Places

The statue, which was uncovered on the National Independence Day in 2003, has an inscription with a quotation from President Ignacy Mościcki’s eulogy during Marshal Józef Piłsudski’s funeral: “He gave Poland freedom, borders, power and respect.” The statue, which took 6 years to complete, is massive, with a 5 m-high plinth and a 4.65 m-high figure of Marshal Piłsudski, and surrounded by a wrought iron chain. Every year, the local authorities celebrate the most important Polish national holidays, such as the 3 May Constitution Day or the National Independence Day, at the statue of Marshal Józef Piłsudski. Marshal Piłsudski’s statue was erected on the site of the so-called Gratitude Monument which had stood there from 1954 to 1998 and was subsequently relocated to the Soviet Army War Cemetery.