The Polish war cemetery at
Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first h ...
holds the graves of 1,072 Poles who died storming the bombed-out
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
abbey atop the mountain in May 1944, during the
Battle of Monte Cassino
The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino, was a series of four assaults made by the Allies against German forces in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II. The ultimate objective was ...
. The cemetery is maintained by the Council for the Protection of Memorial Sites of Struggle and Martyrdom.
The religious affiliations of the deceased are indicated by three types of headstone: Christian crosses for
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
and
Eastern Orthodox
Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism.
Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...
and
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
headstones bearing the
Star of David
The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles.
A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...
.
The cemetery also holds the grave of General
Władysław Anders
)
, birth_name = Władysław Albert Anders
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Krośniewice-Błonie, Warsaw Governorate, Congress Poland, Russian Empire
, death_date =
, death_place = London, England, United Kingdom
, serviceyears ...
, who had commanded the Polish forces that captured Monte Cassino. Anders died in London in 1970 and his ashes were interred in the cemetery.
The cemetery itself can be clearly viewed from the Abbey, which lies just a few hundred meters away.
The cemetery is the closest of all allied cemeteries, symbolizing the importance of the Polish fighters during the battle. It was the Poles that are credited with liberating the abbey from Axis forces. As such, their war dead were honored with being buried in such close proximity to the structure for which they died liberating.
History
The cemetery is located on the slopes of what was designated as Point 445 and the abbey on the mountain of Monte Cassino. The majority of the soldiers buried here are from the
Polish 2nd Army Corps of Lieutenant General
Władysław Anders
)
, birth_name = Władysław Albert Anders
, birth_date =
, birth_place = Krośniewice-Błonie, Warsaw Governorate, Congress Poland, Russian Empire
, death_date =
, death_place = London, England, United Kingdom
, serviceyears ...
. Soldiers from this corps repeatedly attacked the German defenders inside the monastery at Monte Cassino during May 1944. On the morning of 18 May 1944, Polish forces finally entered the ruins of the abbey and hoisted the
Polish flag
The national flag of Poland ( pl, flaga Polski) consists of two horizontal stripes of equal width, the upper one white and the lower one red. The two colours are defined in the Polish constitution as the national colours. A variant of the flag ...
.
The first interments in the cemetery occurred in 1944 and the cemetery was completed in 1946 based on designs by Wacław Hryniewicz and Jerzy Skolimowski. The official consecration of the site took place on September 1, 1945.
Inscriptions
The Polish memorial at Monte Cassino bears two inscriptions. The first, based on the
Epitaph of Simonides, reads:
::Passer-by, go tell Poland
::That we have perished obedient to her service
The other on a gatepost near the entrance translates from Polish:
::For our freedom and yours
::We soldiers of Poland gave
::Our soul to God
::Our life to the soil of Italy
::Our hearts to Poland
An anthem, "
The Red Poppies on Monte Cassino
''Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino'' (The Red Poppies on Monte Cassino) is one of the best-known Polish military songs of World War II. It was composed in May 1944 in Italy, during the Battle of Monte Cassino, on the eve of the Polish Army's captu ...
" — composed on the eve of the Polish storming of the German stronghold — memorializes the Polish soldiers who gave their lives. The refrain is familiar to most Poles:
::The red poppies on Monte Cassino
::Drank Polish blood instead of dew...
::O'er the poppies the soldiers did go
::'Mid death, and to their anger stayed true!
::Years will come and ages will go,
::Enshrining their strivings and their toil!...
::And the poppies on Monte Cassino
::Will be redder for Poles' blood in their soil.
Gallery
Image:Anders gravestone at Monte Cassino.jpg, Gravestone of Lieutenant General Władysław Anders at Monte Cassino
Image:Orthodox and catholic gravestones at Monte Cassino.JPG, Orthodox (front)and Catholic (rear) gravestones at Monte Cassino
Image:Jewish gravestone at Monte Cassino.JPG, Jewish gravestone at Monte Cassino
image:ABRAHAM WURZEL MONTE CASSINO.jpg, The gravestone of the Jewish soldier from Anders army Abraham Wurzel
Image:View of Monte Cassino monastery from Polish cemetery.jpg, View of Monte Cassino monastery from Polish Cemetery
Image:Polish cemetery seen from Monte Cassino monastery.jpg, Polish Cemetery seen from Monte Cassino monastery
Image:Plaque_at_Polish_cemetery_in_Monte_Cassino.jpg, Plaque at Polish Cemetery in Monte Cassino
See also
*
Polish Cemetery in Bandar-e Anzali
Polish Cemetery in Bandar-e Anzali is a cemetery in Bandar-e Anzali northern Iran. It was made during Evacuation of Polish civilians from the USSR in World War II. This war cemetery contains the remains of 163 graves of the Polish soldiers of the ...
*
Polish Military Cemetery at Casamassima
*
Lieutenant General Władysław Albert Anders
References
External links
Polish World War II Military Cemeteries in ItalyThe War Cemeteries at Cassino(from Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monte Cassino, Polish Cemetery
Battle of Monte Cassino
Polish military memorials and cemeteries
World War II cemeteries in Italy
Italy–Poland relations