Sytuacja w Polsce w latach 1949–1956 w relacjach dyplomatów duńskich

The decision to establish cooperation between Denmark and Poland aft er WWII was determined by economic reasons. Poland became an important supplier of coal to Denmark. Despite the fact that the countries belonged to two opposing political-military blocks, the Danish diplomatic post in Warsaw observed what was going on in Poland and the changes taking place in Polish home policy. The years 1949–1956 were eventful: the Polish United Workers’ Party took over power in the country and the anti-clerical offensive and Stalinist terror mounted; the culminating point of the period were the events of October 1956 and Władysław Gomułka took over. The aim of the article is to demonstrate the manner in which the Danish post in Warsaw described and evaluated the changes taking place in Poland in the years 1949–1956, which events attracted the interest of diplomats and which were considered insignificant. Danish diplomats perceived postwar Poland as a country where the communist system had been imposed by the USSR and was closely controlled by the Soviets. Nevertheless, they had a liking for the Polish nation, particularly for Bolesław Bierut whom they regarded as a real statesman. Danish diplomats in their reports analysed the economic situation in Poland, recorded economic reforms, and described the relations of Poland with Germany.