EN
This work is a short description of the history of forest utilisation in Poland, largely based on publications on forests and forestry, issued by the ‘Sylwan’ journal. The first publication on forest use was opened by Ludwik Plater, in which he introduces the rules of forest use with a clear emphasis on the need for new solutions that guarantee the continuity of the forest and its use. Until the mid−nineteenth century, the use of forests in Poland was strictly subordinated to the administration of agricultural property. The end of the nineteenth century brought attention to the quality and use of various tree species and new references to the principles of forest use. The next period covers the years 1900−1939, dividing our country into a period of captivity and ended with freedom, which introduces our forestry to a well−thought−out order in forest management, with particular reference to the use of forest resources. The years 1945−1985 are incomparable to other countries, introducing the renewal of forest areas destroyed by the invaders. After the ravages of war, Poland is forced to simultaneously increase logging and transform the exploitation use of the forest into properly managed forest management by the State Forests, National Forest Holding. The years 1985−2016 open the definition of sustainable development and build a hierarchy of society’s needs and benefits resulting from the use of forest resources. The paper ends with a short chapter on the need to undertake research on solutions to the predicted problems of forest resource use in the near and distant future