Solidarity, Hungary, and the opening cracks in the Eastern Bloc

The independent trade union Solidarity was founded in Poland in 1980, led by the electrician Lech Wałęsa at the Gdańsk shipyards, becoming the first independent trade union officially recognized in a country of the Soviet bloc. The Polish communist government declared martial law in December 1981, repressing and temporarily banning the movement and detaining Wałęsa and numerous leaders. Nonetheless, Solidarity continued operating clandestinely throughout the 1980s, with the Polish Catholic Church, including the influence of Pope John Paul II, providing significant moral and organizational support.