As a symbol of enduring friendship, a representation of the Polish national eagle is to be added to Newark’s mayor’s office chain.

Such a wish was expressed by the local Polish community. The Polish Airmen’s Association recently handed a Polish emblem (a tiny white eagle) as a gift to the Mayor, explaining it would be an honour for them if he would add it to his traditional mayoral chain. 

Members of the town council’s finance and general purposes committee gathered on Wednesday night and unanimously gave their green light for the initiative. 

“[Poles] are a big part of our history, and […] it shows how much they want to be part of Newark”, – said councillor and army veteran Johno Lee during the ceremony “I very much support [the eagle] being added to our chain” – he insisted, as quoted by The Newark Advertiser. 

Newark’s Mayor Laurence Goff reminded that Poland’s leader, General Władysław Sikorski, had been buried in Newark Cemetery along with his men at his own wish in 1943, before having been exhumed and repatriated 50 years later. 

He explained that the addition of the Polish – detachable – white eagle aims to express the town’s gratefulness for the Poles’ courage and support in defending Britain’s freedom. 

“As an organisation, we view Newark as the most important place in the UK to have an association with Poland,” he told The Newark Advertiser.

Newark is a stronghold of Poles in the UK. Its history is bonded with that of Poland, especially since WWII when thousands of Poles escaped the German occupation of their homeland and got involved in defence of Western European countries, including the UK.

Newark Cemetery has the most extensive Polish plot of any cemetery in Britain, with 440 servicemen from that nation buried there. 

Images: Twitter @laurencegoff

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen

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