Jul 23, 2024 | History, Society Poland has removed another Soviet monument as part of long-running efforts to “decommunise” public spaces that have picked up pace in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine The “Brothers in Arms” monument in the northwestern town of Nowogard – which depicted Soviet and Polish soldiers – was torn down by a demolition team on Monday 22 July That date was not chosen by chance: it was communist Poland’s most important annual holiday marking the anniversary of the proclamation of the Polish Committee of National Liberation in 1944 exercised control over Polish territories conquered by the Red Army Dziś w Nowogardzie przewrócił się komunistyczny pomnik głoszący odwieczne braterstwo broni polsko – sowieckie 😎 pic.twitter.com/EZ5uj2JxLM — Leszek Dobrzyński (@l_dobrzynski) July 22, 2024 “The communists not only took away our free and independent Poland but after 1945 they did everything to subject our national soul and minds to a lobotomy,” said Karol Nawrocki the head of the state Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) “That is why monuments appeared all over Poland at that time – ahistorical [expressing] lies and contempt for the victims and tribute to the perpetrators,” he added “This is a ‘brotherhood in arms’ that does not take into account the nearly 200,000 lives of Poles murdered as a result of the NKVD operation,” said Nawrocki referring to a mass ethnic-cleansing action against Poles in the Soviet Union in 1937-38 that killed at least 110,000 people declared that the monument has “no place in the public space” and that he “could not wait” for it to be removed Wiatr said that a “beautiful fountain” would be built instead Hundreds of local residents gathered to watch the monument being removed The monument was one of hundreds erected in communist Poland expressing “gratitude” to the Soviet Red Army for “liberating” the country Precz z komuną… pic.twitter.com/IY9lTg50ya — Karol Nawrocki (@NawrockiKn) July 22, 2024 six years after the fall of communism in Poland it was renamed “Monument to the Veterans of the Republic of Poland” and a Soviet star on one of the soldiers’ helmets was removed this object insults all those who fought for a free Poland especially those who fought the Soviet aggressor” director of the IPN’s branch in the nearby city of Szczecin rape and robbery to Poland,” he continued “There is no consent to glorify Soviet bandits in the public space of our homeland.” A building that served as a Soviet headquarters – and in which prisoners were detained, tortured and executed – has been bought by the Polish government and will be turned into a museum commemorating communist crimes https://t.co/wKGxLowLS9 — Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) July 8, 2021 the then ruling national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) government introduced a law requiring local authorities to “decommunise” public spaces by removing objects and names that “propagate communism or other totalitarian systems” After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, efforts to remove large Soviet memorials accelerated The monument in Nowogard is the 41st in Poland to be torn down since then The IPN branch in Szczecin first proposed removing it in 2017 and the plan was approved by the town council. However, it was blocked by Nowogard’s former left-wing mayor until he lost power at this year’s local elections and was replaced by Wiatr Poland has removed 20 Soviet monuments since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine The head of the state historical body has welcomed the fact that officials are now more willing to take such action, but notes that there are still 40 memorials to be dismantled https://t.co/qOE5PcKPFR — Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) September 28, 2022 The removal of Soviet memorials in Poland has been criticised by Russia which argues that not only does it dishonour the memory of those who liberated the country from Nazi-German occupation but also violates a bilateral agreement between the two countries that the agreement relates only to graves and war cemeteries while the Red Army did push out the German occupiers its arrival ushered in decades of brutal communist dominance Main image credit: Mikołaj Bujak/IPN (under CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 PL) Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications , , Karol Nawrocki even suggested that the state security services were involved in creating the scandal , , The 1,200 square metre national symbol was unfurled on the beach in Międzyzdroje , , The proportion of Poles saying the US has a positive influence on the world has also fallen to its lowest recorded level Apr 30, 2025 | , , , That response will include “large Polish and NATO exercises in Poland” Apr 29, 2025 | , , , Those employed in Poland work on average the third-longest hours in the European Union Apr 28, 2025 | , , , , Westinghouse and Bechtel were first chosen in 2022 as partners on the 192 billion zloty ($51 billion) project please consider helping us to continue and expand it [email protected] Copyright © 2025 Notes From Poland | Design jurko studio | Code by 2sides.pl Senior Research Fellow at the Global Europe Centre ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Weronika Strzyżyńska is currently studying journalism at Goldsmiths as a Scott Trust Bursary recipient She  has written on issues immigration and Brexit for New Statesman and Prospect Agnieszka Wądołowska is managing editor of Notes from Poland She has previously worked for Gazeta.pl and Tokfm.pl and contributed to Gazeta Wyborcza ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland and assistant professor of history at the Pedagogical University of Krakow The Independent and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Stanley Bill is the founder and editor-at-large of Notes from Poland.He is also Senior Lecturer in Polish Studies and Director of the Polish Studies Programme at the University of Cambridge Stanley has spent more than ten years living in Poland He founded Notes from Poland in 2014 as a blog dedicated to personal impressions cultural analysis and political commentary He is committed to the promotion of deeper knowledge and understanding of Poland He is the Chair of the Board of the Notes from Poland Foundation ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Professor of European Studies at Oxford University ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Professor at the Institute of History of the Jagiellonian University ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Executive Director of Taube Family Foundation ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR Associate Professor at the Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Science ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR