How industrialised was Poland before the wars ?
- Thread starter Anderman
- Start date
Define Poland, especially before WW1. Do you mean Kingdom of Poland or territorries that become Poland after WW1?
The Congrees Poland (AKA Kingdom of Poland) had some decent industry, especially textile industry in Łódź and Żyrardów, but also a big steel mill in Dąbrowa Górnicza and some metal nad machine industry in Warsaw, Minsk and Starachowice; add to it some sugar refineries and, surprise, distilleries. It was one the best developed parts of teh Russian Empire but generally more agricultural than industrial. Territories east of the Kingdom were even poorer, with some textile industry near Białystok.
Silesia, especially Upper Silesia was very heavily industrialized, with numerous coal mines, steel mills and metal/machine industry. Great Poland (Poznań/Posen region) and Pomerelia had some decent industry, although mostly based on agriculture, and excellent infrastructure (railway).
Galicia was much poorer, however there was some oil drills and some textile industry near Bielsko-Biała; add to it heavily industrialized Tesin Silesia (Poland did get a small part of it after WW1).
After WW1 Poland was independent again, but dirt poor, ruined by war and with difficult task to combine 3 different economies into one system. Polish industry suffered a lot during the war - withdrawing Russians destroyed a lot, advancing Germans confiscated a lot. Also many Polish companies lost their trade partners in Germany (custom war) and Russia (when it went communist), and Czechoslovakians weren't friendly either. The saving grace for Polish economy was Silesian coal, which was one of the reasons Poland had wanted Silesia so much. And then came the Great Depression. Only in 1935 Polish economy started to grow again.
Poles worked hard and they had some achievements, in some part thanks to French credits. They built modern port in Gdynia and connected it with Silesia with the Coal Trunk-Line. In 1936 Poland started building the Central Industrial Region which was supposed to be fully operational in 1940...
Generally interwar Poland was rather poor, backward country, although not without some decent or even very good industry. Poles had big ambitions though and hopes for the future.
The Congrees Poland (AKA Kingdom of Poland) had some decent industry, especially textile industry in Łódź and Żyrardów, but also a big steel mill in Dąbrowa Górnicza and some metal nad machine industry in Warsaw, Minsk and Starachowice; add to it some sugar refineries and, surprise, distilleries. It was one the best developed parts of teh Russian Empire but generally more agricultural than industrial. Territories east of the Kingdom were even poorer, with some textile industry near Białystok.
Silesia, especially Upper Silesia was very heavily industrialized, with numerous coal mines, steel mills and metal/machine industry. Great Poland (Poznań/Posen region) and Pomerelia had some decent industry, although mostly based on agriculture, and excellent infrastructure (railway).
Galicia was much poorer, however there was some oil drills and some textile industry near Bielsko-Biała; add to it heavily industrialized Tesin Silesia (Poland did get a small part of it after WW1).
After WW1 Poland was independent again, but dirt poor, ruined by war and with difficult task to combine 3 different economies into one system. Polish industry suffered a lot during the war - withdrawing Russians destroyed a lot, advancing Germans confiscated a lot. Also many Polish companies lost their trade partners in Germany (custom war) and Russia (when it went communist), and Czechoslovakians weren't friendly either. The saving grace for Polish economy was Silesian coal, which was one of the reasons Poland had wanted Silesia so much. And then came the Great Depression. Only in 1935 Polish economy started to grow again.
Poles worked hard and they had some achievements, in some part thanks to French credits. They built modern port in Gdynia and connected it with Silesia with the Coal Trunk-Line. In 1936 Poland started building the Central Industrial Region which was supposed to be fully operational in 1940...
Generally interwar Poland was rather poor, backward country, although not without some decent or even very good industry. Poles had big ambitions though and hopes for the future.
Lodz (though it was Lemberg at the time) was also the first city to be lit by gaslight. But on the overall, not very AFAIK.
Oh, you're right, I'm an idiot
.Lvov is in Ukraine now, but it was in interwar Poland, right?
Yes, and it was a seat of Lwow Woiwodship and IIRC the 3rd biggest city in Poland.
Anderman
Donor
Thanks for your information
What Poland is or better its boarders is indeed tricky but Minsk wasn´t part of Poland during the interwar years at least.
Depends which Minsk
There's a Minsk in Mazovia, between Warsaw and Siedlce. Starting from 1890 there were built bridges (including the world's first welded road bridge), turbines, artillery ammunition and caissons, and later also cranes.