Poles in Germany in 1920 and Their Re-emigration

Abstract

History of Poles in Germany and their returns to Poland in the period between signing the Treaty of Versailles on 28^th June 1919 and the year 1921 were almost completely left unspoken of in historical literature, both Polish and German. On the basis of archival documents found in German archives: Politisches Archiv Auswärtiges Amt, HS Düsseldorf, STA Münster, and in Polish ones: Archiwum Akt Nowych PRM iMSZ, AP Bydgoszcz it has been penetratingly shown how Poles living in Germany at that time were involved in all the most important political events; among them in the plebiscites in Warmia, Masuria, Upper Silesia, the Silesian uprisings, revolution in Germany, Kapp-Lütwitz's coup d'état, class and party conflicts in the Ruhr as well as in Berlin. Actions taken against Poles during the Polish-Bolshevik war as well as the attitude of the German authorities and of the Polish diplomatic agencies towards them have been presented in detail. For the first time data have been presented concerning the ways of re-emigration and the statistics of Poles coming back. In the election to the Reichstag in 1920 in the districts of Rhineland and Westphalia over 60 thousand votes were cast for Polish candidates. In the discussed period also several hundred Poles were elected for the District Councils of Westphalia and Rhineland as well as for the parish councils there. In many places national school courses (Volksshochschulekurse) were conducted which were attended by nearly 4 thousand people. Preparations to the re-emigration action and the course the action took were slowed down because of lack of executive regulations enabling one to choose the country to which he declared his will to move along with his belongings. Polish emigration in Germany resented lack of tax regulations between the Polish and German sides. This was the reason why the special Association for defending emigrants was established. Many Poles coming back to Poland took up important offices of voivodes, town presidents, Members of Parliament and Senators there and Jan Brejski even was a candidate for the Prime Minister of the Polish Republic. They tried to give help to Poles that were persecuted in Germany. It seems that without a thorough investigation of the situation of Poles in Germany at that period it is hard to take an objective view of the events of the following years connected with exercising the options and the `compulsory re-emigration', the problem of national minorities in both countries and to look professionally at the diplomatic game of the representatives of Poland and Germany concerning the opting people and the Polish-German relations in general.