On Saturday, 17 December, the National Army Museum hosted a conference organised by British Poles entitled “Poland and Britain – Partnership in culture and combat. Yesterday and Today”.
The conference was preceded by a concert performed by „Orlęta” Polish Folk Song and Dance Group, which performed three songs in the museum’s atrium, arousing the public’s admiration with their traditional Kraków costumes.
HE Ambassador Piotr Wilczek opened the discussion by drawing attention to the continuity of the close Polish-British ties throughout history. He reminded the intensive collaboration of both nations – in the past and still today – in the field of the arts and in matters of defence and security. The whole speech of the Ambassador is available here.
https://twitter.com/AmbWilczek/status/1604808799595945984?s=20&t=G3iTfk_dTg4gQjlt96qQXw
Justin Maciejewski, Director of the National Army Museum (NAM), shed light on the reason why a beautiful bust of General Władysław Anders can be seen in the building. The latter was unveiled in June 2021 in the context of a British Poles initiative. It’s the first-ever sculpture of a Polish commander to be permanently placed in a British museum.
“I always thought that the NAM should […] recognise the vital contribution of the Polish formations that served in WW2”, – Maciejewski explained, adding that he was “hugely thankful” to all the members of the British-Polish community who funded the statue.
Marek Mrozek, the vice-chair of the Sikorski Institute, talked about how enriching it is to witness Poles and Brits mingling their cultures with an open spirit and goodwill to learn from each other. He referred to the cultural shock between both cultures as “friction”, which can be turned into “traction” – or mutual learning from the other’s heritage – for the benefit of all.
MP Daniel Kawczynski concluded the discussion by reminding that Poland had been warning the West about the threat of Putin’s Russia for years. He stressed that Western Europe should have listened to Warsaw when it warned about the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, overdependence on Russian energy, and the overall danger Moscow represents for peace and security.
George Byczynski, Editor-in-Chief of the British Poles, moderated the panel discussion.
https://twitter.com/britishpoles/status/1604197802187567105?s=20&t=g-BRFINYhYhwd5ixOWgwZw
Numerous other distinguished guests made this conference a great success, organised by the British Poles media group and the Odra-Niemen association. They included, among others, Deputy Military attaché Colonel Robert Pawlicki, Polish Consul Jolanta Srebrakowska, Deputy Mayor of Kensington and Chelsea Janet Evans, and the 100 years-old Jan Stangryciuk who is a former rear gunner of the No. 300 „Land of Masovia” Polish Bomber Squadron.
A friendly encounter followed the panel discussion in another room, where all the participants could taste some specialities from The Polish Bakery and enjoy a glass of wine. Most people queued to take a picture with veteran Jan Stanryciuk and the “Orlęta” band.
This informal part of the program – which took place in a cheerful atmosphere – allowed the guests to continue exchanging on the topics raised during the conference.
The whole event was funded by the Chancellery of the Prime Minister of Poland as part of the program “Polonia and Poles abroad 2022”.
Images: British Poles
Author: Sébastien Meuwissen
