The resurrection of Poland – World War I

World War I smashed the might of the Russian, Germany and Austrian empires and allowed Poland to rise from the dead. The upcoming World War I and the political turbulence that was sweeping throughout Europe in 1914 offered the Polish nation hopes for regaining independence. On June 28, 1914, Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria and heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, was assassinated in Sarajevo by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb student. The Archduke was there to assert imperial authority over a disputed province. Princip was supported by pan-Serbian nationalists, with links to the Serbian military. Though this assassination is usually considered the immediate trigger for the war, its origins can be traced back to the complex web of alliances and counterbalances that developed between the various European powers after 1871. In the beginning of the war Russians proposed Poland full rights of self-government, but in the same time still subordinate to the tsar. After overrunning Russians from Polish land by Germans, they have made an offer. Namely, they have promissed to set up Polish kingdom after war. Very important step to the ralunch of a fully independant Poland was creating the Regency Council. Józef Piłsudski and Roman Dmowski were leading contenders for leadership of the Polish nation. In the event, Piłsudski came out on top. First he was held by the Germans in internment for well over a year, but the day before the armistace of November 1, 1918 he was realesed and he took command of the Regency Council.Three days later he was sworn as a head of the state. Polish independence was eventually confirmed by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919.