Piłsudski Mound

Las Wolski,Kraków http://www.krakow.pl/english/instcbi/41906,inst,4989,322,instcbi.html

About

Situated on top of Sowiniec Hill, the mound was built in 1934-1937. It commemorates Poland's regaining of her independence 123 years of enslavement. It was officially unveiled on the 20th anniversary of the day when the First Cadre Company - the first Polish military formation since the partitions, organised by Józef Piłsudski - marched out of Kraków. During the construction of the mound, earth was brought to the site from the various fields of battles and martyrdom of the Polish people from the time of the national uprisings and the first world war. For this reason, the mound became known as the grave of the graves. The whole of Polish society took part in its construction. Special trains brought thousands of people who wanted to participate in making the monument a reality. When Józef Piłsudski died in 1935, a decision was made to name the mound after the marshal and statesman. The period of the second world war as well as the post-war years up until 1989 did not favour this monument of independence. The Germans planned, albeit unsuccessfully, its demolition. They considered it unacceptable for "monuments to Polish culture and government to be visible from afar"*. The post-war Communist authorities tried to wipe out the person and memory of Piłsudski. This resulted in the disfigurement of the mound. Its slopes were forested so that they were not visible from a distance, and the tree roots would burst its structure. The mound was officially neither spoken nor written about; it was as if it never existed. It was restored to its previous form after the fall of communism. Today it commands a beautiful panorama of Kraków and the Las Wolski Forest in which it is situated. More: http://www.cracow.travel/