Prime minister: Józef Cyrankiewicz
First Secretary of the Polisch United Workers' Party (PZPR): W³adys³aw Gomu³ka
After gloomy time of stalinizm (in Poland till 1956) Poland welcomed Gomu³ka's return to power with relief, and even euphoria, despite his background as a lifelong Communist. Many Poles still rejected Communism, but they knew that the realities of Soviet dominance dictated that Poland could not escape from Communist rule. Gomu³ka, however, promised an end to police terror, greater intellectual and religious freedom, higher wages and the reversal of collectivization, and he fulfilled all of these promises.

Gagarin was invited to Poland by the Polish authorities in 1961 and treated as a real hero and idol of the crowds. He made an effective round about Zielona Góra, and finally he met the gathered people at the local stadium. Then, there took place a great manifestation of supporting for him and a real gratefulness dedicated to him. The cheerful consecutive manifestations took the Gagarin’s symbol beside other political events. They appeared beside the protests against the murder of Congo Prime Minister P. Lumumba and after that at the occasion of the USA’s aggression on Cuba. Needless to say, all the manifestations were defined as spontaneous, but the truth was that all of them were inspired by the governmental bodies. The Gagarin’s stay in Poland was a symptom of the communistic block’s remaining hungry for some spectacular success. However, in spite of it Gagarin was a real not virtual hero for many Polish people. Gagarin’s picture soon became the main component of Polish stamps, postcards. He started to patronize many Polish schools and streets.