Plac Grunwaldzki – The Untold Story

The fate of Grunwaldzki Square is surprising – it encompasses stories and urban legends related to the activities of the opposition, the formation of the academic community and the first post-war years of the university, and the opening of the "Goliat" trade tent and the market on Skłodowska-Curie Street. However, few people realize that most of these events would not have occurred if not for the mass demolition of residential and commercial buildings in the area of today's Grunwald Axis during the Festung Breslau era.

organizer's materials

Sharing the story of the neighborhood with its residents is incredibly important to us – their voices help us understand how history continues to shape our city, community, and local identity. In our activities around Grunwaldzki Square, we often return to the memories of our neighbors, from which we draw inspiration. The two-year project "Plac Grunwaldzki – An Untold Story" allowed us to delve into the fate of the military airfield, whose construction in 1945 was proposed by architect Richard Konwiarz, and whose decision to stop construction was made by Karl Hanke. Soon, a large portion of the buildings on Kaiserstrasse, including two churches and the archive building, were demolished to create a throughway. During forced labor to clear the rubble from this area, several thousand people, mainly women, children, and the elderly, died.

 

The history of the Kaiserstrasse airport and the NSDAP's decision to build it have a profound impact on our neighborhood, which was filled with a "great void" after the end of the Siege of Breslau. For decades, this space haunted, inspired, and served as a place of social life and commerce – from the legendary Szaberplatz (Saberplatz), through the "Goliath" trading tent opened in 1991, and the marketplace that often appears in local community memories, to today's Rondo Reagan (Reagan Roundabout). Plac Grunwaldzki owes its name, architecture, and character to this single decision made during the city's siege.

Archival black and white photo. View of the Goliath trade tent. organizer's materials

Thanks to the support EVZ Foundation We were able to remind a wider audience of the history of our neighborhood. The "Plac Grunwaldzki – An Untold Story" project was created to strengthen local identity and collectively reflect on how World War II impacted the lives of local residents. We knew that history is often presented in a difficult, academic way, so we focused on accessible and proven forms – workshops, walks, film screenings, and conversations that moved and connected people. We want to tell the story of the past in simple, understandable language – one that resonates with people of all ages and backgrounds.

Two young women and one senior woman stand under the trees and talk. photo: Marcin Szczygieł

What kind of activities have we implemented for the residents of Wrocław as part of this project (from April 14, 2023 to April 15, 2025)?

  • 2023-2025
  • Interviews
  • Columns
  • Film screenings
  • Walks
  • Meetings and workshops
    • a series of six walks that they led for us
    • two film screenings combined with discussions;
    • a series of seven workshops and educational meetings;
    • six columns presenting the history of the estate and the local community;
    • the first memoir zine about Grunwaldzki Square;
    • the first video postcard from Grunwaldzki Square.

     

    Watch the video postcard

    Read the zine

     

    The project also enabled us to collaborate with the Wrocław community, whose representatives collaborated on a program of events, publications, and a video postcard, which we presented at the conclusion of our two-year project. Guides, academics, artists, educators, and those working in archives and media – each of you contributed to this endeavor, and we sincerely thank you!

     

    „Plac Grunwaldzki – an untold story” was co-created by:

     

    Wiktoria Didoszak, Majka Dokudowicz, Ewa Głowacka, Joanna Hytrek-Hryciuk, Anna Lewińska, Piotr Lis, Joanna Majczyk, Joanna Mielewczyk, Lech Moliński, Berenika Nikodemska, Piotr Oskwarek, Anna Pazdej, Ewa Pluta, Aleksandra Podlejska, Paweł Rychert, Agnieszka Tomaszewicz, Maciej Wlazło, Magdalena Weber, Tomasz Wszołek and Krzysztof Ziental.

     

    We would like to thank our partners and friends of the project: Academic Radio Luz, DKF Politechnika, Wrocław City Museum, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Wrocław Film Foundation and Zakwas Studio.

  • We met with thirty people who were or are currently connected to the Plac Grunwaldzki estate – living, working, or studying there at various times in their lives. Our interviewees included both seniors, adults, and young people. Each of them contributed their perspective and personal stories about how Grunwald influenced or continues to influence their lives. The transcripts of these often very personal conversations allow us to see the estate from the perspective of other residents. Their memories, sometimes contradictory or surprising, help us retell the story of Grunwaldzki Square.

     

    Click here to go to interviews with residents of the estate.

  • One of the project's goals was to consolidate and disseminate knowledge about the estate's shared history and identity. The events of 1945 had a profound impact on how life in the estate developed in the following decades, both in terms of development and filling the "great void" left by the Kaiserstrasse airport, as well as everyday life on Grunwaldzki Square. One of the outcomes we developed is a series of columns in which invited speakers recount the fate of Grunwald during the various years of its existence.

     

    LIST OF COLUMNS:

  • Over the two years of the project, we met regularly as an intergenerational group to reminisce, create, and discuss the history of the estate. Art and creative workshops provided an opportunity to reinterpret symbols important to Wrocław and Breslau, walks around the successive stages of filling the "great void" allowed us to learn more about the decades of history of Grunwaldzki Square, and film screenings combined with moving conversations provided an opportunity to reflect on how the war changed the lives of tens of thousands of people – both those fleeing Breslau and the first settlers resettled in the Recovered Territories.

     

    Together with other non-governmental organizations and academic partners, we use film as a tool to initiate conversations about the effects of war and build relationships between German and Polish communities. The meetings and discussions within this project are filled with emotion, memories, and warm feelings, even if the topics we discuss are difficult and sad.

     

    • On January 25, 2024, at 6:00 p.m., there was a screening of the documentary film "Fate" by Joanna Mielewczyk (Poland, 2023), known to you from the program "„Tenement houses”" on Radio RAM. The film tells the story of the lives of two teenagers (Jerzy and Juergen) in the besieged Wrocław of 1945. The protagonists meet after many years and recall their experiences from that time. A Pole and a German, two boys living in a war-torn city. On screen, they are accompanied by a modern teenager who, through the protagonists, discovers the past of his city. The documentary runs 60 minutes. After the screening, we met with Jerzy Podlak, one of the two main characters of the film and one of the last living witnesses of Festung Breslau, and also a Wrocław pioneer, living in the capital of Lower Silesia since 1944, as well as Piotr Lis, author of the book "Kamienice 4. Stories about places that are no longer there." The conversation was led by Lech Moliński Wrocław Film Foundation.

     

    • On February 8, 2024, at 6:00 PM, a screening of Wim Wenders's "Design over Berlin" (Germany, 1987) took place. The film shows Berlin at the end of the wall dividing the city into two worlds. The plot of Wenders' film tells the story of two angels, one of whom decides to give up his angelic status for the love of a woman. The film runs 2 hours and 8 minutes and was broadcast with Polish subtitles. Tomasz Sikora, a German and film expert, and Krzysztof Wiewióra from DKF University of Technology.

     

    The film screenings took place thanks to cooperation with the Wrocław Film Foundation and DFK PWr, and thanks to the courtesy of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology.

  • We also completed a series of walks around the Plac Grunwaldzki housing estate. The walks took place in the fall of 2023 and May 2024. We learned about the construction of the airport at Grunwaldzki Square. We also learned how socialist realist architecture and flagship modernist projects were created. Among our neighbors, we listened to stories about streets and buildings invisible to the naked eye, yet etched into the history of the estate, as well as the memories of those who lived in Plac Grunwaldzki before and after the war. We learned about the realities of life in a city ravaged by war, especially in the first years immediately after the fall of the Breslau Fortress.

     

    Walk schedule:

    • 24/08/2023, 17:30-19:30 – „Stories and myths surrounding the construction of the airport at Grunwaldzki Square” – guided tour by Maciek Wlazło.
    • 31/08/2023, 17:30-19:30 – „Archiwalk around Grunwaldzki Square in the footsteps of great plans from the second half of the 20th century” – guided by Joanna Majczyk.
    • 28/09/2023, 17:30-19:30 – „About the relationship between architecture and people – non-existent buildings and important people” – guided tour by Ewa Pluta.
    • 5/10/2023, 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM - "In the footsteps of pre- and post-war inhabitants of Wrocław" - guided tour by Joanna Mielewczyk.
    • 19/10/2023, 17:30-19:30 – „From Auditorium to Auditorium, or a walk along Grunwaldzki Square in the footsteps of modernist architecture” – guided by Krzysztof Ziental.
    • 9/05/2024, 5:00 PM - 10:30 AM - "The first years after the war" - guided tour by Joanna Hytrek-Hryciuk.

  • Intergenerational gatherings around shared history also proved successful in the form of creative workshops and meetings, during which those interested in the history of Grunwaldzki Square or connected to this part of Wrocław could develop their passions and acquire new skills. Creating a neighborhood zine together, creating linocut works, or demonstrating workshop printing during a neighborhood picnic are just some of our ideas for connecting memories and fostering intergenerational integration in a creative and non-judgmental atmosphere. This casual format proved to be a hit and helped overcome barriers between different generations of Wrocław residents.

     

    Schedule of meetings and workshops:

    • September 23, 2023 – Majka Dokudowicz, an artist and designer from Wrocław, led a demonstration of workshop printing during the picnic of the Plac Grunwaldzki Housing Estate Council and the "Nasz Grunwald" partnership. As part of the project, Dokudowicz also led a workshop on working with the linocut technique on March 5, 2024, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM. Both of these meetings were inspired by motifs found on the facades of Breslau tenement houses on what is now Grunwaldzki Square.
    • In the fall of 2024, we focused on creating a neighborhood zine with memories of Grunwald. In the first stage, 1September 4 and October 5, 2024, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM and 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM, two workshops were held, led by Anna Lewińska. Together, we gathered your memories and urban myths related to the Plac Grunwaldzki housing estate. Then, we moved on to creative activities – our guide in this process, and yours, was Ewa Głowacka, a Wrocław-based artist, activist, and designer with years of experience in the independent scene. The focus of our meetings was on independent and often self-published forms of publishing, which allow for the free expression of thoughts, emotions, and artistic visions. The workshops took place 22.11.2024 between 11:00-13:30 and 2.12.2024 between 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.
    • At the beginning of 2025, together with Zakwas Studio, a local ceramics studio, we invited you to co-create tiles inspired by the ornaments of German tenement houses, discovering the secrets of ancient ceramic decoration techniques. The workshop took place February 21 and 25, 2025 between 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.
    • „Every street is a completely different world – stories from Grunwaldzki Square” is the neighborhood finale of the project to which we invited you March 31, 2025 (5:30-7:30 PM). The intergenerational event featured the premiere of a zine and video postcard summarizing the project, as well as creative workshops on creating postcards inspired by the estate's key architectural symbols, led by Magdalena Weber.

„Plac Grunwaldzki – an untold story” is a project carried out by the Ładne Historie Foundation thanks to funding from the EVZ Foundation as part of the „local.history” program.

 

The project was supported by the EVZ Foundation. This publication does not represent the opinion of the EVZ Foundation. The author bears responsibility for any statements contained herein.

 

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