In Prague, on one of the buildings in the gate passage of the house at 13 Nerudova Street (no. 250), there is a plaque commemorating Wojciech Korfanty's stay in the Czech capital between 1935 and 1938. This location is one of several where Korfanty resided during his stay in the Czech capital. Other addresses associated with his presence in Prague included Na Zbořenci 9 and locations in the city's suburbs. This plaque is a silent tribute to a prominent political figure whose life and activities left a lasting mark also beyond Poland's borders.

Wojciech Korfanty, born as Adalbert Korfanty on 20 April 1873 in the settlement of Sadzawka, which was later absorbed into Siemianowice Śląskie, was the son of a miner. His education began at a folk school in Siemianowice, and he continued at the Royal Gymnasium in Katowice (or today's Maria Skłodowska-Curie High School). During his education at the Gymnasium Korfanty, opposing forced Germanisation and the policies of Bismarck, about whom he spoke very negatively, became involved in the defence of Polishness. As he himself recalled, "I have to attribute the credit for my national awareness to my hackneyed professors at the secondary school in Katowice, who, by their vilification of everything that was Polish and Catholic, aroused in me a curiosity about the Polish book, from which I longed to find out what that despised and humiliated nation, whose language I spoke in my family, was like". Among other things, he founded a secret literary circle. His patriotic activities, including negative statements about Chancellor Bismarck, led to his expulsion from grammar school in 1895.

After graduating from high school externally in 1895, thanks to the intervention of the MP Józef Kościelski, Korfanty began studying at the Polytechnic in Charlottenburg. He then moved to the Royal University of Breslau, where he passed two semesters at the Faculty of Philosophy. His education was interrupted for two years, during which he worked as a tutor for the Lithuanian aristocrat Vytautas Jundzila. He continued his studies from 1899, and in May 1901 he moved to Berlin for his final semester, where he obtained his degree.

Wojciech Korfanty's political activity in the years 1901-1908 was a period of intense involvement in Polish and national affairs. After graduating, Korfanty became active within the National League, collaborating with the leading activist of this grouping, Roman Dmowski. From 1901, he was editor-in-chief of "Górnoślązak", a newspaper with a strong national and social profile, addressed to the Polish population of Upper Silesia, and from 1905 of "Polak".

In 1902. Korfanty was sentenced to imprisonment in Wronki for publishing the articles "To the Germans" and "To my Upper Silesian brothers", which had patriotic overtones and raised the issue of the Polishness of Silesia. During this time Korfanty gained recognition and support among the Polish population, which strengthened his position as a national leader in Upper Silesia.

Between 1903 and 1912 and again in 1918 Korfanty was a member of the Reichstag, representing the Polish Circle. In the German parliament, he was committed to defending the rights of Poles and demanding the incorporation of the Polish lands of the Prussian partition into the reborn Republic of Poland. His speech of 25 October 1918, in which he demanded the incorporation of all the Polish lands of the Prussian partition to Poland, as well as the release of Józef Piłsudski, was an important point in his political activity and underlined his determination to fight for the Polish cause.

Between 1920 and 1923, the activities of Wojciech Korfanty were characterised by his intense commitment to the Polishness of Upper Silesia and his participation in the political life of the reborn Poland. Appointed by the Polish Government as Commissioner of the 1920 plebiscite in Upper Silesia, Korfanty led the organisational, propaganda and political preparations for the forthcoming plebiscite which was to decide the region's membership.

Korfanty co-led the Second Silesian Uprising in 1920, which was a response of the Polish military and plebiscite organisations to anti-Polish German actions before the plebiscite was to take place. The order to fight was issued on 19 August 1920, and the uprising began on the night of 19 to 20 August, covering practically the entire industrial district. The aim of the insurgents was to drive the German Security Police out of the plebiscite area and to liquidate German paramilitary organisations and militias.

As a result of dissatisfaction with the results of the plebiscite held on 20 March 1921, where 40.3% of the population voted for belonging to Poland, which meant that almost the entire plebiscite area fell to the Germans, the Third Silesian Uprising took place. Korfanty, despite his initial scepticism towards the uprising, led it. After the first military successes, he gave the order to suspend military operations and wait for the decision of the Entente Inter-allied Commission.

The Third Silesian Uprising resulted in a division of the region that was more favourable to Poland. From the plebiscite area, 29% of the area and 46% of the population were annexed to Poland, which was also economically advantageous, as the annexed area included 53 of the 67 existing mines and 9 of the 14 steelworks.

In 1922 Korfanty became a member of the Polish Sejm and even designated as prime minister, which was however blocked by Jozef Pilsudski. In 1924 he bought from Ignacy Paderewski and founded the magazine "Polonia".

In the 1930s, Wojciech Korfanty's activities were significantly associated with his opposition to the Sanacja government and his activities in exile.

After the May Coup of 1926, Korfanty found himself in opposition to the rule of Józef Piłsudski and the Sanation. At this time Wojciech Korfanty gained a reputation as an outstanding publicist whose pen skilfully commented not only on current events, but also touched on fundamental ideological issues. His journalism reflected not only a deep knowledge of political realities, but also a rich intellectual background, shaped over the years by reading works representing various fields of knowledge.

His attitude was critical of the authoritarian tendencies of the authorities, especially after the Brest events in 1930. As a co-organiser of the Centrolew, he was arrested and imprisoned in the Brest Fortress, which significantly influenced his further political and personal fate. His opponents accused him, among other things, that his decision to suspend fighting during the uprising was opportunistic and limited the possibility of Poland seizing the whole of Upper Silesia. In the spring of 1935, facing the threat of another arrest, Korfanty went into exile in Czechoslovakia, where he continued his political activities.

In exile in Prague, Korfanty was an active participant in the political life of the Polish emigration, being one of the founders of the Morges Front. The Front Morges, named after the town in Switzerland where it was founded, brought together significant figures of the Polish political scene, such as Ignacy Paderewski, Józef Haller and Wincenty Witos. The Front's aim was to create a strong opposition against the authoritarian rule of the Sanacja regime and to promote democratic order in Poland.

Korfanty was also involved in the organisation and leadership of the Labour Party, which was formed from a merger of the Christian Democrats and the National Workers' Party. The Labour Party was a centre-left party focusing on social, labour and economic issues, aiming to build a just society in accordance with the principles of Christian democracy.

After the annexation of Czechoslovakia, he left for France. In April 1939, after the Third Reich denounced the non-aggression and non-violence treaty, Korfanty decided to return to Poland. Unfortunately, his return was linked to his arrest and imprisonment in the Pawiak prison, where he spent almost three months. He was released on 20 July due to his deteriorating health. He died on 17 August 1939 in Warsaw. His death was the result of a serious illness that led to his hospitalisation in St Joseph's Hospital on Hoża Street. The circumstances of his death have aroused much controversy, with one hypothesis suggesting that he may have been poisoned by arsenic vapour with which the walls of his cell at the Pawiak prison were soaked.

The funeral of Wojciech Korfanty took place in Katowice at the cemetery on Francuska Street. The ceremony was attended by around 5,000 people, which showed great support for the pro-independence policy he pursued, and was an expression of remembrance and respect for him among Silesians. Many people remembered that the Third Silesian Uprising, of which Korfanty was the dictator, was one of the few Polish armed uprisings to end successfully, as was the Greater Poland Uprising.

The plaque is cast in bronze with the portrayal in relief of the portrayed man's head in a medallion framed by an ornamental frame at the top which turns into a Neo-Secession decoration with flowing lines, volutes and geometrised motifs. An inscription cast on the sides of the Korfanty portrait: WOJCIECH KORFANTY / 1873 1939 //. Below: POLISH INDEPENDENCE ACTIVIST LEADER / OF CHRISTIAN DEMOCRACY, FRIEND / OF THE CZECH NATION, LIVED IN PRAGUE 1935-1938. / POLSKÝ POLITIK BOJOVNÍK ZA NEZÁVISLOST, / VŮDČÍ PŘEDSTAVITEL KŘEST´ANSKÝCH DEMOKRATŮ. / PŘÍTEL ČESKÉHO NÁRODA, BYDLEL V PRAZE 1935-1938. / WROCŁAW - PRAHA - KATOWICE / 2007 //.