966 AD: Mieszko I converts to Christianity; Golden Age follows under the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 16th century.
1772–1795: Three sequential partitions by Russia, Prussia, and Austria erase Poland from maps for 123 years.
1918: Re-establishes independence as the Second Polish Republic following the collapse of European empires.
1939: Invaded by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, triggering World War II and catastrophic loss of life.
1980: Solidarity (*Solidarność*) trade union led by Lech Wałęsa challenges communist rule and becomes a catalyst for the Eastern Bloc collapse in 1989.
21st Century: Rapid economic expansion following accession to NATO (1999) and the EU (2004).