Articles of interest

Friday, March 25, 2022

European Borders are Never Permanent: Poland and Lithuania

With Poland and the Balkans perilously close to the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine I thought it would be interesting to look at the changes in the borders in this region. It has changed significantly. Eastern Europe, partly because of the periodic shifts in borders of states the region has a very complex ethnic makeup that makes drawing borders perilously difficult. 

1921 Polish stamp

Poland and Lithuania are good examples of countries whose borders have changed significantly.  The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was a very large kingdom that extended well into today’s Ukraine and Russia. It was at its height in the early 17th century. As the kingdom weakened it was partitioned between 1772 and 1795 to the point that it did not exist as an independent nation. It remained this way until the Peace Conference of 1919 which reestablished Poland and Lithuania as independent nations.

 

 

 

 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Rzeczpospolita_Central_Lithuania.png
Republic of Central Lithuania (green) Poland (beige) Lithuania (gray) East Prussia (orange) Wikipedia

However, there was disputed territory between the two countries. In the northern section of the reconstituted Poland that bordered Lithuania a client state was formed that lasted barely two years (1920-1922) — the Republic of Central Lithuania. Although it was recognized by the League of Nations it was not recognized by Lithuania. Because the republic included the historic capital of Vilnius, Lithuania claimed it as their own territory. The short-lived republic was absorbed into Poland in 1922

Republic of Central Lithuania stamp, 1921
1923 Lithuanian stamp



But wait. There’s more. After World War II Poland’s borders were shifted several hundred miles to the west. The eastern part went to Ukraine and Belarus in the USSR. Lithuania gained what had been the Republic of Central Lithuania but by that point it was a part of the Soviet Union and no longer independent. Poland was given East Prussia when Germany was carved up. What was the free city of Danzig become GdaƄsk.

Confused yet? You should be. But imagine how confused the people who lived in that region felt!

No comments:

Post a Comment