“During the Battle of Monte Cassino, the troops of the Second Polish Corps were continuously under heavy fire, under the most difficult conditions, and for seven days they fought a murderous battle to break through the German positions by spraying Italian soil with abundant Polish blood. This was a tremendous effort of will and a tremendous military sacrifice, which could only be achieved under the best commander. That’s how General Władysław Anders was,” Deputy Prime Minister Professor Piotr Gliński said at the celebration of the laying of flowers in front of the bust of General Władysław Anders in the square after him in Cassino.
The event, organized in connection with the 18th May, the 78th anniversary of the Battle of Monte Cassino, was also attended by the daughter of General Anna Maria Anders, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Italy, Jan Józef Kasprzyk, Head of the Office for Veterans and Oppressed and the Mayor of Cassino, Enzo Salera.
The Minister of Culture and National Heritage stressed that General Władysław Anders was a commander who was blessed by his soldiers with boundless devotion and trust. He pointed out that only with him were they willing to make the superhuman effort to break through the German defence at Monte Cassino.
“Therefore, it is a cruel paradox of history that the significant victories of General Władysław Anders prevented him from returning to his beloved homeland and exploring his destiny abroad,” the Deputy Prime Minister added.
The Deputy Prime Minister recalled that General Władysław Anders died in London on 12 May 1970 and rested among his soldiers on Italian soil on 23 May. This year we celebrate his 130th birthday.
The head of the Ministry of Culture quoted the General’s words during his tenure as Commander-in-Chief:
“We must remember that honesty and justice are triumphant in this war. An honest and just world cannot exist without a great, strong and independent Poland. Honourfully, we want to go to Poland, as soldiers, with a gun in hand. And when strangers or frightened people ask you what you are fighting for, say that a soldier is fighting for what he fought for five years ago: that in our country and the world no power can rule the law.”
“May this message be a guide and spread as a memento for all those who remain silent in the face of the current events and pretend not to see the injustice and violence before our eyes,” Deputy Prime Minister Piotr Glinski stressed.