Grunwald Monument
Trail of War
An equestrian monument of King Władysław Jagiełło, unveiled in 1910 for the 500th anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald, funded by Ignacy Paderewski. The Germans destroyed it in 1939, and it was reconstructed in 1976. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier lies in front of it.
History
The equestrian monument to Władysław Jagiełło was erected on Matejki Square in 1910, on the five-hundredth anniversary of the Battle of Grunwald. It was funded by Ignacy Jan Paderewski and unveiled on 15 July 1910 in the presence of 150 thousand people. During the Second World War the Germans demolished the monument from November 1939 to April 1940: the pedestal was blown up with dynamite, and the figures were taken deep into Germany. The shields and swords were saved by Feliks Dziuba, Józef Mika, Adam Klock and Tomasz Perski; until the end of the occupation they were kept under the floor in the cellar of a locksmith's workshop at 63 Grzegórzecka Street. In 1972 a reconstruction committee was set up, and Marian Konieczny recreated the monument. It returned to its place on 16 October 1976; a Mi-6 helicopter was used to set the figure of the king in place. In front of the monument lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Did you know?
The making of the monument in the Austrian partition was surrounded by secrecy: the sculptor Antoni Wiwulski at first made sketches of details without knowing what they were for, and at the foundry in France it was claimed that the monument would stand in a Swiss city.