Observances of the Remembrance Day of the Cursed Soldiers began with a ceremonial assembly of subunits of the 23rd Silesian Artillery Regiment on 1 March this year. After the reading of the commemorative message from the Minister of National Defence to soldiers and employees of the national defence ministry, the acting commander of the 23rd Artillery Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Sławomir Kula, presented the historical background of the holiday observed since 1 March 2011:
“Because they lived by the law of the wolf, history is silent about them…” Quoting Zbigniew Herbert’s poem about the Cursed Soldiers, today we remember the figures and deeds of the heroes of the independence underground movement who were condemned to oblivion for years, paying tribute to them and expressing our remembrance for the sacrifice they made in defence of Polish independence.
The observances provided an opportunity to present regimental commemorative badges awarded by the honorary chapter to outstanding non-commissioned officers and enlisted soldiers.
In the afternoon, soldiers, scouts, veterans, colour guard units and city residents gathered at the symbol of Fighting Poland in Bolesławiec for a ceremonial assembly to pay tribute to the Cursed Soldiers. After the national anthem was played, a scouts’ assembly took place, followed by an address on the holiday from city mayor Piotr Roman. The reading of the roll of honour paid tribute to and commemorated the unyielding soldiers of the armed anti-communist underground, after which the honour company of the 23rd Artillery Regiment fired a ceremonial volley. The ceremony concluded with the laying of flowers.
On 2 March this year, Bolesławiec’s observances of the National Remembrance Day of the Cursed Soldiers began with the patriotic concert “In Tribute to the Cursed Soldiers”, prepared by students of the uniformed class at the Zespół Szkół Ponadgimnazjalnych im. Kombatantów Ziemi Lubańskiej. Gathered at the Bolesławiec Marian Basilica, students from uniformed classes at schools in Lower Silesia, Lubusz and Opole listened to a reenactment about the unyielding heroes of the post-war independence underground and patriotic musical arrangements. The poetry-and-music programme was preceded by the reading of a letter from the President of the Republic of Poland, Andrzej Duda, addressed to participants in the observances of the National Remembrance Day of the Cursed Soldiers.
After the reenactment, the young participants competed in sports and defence manoeuvres at the 23rd Artillery Regiment. As part of the event, students from uniformed classes practised drill under the supervision of military instructors, learned how to build, assemble and disassemble firearms, throw grenades and adopt firing positions. At the same time, 16 men’s teams and 13 women’s teams competed in an airgun shooting tournament conducted by the Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Commando Company “Commando”.
The observances of the Remembrance Day of the Cursed Soldiers culminated in the “Run for the Cursed 1963”, organised for the third time at the 23rd Artillery Regiment. Like the shooting tournament, it was held under the patronage of the President of the Republic of Poland, Andrzej Duda.
More than six hundred competitors took part in the run: soldiers representing units of the “Black Division”, American soldiers stationed in Bolesławiec, and students from fourteen uniformed classes and shooting associations. They paid tribute to the unyielding soldiers over the symbolic distance of 1,963 metres.
“The participation of soldiers, young people from schools in Lower Silesia, Lubusz and Opole, as well as members of shooting associations, in today’s observances is an expression of respect for the Cursed Soldiers for Their unyielding attitude and sacrifice,” said the acting commander of the 23rd Artillery Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Sławomir Kula, while summarising the run and shooting tournament. After the final results were read, he and the vice-president of the Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Commando Company “Commando”, Senior Warrant Officer Bogdan Fiałkowski, Bogdanem Fiałkowskim and the representative of the Bolesławiec branch of the Association of Polish Artillerymen, Ryszardem Krzosem, presented awards to the winners of the individual events.
The winners of the first three places and the winning teams received prizes donated by the Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Commando Company “Commando”, while the winners of the soldiers’ category in the run received cups donated by the Association of Polish Artillerymen. The best results in the soldiers’ category were achieved by Senior Sergeant Bartłomiej Waloszczyk and Private Karolina Jankowska of the 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade; among the American soldiers, by Captain Milles Riggs. The best results among the students belonged to Kacper Topolski and Urszula Sacha.
In the uniformed-classes shooting tournament, students from the European High School of Uniformed Services in Wrocław won the men’s team category, ahead of the Janusz Korczak 2nd General Secondary School in Bolesławiec and the Centre for Vocational and Continuing Education in Zbąszynek. In the women’s category, the team from the Henryk Sucharski Vocational Secondary School in Złotoryja proved unbeatable, ahead of the team from the Janusz Korczak 2nd General Secondary School in Bolesławiec and the General Secondary School Complex in Lubomierz. Among the shooting associations, the team of the 3060 Riflemen Unit from Brzeg won.