This Monday, August 1st, 2022 was an important day for the Varsovians. At 17h, the 78th Anniversary of the Godzina W “‘W’ Hour”, Warsaw remembered the heroes who fought against nazis during the Warsaw Uprising.
At 17h. Warsaw stopped for one minute to remember the heroes who fought against nazi horror. Cars, public transport, and people stopped for one minute and city sirens and churches rang the bells for one minute. An emotional moment to live at least once in a lifetime.
The best spots were Dmowskiego roundabout, where several hundreds of people will gather, red and white smokes were lit and chants sang and the banks of the Vistula on the right side of Poniatowski bridge, where boats gathered and blew their foghorns, and white and red smoke were lit.
On August 1st, 78 years ago, at 17h, the Warsaw Uprising began. The Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa, AK), the dominant force in the Polish resistance fought against the nazis from this date till October, 2nd 1944, and the total defeat of the Home Army by the nazis Forces.
After two months of fights, 85% of Warsaw was destroyed, 16,000 resistants were killed in fights or executed, and between 150,000 and 200,000 civilians died. 2 months after the end of the uprising, nazis forces abandoned the city.
Every year, Varsovians gathered in several parts of the capital to celebrate the heroes of the uprising. The two main points are the Rondo Dmowskiego next to the Palace of Culture and Science and the Rotunda and the Vistula. On the Rondo Dmowskiego hundreds of people often thousands and a group of bikers gathered with flags and red flares. At 17h, the City siren alerts rang, dozens of motorcycles powered their engines at the same time, and people lit their red flares, and then after 1-minute people sing in tribute to the Warsaw Uprising Heroes. In the Vistula, dozens of boats light red flares and ring their foghorn.
I advise you to attend this celebration once in your life, the smoke and the noise make this very ephemera moment very special and even overwhelming.
SCARS FROM THE UPRISING
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Complete documentary Day by Day, Place by place about the Warsaw Uprising by Patrick Ney.
Recommended websites
Beautiful Warszawa 