Solidarność: August 31, 1980 and What the Consul Actually Asks

Not the first attempt: Poznań 1956, March 1968, December 1970

August 1980 was not the first protest against communist rule in Poland — nor the first the authorities tried to crush by force. In June 1956, workers at the Cegielski factory in Poznań went on strike over production quotas and wages; the demonstration was crushed by tanks, killing between 57 and 70 people. In March 1968, student protests after the banning of the play "Dziady" escalated into a large-scale antisemitic campaign by the authorities that forced thousands of Polish Jews to emigrate. In December 1970, shipyard workers in Gdańsk and Gdynia went on strike against a sudden rise in food prices right before Christmas; the army opened fire, killing about 45 people, and First Secretary Władysław Gomułka was replaced by Edward Gierek.

Each of these protests was crushed — and none left behind an organization able to survive the next crackdown. August 1980 turned out differently.

17 days at the Gdańsk Shipyard: the "21 Demands"

On August 14, 1980, workers at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk declared a strike — the direct trigger was the dismissal of crane operator Anna Walentynowicz, an activist of the Free Trade Unions, just months before her retirement. By noon, around 12,000 of the shipyard's 17,000 workers were on strike. The strike came to be led by an electrician, Lech Wałęsa.

On August 17, the Inter-factory Strike Committee adopted the document that went down in history as the "21 Demands": recognition of independent trade unions, the right to strike, freedom of speech and the press, release of political prisoners, a higher minimum wage, and a monument to the victims of December 1970. The strike lasted 17 days, from August 14 to 31.

Agreements that recognized the impossible

An agreement was signed in Szczecin on August 30, in Gdańsk on August 31 (the most famous of the four, signed by Lech Wałęsa himself), in Jastrzębie-Zdrój on September 3, and at the Katowice Steelworks on September 11. For the first time in the history of the communist bloc, the authorities officially recognized the right to an independent trade union. On September 17, representatives of the factory committees adopted a joint charter for a nationwide organization called "Solidarność," and on November 10, 1980, the Supreme Court in Warsaw formally registered the Independent Self-governing Trade Union "Solidarność" (NSZZ "Solidarność").

By autumn 1981, the organization had nearly 10 million members — the largest trade union in the world at the time. The movement soon gained moral support from an unexpected ally: in October 1978, Karol Wojtyła, a cardinal from Kraków, became the first Slavic pope in 455 years, and his first pilgrimage to Poland in June 1979 drew millions of people, showing the authorities the real strength of the Church and society.

December 13, 1981: martial law

At 6 a.m. on December 13, 1981, General Wojciech Jaruzelski announced martial law over state radio. That same morning, phone lines were cut across the country, soldiers and militia occupied strategic sites, and "Solidarność" was banned. More than 10,000 activists of the movement were interned without trial, and a curfew was imposed. Martial law lasted 586 days — it wasn't formally lifted until July 22, 1983.

That same year, 1983, Lech Wałęsa received the Nobel Peace Prize for his peaceful struggle for workers' rights. He did not travel to Oslo himself, fearing the authorities might not let him back into Poland; the prize was accepted on his behalf by his wife, Danuta.

The Round Table and the end of communism

Round Table talks between the authorities (Jaruzelski, Kiszczak) and the opposition/"Solidarność" (Wałęsa) ran from February 6 to April 5, 1989, in Warsaw. The two sides agreed to legalize "Solidarność" and hold semi-free elections: 65% of Sejm seats remained reserved for the PZPR and its allies, while the entire newly created 100-seat Senate would be freely elected.

In the elections of June 4, 1989, "Solidarność" won 99 of 100 Senate seats and all 161 free Sejm mandates — the first elections of their kind since 1939. On August 24, the Sejm appointed Tadeusz Mazowiecki as prime minister — the first non-communist head of government in Poland in 45 years; his cabinet was sworn in on September 12, 1989. A year later, in 1990, Lech Wałęsa was elected President of Poland.

From trade union to a state day of remembrance

The event itself became a state day of remembrance only in 2005 — by a law of July 27, the Sejm established the Narodowy Dzień Solidarności i Wolności (National Day of Solidarity and Freedom) on August 31, the anniversary of the signing of the Gdańsk Agreement. It was first observed that same year, on the 25th anniversary of the agreements, with the main ceremonies held in Gdańsk.

Unlike the 14 official days off covered in earlier articles in this series, August 31 is an ordinary working day: it's a day of remembrance, not a dzień wolny od pracy. Flag Day on May 2 has the same status, for instance.

Common mistakes to avoid:

• Assuming "Solidarność" was officially registered right after the Gdańsk Agreement was signed on August 31 — in reality, Supreme Court registration didn't happen until November 10, 1980.
• Confusing December 1970 (the shooting of workers in Gdańsk and Gdynia, Gomułka's fall) with August 1980 (the founding of "Solidarność") — two different events with different outcomes.
• Thinking martial law permanently destroyed "Solidarność" — the movement went underground and was legalized again after the 1989 Round Table.
• Calling the June 4, 1989 elections fully free — 65% of Sejm seats were reserved for the communists; only the Senate and the remaining 35% of the Sejm were freely contested.
• Claiming August 31 is an official day off. Legally, it's an ordinary working day, a day of remembrance.

"Solidarność" is a movement that began with a strike at a single shipyard and ended with the fall of communism across all of Central Europe. It's precisely that distance between a 17-day strike and the collapse of an entire system that separates a deep interview answer from a formal "it's Wałęsa's trade union." In the PLTest bot's "Mock Interview" mode, you can practice this answer with a timer and instant feedback.

Frequently asked questions