ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Territorial changes of Poland

Okay kiddo, let's talk about the territorial changes of Poland! It's a bit of a complicated topic, but I'll do my best to explain it in a way that's easy to understand.

So, Poland is a country in Europe that's been around for a really long time. But over the years, its borders have changed a lot. This is because other countries nearby have taken parts of Poland for themselves or because Poland has fought wars and lost territory as a result.

For example, back in the 1700s, Poland was one of the biggest countries in Europe. It was really powerful and ruled over a huge area. But then some other countries, like Russia and Prussia, decided they wanted some of Poland's land. They invaded and took over parts of Poland, which made the country smaller.

In more recent times, during World War II, Germany invaded Poland and took control of a lot of it. They even created a concentration camp called Auschwitz in Poland, where they killed millions of Jewish people and other minorities.

After the war, Poland's borders were redrawn and it became a communist country. This meant that it was allied with the Soviet Union and had to follow its rules. But in 1989, the communist government fell and Poland became a democracy.

So, as you can see, Poland's borders have changed a lot over the years due to wars and invasions by other countries. But no matter what has happened, Poland has always stood strong and continues to be an important part of Europe today.