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Poles in Germany: Roads to visibility

Magdalena Abakanowicz, Bambini, 1998. Ausstellungsansicht in der St. Elisabeth-Kirche, Berlin, Gallery Weekend 2015, Galerie ŻAK | BRANICKA, Berlin

Mediathek Sorted

Media library
  • Mausoleum  - The Mausoleum of Queen Richeza at the Cathedral of Cologne
  • The coats-of-arms of Hedwig Jagiellonica and Georg the Rich - The coats-of-arms of Hedwig Jagiellonica and Georg the Rich of Bavaria-Landshut in the castle at Burghausen.
  • A stained glass painting in the Landshut town hall. - A stained glass painting in the Landshut town hall. The window is in the main staircase. The picture shows Georg the Rich and Hedwig of Poland.
  • Johannes a Lasco, 1567 - Born into the family of a Polish magnate in 1499, Jan Łaski, whose Latin name is Johannes a Lasco, is predestined for a prominent political and theological career.
  • Count Athanasius Raczyński - Count Athanasius Raczyński, 1826
  • The Raczynski Palace  - The Raczynski Palace at Königsplatz (ca. 1875)
  • Empfang der Polen in Leipzig 1830 - Guillaume Thierry, Lithographie nach einer Zeichnung von Charles Malankiewicz, 39,8 x 48,7 cm, 1830/31
  • Transit routes (overview) - Transit routes taken by Polish fighters in the November uprising and the German organisations providing help to Poland 1831 – 1833 (overview). H. Asmus, 1981
  • Memorial tablet in 12 tableaux - The Most Memorable Days in the Year 1830, a memorial tablet in 12 tableaux, Verlag Johann Andreas Endter, Nürnberg, 1830, engraving, coloured, 30.3 x 43.5 cm
  • A special postage stamp - A special postage stamp issued by the German Postal Service to mark the anniversary of “175 Years Hambach Festival”
  • Ludwik Mierosławski - Ludwik Mierosławski (1814-1878), photo ab. 1850
  • Józef Ignacy Kraszewski

    Józef Ignacy Kraszewski around the year 1879
  • Kraszewski-Museum

    Kraszewski-Museum in Dresden
  • „Chopin spielt im Salon des Fürsten Anton Radziwill in Berlin“ - Ein Gemälde von Henryk Siemiradzki (1843-1902), um 1880, Sankt Petersburg, Staatliches Russisches Museum
  • Wiarus Polski, Bochum - Ausgabe vom 3. Juli 1907
  • Sachsengänger - Sachsengänger bei der Ankunft in Berlin, 1909
  • Cover page of the first edition of “Narodowiec” - Herne, 2 October 1909, from: “Polak w Niemczech”, Bochum 1972, p. 44
  • Atelier von Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski in München, 1889 - Carl Teufel: Künstleratelier Alfred Wierusz-Kowalski, München 1889. Schwarzweiß-Fotografie vom Glasnegativ, 18 x 24 cm 
  • In the workshop of Kossak - Kaiser Wilhelm II and Adolf v. Menzel in the workshop of the painter Adalbert von Kossak.
  • International Socialist Congress - Rosa Luxemburg speaking at the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, August 1907.
  • Helena und Stanisław Sierakowski, Hochzeitsfoto, 1910  - Stanisław Sierakowski - der erste Vorsitzender des Bundes der Polen in Deutschland "Rodło"
  • Wedding telegram, 1913 - Wedding telegram with two men in national costume and the cartouche with a white eagle, colour print, 1913.
  • Study record Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg - With contributions by Edmund Husserl, 1916
  • "Pola Negri - unsterblich", Dokumentation von 2017 - Eine Filmdokumentation über Leben und Schaffen eines der größten Stummfilmstars in Deutschland polnischer Herkunft.

    "Pola Negri - unsterblich", Dokumentation von 2017

    Eine Filmdokumentation über Leben und Schaffen eines der größten Stummfilmstars in Deutschland polnischer Herkunft.
  • Drei Tage im November. Józef Piłsudski und die polnische Unabhängigkeit 1918"

    Von Magdeburg in die Unabhängigkeit Polens - ein Film über einen polnischen Mythos.
  • The House in the Magdeburg Fortress

    The house in the Magdeburg Fortress where Józef Piłsudski was interned.
  • “Radziwill-Palais”

    “Radziwill Palais”, view of the “Red Salon” and the winter garden of the building, ca. 1927.
  • The religious ceremony in Herne, 1930 - The religious ceremony of "Days of Faith of Our Fathers" in Herne, 1930
  • Werbeplakat für den Film "Ich liebe alle Frauen" (1935) mit Jan Kiepura  - Werbeplakat für den Film "Ich liebe alle Frauen" (1935) mit Jan Kiepura in der Hauptrolle
  • Dziennik Berliński - Ausgabe vom 10. November 1937 mit der Titelgeschichte über die Eröffnung des Polnischen Gymnasiums im ostpreußischen Marienwerder (polnisch Kwidzyń).
  • The Jankowski Family – Ruhr Poles in Herne 1936 - The Jankowski, parents with children, 1936 in Herne
  • Polnischer Zwangsarbeiter beim Milchfahren, ca. 1943 - Polnischer Zwangsarbeiter vom Hof Schweers (Kr. Borken) beim Milchfahren, ca. 1943, Sammlung Ignaz Böckenhoff: Das Dorf Raesfeld in den 1930er bis 1960er Jahren
  • Polish fashion magazine “Moda” in Niederlangen (Emsland), 1945 - The cover page of the magazine, which was created in the former prisoner of war camp for those involved in the Warsaw Uprising, announced a new fashion collection for summer 1945 (some of which were made from uniforms), shortly after their liberation by t
  • Wilhelmshaven, 1945 - Soldat der polnischen 1. Panzerdivision des Generals Stanissław Maczek auf dem Hof der Kaserne in Wilhelmshaven, Mai 1945.
  • Józef Szajna in Maczków - Józef Szajna in Maczków (Haren) on the Ems, 1946.
  • Friedhofskapelle im DP-Lager Flossenbürg, 1947 - Ein Kirchenfenster aus der durch polnische Displaced Persons 1946-47 erbauten Friedhofskapelle auf dem Gelände des ehemaligen KZ Flossenbürg (Detail) nach dem Entwurf von Władysław Płoskoń, 1947.
  • The film producer Artur "Atze" Brauner. - The film producer Artur "Atze" Brauner. The photo was taken on 25th January 2002 in Leipzig when he was there for the mdr talkshow "Riverboat".
  • Artur Brauner - Ein Jahrhundertleben zwischen Polen und Deutschland - Eine Filmdokumentation über die legendäre Persönlichkeit des deutschen und internationalen Films.

    Artur Brauner - Ein Jahrhundertleben zwischen Polen und Deutschland

    Eine Filmdokumentation über die legendäre Persönlichkeit des deutschen und internationalen Films.
  • Tadeusz Nowakowski, ca. 1950 - Tadeusz Nowakowski, ca. 1950
  • Teresa Nowakowski (101) im Gespräch mit Sohn Krzysztof, London 2019. - Teresa Nowakowski (101) im Gespräch mit Sohn Krzysztof, London 2019 (auf Polnisch).

    Teresa Nowakowski (101) im Gespräch mit Sohn Krzysztof, London 2019.

    Teresa Nowakowski (101) im Gespräch mit Sohn Krzysztof, London 2019 (auf Polnisch).
  • Fronleichnam in der Siedlung für polnische Displaced Persons in Dortmund Eving, 1951 - Ein durch die polnische DP-Familie Sokołowski angefertigter Alter für die Fronleichnamsprozession, Dortmund Eving, 1951.
  • Stefan Arczyński (right) with a friend in Moscow, 1956 - Stefan Arczyński (right) with a friend in Moscow. Photographer unknown, 1956.
  • Mieczysław Wejman, „Der Schlaf ist Bruder des Todes“, Wildflecken, 1971 - Ein Fresco des Professors der krakauer Kunstakademie (Fragment) zum Gedenken an 428 polnische Kinder und 116 Erwachsene, die im DP-Lager Wildflecken 1945-48 verstorben sind, Friedhofskapelle Wildflecken, 1971.
  • Marcel Reich-Ranicki in the ZDF studio - Programme title: Due to the occasion - Marcel Reich-Ranicki talks to Thomas Gottschalk
  • Karol Broniatowski - Memorial to the Jews deported from Berlin, 1991

    Karol Broniatowski

    Memorial to the Jews deported from Berlin, 1991
  • Historische Vereinsfahnen des Bundes der Polen in Deutschland - Historische Vereinsfahnen des Bundes der Polen in Deutschland in der St. Anna Kirche der Polnischen Katholischen Mission in Dortmund. Die Fahnen gehören zum Bestand der Porta Polonica.
  • Film "The Madman and the Nun" - St. Ignacy Witkiewicz, Filmstudio Transform, Director: Janina Szarek - Film "The Madman and the Nun" - St. Ignacy Witkiewicz, Filmstudio Transform, Director: Janina Szarek

    Film "The Madman and the Nun" - St. Ignacy Witkiewicz, Filmstudio Transform, Director: Janina Szarek

    Film "The Madman and the Nun" - St. Ignacy Witkiewicz, Filmstudio Transform, Director: Janina Szarek
  • WORMHOLE, 2008 - A video installation in a public space. Steel construction, glass, video, monitor, DVD player. Ø = 100 cm, H = 110 cm. Copyright: Karina Smigla-Bobinski.

    WORMHOLE, 2008

    A video installation in a public space. Steel construction, glass, video, monitor, DVD player. Ø = 100 cm, H = 110 cm. Copyright: Karina Smigla-Bobinski.
  • Andrzej Wirth in his apartment in Berlin - Andrzej Wirth in his apartment in Berlin.
  • Interview with Leszek Zadlo - Interview with Leszek Zadlo

    Interview with Leszek Zadlo

    Interview with Leszek Zadlo
  • Köln, Hohenzollernbrücke - From the series “Urban Spaces”, 2005-2009, “Cologne, Hohenzollern bridge”, Inkjet photo print, 85 x 240 cm.
  • ZEITFLUG - Hamburg - © all films: Stefan Szczygieł. Courtesy: Claus Friede*Contemporary Art, Hamburg.

    ZEITFLUG - Hamburg

    © all films: Stefan Szczygieł. Courtesy: Claus Friede*Contemporary Art, Hamburg.
  • Lech Wieleba - On the double bass.
  • ill. 17b: Empty Images, 2000/2006 - Empty Images, 2000/2006. Bild (Berlin), 12th January 2006
  • Monika Czosnowska, Johanna - Monika Czosnowska, Johanna , 2004, C-Print, 78 x 66 cm, Sammlung Marta Herford, Zugangsjahr: 2005
  • Polonia Dortmund 2012 - Robert Lewandowski, Łukasz Piszczek and Jakub Błaszczykowski from Borussia Dortmund – Champion of Bundesliga 2012
  • Małgosia Jankowska - In Blau, 2015, Aquarell, Filzstift auf Papier, 100 x 150 cm.
  • Katarzyna Myćka -
  • Der Planet von Susanna Fels - Ein Kunstfilm von Susanna Fels mit den Fotos von u.a. Annette Hudemann, 2019.

    Der Planet von Susanna Fels

    Ein Kunstfilm von Susanna Fels mit den Fotos von u.a. Annette Hudemann, 2019.
  • Agata Madejska, RISE, 2018 - Agata Madejska, RISE, 2018. Installation view, ∼ =, Impuls Bauhaus, Zeche Zollverein, Essen, 2019.
Magdalena Abakanowicz, Bambini, 1998
Magdalena Abakanowicz, Bambini, 1998. Ausstellungsansicht in der St. Elisabeth-Kirche, Berlin, Gallery Weekend 2015, Galerie ŻAK | BRANICKA, Berlin

After the War: Poles in Germany – some figures

Directly after the end of the Second World War, there were more than 1.7 million Poles, former forced labourers, concentration camp prisoners and prisoners of war. As displaced persons, they spent months or even years mainly in the western zones and even after most of them had either returned to their homeland or had migrated further afield, there were still around 80,000 of them in the Federal Republic. The attempt to set up Polish territorial structures in Emsland by establishing the town of Maczków ended with the dissolution of the Polish army unit which had carried out their occupation service there. Amongst these dispersed Poles in Germany was a number of illustrious personalities, who were to shape cultural life for decades: They included Artur Brauner, who settled as a Polish Jew in Berlin directly after the end of the war and was to become one of the most important film moguls of the German economic miracle.

But the number of Polish-speaking people in German soon increased again. Between 1950 and 1990, around 1.4 million persons with German ancestry relocated from the Polish state to the Federal Republic of Germany (others went to the GDR), the majority came over in the 1980s: 520,000 made the move between 1988 and 1990 alone. Whilst, emigrants were initially socialised in German and spoke German in their families, in the 1980s most of them were socialised in Polish and didn’t speak any German, but they did use the legal possibilities to be able to leave Poland in light of the economically and politically difficult situation in the country.

Since the visa requirement was lifted in 1990 and the ability to take on work in Germany gradually became easier, there is now a large number of Polish citizens living in Germany. In 1990 there were 241,000 Poles with only Polish citizenship living in the unified Germany, but at the end of 2018 there were around 860,000. But this is not the whole truth. If you were to ask these people about their migrant background, then you would find that in 2017 2.1 million people with biographical association with Poland were living in Germany; this was the second-largest group after people from Turkey and before those from the Russian Federation. At the same time, the seasonal migration of the Polish labour force persisted, but since Poland entered the EU this number has fallen rapidly.