Topic: Was it Just Quarrels and Assassinations? The Political Problems of the Second Polish Republic

Marcin Dyś

Target group

7th‑grade students of elementary school

Core curriculum

7th‑grade students of elementary school

XXIX. Second Polish Republic in 1921‑1939. Pupil:

1. characterizes the scale and consequences of wartime destruction and industrial heritage;

2. characterizes the political system of Poland based on the March constitution of 1921;

3. discusses the crisis of parliamentary democracy in Poland - the causes, course and effects of the May coup;

4. describes Polish authoritarianism - the rule of sanation, systemic changes (April Constitution of 1935);

5. presents the main directions of the foreign policy of the Second Polish Republic (system of alliances and the policy of balance).

General aim of education

Students will get acquainted with the fate of the Commonwealth from regaining independence until the outbreak of World War II.

Key competences

• communication in foreign languages;

• digital competence;

• learning to learn.

Criteria for success
The student will learn:

• to characterize the circumstances in which Poland regained its independence and the challenges it faced;

• to characterize the views represented by Józef Piłsudski and Roman Dmowski;

• to characterize political life in the Second Polish Republic;

• to characterize the most important politicians of the Second Polish Republic;

• to explain the problems of reborn Poland.

Methods/techniques

• expository

  • talk.

• activating

  • discussion.

• programmed

  • with computer;

  • with e‑textbook.

• practical

  • exercices concerned.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Teaching aids

• e‑textbook;

• notebook and crayons/felt‑tip pens;

• interactive whiteboard, tablets/computers.

Lesson plan overview

Before classes

1. Students should know what views were voiced by the most important leaders in the political life of the Second Polish Republic – Józef Piłsudski and Roman Dmowski. They should also remember the previous lessons regarding the fight for borders and the challenges faced by the resurgent fatherland.

Introduction

1. The teacher states the subject of the lesson, explains the aim of the lesson and together with students determines the success criteria to be achieved.

2. The teacher, referring to the previous lessons, asks about the visions of the revival of Poland proclaimed at the beginning of the 20th century by the two most important political leaders - Józef Piłsudski and Roman Dmowski - and which vision won. Students assign statements from both politicians in Exercise 1 **.

3. Then the teacher begins the discussion about the problems and challenges facing the reborn homeland. The students give their suggestions and the teacher writes them down on the board, grouping them in categories – political, social and economic. In the absence of ideas, the teacher guides the students, asking them auxiliary questions, eg. Was the resurgent Poland inhabited only by Poles? Did all Polish politicians share the same views? What problems did European countries have after the First World War? Asking questions, the lecturer remembers that they are formulated to be key questions.

Realization

1. The teacher, referring to the problems mentioned by students, points out that during the lesson they will deal with these social and political aspects. Then, he introduces students to the events of 1918‑1939. He begins with the topic of the political system, raises the issue of the March Constitution, the breakdown of the political scene and the first presidential election. Students match the May constitution with its consequences (** Exercise 2 **) and the names of top politicians with their pictures (** Exercise 3 **).

2. The teacher begins the discussion by asking the students the question – If the democratically elected authority is weak and often changes, can it be replaced even with by violating the law? Then he asks students what a coup d'état is and what do they associate with it? Then he introduces the students to the crucial moment of the history of the Second Polish Republic – the May coup of 1926 - and its consequences.

3. Then he explains to students what changes have occurred in political and social life after 1926. He raises issues related to the Brest process, Bereza Kartuska, the lack of democracy, limitation of civil rights and the fight against opponents of political sanation. Students read Józef Piłsudski's interview from 1930 and perform ** Task 1 **. Then they classify the opinions about the changes after the May coup (** Exercise 4 **) and match the definitions with proper keywords (** Exercise 5 **).

4. The teacher provides the feedback to the students.

Summary

1. To sum up the lesson, the teacher asks students where did the political problems that led to the May coup came from. Then he explains that the interwar period was an extremely turbulent and difficult period, not only for the reborn Poland, but for many countries around the world.

2. The teacher assesses the students' work during the lesson, taking into account their input and commitment. For this purpose, he may prepare an evaluation questionnaire for self‑assessment and evaluation of the teacher's work and other students.

3. Students will get acquainted with the timeline of the interwar period in ** Task 2 **.

4. The teacher displays the criteria for success and asks the students to assess their skills acquired during the classes.

Homework

1. The teacher tasks willing students with homework: Throughout its existence, the Second Polish Republic was a country that was plagued with social and political problems. Some of the biggest problems were national conflicts. Find out what minorities lived in Poland in 1918‑1939 and what their attitude towards the Polish authorities was.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Was it Just Quarrels and Assassinations? The Political Problems of the Second Polish Republic

The reborn Polish state suffered due to an internal crisis. It would barely overcome its economic difficulties. On top of the post‑war crisis, Poland was ravaged by the Partitions and the war itself. The Second Polish Republic was a multinational state inhabited by followers of multiple religions, contributing to the tensions. The Ukrainians demanded their own state, and antisemitism was on the rise. After Poland regained independence, Józef Piłsudski (since 1920, Marshal of Poland) became the temporary Chief of State. After the general elections, the sejm was fragmented – there were so many parties that it was difficult to form a government. Cabinets kept collapsing, one after another. After the end of the border wars, the first President of Poland, Gabriel Narutowicz, was elected. However, shortly afterwards, in 1922, he was assassinated. Piłsudski, dissatisfied with the situation in the country, rebelled against the legal authorities together with the parts of military loyal to him, and subsequently abolished them in the so‑called May Coup d’État in 1926. He ruled as a dictator, though formally he was merely the Commander‑in‑Chief of the military. The rule of Piłsudski and his followers are known as the “Sanation” (from the Latin word “sanatio”, meaning “healing”).