×
Search this website for:
16.07.2019

"Poland in the heart of European History" - Seminar on 20th century Polish history for teachers and educators - 15-25 July 2019

On 15-25 July 2019, the sixth edition of the training for teachers from abroad "Poland in the Heart of European History" is taking place. The participants represent 20 countries including: Israel, Serbia, Scotland, the United States of America, Finland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Turkey, Greece, Bosnia and Herzegovina, India, Canada, Romania, Croatia, Germany, Albania, Slovenia, Hungary, Moldova and the Great Britain.

 

The main venue is the palace in Jabłonna near Warsaw.

This year's training programme is associated with two important anniversaries: the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of World War II and the 30th anniversary of the fall of communism and partly free elections in June 1989.

On Monday, 15 July at the Janusz Kurtyka Educational Centre of the Institute of National Remembrance in Warsaw head of the Department of Historical Education of the IPN's National Education Office, Dr. Mateusz Marek and Dr. Barbara Stanisławczyk-Żyła welcomed the guests and answered questions related to the conference

In Warsaw, the educators had the opportunity to see the Royal Castle and learn about the history of its reconstruction. They also visited the National Museum and the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews.

On 18 -22 July a study trip to Markowa, through Lublin and Zamość took place. The first stop was the Zamoyski Palace in Kozłówka.  It belonged to the family from 1799 to 1944. It experienced a period of prosperity during the times ofCount Konstanty Zamoyski, who remodelled the palace to turn it into one of the most monumental and representative magnate residences in Poland. In 1928, the chairman of the Polish Gymnastics Society, Count Adam Michał Zamoyski, organized a training camp in the palace gardens for the Polish national gymnastics team in preparation for the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. It currently hosts the Zamoyski family museum.

Next point of the study visit was the former German Nazi concentration and extermination camp in Majdanek. It was built and operated by the SS on  the outskirts of the city of Lublin during the German occupation of Poland in World War II. Although initially The camp was used to kill people on an industrial scale during Operation Reinhard , the German plan to murder all Jews within the territory of Poland. In the Ulma Family Museum of Poles Saving Jews in World War II the guests were welcomed by Dr Anna Stróż-Pawłowska, the Museum Director, who presented the exhibition.

The Lubomirski Castle and the Synagogue in Łańcut were the last points of the study trip.

On 22 July the educators visited the Military Cemetery in Powązki where they met with the IPN's Deputy President, Prof. Krzysztof Szwagrzyk, who described his search for the burial place of victims of the Stalinist regime in Poland, which was discovered at the Lot "Ł" of the Cemetery. They are also going to see and the Museum of Cursed Soldiers and Political Prisoners at ul. Rakowiecka, where they will have an opportunity to observe archeological works that have been conducted there since mid July.

On 23 July  2019, the educators from abroad visited the IPN Archive. The guests familiarized themselves with the tasks carried out by the Archive. They also had an opportunity to see documents related to the victims of World War II.
In addition, they visited a conservation workshop and archival warehouse, where they learned the basic principles of storing, securing and preserving documents.


Subscribe to our newsletter

Sign up for a fresh look at history: stay up to date with the latest events, get new texts by our researchers, follow the IPN’s projects