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CHAPTER1
Fromliberalismtointerventionism
(1918–1939)
1.1.Post-partitionchallengesandthePolisheconomy
Nineteenth-centuryPoland,dividedbetweenpartitioners,facedoverpopulationand
agriculturaleconomy.TheterritorieslocatedontheedgeofEuropeexperiencingthe
industrialrevolutionremainedbarelyunderitsmarginalinfluence.Lackofownstate
meantthatthemainbarrieragainsteconomicdevelopmentintheformofserfdom
inagriculturewaskeptforextremelylong.Productionwasadjustedtotheneedsof
partitioningpowers.Theagriculturaleconomyandweakinternalmarketprovided
toolittlecapitalfordevelopmentpurposes.Thesituationimprovedonlyunderthe
influenceoftheSecondIndustrialRevolution.
Atthattime,PolishlandsdevelopedataratecomparabletoGermany,France
ortheUSA,howeverwithadelay,unevenly,basedonlessmodernproductionar-
eas.AhigherlevelofdevelopmentwasachievedbyPrussianregions(especiallyin
SilesiaandWestPrussia)andtwogovernoratesintheKingdomofPoland(War-
sawandPiotrków).Otherregionsremainedbackward.Intheterritoriesunder
RussianandAustrianrule,thedevelopmentwasenclave-like.Intermsofeconomic
structure,theseareaswereofanextremelyagriculturalnaturewithscarceindustrial
enclaves.Low-productiveretardedagriculturepredominatedandreliedlargelyon
unqualifiedlabourforces,mostoftenilliterate.Thisdidnotallowtocatchupwiththe
mostmodernandfastmodernisingWesterneconomies(likeGermanyortheUSA).
ApproximateestimatesofGDPpercapitafortheterritoryofPolandfromthebegin-
ningofthe20thcenturyindicatethattheirdevelopmentdistancemeasuredwiththis
indicatorwasabout40%comparedtotheGermaneconomyand55%comparedto
theBritisheconomy[Bukowskietal.,2018].
TheFirstWorldWarresultedinstructuraltransformationsonthePolishlands
towardswarproductionbut,inthefinalphaseofthewarasaresultofplunderingof
machineryandequipmentbytheinvaders,causedalsodestructionofinfrastructure
anddeprivationofitsweakalthoughdevelopingindustry.Thewidespreadandforced
mobilisationofmenandhorses,mostlykilledduringthewar,causedthedeclineof