Polish Community in Great Britain

Abstract

The article presents the activity of Poles in Great Britain in the 20th century, beginning with the end of World War II, when a large group of Polish refugees and veterans settled in the UK. In 1947, the Federation of Poles was established to represent Polish community in Great Britain. The Association of Polish Women (1946) and the Relief Society for Poles (1946) were also formed at the same time. The article shows the involvement of the Polish community in Great Britain in the context of Polish history. This involvement included the organisation of anti-communist protests, carrying out various actions to inform people about the situation in Poland, organising material aid, supporting Poland at the time of the system transformation, and supporting Poland’s accession to the European Union. Over the decades, the Polish community in Great Britain has managed to set up numerous veterans’ and social organisations, Polish schools, it also built churches in order to preserve Polish culture abroad.