From the eleventh century travelling girls of the tenth century, through the 'unclean maidens' of the Renaissance and the sex tourists of today, Warsaw, especially, has been an epicenter for both sexual revolution and recession.
Poland was one of the first countries in the world to establish specialist hospitals for venereal disease back in the early s and in the 19th century, Warsaw prostitutes were even required to sign registers to make sure they could be tracked. Medical aid for venereal disease was free and women were even encouraged to demand a certificate of health from a potential client, before accepting them.
Poland's fractious military history has run hand in hand with the sex industry, because soldiers needed sex. For centuries, garrisons and prisons housed legal brothels so men could have ready access to women.
During the Holocaust, women in labor camps were forced into prostitution under threat of death. Of course, death for many was inevitable anyway, but some women recognized the terrible truth that, by submitting, they would be more likely to be kept alive. They were promised 'sentence reductions', better treatment and more food; promises which were rarely kept. There were even jealousies from other female prisoners, who would beat up 'selected' girls so they would no longer be taken to the brothels and thus 'enjoy' the privileges which came with the role.
The existence of brothels in camps like Auschwitz and Dachau was denied by the Nazis for many years, until female writers and camp survivors began telling their stories in the s. Post-war Attitudes towards prostitution changed dramatically after the war. The registers, medical care and organized brothels all disappeared as the government sought to rid the country of this 'moral evil. In the s, Warsaw had around illegal brothels and was a favorite destination of the 'dirty mac' brigade.
