The ‘Mission: Free Poland’ campaign to remember the activities of the Polish government-in-exile was inaugurated at the Royal Castle in Warsaw on Monday. On 12 November, the remains of three presidents in exile Władysław Raczkiewicz, August Zaleski and Stanisław Ostrowski will be brought and laid to rest in a mausoleum in the Temple of Divine Providence in Warsaw.
“On 6 November, a solemn farewell ceremony will begin in Newark in the UK. The return of remains of the Presidents to Warsaw will take place six days later”, said Government Plenipotentiary for the Protection of Memorial Sites Wojciech Labuda at the conference.
The transport will take place by air to the military airport in Warsaw, where a welcoming ceremony is planned, followed by burial at the Temple of Divine Providence. Secretary of State at the President’s Chancellery and Government Plenipotentiary for Polonia and Poles Abroad, Jan Dziedziczak, stressed that the ceremony is intended to emphasise the connectivity of today’s Poland with interwar Poland. He added that every country relies on its symbols. He cited the recent funeral ceremonies of the British Queen Elizabeth II as an example.
“In the same way, the Polish Republic has symbols of continuity of presidential power. This continuity was preserved thanks to the great contribution and responsibility of the presidents of the Republic of Poland in exile”, Dziedziczak noted.
The remains of the three presidents will be laid to rest in the mausoleum in the Temple of Divine Providence. The remains of the last President of the Republic of Poland in exile Ryszard Kaczorowski and his wife, now resting in another part of the crypts under the temple, will also be moved there. The Institute of National Remembrance will organise a special memorial chamber dedicated to the government-in-exile in the Temple.
A special website misjawolnapolska.pl has been set up as part of an information campaign. It presents profiles of six Polish presidents in exile. A knowledge competition for schoolchildren is also planned.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński