If you came to my apartment and perused my book shelves, you’d think I was an expert in Polish history. There are tomes on Pope John Paul II, books of translated works by Polish poets and novelists, thick volumes on culture and history. Most of them were purchased in the name of research for the novel. Some of them read, yes. But many cracked open and quickly abandoned. History has never been my strong suit. Something about all those dates and battles and border changes and treaty names. If there’s not a strong narrative with pretty sentences and dialogue involved, my eyes glaze over. Enter the video above, a digital CliffsNotes on the history of Poland. Watch it and fake your way through expertise (Teutonic Order! Winged Hussars! Decisive victory!) the next time Polish history comes up in cocktail conversation. Because, you know. It does.