The pioneers of

radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

were army officers. These were Poles who served in the German,

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n and

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

n armies in the

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. In autumn 1918, shortly after the war, these experts started organizing Polish radio. On 3 November 1918, in

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

, a field station, previously used by the Austrian army, sent the first Polish radio signals. Soon, more field stations – this time German — were captured by the Poles in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

and

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

. Obviously, at first radio was used for military purposes only. Knowledge of Polish experts in this field was used to a great effect during the 1920 Polish-Soviet War. In 1924 radio in Poland was no longer in the domain of the army. In April an Act of Parliament was passed that, among other things, legalized buying, selling, and operating radio equipment by private citizens and businesses; on 10 October the Minister of Industry and Trade issued regulations that set out conditions of obtaining broadcasting licenses and running radio stations. Soon after, an experimental station was opened by Polskie Towarzystwo Radiotechniczne.

Polish radio and its expansion

In August 1925, bids were invited for the organization of a nationwide radio network. The winner was Polskie Radio S.A., managed by Zygmunt Chamiec. On 18 April 1926 they started to broadcast regular programs. The first station was located in Warsaw and the equipment was an English Marconi Wireless. It was soon replaced by a more powerful unit, with 10 kilowatts output. The old equipment was moved to Kraków. Later on, Warsaw's station was expanded and five new studios, located at Zielna Street, were commissioned. During the following years, Polish Radio S.A. opened new stations in other main cities across the nation. These included: 1927 - Kraków and

Katowice Katowice (, ) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Katowice urban area. As of 2021, Katowice has an official population of 286,960, and a resident population estimate of around 315,000. K ...

1928 - Wilno (see: Polish Radio Wilno) (This was established at the beginning of 1928) 1928 - Poznań (This was established in mid-1928) 1930 - Two additional stations in

Lwów Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

(see: Polish Radio Lwów) and

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

were added. Also, during the same year, a temporary station called Warsaw II was established. On 24 May 1931 a new transmitter, located at Raszyn near Warsaw, was commissioned. Having the power of 120 kilowatts, it was the strongest transmitter in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. At the same time, Polskie Radio increased power of stations in Wilno and Lwów to 16 kilowatts. Further stations were opened in

Toruń Toruń is a city on the Vistula River in north-central Poland and a World Heritage Sites of Poland, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its population was 196,935 as of December 2021. Previously, it was the capital of the Toruń Voivodeship (1975–199 ...

(1935), a permanent station Warsaw II (1937) and in

Baranowicze Baranavichy or Baranovichi is a city in the Brest Region of western Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Baranavichy District, though it is administratively separated from the district. As of 2025, it has a population of 170,817. ...

(1938, see Polish Radio Baranowicze). A station at Łuck, Volhynia (see Polish Radio Łuck), was almost completed by 1 September 1939, and the transmitter was to be brought from Warsaw by October. Due to the outbreak of the Second World War, the station never went on air.

List of Polish radio stations, summer 1939

{{DEFAULTSORT:Radio Stations In Interwar Poland Culture of the Second Polish Republic