Monte Cassino. A place of remembrance that speaks without words

18 May - in the calendar of Polish history, this date signifies not only military victory, but above all remembrance. On this day in 1944, soldiers of the 2nd Polish Corps conquered Monte Cassino - the key point of resistance of the German Gustav Line in Italy. The victory, which was bought with enormous losses, has found its lasting commemoration not only in textbooks, but above all in our memory.

A cemetery that has become a national monument

In the "Valley of Death", between the Monastery of Monte Cassino and Hill 593, as early as June 1944 - two weeks after the end of the battle - the establishment of the Polish War Cemetery began . Its design was created by architects Wacław Hryniewicz and Jerzy Skolimowski, and its execution was carried out by Polish sappers and Italian masons under the direction of engineer Tadeusz Muszyński. The necropolis was created with the support of the British, but its spirit and form are entirely Polish.

The cemetery not only puts the space of death in order - it becomes a sign of remembrance and storytelling. There are 1,072 soldiers laid to rest in nine amphitheatrically arranged terraces. On the highest terrace is an altar and the emblems of the 2nd Corps units carved in stone. And above, a monumental eagle - the symbol of Poland - is carved on a slope cut by a hedge cross. The entrance to the necropolis is guarded by two stone eagles by Duilio Cambellotti - their hussar wings and powerful talons are like a heraldic cry.

Melchior Wańkowicz, who visited the site, wrote:

"As one walks down from the top of the cemetery, down a white wave of stairs, a strong inscription running in a two-metre antique across the plateau says: Passerby tell Poland that we have fallen faithful in her service ".

We write about this cemetery in two articles, the first by Professor Andrzej Pieńkos and the second from Polonik of the Week

From exile to victory - a path of remembrance

At the foot of this hill today is the Memorial Museum of the 2nd Polish Corps . It was initiated by Mieczysław Rasiej, a participant in the battle and president of the Union of Poles in Italy. The museum exhibition, realised in three languages, takes the visitor through all the stages of this dramatic epic - from the consequences of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, through the formation of the army in the USSR and Iran, to the battles in Italy and the life of refugees after the war.

Today, the museum serves not only an educational function, but also an emotional one - it provides a context that is often missing when visiting the cemetery itself. It recalls the fate of those who became a symbol of "people without a homeland, but with an army".

Wojtek - the bear who carried ammunition

One of the best known and at the same time most unobvious figures associated with the battle is Wojtek - a Syrian brown bear adopted by soldiers of the 22nd Artillery Supply Company. Wojtek not only lived among the soldiers, but was officially conscripted into the army and took part in the Battle of Monte Cassino, helping to carry crates of ammunition.

Today, on the slope of Hill 593, a statue of him has been erected - not so much as a mascot, but as a fully-fledged comrade-in-arms. The sculpted figure of the bear is a reminder of the power of friendship and the uniqueness of wartime fate. We write about monuments to the friendly bear here .

Tank-monument and the iron "Hump"

In the place called "Gardziela", where one of the heaviest axes of attack ran, there is a monument to the 4th Armoured Regiment "Scorpion " . It is formed by the wreck of the tank "Sultan", destroyed on a mine on 12 May 1944. Its entire crew was killed. The monument, designed by Ludwik Kuźniarz, is complemented by a cross made of tank tracks and bas-reliefs of scorpions - the unit's symbol.

The site has an almost cinematic feel to it - it tells the story of those who never made it to the monastery, but whose sacrifice was no less significant.

A general among his own

In Cassino, a monument to General Władysław Anders , created by Igor Duszynski, was unveiled. The monument is a symbolic closure to this story - especially as the General rests among his soldiers on the highest terrace of the cemetery.

His presence - and his absence after 1945 from the political life of Poland - shows how dramatic were the choices of people who were thrown out of their homeland by the war.

Memory scattered - in graves that are silent

In 'Heritage Abroad. Database of Polonica" we will find not only entries about Monte Cassino. The database also documents the gravestones of 2nd Corps soldiers scattered all over the world - from Italy to Great Britain , to Canada . Many of them died in exile, many never returned home. Their graves - humble, forgotten, often overlooked - are the last signs of this great history of dispersal.

If you know of other tombstones of soldiers who fought at Monte Cassino located around the world - let us know , let us create a map of memory together