Poland 1945–2026 in 10 questions

Pick an answer in your head, then open the explanation. Every answer has a source.

Circle one answer for each question. The answer key is on the last page.

1. According to the communist Interior Ministry's own records, how many underground youth organisations were uncovered after the war?

   • A. 49
   • B. 491
   • C. 4,910
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: B. 491. 491 organisations with about 6,340 members, most of them in 1949–1953. Most lasted two years at most.

   Source: E. J. Kryńska (Univ. of Białystok)

2. How many juvenile political prisoners were held in December 1951?

   • A. 234
   • B. 23,470
   • C. 2,347
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: C. 2,347. 2,347 — figures after E. J. Kryńska, citing K. Szwagrzyk.

   Source: E. J. Kryńska (Univ. of Białystok)

3. In 1951 the District Military Court in Kielce sentenced nineteen-year-old Bogumił Studziński to how many years?

   • A. 10 years
   • B. 3 years
   • C. life
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: A. 10 years. Ten years in prison for joining the underground and keeping weapons.

   Sources: Encyklopedia Solidarności; IPN Ki 8/1001

4. In which prison did he serve his sentence?

   • A. Wronki
   • B. Sztum
   • C. Rawicz
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: C. Rawicz. Rawicz — one of the harsh prisons where young convicts were sent. He was released in 1955.

   Sources: Encyklopedia Solidarności; IPN, Przystanek Historia

5. What was launched on 25 March 1977?

   • A. the Workers' Defence Committee (KOR)
   • B. the Movement for the Defence of Human and Civic Rights (ROPCiO)
   • C. the Solidarity trade union
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: B. the Movement for the Defence of Human and Civic Rights (ROPCiO). ROPCiO — with an appeal to Polish society. KOR was founded in September 1976, Solidarity in 1980.

   Sources: IPN, Przystanek Historia; Wikipedia: KOR

6. How many people signed the appeal that launched ROPCiO?

   • A. 18
   • B. 34
   • C. 59
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: A. 18. Eighteen — among them Bogumił Studziński, a former political prisoner.

   Source: IPN, Przystanek Historia

7. How many members did Solidarity have in 1980–1981?

   • A. about 1 million
   • B. about 20 million
   • C. about 10 million
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: C. about 10 million. About ten million — roughly one in three working-age Poles.

   Source: IPN

8. When was the memoir W lochach socjalizmu first published?

   • A. 1956
   • B. 1988
   • C. 1981
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: B. 1988. In 1988, a year after the author's death, by the underground publisher Wydawnictwo „Kurs” — beyond the censor's reach. The print run is unknown.

   Sources: Museum of Free Speech; WorldCat

9. In 2025, what was Poland's GDP per head at purchasing power as a share of the EU average?

   • A. 81%
   • B. 51%
   • C. 101%
   Show the answer

   Correct answer: A. 81%. 81% — the highest on record; in 1995 it was 44%.

   Source: Notes from Poland / Eurostat

10. According to the World Bank (2017), what did Poland get most right?

    • A. natural resources
    • B. foreign aid
    • C. institutions — the rule of law and accountable government
    Show the answer

    Correct answer: C. institutions — the rule of law and accountable government. The report Lessons from Poland points above all to institutions: the rule of law, property rights, accountable government.

    Source: World Bank

Answer key

For the teacher — answers with explanations and sources are on the page: https://inthedungeons.com/en/quiz

1. B. 491
2. C. 2,347
3. A. 10 years
4. C. Rawicz
5. B. the Movement for the Defence of Human and Civic Rights (ROPCiO)
6. A. 18
7. C. about 10 million
8. B. 1988
9. A. 81%
10. C. institutions — the rule of law and accountable government