Poland

=ECONOMY= the economy of poland is a high earning economy and is the sixth largest economy in europe. polands economy is also a very fast growing economy. The currency they use in Poland is the Zloti. Civilian aircraft and alcoholic beverages are among major Polish exports to the U.S. while leading American imports from Poland include military aircraft & equipment.

=GEOGRAPHY= The geological structure of Poland has been shaped by the continental collision of Europe and Africa over the past 60 million years, on the one hand, and the quarternary glaciations of northern Europe, on the other. Both processes shaped the sudetes and the carpathian mountains. The moraine landscape of northern Poland contains soils made up mostly of sand or loam, while the ice age river valleys of the south often contain loess. The cracow the pieniny, and the westerntaras consist of limestone, while the high tatras, the beskids, and the karkanoosze are made up mainly of granite and basalts. The polish jura chain is one of the oldest mountain ranges on earth. =TIMELINE= =The beggining= In the area that is today called Poland, in the early centuries AD there lived many groups or tribes, including the Celts, Balts, Scythians, Huns, Goths, and Germanic peoples. It is believed that the Slavs arrived in the 6th or 7th century when several differnt Slavic tribes settled in the area. By the mid 10th century, the Polania tribe became dominant. Legends say that the chief, Piast, united the groups into one cohesive unit, naming it Polska (Poland). This region became Wielkopolska, or Greater Poland. =Piast Dynasty 966-1370= 966 duke mieszko converts to chrisianity after marrying dabroka of bohemia. This is formally known as th birth of the polish nation.by converting to chrisianity poland became more like the rest of the western hemisphere. 992 duke mieszko dies after the city of gniezno becomes capital 1100's The university is founded at Krakow, one of Europe's first universities. =The jagiellonian dynasty1382-1572= 1500's The Renaissance comes to Poland. Polish becomes the language in lieu of Latin. Literature, learning, culture, and architecture flourish. 1569 The Polish Parliament, or Sejm, unifies Poland and Lithuania into one state. Royal succession is now based on election by the Sejm, including allowing foreign candidates for consideration. The decision was disastrous for Poland, and during the period of the Royal Republic, only four out of eleven kings were native Poles. =The royal republic 1572-1795= 1573 The Sejm guarantees religious equality. Roman Catholics, Jews, Protestants, Orthodox Christians, and Muslims all live together in Poland in peace. 1596-1609 Polands capital is moved from Krakow to Warsaw 1700's Known as the Deluge, Sweden invades Poland with the help of the Tartars and Cossacks from the East. Poland is virtually destoyed as cities are burned and plundered. A population of 10 million is reduced to 6 million due to the wars, famine, and the bubonic plauge. 1794 1870's poland due to russia is basically no existent now.It is now overruled by russia and is now called prussia.
 * Boleslaw Krzywousty divides poland amongst his sons to enforce unity**
 * 1300**
 * Poland is reunited**
 * 1364**
 * Tadeusz Kosciuszko**, the famous general who helped win the American Revolution, starts a rebellion for Polish independence, but it is not strong enough to defeat the Russians.

=World War 1 1914-1918= With Poland's three occupying powers at war with each other, Poland becomes the main fighting ground. Because there was no official Polish state, there was no Polish army. Poles were forced into the Russian, German, and Austrian armies and forced to fight against one another. 11 November 1919 Poland becomes independent as WWI comes to an end. The country was devastated by the war. 1919 The **Treaty of Versailles** gives Poland western Prussia, thus getting access to the Baltic Sea. =World War 2 1939-1945= 1939 Hitler invades Poland on the 1st of september. Mass executions and arrests begin around poland 1941 Hitler attacks the Soviet Union, and Poland remains under the Nazi regime for the next three years. Many Poles are deported to labor camps. The Polish intelligentsia are executed, and the Nazis plan to elimate the Polish Jews entirely. Most of Poland's Jewish population, including many non-Jews, die in Nazi death camps set up throughout Poland at Maidanek, Birkenau, and Oswiecim (Auschwitz). The Germans exterminated most of Poland's three million Jews, along with Jews from other occupied countries. 1943 The warsaw Ghetto uprising is th single largest uprisng in history yet it ended tragically. 1944-1945 Russia's Red Army is victorious over the Germans. Russia set up a Communist-dominated government for Poland in Lublin. In February 1945, Russia, United States, and Great Britian meet at theYalta Confernceand agree to leave Poland under Soviet control. At the war's end, over 6 million Poles were dead, approximately 20% of Poland's pre-war population. 1970 Karol Wojtyla, the Archbishop of Krakow, is elected Pope. Taking the name John Paul II, he is the first non-Italian pope in nearly 500 years. =CULTURE= In polish hello is czesc and goodbye is pozegnanie. GDP (2010): $476 billion. Real GDP growth (2010): 3.8%. Per capita GDP (2010): $12,450. Rate of inflation (2010, average): 2.6%. Natural resources: Coal, copper, sulfur, natural gas, silver, lead, salt. Agriculture: //Products//--grains, hogs, dairy, potatoes, horticulture, sugar beets, oilseed. Industry: //Types//--machine building, chemicals, mining, shipbuilding, automobiles, furniture, pulp and paper, food processing, glass, beverages. Trade (2009): //Exports//--$142.1 billion: furniture, cars, home appliances, coal, LCD monitors. //Imports//--$146.4 billion: crude oil, passenger cars, pharmaceuticals, car parts, computers. = =