Museum of Polish Diplomacy and Refugees in Bydgoszcz

About

The Museum of Polish Diplomacy and Exile presents the history of diplomacy and the history of the Polish government-in-exile in London (1939–1990). Located in Bydgoszcz, it is the only of its kind in Poland.

In the late 1990s, Wanda Poznańska, the widow of Karol Poznański (1893–1971), the last Consul of the Second Polish Republic in Paris (1927–1934) and London (1934–1945), decided to donate her archives to the then Higher School of Pedagogy in Bydgoszcz. Wanda (1898–2003) had been living since the 1970s in Canada, and her collection contained archives of the Polish diplomatic service and the government in exile, family mementos, furniture, everyday objects and even paintings that once filled the Poznańskis' house.

This move was facilitated by Adam Sudoł, a history professor at Kazimierz Wielki University (KWU) in Bydgoszcz, who was in contact with Wanda Poznańska.

In October 1997, an official delegation went to Montreal to present Wanda Poznańska with the medal Za Zasługi dla Miasta Bydgoszczy ( For Services to the City of Bydgoszcz ). At the same time, several Polish emigrants donated their archives: books, memorabilia, military and diplomatic uniforms.

In 1998, the City Council of Bydgoszcz decided to transfer these collections from the UKW storage rooms to a historical villa at 4 Berwińskiego street. This edifice became the current museum, inaugurated on 23 June 1998. Its first director was professor Adam Sudoł: the house had to undergo necessary renovation works, completed on 2 June 1999, in order to be opened for the public.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland took responsibility of the honorary patronage of the institution, informing every Polish embassy about it. Thanks to this, more donations began to flow in Bydgoszcz, from Poles living in various countries.

The museum is an independent research institution from the Faculty of History of the KWU, serving the Bydgoszcz city, the Kuyavian–Pomeranian Voivodeship and Poland, as well as the Polish diaspora abroad.

Karol Poznański began his career in 1920, when he took part in the negotiations that ended the Polish–Soviet War by the signing of the Treaty of Riga on 18 March 1921. From 1927 to 1934, he was Consul General of the Second Polish Republic in Paris and moved to London in 1934. His diplomatic mission ended on 5 July 1945, when United Kingdom and other Allies recognized the Polish Provisional Government : this decision meant immediately the withdrawal of the recognition of the Polish government-in-exile in London. At that time, most of the Polish diplomats chose to stay in UK, becoming political emigrants.

Wanda Poznańska née Dmowska was born on 23 July 1898. She had a thorough education and knew several foreign languages: her knowledge in German allowed her to work for the national parliament after Poland regained independence in 1920. She personally knew Józef Piłsudski and most of the main politicians of that period.

Wanda took part in important diplomatic events, first as a shorthand practitioner and later as a counselor. As a matter of fact, she attended the negotiations leading to the signing of the Treaty of Riga (1921), like Karol Poznański. She also participated in the economic conference in Genoa (1922) as a member of the Polish delegation, serving as a personal secretary to Minister Gabriel Narutowicz and as a stenographer for the Polish delegation. After the assassination of Gabriel Narutowicz, she was tasked with writing the transcript of the trial of the murderer.

In 1940, Wanda moved to Canada aboard a warship and in 1944, together with her mother and daughter, she rejoined her husband in United Kingdom. The latter was still working there as Consul General of the Second Polish Republic. After 1945, the couple emigrated to Montreal in Canada, where they spent the rest of their lives.

Wanda Poznańska died on 4 June 2003, in Montreal. According to her will, she was buried in Bydgoszcz.

The museum's main resource relies on the "Poznański Family Archive" which contains original documents:

- a collection of engravings by Stefan Mrożewski ;

- a collection of Polish banknotes from the interwar period. In addition, the museum acquired other repositories, including:

- unique documents belonging to Józef Beck, the last minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland of the Second Polish Republic. They have been transferred from USA by the diplomat's son Andrzej Beck ;

- mementos of Tadeusz Skowroński (1896–1986), a Polish diplomat and essayist. He was the Minister Plenipotentiary of Poland to Brazil from 1938 to 1945. His archives come from the Skowroński family estate in Torzeniec and from the diplomatic missions where he worked;

- memorabilia from Kazimierz Duchowski (1936–2021), a Polish official and diplomat, Polish ambassador to Costa Rica (1991–1995) and Cambodia (2002–2005);

- archives concerning the history of the Polish people's movement in United States and Belgium ;

- historical uniforms, military decorations and medals;