Poland

Poland, more formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, is a nation in Eastern Europe. the Kingdom borders the German Empire to the west and north, Austria-Hungary to the south, and Lithuania and Ukraine to the east.

Independence
Following the Act of November 5th in 1916, Polish statehood was reborn under the guidance of the German Empire, but during the war the Polish state was a mere proxy for political conflict between Berlin and Vienna. Throughout the duration of the war, the Polish Kingdom had no monarch, being governed under a Regency Council, but there had been various contenders for the throne. The Austro-Hungarians put forward Karl Stephan von Habsburg, while the German states of Saxony, Württemberg, and Bavaria put forward Friedrich Christian, Albrecht Eugen, Leopold of Bavaria, Wilhelm of Urach, and Wilhelm, Prince of Sigmaringen. Wilhelm of Urach declined the throne and eventually was crowned the King of Lithuania, while Albrecht, Friedrich, and Leopold declined the throne as well. Eventually this left Wilhelm as the last serious German contender, with he and Stephan being pawns in the game of German-Austrian control over the Kingdom. Eventually the war ended in 1919 and the victors went to Paris to give the defeated French and British their terms.

Ending the Regency
After the treaties had been signed, the war officially ended, with Germany soon being able to resolve the dispute over the Polish throne. Following the Galician and Bohemian uprisings, the Germans decided that Austria would no longer have influence in Poland, and declared that Wilhelm, Prince of Hohenzollern, would become the new King of Poland. Another effect the end of the war had on Poland was that it led to the establishment of the Sejm, the prime legislature of the infant kingdom. Following its creation, various new parties began to emerge and competed for seats in the legislature. Due to Wilhelm’s recent arrival, his rule was tenuous, and various parties of the Sejm opposed him, but conservative circles supported his reign as a bulwark against the threat of Russia and Bolshevism.