Henryk Slawik, born in 1894 in the village of Szeroka (now Timmendorf in Germany), is a remarkable figure. His story is a symbol of steadfastness and courage in the face of incomprehensible challenges. In 1990, Sławik was posthumously awarded the title of Righteous Among the Nations for his extraordinary deeds.

After completing his education, Sławik moved to Hamburg, where he became involved with the Polish Socialists in 1912. His war experience began in the ranks of the Imperial German Army during the First World War, where he served on the Eastern Front. Then, as a prisoner of war, he survived exile in Siberia, from where he managed to return to a reborn Poland. Immediately after his return in 1921, he also took part in the Third Silesian Uprising. After the fighting ended, he continued his political activity, becoming editor of "Gazeta Robotnicza", and from 1934 a member of the Supreme Council of the Polish Socialist Party. After his marriage in 1928 and the birth of his daughter two years later, he moved to Warsaw, where he was employed by the Interior Ministry.

In September 1939, Sławik found refuge in Hungary, where, supported by József Antall senior, he undertook the organisation of the Civic Committee for the Care of Polish Refugees, officially registered by the government-in-exile in March 1940. He also took an active part in the cultural life of the exile, co-founding Wieści Polskie, a newspaper for Poles in Hungary, which also had readers in occupied Poland, and being active in the Hungarian Mickiewicz Society.

However, the most significant aspect of Slawik's activities was rescuing Jewish refugees, especially children, by creating false documents and founding an orphanage in Vác officially being the "Orphanage for the Children of Polish Officers". His actions were so successful that the deception went undetected by the Nazis. Unfortunately, Slavik was betrayed and arrested by the Gestapo. Despite being tortured, he never revealed his collaborators, which he eventually paid with his life in the Mauthausen concentration camp. He died on 25 or 26 August 1944.

The memory of Slawik and his deeds is especially cherished in Poland and Hungary after 2010. 24 September 2014. The Hungarian Parliament passed law H/1270 "Commemorating the 70th anniversary of the death of Henryk Slawik and the 40th anniversary of the death of József Antall senior" with almost unanimous support. In 2015, a section of the lower Budapest waterfront between Rakoczy and Petőfi Bridge was named after him. In 2017, twin monuments commemorating Henryk Slawiak and József Antall senior were unveiled in Budapest and the year before in Warsaw. Their author is the Polish sculptor Wladyslaw Dudek (b. 1952). The monument depicts the two men in intimate, thoughtful conversation, symbolising the deep bond between these two remarkable people.

The monument depicts the two men sitting at a table and playing chess. The man on the right - Jozef Anatall - is dressed in a suit, while the man on the left - Henryk Slawik - is wearing an overcoat and shirt open at the neck. They sit in relaxed poses, the man on the right with his right leg folded over his left. The figures are focused, immersed in conversation, which is emphasised by hand gestures. The table is simple, square made of stone, with a chessboard symbolically marked on its surface. In front of the monument a stone plaque placed diagonally, on it a second bronze plaque with a cast inscription in Hungarian and English:

HENRYK SLAWIK / (1894, SZEROKA, LENGYELORSZÁG - 1944, / MAUTHAUSEN-GUSENI NÉMET HALÁTABOR) / ID. ANTALL JÓZSEF (1896, ORSZI, MAGYARORSZÁG / -1974 BUDAPEST) / 1939-1944 KÖZÖTT MAGYARORSZÁGON / TO BE MINT 30000 LENGYEL POLGARI MENEKÜLT BEFOGADÁSÁNAK / LEGENDÁS KIRŰ SZERVEZŐI ES HŐSIES OLTAMAZŐI. / MINTEGY 5000 LENGYAL ZSIDÓ MENEKÜLT ÉLETÉT MENTETTÉK MEG. / A 'VILÁG IGAZA KITÜNTETÉS KÉT KIEMELKEDŐ BIRTOKOSA / - A HÁLÁS LENGYELEK /.

IN THE YEARS 1939-1944 IN WARTIME HUNGARY, / THEY WERE THE LEGENDARY AND HEROIC GUARDIANS / OF OVER 30 000 POLISH CIVILIAN REFUGEES, / AND THE SAVIORS OF ABOUT 5 000 POLISH-JEWISH REFUGEES. / TO THE TWO GREAT MEN, "RIGHTEOUS AMONG THE RATIONS" / - WITH GRATITUDE FROM THE POLISH NATION

The monument is placed in a circular area paved with cobblestones, which spreads outwards in a spiral pattern.

In Budapest, there is a plaque by the Great Synagogue listing those connected with Hungary who have been honoured with the title of Righteous Among the Nations. The name of Henryk Slawik is also on it.