God's Playground: A History of Poland, Volume 2 (Revised Edition) » (2nd Edition)

Norman Davies is chair of the history department, School of Slavonic and East European Studies, at the University of London.

The most comprehensive survey of Polish history available in English, God's Playground demonstrates Poland's importance in European history from medieval times to the present.

New York Times Book Review

Superbly readable, rich in detail yet never boring or trivial . . . This is beyond doubt not only the best book on Poland in the English language, it is the best book on Poland.

Maps and Diagrams Illustrations Notes on the Illustrations Abbreviations Chronology

I. Poland Destroyed and Reconstructed, 1795-1945

1. Narod: The Growth of the Modern Polish Nation (1772-1945)
2. Rossiya: The Russian Partition (1772-1918)
3. Preussen: The Prussian Partition (1772-1918)
4. Galicia: The Austrian Partition (1773-1918)
5. Fabryka: The Process of Industrialization
6. Lud: The Rise of the Common People
7. Kosciol: The Roman Catholic Church in Poland
8. Kultura: Education and the Cultural Heritage
9. Zydzi: The Jewish Community
10. Wojsko: The Military Tradition
11. Emigracja: The Polish Emigration
12. Varsovie: The Duchy of Warsaw (1807-1815)
13. Kongresowka: The Congress Kingdom (1815-1864)
14. Cracovia: The Republic of Cracow (1815-1846)
15. Wiosna: The Springtime of Other Nations (1848)
16. Reveries: The Thaw and the January Rising (1855-1864)
17. Rewolucja: Revolution and Reaction (1904-1914)
18. Feniks: The Rebirth of the Polish State (1914-1918)
19. Niepodleglosc: Twenty Years of Independence (1918-1939)
20. Golgota: Poland in the Second World War (1939-1945)
21. Granice: The Modern Polish Frontiers (1919-1945)

II. Contemporary Poland since 1944

22. Partia: The communist Movement
23. Polska Ludowa: The Polish 'People's Republic' (since 1944)
24. Solidarnosc: The Solidarity Decade
25. Wolnosc: Freedom Regained, 1990-2000

Postscript Notes on the Text Suggestions for Further Reading Index