A film about plebiscites in Upper Silesia and Schleswig
20.03.2021
After World War I, Poland and Denmark shaped their borders through plebiscites. Today, on the 100th anniversary of the plebiscite in Upper Silesia, we present you a short film on the Polish-Danish historical common heritage.
The defeat of Germany in the World War I had significant consequences for the Danish minority in North Schleswig and for Poland’s fight for independence. President Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points was also of great importance for the post-war territorial changes.
Plebiscite in Schleswig
The North Schleswig plebiscite took place on February 10, 1920, in which75 percent of votes was in favor of joining Denmark. On March 14, 1920 the majority of Central Schleswig voted to remain within Germany.
After the plebiscite in May 1920, a gradual process of taking over North Schleswig began and on June 15, Denmark officially took over the administration.
Plebiscite in Upper Silesia
The plebiscite in Upper Silesia was held on March 20, 1921. 40.3 percent voted in favor of joining Poland, 59.4 percent voted to remain within Germany. The plan for the border delimitation, developed on the basis of the results of the plebiscite, was unfavorable for Poland, and led to the outbreak of the Third Silesian Uprising on May 3, 1921.
The final delimitation of the border of Upper Silesia was made by the Council of Ambassadors on October 20, 1921. Poland was granted an area with nearly a million inhabitants (46 percent of the population of Upper Silesia), and as much as 75 percent of the Upper Silesian industrial installations and 85 percent coal deposits.
Results of the plebiscites
As a result of the plebiscite held in North Schleswig, Denmark regained some of the lands lost in 1864 and gained access to industrialized areas, including the port. Poland, as a result of the Silesian uprisings and the plebiscite in Upper Silesia, gained industrialized territories, which became the driving force of the industrialization of the newly reborn state.
We cordially invite you to watch the short film about Polish and Danish common heritage.
Compiled on the basis:
Website on Silesian Uprisings - https://powstania.slaskie.pl/
Denmark – G. Szelągowska, 2010, Published by Trio, Institute of History, University of Warsaw
Museums of Sileasian Uprisings in Świętochłowice