This date in the III Polish Republic is the subject of a dispute, settled as a consequence of the verdict of the creators of the alleged historical policy in favour of the word "step in" and in a more extremist version "the beginning of the fresh occupation".
The word “exemption” inactive exists, but the authorities of Warsaw, which recognized these anniversaries for many years after 1989 – they do not truly care. The authoritative historical explanation is now as follows: “On 17 January 1945, 1st WP Army and russian troops entered the left-wing ruins of Warsaw. Although the fight against the retreating tiny German forces lasted only a fewer hours, they became an crucial component of communist historical propaganda." This communicative fits into the broader context of the assessments concerning 1944-1945, where, of course, the explanation of "new occupation" dominates, which equates the mechanical period of German business with the period of russian domination after 1945. This is, of course, a falsification of history, contrary primarily to the feelings of millions of Poles surviving in Poland at the time, for whom 1945 meant "liberation", even erstwhile it was incomplete.
But the case of Warsaw is more complicated. due to the fact that on January 17, 1945, the city practically did not exist, it was a sea of ruins not inhabited by anyone. The inhabitants who survived the defeat of the Warsaw Uprising were exiled from the city, and it itself was demolished, mostly after the surrender. In this situation, the word “liberation” sounds somewhat ambiguous. due to the fact that can ruins be liberated? For this reason, the spokespersons for the explanation of "new occupation" have a somewhat facilitated task in disparaging the meaning of this anniversary.
And here we must go back to September 1944. The uprising was already over, it was lost, and the civilian population and a large part of the fighters – she felt that the work for the unimaginable defeat was borne by the AK and London command. All reports from this period are clear about the almost complete collapse of assurance in the management of the AK and the Polish Underground State, and thus to the London Government. This was easy seen by members of the PPR in Warsaw having data from the first hand from the fighting AL troops. Information about the moods of the population was given to Lublin. There, part of the management of the PPR, mainly the national activists considered it a very good time to change the attitude of the USSR and Stalin himself to the uprising. They proposed that the Red Army and the Polish Army should win Warsaw in September 1944 and then, as individual said, they would be greeted on their knees by surviving Warsawians. From a political point of view, this would be the final blow to London and massive propaganda support to the PPR. This was the right analysis, the reaction of the people of Warsaw on the Prague side, liberated in September 1944, were one-eyed – Polish and russian troops were greeted enthusiastically and soldiers were considered saviors.
However, Stalin's distrust of the uprising, fueled by biased reports of a associate of the 1st Belarusian War Council, General Konstanty Tielegin, made this PPR proposal not at all considered. any more dogmatic communists (especially those from the Central Office of Polish Communists) may even have suspected that the national part of the PPR is playing any dangerous game. After all, in Warsaw AL troops were fighting, who subservient themselves to the AK Headquarters, which in authoritative propaganda was referred to as “fascist”. There was so no chance that the "nationals" proposed a maneuver that could change the course of events.
In this situation, Warsaw was doomed. Nevertheless, the day 17 January 1945 was of large importance – it meant the end of the German business and the anticipation of the city returning to life. By the end of January, 12,000 residents returned to Warsaw. In their opinion, they returned to free Warsaw. But the future of the city was in black colours – many people of power did not believe in the sense of rebuilding it. However, Stalin’s opinion prevailed, which categorically rejected the thought of moving the capital to Łódź and considered it essential to rebuild Warsaw as the capital of Poland. In the past of Warsaw a full fresh chapter began – with a heroic period of reconstruction.
Jan Engelgard
