Exhibition
Details
Agenda
Z wystąpienia Jana Ołdakowskiego, dyrektora Muzeum Powstania Warszawskiego
Ladies and Gentlemen,
On 1st August 1944, “W” hour struck and the Warsaw Rising began. It would become one of the most significant events of Poland’s 20th century history.
More than 25,000 soldiers of the Home Army and other formations took
up arms to fight the Germans. In spite of overwhelming German force, in spite
of the hostile indifference of the Soviets, for 63 days poorly armed insurgents battled the totalitarian war machine of Nazi Germany.
For two months in 1944 Warsaw constituted a free Poland with legal authorities, administration, army and all the other attributes of an independent state. It was a modern and democratic state. In spite of heavy fighting in the city, two issues of the “Journal of Laws” were published, creating the legal framework for domestic civil government and setting the constitutional foundation
for the free post-war state. In insurgent Warsaw more than 100 titles were published by all political parties and the Palladium Cinema showed newsreels documenting the events of August 1944.
In 1944 people welcomed the Rising with enthusiasm; their city was free
after five years of cruel occupation. Hundreds of white and red flags appeared throughout the capital, Polish songs were played from loudspeakers. The civilian population of Warsaw had passed an extremely difficult test by supporting
the insurgents and organising life in the city in a disciplined manner: committees were formed, community kitchens established, cultural and religious life flourished. In August and September 1944, Warsaw residents certainly deserved to be called a civil society. In 1944, no one in Poland considered the Rising a local affair,
and the residents of other cities identified with the insurgents and helped
the inhabitants of Warsaw who were forced to abandon their homes.
The idea of a free Poland was unacceptable for the two malevolent totalitarian regimes. Upon hearing the news of the rising, Hitler issued an order to kill all residents of Warsaw and raze the city to the ground. He knew very well that his order would result in the genocide of about one million people. Initially, his order was carried out with utmost meticulousness by criminal SS formations, Reinefarth’s and Dirlewanger’s units in the Wola district of Warsaw. As a result, over the course of a few days 40,000 civilians were murdered. Stalin actively aggravated Warsaw’s situation. He suspended the Red Army offensive
and did not bother the Germans, leaving them free to fight the insurgents, murder civilians and destroy the city. Attempts to bring aid to the city
from the West by air were also limited by the Soviets, who prohibited Allied aircraft from landing on their airfields.
The Warsaw Rising is crucial to understanding the history of not only Warsaw but also of Poland, Europe and World War II in its entirety. It represents the situation faced by all of Central Europe at the end of the war – there was no way to avoid the totalitarian regime.
The Warsaw Rising shows that the war was fought by three parties, not two, as has been believed especially in the West. Not until the German aggression in 1941 did the Soviets join the anti-Nazi coalition. Their goals were never aligned with those of the Western Allies. This mostly afflicted the countries of Central Europe, which had been incorporated or Sovietised while formally remaining independent. The true intentions of the Soviets were revealed when they did not aid the Warsaw Rising.
During the communist era, falsifying the truth about the rising was
a logical consequence of the communists’ fight against the idea of freedom and independence. The rising was directed against both totalitarian systems. Aware of this, those two systems joined ranks for the very last time during World War II to overpower Warsaw’s insurgents. The truth about the Warsaw Rising, militarily opposing the Germans but politically directed against the Soviets, was distorted by the Polish communist authorities controlled by the Kremlin.
The Warsaw Rising was a last attempt to defend the independence
of Poland, and it ended in military defeat. However, the tradition of fighting for freedom outlasted the efforts of communist propagandists and accompanied the Poles during the times of communist enslavement. The Polish democratic opposition built on this tradition, as did the “Solidarity” movement. And finally, after 45 years, Poland regained its independence in 1989.
This year we mark 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Rising. Solemn celebrations took place in Warsaw with the presence of Federal German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. I am very proud and touched to be able to celebrate the anniversary also in Düsseldorf, and to show all the visitors
to the Gerhart Hauptmann Haus that Warsaw has persevered. It is an example of how much Polish-German relations have changed over the past decades and proof that our nations are capable of overcoming the traumas of war and building contemporary relations based on mutual respect and understanding.
This year’s anniversary is unusual for one more reason – it has been
20 years since the Warsaw Rising Museum opened in the capital of Poland. This is a very special place, where we cherish the memory of valiant soldiers of the Polish Underground State, as well as the brave inhabitants of the city, who on 1st August 1944 signed up to fight for the freedom of their homeland. The museum is one of the most frequently visited tourist destinations
in the capital. The identity of contemporary Warsaw is tied to its history
and this is especially visible at the Warsaw Rising Museum.
Our exhibition “Warsaw Rising 1944” was prepared with the young generation in mind and therefore we have used coloured archival photographs from insurgent newsreels, facsimiles of documents and replicas, as well
as sound, interactive and multimedia elements. An important part
of the exhibition is the film “The City of Ruins”. The film is a digital reconstruction of a Liberator aircraft’s flight over Warsaw, destroyed and deserted in the spring of 1945. Visitors can compare those images
with photographs of contemporary Warsaw, which is a modern metropolis.
This is of particular importance today, when for more than two
and a half years a full-scale war has been waged in Europe as a result
of the criminal invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation. The sight
of cities destroyed by the Russian invaders, with a particular focus on Mariupol, is reminiscent of images from Warsaw in early 1945. However, our exhibition also conveys a message of hope and faith that, just as the Polish capital was able to rise like a phoenix from the ashes, so too will the cities that are suffering war and destruction around the world today be vibrant again in the future.
I hope that our exhibition and the accompanying events such as debates, discussions and film screenings will convey the exceptional history of our city and our country to all visitors.
This project is the result of hard work by the entire team at the Warsaw Rising Museum, but special thanks should be given to the deputy director
of the Museum, Dr Paweł Ukielski, who supervised the Exhibit, Hanna Kożuchowska, who served as project coordinator and Renata Kamola.
I would like to thank all institutions which have supported us: The Polish Institute in Düsseldorf, the authorities of the City Of Düsseldorf I State Chancellery Of The State Of North Rhine-Westphalia, Gerhart Hauptmann Haus, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Foundation of Polish German-Cooperation. This project is shown in one of the most important German places of remembrance and remains very significant
for contemporary relations between our two countries.
