Although Polish "insurgents" (a strange word to describe those who were defending their homeland) numbered 40,000 (including 4,000 women), they were grossly out-weaponed by the Germans with their tanks, planes and artillery. One of the goals of the uprising was to reestablish Polish control of Warsaw before the Red Army had a chance to assume control. The Polish Home Army, however, attempted to communicate with them, but Stalin had instructed Soviet troops to halt, thereby allowing the effort to be crushed--an exercise in deadly cynicism. Stalin's goal was obviously to take control over the area. All tolled, 85% of the city of Warsaw lay in ruins by January 1945. The death toll exceeded 200,000. Warsaw's war story is beyond horrific.
The city rebuilt, both under the Soviets, and in the post-Soviet era as well. The monument pictured above in the description of the Warsaw Uprising is located near Poland's Supreme Court Building. These "ladies" were holding up the other side of the building.
We soon discovered that we were on our way to the old town of Warsaw.
According to Warsaw Tourist sites, almost 90% of the Old Town Square had been destroyed during the Warsaw Uprising. The rebuilding effort was so "painstakingly faithful" that it became the only reconstructed site on UNESCO's World Heritage sites.
We had some free time to wander at this point, so a few of us headed to the Vistula River.
My friend is an art historian, so she was drawn to the public art we encountered along the way.
Unfortunately, we also encountered ugly graffiti.
Once our free time had come to an end, we were back on the bus, headed to Lublin, 106 miles southeast of Warsaw.
The city of Warsaw contains so many sites of note and interest for students of the Holocaust, World War II and European history. It's a culturally rich city, one I feel compelled to re-visit.
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