ABSTRACT
The political system of Poland changed in a way similar to that of the other east-central European states—but with important distinctive features. Modeled after the Western European parliamentary democracies after World War II, Poland became an authoritian state following the coup d'etat of 1926. The importance of the Polish "special case" consists of something else entirely. To understand why the military moved in, we must investigate, first, the dynamics of the breakdown of political systems. The 1926 case fits particularly well the theory of the breakdown of democratic regimes, as developed by Juan Linz and Alfred Stepan. The perception of the military as the guardian of national interest and honor, based on the history of national struggles for independence, has produced among the Poles a tendency to turn to the great soldiers in dramatic moments. Pilsudski, Sikorski, and Jaruzelski acted not only as soldiers but as political leaders as well.
