The German Minority in Poland between 1945 and 1960: A Key Element of Poland’s Postwar Economy

Abstract: After the end of the war, the overall impression of large-scale destruction in Poland led many people to believe that much of the economy had to be rebuilt from scratch, even though economic growth was relatively high. This growth was not uniform across the country, though: Poland consisted of two economically different regions, one of which was former German territory which experienced very slow economic growth and from which 95 percent of the native inhabitants—ethnic Germans—had been forcibly removed. This paper argues that the massive border changes and the expulsion of the Germans from this region negatively affected productivity, contributed to the region’s slow economic growth, and exacerbated Poland’s economic problems. Only after the expulsion of the Germans from this territory was it realized that their knowledge, skills, and experience were key factors in economic reconstruction, and that rebuilding the economy “from scratch” was not necessary. Ultimately, this realization had a profound impact on Poland’s policy towards the German minority.