At the close of World War I in 1919, the Allies drafted the Treaty of
Versailles It established the framework for the resurgence of the Polish
State after 123 years of partition. Its territory comprised of areas
formerly belonging to the Russian Empire, the Austro-Hungarian
Empire, and Germany.
The question of Poland's eastern border was not addressed, and left
to be decided upon subsequently .
In 1920, Lord Curzon of Kedleston, the British Foreign Secretary made a proposal to resolve the problem, by establishing
not a boundary but rather an armistice line by which Poland would occupy the territory west of the line, and the Russians to
the east of it. This was rejected by both Poland and Russia.
The Bolsheviks had invaded Poland in May 1920 intending to spread their socialist revolution throughout Europe. Despite
British attempts to call for a ceasefire, the Soviets continued to fight believing that they were going to win. But to their surprise,
they were defeated, and with that humiliation also lost a significant part of their territory which was ceded to Poland in the
peace Treaty of Riga in 1921.
Poland was granted a substantial area 200 kilometers east of the Curzon line which amounted to roughly 135,000 square
kilometers ( 52,000 square miles ).This parcel included the cities of Lwow and Wilno which were centers of Polish culture
for centuries. In a referendum in 1922, the Lithuanians citizens of Wilno agreed to become part of the new Polish republic. It
was further recognized by the League of Nations, and numerous Polish-Soviet agreements.
In August 1939, the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, between Germany and Russia, called for the partition of Poland along
the Curzon line. After the Nazi and Soviet invasions of Poland in September 1939, the Soviets occupied all the territory east of
the Curzon line as well as Bialystok and eastern Galicia; As a result, hundreds upon thousands of Poles were deported to
Siberia. In 1941, Germany crossed over the Curzon line, invading the Soviet-occupied zone, and then attacked Russia
itself. In1944, the Soviets reclaimed the eastern region of Poland this time declaring the Curzon line as the new border
between Russia and Poland.
The Curzon line was a subject of enormous significance and had been the central topic during the Conferences at Yalta
and Teheran.Stalin belabored the issue at every opportunity, and demanded that the Curzon Line be established as Polands
eastern border - although it was already a fait accompli since Russian supremacy had already been established in the
region. He claimed that the Poles did not represent the majority in the region but that Ukrainians and Lithuanians did. All
that was left for Stalin to do was to obtain official recognition by Churchill and Roosevelt to make it all appear legitimate.
According to Stalin's logic, it was the British Foreign Minister Lord Curzon who came up with the idea, and therefore, the
Soviets could not be expected to settle for anything less.
The Polish-government-in-exile was strongly opposed to this, but was not informed that the decision to cede eastern
Poland to Stalin had already been made. The Polish Prime Minister continued to pressure the Allies to persuade Stalin to
reconsider. It is doubtful that the British made any effort to do so, prefering instead to appease Stalin, not wanting to
upset him.
The Curzon line has been the eastern border of Poland since July 1945. Even after the dissolution of Union, the line
remains.This time, however, Poland shares its eastern border with Lithuania, Belarus, and the Ukraine