Teaching Resource - 1970 Poland Crisis

Faced with an increasingly untenable economic situation, the Polish government announced it would substantially raise the price of many basic foodstuffs in December 1970. Workers all along the Baltic coast demonstrated in protest. In response, the country’s leader, Władisław Gomułka, authorized the use of the military to quiet the situation. Troops fired on protesting workers, killing dozens and wounding hundreds of people. Concerned that the situation would escalate, the Central Committee of the Polish United Workers Party removed Gomułka from power and replaced him with Edward Gierek. The documents selected here detail the confusion following these events and show British diplomats trying to assess the situation and make predictions about Poland’s future.