INFORMATION PORTAL OF THE MARSHAL'S OFFICE OF THE KUJAWSKO-POMORSKIE Region IN TORUŃ

Today’s (March 14) ceremonial concert at CKK Jordanki in Toruń is the highlight of the Kujawsko-Pomorskie regional celebrations of Lithuania’s Independence Restoration Day. The event is expected to be attended by Marshal Piotr Całbecki, President of the Regional Parliament Elżbieta Piniewska, Lithuania’s Minister of Culture Šarūnas Birutis, and Lithuanian Ambassador to Poland Valdemaras Sarapinas.

The concert, titled “Musical Bridges Poland/Lithuania”, will feature the Toruń Symphony Orchestra conducted by Dainius Pavilionis and the Vilnius State Choir. The program includes famous mazurkas from Halka and The Haunted Manor by Stanisław Moniuszko, the polonaise Farewell to the Homeland by Michał Kleofas Ogiński, excerpts from the opera Faust by Antoni Henryk Radziwiłł, as well as the symphonic poem In the Forest and the cantata De profundis by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis, considered the most outstanding figure in Lithuanian culture at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.

At noon today, a press conference will be held at the Old Town Hall in Toruń, summarizing Polish-Lithuanian cooperation in our region. Participating in the meeting with journalists will be Vice-Marshal Zbigniew Ostrowski, Minister Šarūnas Birutis, and the Mayor of Toruń, Paweł Gulewski. As is well known, our regional self-government has long cooperated with Lithuania’s Kėdainiai District, and Toruń with Kaunas. The latest cross-border partnerships have been established between the Toruń Regional Museum and the Trakai History Museum, the Horzyca Theatre and the National Drama Theatre in Kaunas, as well as between our town of Ciechocinek and Birštonas, a spa town of 3,000 residents on the Neman River.

During the conference, one of the few surviving copies of the first printed Lithuanian book will be presented – the Lutheran catechism of Martynas Mažvydas, published in Königsberg in 1547. The rare book is currently held in the collection of the University Library in Toruń.

The roots of Lithuanian statehood date back to the Middle Ages. In the 14th century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania entered into a lasting union with the Kingdom of Poland, becoming part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 16th century. Following the partitions of Poland, Lithuania was absorbed into the Russian Empire. The independent Republic of Lithuania was first established in 1918, but in 1940, it fell under Soviet control as the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic. Lithuanians have enjoyed independence since March 11, 1990, when the country once again declared sovereignty. Since 2004, Lithuania has also been a member of the European Union. Polish-Lithuanian relations today encompass areas such as the economy (Poland is Lithuania’s third-largest export market and third-largest importer of Lithuanian goods), international politics, and culture.

Today’s celebrations have been organized jointly by the regional self-government, the government of Toruń, and the Honorary Consul of Lithuania in Toruń, Przemysław Bańkowski. The event is held under the honorary patronage of the Lithuanian Ambassador.

Beata Krzemińska

Spokesperson of the Marshal’s Office

March 14, 2025