With Putin’s Army Hours Away, Nov. 11th Takes on a Different Meaning

Politics in Poland is laced with a distinct brand of patriotism

The Independence Day parade in Gdańsk, Poland. 11/11/2022. Photo by the author.

In Poland, they take their patriotism seriously. Very seriously.

I had a coffee shop conversation with a stranger in Gdańsk, Poland, on the eve of November 11th, Poland's Independence Day, which served to increase my respect for the people of this country.

He told me not to miss the events of Friday, which doesn’t just honor veterans as we do in America, but the independence of a people who had been suppressed for 130 years.

“If you happen to be looking for someone tomorrow here in Gdańsk, don't go to their house. You won’t find them at home,” he told me. “Everyone is in the parade”.

Real freedom in eastern Europe didn’t begin for most countries until after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. But not for Poland, he told me. “Our Solidarity Movement here in Gdańsk marked the real end of the Iron Curtain. For us, World War II was finally over”. Founded in 1980, Solidarity became a political party and defeated the Communist Party in 1989 in Poland’s first free elections in 70 years.

He went on to point out that for many eastern European countries, the specter of occupation is never far behind.

“The worry never ends. Look at what’s happened to Ukraine”, he told me. “And Putin ran up against more than he expected. The Russians are just hours away from us. But go to the parade tomorrow, and you’ll get an idea of what he can expect from Polish people if he dares cross our border!”

On November 11th, a grand parade of military re-enactors and wave upon wave of young people in World War II uniforms marched together through the historic streets. The closest thing to the massive crowd I’ve ever seen at a parade before are the throngs that line the sidewalks for Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City. Only this is better.

Video by the author of Gdańsk, Poland’s celebration for Poland’s Independence Day 11/11/22

The difference here in Poland is that everyone is marching, and the line between the parade and the sidewalk dissolves almost immediately with families, red and white national flags, and ribbons everywhere.

Poles have an intense and distinct brand of patriotism.

In America, Veterans Day is when we remember the service of all our armed forces veterans. It was originally Armistice Day commemorating the end of World War I until President Eisenhour led the movement to honor all veterans on November 11th, starting in 1953.

Hostilities ended in the “War to End All Wars” in 1918 on November 11th at 11:00 a.m. The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. King George V of England started the remembrance of Armistice Day in 1919 with two minutes of silence on the anniversary each year.

Things were a little different in Poland, where the conflict brought an end to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, of which it had been a part ever since the early 18th Century. With the end of WWI, the empire disintegrated, and the Republic of Poland was once again free after 130 years. Polish Independence Day flourished until the next invaders, Nazi Germans, brought their particular brand of hatred to Poland.

Poles survived but entered an era of a new kind of hell that would last almost 50 years after the end of WWII. The Russians, who had destroyed Gdańsk’s center city with artillery and bombs, ruled over the country with a new version of brutal occupation.

But the Polish People are used to throwing off the yoke of oppression.

Poland’s Solidarity Movement, which began in the Gdansk Shipyard with Lech Walesa at its head, paved the way for freedom for a whole continent and for independence for many people who hadn’t experienced it in generations. And part of its consequence was the fall of the Berlin Wall.

One thing is certain. If the spirit of independence, patriotism, and defiance demonstrated by the festivities on November 11th is any indication, the next round of Polish oppressors will be getting more than they bargained for.