“What a deal? What uniforms? How Krakow learned about the Greater Poland Uprising
Robert Kaźmierczak
We still have a lot to do to make the victorious Greater Poland Uprising function in the minds of Poles from outside Greater Poland. We found out about it on Krakow Street on December 27, when we came to hang the flag of the uprising at St. Mary’s Basilica. We came to tell the inhabitants of Krakow and tourists about what started in Jarocin on the night of November 8-9, what happened in Poznań on December 27, and why Greater Poland, which was completed at the beginning of the 19th year.
The policemen in Stary Kleparz asked: “What is the occasion? What are the uniforms? ” Individual passers-by did not want to receive insurgent rosettes, explaining that “they were not interested in politics.” A man standing under the tower of St. Mary’s Basilica, from which the insurgent flag waved, asked: “What’s going on here?” Hearing the answer that today we are celebrating the 103rd anniversary of the outbreak of the Greater Poland Uprising, he said: “Another loser?” The young people of school age seemed to know absolutely nothing about what we were talking to them about. But why would they know? In history textbooks, they can tell about the events in the Polish-language version of 103 years on the control three or there is no control on this subject in the manual.
Krakow listens with disbelief
You can complain about the quality of the media, about what titles and what are not interesting to them. On Monday, I took part in a poker program that even tried to get interested in historical journalists, even as much as I do for Małopolska reporters is a source of high-quality Polish. TVP, Polsat, TVN, PAP, RMF, Radio Kraków, “Dziennik Polski” are just some of the editorial offices that sent their newspapers to the tower of St. Mary’s Basilica when they heard that the flag of the Greater Poland Uprising was displayed at noon after the bugle call. First they started and they start pouring out: “Please start first, how to start, when do you start, when do you start outburst, when did it break out?” This does not mean that they themselves had no idea what we are celebrating today, but that their viewers and listeners might initially receive basic information.
Probably not only in Małopolska it is worth talking not only about the uprising itself, but also about the longest war in modern Europe, i.e. about the struggle of the Wielkopolska people with the Germanization pressure, about the work of Centrumj, children’s posts, convenient resources in the center of Warsaw, banks and people’s reading rooms. It is about Greater Poland’s pragmatism, which does not have to be the opposite of the Romanticism so often invoked when it comes to the defeats of other Polish uprisings.
If necessary, they listen to the stories that they will not arise yet, they tried for even weeks. For interesting information for journalists from Lesser Poland, as evidenced by the help of Radio Krakow.
“But how until December 27, 1918? After all, Poland regained its independence on November 11 … ”Such questions were also asked. Marking of the train conductor’s response. He brought the flag from Poznań to Kraków, which today was flying from the St. Mary’s tower. “No, Wielkopolanie had to have freedom now, when we already had it.”
Did Piłsudski dislike the inhabitants of Wielkopolska?
After the action under the tower, we went for a hot coffee to the “Vis-à-vis” bar, popularly not “Zwisem”. For years it was the informal office of Piwnica pod Baranami. In front of the entrance there is a statue of Piotr Skrzynecki. Inside the man. Two of them are drinking beer, the third adventure, equal meeting on the phone. The uniforms of the Greater Poland army impress them. We are handing out a leaflet informing about what happened in Jarocin on the night of November 8-9, 1918. “ABOUT! Jarocin! I have a friend there, his name is Piotrowicz and it is a newspaper ”.
Dr. Zbigniew Bajka, a press expert at the Jagiellonian University, but also a historian. He enters the group about the creation of a reconstruction jarotia association with Robert Szymkowiak, “Unity At the end, he asks:” Why was Piłsudski so much disliked in this Greater Poland? “. A man drinking coffee in front of the window reacts: “It was Piłsud who did not like Wielkopolska and therefore an uprising had to break out.” Robert explains that disliking is one of the myths. Leszek Gnoiński – 1/3 of Warsaw, 1/3 of Krakow and 1/3 of Jarocin to know where to take us.
The man on the phone picked up Jarocin from the ongoing reaction. “Jarocin. I have a friend there, Martyna. Szymkowiak is her maiden name ”. We explain that in Jarocin, Szymkowiak’s like dogs, Robert with a rifle is also called Szymkowiak. After a while, I eavesdrop on the telephone orchestration of my friend from Jarocin. “No, there is a take on the Market Square and they say that the uprising in your Jarocin counts … How do you know nothing about it?”
In the sacristy of St. Mary’s Basilica, we are looking for the archpriest, parish priest Dariusz Raś. We do not find, but we do meet the sacristan. “I am Mateusz’s sister, who is not moved, but this morning I was touched by the stories on the radio about the Wielkopolska insurgents.” The seraphic sister knew what was going on, for the last few years about getting to know at Serafitek Street. “Finally, it is not talked about in Poland.” We are returning to the Market Square. Does Michał come up with a boy. “Sir, may I have your carbine? I know what the uniform is, because I’ve read a comic book about capturing the Ławica airport ”. It bricked us up. The boy was not from Poznań, he was not from Greater Poland, but from Kraków.
We are waiting for the museum
We go to the president of Krakow to thank you for entering the bugle call with the flag. On Grodzka Street, a woman pinned the handed insurgent rosette. “Finally, we celebrate something joyful, we finally celebrate a victory, not a victory.” We heard similar words several times more.
Tomasz Łęcki – director of the National Museum in Poznań, when talking about Greater Poland and the Uprising, often repeats the words: “Every day work, trial – trials!”. Let go. The inhabitants of Wielkopolska, every day, and not only on holiday, we still have to do a little more. Just like my friend’s father. Review of the book that the grandson was placed under the advertisement. A popular history of Polish history also from the 20th century. He got upset, but he didn’t stop there. Today he called the publishing house and asked: “You are making historical books for children, and you haven’t heard about the Greater Poland Uprising?”
Finally, we went to the Salwatorski cemetery to light a candle on the grave of Maria Chełkowska, the owner of Śmiełów. In 1918, she was among those people who brought Ignacy Jan Paderewski to Poznań. The second with a virtuoso at the Bazar Hotel, when the victorious uprising broke out. Earlier, for many years, in the palace in Mielów, she taught Polish children the Polish language and the history of Poland. After regaining independence, she continued to do so, cultivating the memory of Mickiewicz, organizing exhibitions of Goliński twigs.
Every day work, in the moment of trial – victory. We have Świętokowe – Victory Day, for the national post, it’s time at the Museum of the Greater Poland Uprising.
The author is from Jarocin, the deputy director of the Book Institute in Krakow. Title, subtitles and abbreviations from the editor.