The Aleksander Fredro Monument in Wrocław (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

: ''Pomnik Aleksandra Fredry we Wrocławiu'') is a

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

statue dedicated to Polish Romantic-era poet, playwright and author

Aleksander Fredro Aleksander Fredro (20 June 1793 – 15 July 1876) was a Polish poet, playwright and author active during Polish Romanticism in the period of partitions by neighboring empires. His works including plays written in the octosyllabic verse ('' Zemst ...

(1793–1876). Originally built in

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...

in 1897 according to

Leonard Marconi Leonard Marconi (Warsaw, 6 October 1835 – 1 April 1899, Lviv) was a Polish and Austro-Hungarian architect and sculptor. He was active chiefly at Warsaw, then in Galicia, notably at Lwów (now Lviv, Ukraine). Life Leonard Marconi was born on 6 ...

's design, the monument was transferred to

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

in 1956.

History

The monument was designed by sculptor

in 1897 in

Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria,, ; pl, Królestwo Galicji i Lodomerii, ; uk, Королівство Галичини та Володимирії, Korolivstvo Halychyny ta Volodymyrii; la, Rēgnum Galiciae et Lodomeriae also known as ...

(part of the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

) and cast in bronze. The Neo-classical sculpture features playwright Aleksander Fredro on a

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

pedestal with inscriptions on three sides wearing a chamarre and holding a roll of paper and a goose

quill A quill is a writing tool made from a moulted flight feather (preferably a primary wing-feather) of a large bird. Quills were used for writing with ink before the invention of the dip pen, the metal- nibbed pen, the fountain pen, and, eventually ...

. The monument was funded by the Lviv Artistic and Literary Society (''Lwowskie Koło Literacko-Artystyczne'') and ceremonially unveiled on October 24, 1897, at the Academic Square (currently Shevchenko Avenue) in Lviv in the presence of many prominent dignitaries including the Land Marshal of Galicia

Stanisław Marcin Badeni Stanisław h. Badeni (1850–1912) was a conservative Polish politician and a statesman of Austro-Hungarian Galicia. Born on 7 September 1850 in Surochów near Jarosław, in 1883 he was elected to the Galician Sejm. In 1895, he was chosen a ...

, prince Eustachy Sanguszko,

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Izaak Mikołaj Isakowicz, and mayor of Lviv

Godzimir Małachowski Godzimir Małachowski of Nałęcz (1852–1908) was a Polish lawyer, university professor and President of Lviv. An heir of the powerful Małachowski family, he was also a member of the Austro-Hungarian parliament, the Galicia Diet and one of t ...

. The monument occupied that location until 1950. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Lviv was incorporated into the

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

and in 1945 in

Kiev Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

, the Polish delegation signed an additional protocol to the 1944 agreement between the

Polish Committee of National Liberation The Polish Committee of National Liberation (Polish: ''Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego'', ''PKWN''), also known as the Lublin Committee, was an executive governing authority established by the Soviet-backed communists in Poland at the lat ...

and the

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

, which allowed to hand over to the Polish government the national monuments in Lviv connected to

Polish culture The culture of Poland ( pl, Kultura Polski ) is the product of its geography and distinct historical evolution, which is closely connected to an intricate thousand-year history. Polish culture forms an important part of western civilization and ...

and

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

with the exception of the Adam Mickiewicz Monument which "enjoys great popularity and is loved by the Ukrainian nation".

Transfer to Poland

The monument was transferred to Poland in March 1950. It was initially displayed in

Wilanów Wilanów () is a district of the city of Warsaw, Poland. It is home to historic Wilanów Palace, the "Polish Versailles," and second home to various Polish kings. History The first mentions of a settlement in the area can be traced to the 13th ...

where it remained until 1956. The city of Wrocław was chosen to host it considering the fact that after the war a great number of Poles from Lviv were repatriated there. Besides this, Aleksander Fredro visited Wrocław in the past as a young military officer fighting alongside

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

. It was unveiled on July 15, 1956, at the Wrocław Market Square in the place previously occupied by the Monument to

Frederick William III of Prussia Frederick William III (german: Friedrich Wilhelm III.; 3 August 1770 – 7 June 1840) was King of Prussia from 16 November 1797 until his death in 1840. He was concurrently Elector of Brandenburg in the Holy Roman Empire until 6 August 1806, wh ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aleksander Fredro Monument in Wroclaw 1897 sculptures Outdoor sculptures in Poland Buildings and structures in Wrocław Sculptures in Poland

History

Transfer to Poland

See also

References