Poland

This year marks 203 years since the birth (8 or 23 March 1822) of Ignacy Łukasiewicz. He is an exemplary inventor and social activist. Those who know him associate him with the invention of the kerosene lamp. However, he is a much more complex and interesting figure. And curiously, in his area he was known for something completely different.

Tamara Łempicka - a painter born in Warsaw, is one of the most outstanding artists of the 20th century. Despite living and working abroad, she felt Polish until the end of her days and was able to express her emotions only in Polish. March 18 marks the 45th anniversary of her death.

The tragedy of Poland, and of the Home Army generation, was that the Republic of Poland, attacked by two totalitarian powers bound by an agreement – ​​Germany and the Soviet Union – did not regain independence after the end of World War II.

Under the yoke of brutal occupation, Poles managed to create the Home Army – a well-organised armed force that served the entire free world.

The US administration’s decision to restrict the export of advanced AI chips to Poland, despite its status as a NATO and EU member, has raised concerns among Polish experts and journalists. Jarosław Królewski, CEO of Synerise, has called it “the greatest allied betrayal since World War II.” Poland’s absence from the EU list of AI factory locations, as well as the restrictions imposed by the US, indicate the need to strengthen Poland’s international efficacy.

Editor Katarzyna Murawska was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland by President Andrzej Duda for her outstanding services to the Polish diaspora in the USA and the promotion of Polish culture. The awards ceremony took place on March 2, 2025 at the Copernicus Center in Chicago.

Merian C. Cooper, known as the co-creator of the classic film "King Kong", also had a fascinating past as a pilot fighting for Polish independence. In 1919, driven by the desire to repay the "debt of honor" for Casimir Pulaski's help in the American War of Independence, Cooper organized the Kościuszko Squadron – a unit of American pilots supporting Poles in the war against the Bolsheviks. His extraordinary fate, from escaping Soviet captivity to later successes in Hollywood, make his biography worth knowing.

The Warsaw Confederation of 1573 was a groundbreaking legal act that made the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth a stronghold of religious tolerance in Europe. At a time when the continent was engulfed by religious wars, Poland established the principle of religious freedom for its nobility, guaranteeing peace and stability. This document, adopted despite the opposition of the church hierarchy, became the foundation of political compromise and a symbol of social maturity.

Pilecki – today referred to as "the man who volunteered for Auschwitz" – remained a forgotten figure for years. Until 1989, all information related to the life and achievements of Witold Pilecki was subject to censorship in the Polish People's Republic.

Eighty years after the last prisoners of Auschwitz were released, the last generation of Survivors is inexorably passing away. We must therefore be the advocates of the victims: historians, educators, journalists and all people of good will.

Recently, the world of music was electrified by the discovery of a previously unknown waltz by Fryderyk Chopin. A previously unknown waltz by Chopin was found in a New York museum, as reported by the "New York Times."