boiling in water.Typical fillings include sauerkraut, ground meat, cheese, and fruits. The dumplings may be served with a topping, such as melted butter, sour cream, or fried onion, or combinations of those ingredients.

Rosół



Polish version of chicken broth/chicken soup.

Gołąbki



Polish variety of the cabbage roll. Unlike sarma or dolma, gołąbki tend to be larger, and are usually served with tomate sauce.

Bigos



Finely chopped meat of various kinds stewed with sauerkrautand shredded fresh cabbage.

Kiełbasa



Probably the best known form of sausage in the world.

Kotlet schabowy


Polish version of the typical Central European breaded meat dish.

Śledź w oleju z cebulą


Dish made of pickled herring,stored in oil , with onion.

Łazanki z kapustą i grzybami


A type of noodles combined with cabbage and mushrooms.

Traditional deserts

Sernik



Polish version of the cheesecake dessert.


Naleśniki



Polish version of pancakes, albeit more closely related to French Crepes or Russian blins, rather than the American Pancake.

Rogale świętomarcińskie



This one is actually unique, as the recipe is protected by EU law. This croissant is made with 81 layers between which you find things such as white poppy seeds, raisins or biscuit crumbs. Because of this dense concentration of ingredients between layers, there is no typical filling to speak of, as all the flavor can be enjoyed from the dough itself.

Traditional drinks

Polish Vodka



Bison Grass Vodka










Interesting facts about Polan😛
*Being such an interesting culture I choosed 10 interesting facts instead of 5. Enjoy!

1.The 380,000-acre (150,000-hectare) Białowieża Primeval Forest in Poland is Europe’s last ancient forest and home to 800 European bison, Europe’s heaviest land animals.
2.Poland was the only European country which never officially collaborated with the Nazis at any level, and no Polish units fought alongside the Nazi army. Poland never officially surrendered to Germany, and the Polish Resistance movement in German-occupied Poland during World War II was the largest resistance movement in Europe.
4.Ludwig Zamenhof, from Białystok, Poland, created the artificial language of Esperanto.
5.Poles have won a total of 17 Nobel Prizes (more than Japan, China, India, or Australia), including four Peace Prizes and five in Literature.
6.Poland’s Stanisław Lem is known as one of the world’s greatest science fiction writers. His novel Solaris was made into a movie in 2002.
7.Krąków’s Jagiellonian University was established by King Casimir III the Great in 1364 and is the oldest university in Poland and second oldest in Central Europe.
8.Pizza, or zapiekanka, in Poland does not contain tomato sauce. It is a popular street food served on a baguette with melted cheese, mushrooms, and ketchup.
9.In 1802, a Polish unit of soldiers accompanied a French force sent to quell the slave uprising in the French colony of Haiti. Descendants of the Polish soldiers still live in Haiti where they are known as negres blancs. In 1983, Pope John Paul II visited Haiti and acknowledged its place in Polish history.
10.Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius published the earliest exact maps of the moon.






My 5 words when I hear about Polan😛
#Pierogi,#Lewandowski,#Witcher,#Catholic,#Jagiello


What are your 5?




Special thanks to the polish comunity and a message from them:


Their fault this article has this information.



All in all, Poland is a pretty cool place, and I would definitely recommend visiting 🙂




Waiting for feedback , comments , opinions and if there is anyone that thinks I missed something , I could do something better or just wants to help me with this project , PM me !

Special thanks to Kariky for the spacers !!



Hope you enjoyed and see you next time!

P.S. Article 24/74!






P.S.2. Don't forget to push the flags !


P.S.3. Special message from my friend Kelstein: "Polska dla Polaków"