Monument to Those Who Fought for the Independence of the Homeland

Monument to Those Who Fought for the Independence of the Homeland stands on plac 11 Listopada in the centre of Łask, a few steps from Museum of the History of Łask. It is a modern form of commemoration of Poles who fought for independence in 1914-1920 and 1939-1945, comprising granite columns crowned with stylised flags made of stainless steel.

Unveiling on a symbolic day

The monument was unveiled on 11 November 2009, on the twentieth anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War and simultaneously the twentieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. The date is not coincidental; it links memory of the war with memory of the recovery of freedom after 1989.

Authors and form

The project was created by a married couple of sculptors, Zbigniew Dudek and Krystyna Urbanowicz-Dudek. The structure is based on columns of granite, above which rise stylised flags made of stainless steel. The monument bears inscriptions in two languages, in Polish and Latin.

A place with history

Previously, another obelisk stood in the same location, erected in 1968. It was demolished on 3 March 2009 to make way for construction of the current monument. Plac 11 Listopada thus remained a place of independence commemoration for decades, with only the form of remembrance changing.

Practical information

• Address: plac 11 Listopada, 98-100 Łask
• Access: on foot or by car to the centre of Łask, the square is directly accessible from the main streets
• What to expect: a granite monument with metal flags and bilingual inscriptions, accessible at all times as part of the public space