ABSTRACT
Poland is among those countries commonly called Eastern or Central Eur opean or post-Communist countries. Its affiliation to the Communist bloc resulted from the division of Europe into zones after the Second World War. Poland found itself in the Soviet-controlled area; the country's political system was called 'Socialist' and aimed, against the will of the Polish people, at the building of Communism. Poland was the only country in the region where private ownership of land had been preserved because all attempts at collectivization failed completely. A totalitarian regime based on MarxistLeninist ideology was imposed on all countries within the Soviet sphere of influence, although the affected countries differed as to their histories, tra ditions, cultures and degree of acceptance of the Communist regime.
