History of Solidarity
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Solidarity, a Polish non-governmental trade union, was founded on August 14, 1980, at the Lenin Shipyards by Lech Wałęsa and others. In the early 1980s, it became the first independent labor union in
Gdańsk, 25th anniversary of Solidarity, summer 2005
Millions cheered Pope John Paul II during his first visit to Poland as pontiff in 1979.
Monument to Shipyard Workers Fallen in 1970, created following the Gdańsk Agreement, and unveiled December 16, 1980
Strikers waiting in front of the Lenin Shipyard
Lech Wałęsa
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Lech Wałęsa is a Polish statesman, dissident and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who served as the president of Poland between 1990 and 1995. After winning the 1990 election, Wałęsa became the first democr
History of Solidarity
…Solidarność”, pronounced ), a Polish non-governmental trade union, was founded on August 14, 1980, at the Lenin Shipyards (now Gdańsk Shipyards) by Lech Wałęsa and others. In the early 1980s, it became the first independent labor union in an Eastern Bloc country. Solidarity gave rise to a broad, non-violent…
Wałęsa in 2026
Wałęsa during the strike at the Lenin Shipyard, August 1980
Wałęsa signs autographs during the strike in August 1980.
Wałęsa with Alojzy Mazewski in January 1981