The National Identity of the 'Natives' of Poland's 'Recovered Lands'

Among the inhabitants of the formerly German territory that came under Polish administration following the Second World War, the Polish authorities and public expected to find both Poles and Germans: the former would be allowed to remain and the latter would be expelled. But the question of the national identity of the inhabitants of this territory proved more complicated than expected. Polish attitudes and policies toward those inhabitants initially considered Polish often had effects opposite of those intended. As a result, a substantial portion, perhaps even a majority, of those who had originally been seen as Polish either were expelled along with the Germans or claimed to be German and on that basis sought to emigrate to Germany.