One of the most interesting buildings located in Czech Ostrava is the Polish House. Its construction began in 1899 and was completed at the very end of the 19th century. The relatively innovative nature of the building under construction, which markedly differed from the architecture in Ostrava at the time, aroused much controversy and critical comment, although there were claims that it would be a "very decorative building". The sceptics, however, feared that it would be all too

WIFE, LOVER, PROSTITUTE AND GRAND EMBEZZLEMENT
It was not just the form of the building that caused controversy. Its designer, Stanislav Bandrovsky, fell foul of the local press. He appeared in Ostrava even before the Polish House was built. However, the architect became particularly famous after the completion of the works and his rather sudden departure for Vienna. This fact was noted by the local press, which was informed by local activists. It was suspected that he had fled after embezzling part of the funds intended for the construction of the house. There were reports that he was driven to such a desperate act by personal problems - debts and affairs. There were probably also conflicts in the Polish community in the background, since it was suggested that he had urged local Poles to vote for Germans in the upcoming elections.

Among the accusations and rumours, it was written that he had been seen in Ostrava in the company of a prostitute, or that she had even taken up residence with him. The morality scandal, however, turned out to be a dud, as the alleged courtesan turned out to be Bandrowski's wife, who quickly demanded that the editorial board correct the slander. Among the accusations, another interesting thread emerged about the architect's real name being Stefan Badowski, a Russian who had fled to avoid military service.

The case - especially concerning embezzlement - was serious. An APB was issued for Bandrovsky, and he was brought to Ostrava after being arrested in Vienna. He was captured - according to those hostile to Bandrovsky - during a tryst with his mistress. He spent several months in detention while awaiting trial. During the investigation it came to light that he had been accused of forging bills of exchange in 1893. However, before the court in Ostrava, he acquitted himself of the charges. The Supervisory Board of the Polish House Building Society also concluded that the building fund had not been violated. Only the charge of using a false name was upheld, for which Badowski was sentenced to several days in jail.

STANISŁAW BANDROWSKI VEL BADOWSKI
During the trial it was possible to learn about Bandrowski's biography. He came from the village of Baków near Kalisz, and was said to have studied at the Warsaw Polytechnic, which, however, in view of the establishment of the Emperor Nicholas II Warsaw Polytechnic Institute as late as 1897, may raise serious doubts. It is more likely that he gained professional experience working as a draughtsman, including in Ljubljana and Zagreb. He then undertook an independent practice in Tarnów, where he was to design a villa for Stanislav Podolecki. However, in the light of the accusations made, he fled from Tarnów to Ostrava, where he was employed as a designer in Bohumil Židlický's construction company and design bureau. Finally, he started his own practice. It is known that in addition to the Polish House in Ostrava, he also designed the house and sanatorium of Waclav Seidl.

WHERE DID THE POLISH HOUSE IN OSTRAVA COME FROM?
At the end of the 19th century, more and more Poles were arriving in Ostrava "for bread". This was also the "golden age" of the city, which was then one of the most important industrial centres of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The growing Polish population and its ambitions are evidenced by the establishment of a Polish school in 1898, which also needed its own premises. It was precisely the educational aspect that was emphasised most strongly in the efforts to obtain permission for the establishment of the Polish House.

A German House and a Czech House had already been established in Ostrava. Thus, one can speak not only of a need, but also of a kind of fashion and ambition to have one's own national home. These places, however, were important for national communities, not only fulfilling various social and educational functions, but above all serving to maintain national consciousness.

The organising committee for the construction of the Polish House included doctor Waclav Seidl, engineer F. Brzezowski (deputy mayor of Přívoz), engineer H. Schrott (mining supervisor) and doctor Dr. Knapczyk. They established the Society for the Construction of the Polish House in Moravian Ostrava in 1899. Among its members was Stanisław Bandrowski. It was fairly quickly possible to purchase a plot of land, albeit slightly out of town. Due to strong contacts between Poles in Ostrava and Krakow, a Krakow delegation visited the purchased plot in July 1899. At the same time, a competition for the design of the building was opened. However, not all Poles were in favour of it. It was seen primarily as a threat to the functioning of the Polish House in Cieszyn, and disputes resorted to, among other things, anti-Semitic slogans to disavow the Polishness of the adversaries. In spite of these disputes and difficulties, by January 1900 the building was already in its shell state, and in August there was an acceptance of the work, followed by the ceremonial opening of the house.

HISTORICISM, ART NOUVEAU AND NATIONAL MOTIFS, OR TEODOR TALOWSKI (ALMOST) IN FOCUS
A passer-by who knew the Polish language could be sure that he had a Polish House in front of him, as this was the inscription on its façade. According to local tradition, bricks and stones from the walls of Krakow were used in its construction to remind people of their ties with the motherland. This story is somewhat dubious, given that the city walls of Krakow were demolished in 1817. On the other hand, it is certain that the building was erected largely from contributions and donations by the citizens of Krakow. Perhaps, therefore, the money allowing the construction was the bricks. It cannot be ruled out, however, that some symbolic stone was indeed brought from Krakow and built in, but whether it was, as tradition demands, two wagons - there is no evidence so far.

There is, however, no doubt about other Polish accents - above all the Piast eagle perched proudly on the building. The whole seems to derive very clearly from the designs of Teodor Talowski, whose work Bandrowski must have become acquainted with in Galicia. Like Talowski, he introduces individual elements of Art Nouveau decoration into the picturesque-historicist architecture, especially the characteristic metal openwork dome, which harks back to the solutions of the Viennese Art Nouveau. The building as a whole, especially the combination of plaster and red brick strips and historicising elements, gives the building a picturesque eclecticism. However, Bandrowski operates these motifs in a rather mechanical manner. He lacks the finesse characteristic of Talowski's Krakow designs.

Despite its rather small scale, the architect strove to give the building a monumental character. Its mass was interpreted as referring to castle buildings. After all, like a castle, the Polish House was supposed to defend Poles and Polishness in Ostrava.

It is a two-storey, L-shaped building with an oval tower in the corner connecting the two wings. It houses the entrance to the building. The dominant compositional element is the cupola and the third storey crowning the entrance risalit. The whole is closed by an attic and a magnificent wrought-iron grille embracing the dome. The composition of the street-facing façade is based on the alternating use of unplastered brick and plaster overlaid with decorative elements. In addition to Art Nouveau elements, the detail combines Classicist and Neo-Romanesque motifs in an eclectic manner. In addition, the longer wing has a striking tripartite window called the thermal or Diocletian window, which is due to the fact that it was in Diocletian's Roman baths that the scheme of three windows inscribed in an arch was used, the central one being wider. It is above it that the Polish inscription and eagles were placed. Inside, the most impressive feature is the impressive staircase and ballroom.

THE POLISH HOUSE AND ITS PROBLEMS
On the occasion of the opening of the Polish House, Adalbert Johanny, the mayor of Ostrava, gave a speech in which he spoke of openness to different nationalities, which was considered a betrayal by the Ostrava Germans. It seemed to many that there was a bright future for the Polish House. It housed, among other things, a Polish school of the People's School Society, a Polish library, a savings bank and Polish organisations.

However, press reports from 1912 show that the situation was not so rosy from the start. The local Poles could not very well afford to maintain the building. In 1912, the aforementioned Polish school even took steps to take over the building and adapt it to its needs, but this was prevented by its own financial problems. The situation did not improve much after the First World War either. In 1917, there were even plans to rebuild the interiors, presumably for further activities to enable the House to finance itself. The functioning of the Polish House was only interrupted in 1938, when it became the Federal House and later the headquarters of the Hitlerjugend. After World War II, the building was reclaimed by Polish organisations, or rather the Polish Cultural and Educational Association in the Czech Republic. This organisation remained the most important state-sanctioned representative of Poles in the Czech Republic for a long time under socialism. At the same time, ideas were sought for its operation, including the addition of a hotel section in the 1960s. To no avail, and in 1979 the Polish House, faced with ongoing financial problems, lost its distinctiveness, becoming part of a larger structure in which Polish organisations also had a stake. However, after 1991 and privatisation, this was the cause of many disputes over the ownership of the building. Currently (2023), the building has been unused for several years and is slowly being devastated.

OBJECT SUBMITTED TO THE POLONICA DATABASE IN THE COMPETITION ORGANISED BY THE POLONICA INSTITUTE IN 2023