Polish Committee of National Liberation

For other uses, see Committee of National Liberation.
A photo of a citizen reading the PKWN Manifesto, used for propaganda purposes
Lands administered by the PKWN in September 1944 (pink); German-occupied lands (brown) and Soviet-occupied lands (red)

The Polish Committee of National Liberation (Polish: Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego, PKWN), also known as the Lublin Committee, was an executive governing authority established by the Soviet-backed communists in Poland at the later stage of World War II.[1][2][3][4] It was officially proclaimed on 22 July 1944 in Chełm, installed on 26 July in Lublin and placed formally under the direction of the State National Council (Krajowa Rada Narodowa, KRN). The PKWN was a provisional entity functioning in opposition to the London-based Polish government-in-exile, which was recognized by the Western allies.[5][6][a] The PKWN exercised control over Polish territory retaken from Nazi Germany by the Soviet Red Army and the Polish People's Army. It was sponsored and controlled by the Soviet Union and dominated by Polish communists.[7]

  1. ^ Tebinka, Jacek. "Policy of The Soviet Union towards The Warsaw Uprising 1 August – 2 October 1944". London Branch of the Polish Home Army Ex-Servicemen Association. Retrieved 14 July 2013.
  2. ^ Davies 2008, p. 153.
  3. ^ Snyder 2013, p. 96.
  4. ^ Richie 2013, p. 299.
  5. ^ Korys 2018, p. 256.
  6. ^ Szirmai 1958, p. 6.
  7. ^ Lukowski & Zawadzki 2006, p. 271