30th Anniversary of the Katyn Museum
On 29 June 2023, a ceremonial event marking the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Katyn Museum took place at the Warsaw Citadel in Warsaw, Poland.
The anniversary celebrations began with an open-air Holy Mass attended by numerous representatives of Katyn families and remembrance organisations. The service was led by Bishop Wiesław Lechowicz, Military Bishop of the Polish Armed Forces. The ceremony opened with the ringing of the Katyn Bell, whose sound commemorates the sacrifice of the Polish prisoners of war murdered during the Katyn Massacre. The bell is a replica of those located at the Polish war cemeteries in the East.
During his address, Sławomir Frątczak, Director of the Katyn Museum and host of the event, emphasised that the Museum was created thanks to the determination and perseverance of the Katyn Families Association and the families of the victims who, despite decades of communist oppression, refused to accept the falsification of historical truth surrounding the Katyn crime.
Izabella Sariusz-Skąpska, President of the Federation of Katyn Families, underlined the importance of the Museum as a lasting guardian of memory: “The Katyn Museum should bear witness to our presence. We will pass away, but the Museum will remain. The hearts of our loved ones — the victims of the Katyn crime — are hidden within these walls. Everyone who works here should remember the significance of the legacy entrusted to them. These are not ordinary exhibits, but evidence of a crime. Protect them from destruction.”
The ceremony also included speeches by invited guests and the reading of official letters from Elżbieta Witek, Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Mariusz Błaszczak, Minister of National Defence, and Jan Józef Kasprzyk, Head of the Office for War Veterans and Victims of Oppression.
In her letter, Marshal Elżbieta Witek wrote: “The tragedy of Katyn left a painful mark not only on the families of the victims, but also on the collective memory of the Polish nation. From grief, despair and a sense of injustice emerged a shared determination to commemorate the victims. The opening of the Katyn Museum was a unique and symbolic culmination of these efforts.”
Jan Józef Kasprzyk described Katyn as: “A symbol of the martyrdom of thousands of Poles and of the cruelty of the Soviet occupiers. It also represents decades of deliberate historical falsification and persecution of those seeking the truth about the fate of Polish prisoners of war.” He added that the Katyn Museum has become “a sanctuary preserving moving and deeply emotional mementoes of the murdered victims” and expressed his appreciation to the Museum staff for their dedication to this important mission.
Another key moment of the ceremony was the laying of wreaths at the Katyn Epitaph memorial.
The event was attended by representatives of the Katyn Families Association, members of the Polish Parliament, representatives of the Ministry of National Defence, the Office for War Veterans and Victims of Oppression, the Ministry of Education, members of the diplomatic corps including representatives of Hungary and Ukraine, religious leaders, representatives of the Polish Armed Forces and other uniformed services, as well as delegates from museums, archives, educational institutions and remembrance organisations dedicated to preserving the memory of the victims of totalitarian crimes.
