Ataki na Pomnik Wdzięczności Żołnierzy Armii Czerwonej na Placu Wolności w Grudziądzu w 1946 i 1947 roku w świetle akt Wojskowego Sądu Rejonowego w Bydgoszczy

• Authors: Dominika Czarnecka

Title variants

EN

The attacks on the Monument of Gratitude to the Red Army Soldiers on the Wolności [freedom] Square in Grudziądz in 1946 and 1947 (in the light of records of Military District Court in Bydgoszcz)

DE

Angriffe auf die Denkmäler der Dankbarkeit für die Soldaten der Roten Armee am Freiheitsplatz in Graudenz in den Jahren 1946 und 1947 im Lichte der Akten des Heeres -und Bezirks- Gerichts in Bromberg

• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

The aim of the article is to depict in detail, on the grounds of the records of Military District Court in Bydgoszcz, the attacks backstage on the monument of gratitude to the Red Army soldiers in Grudziądz in the years 1946 and 1947 as well as the course and outcome of the court-investigatory proceedings in the above mentioned cases. In 1945 in Poland, there began mass actions to build monuments of gratitude towards the Red Army. In context of communist dictatorship, any public debate concerning issue of newly built commemorations could not take place, although it was by all means needed and justified in those days. Admittedly, the communist propaganda commented every single monument, yet solely in positive manner, with no polemical voice. Meanwhile, many Poles were of the opinion that the Red Army soldiers, although they beat the Nazi occupier, did not deserve any monuments. Crimes committed by the Red Army soldiers caused the initial gratitude being replaced by the sense of fear and injustice. Due to the impossibility to legitimately manifest protest against postwar situation which developed in the country, many Poles were undertaking illegal actions. Among them were the attacks on the Red Army monuments. They took place on the territory of the whole Poland, with a great intensity in the second half of the 40-ties and beginning of the 50-ties. The presented text regarding the attacks on the monument in Grudziądz, illustrates the motivations of perpetrators as well as the outline of proceedings achieved and copied by communist authorities in this kind of affairs.

• Publisher: Muzeum w Grudziądzu
• Journal: Rocznik Grudziądzki
• Year: 2014
• Volume: 22
• Pages: 149-172

Contributors

author

Dominika Czarnecka

• Toruń