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

After the end of World War I, without waiting for the peace settlements of the victorious powers, the people of Wielkopolskie Region took up arms on 27 December 1918, launching a victorious uprising that led to the liberation from Prussian rule of most of the lands of the former Province of Poznań. During the ceremonial observance of the National Day of the Victorious Wielkopolska Uprising in Bydgoszcz on 27 December, the regional government was represented by Vice-Marshal Zbigniew Ostrowski.

“Today, more than a hundred years later, we still draw from that lesson. Just as the Second Polish Republic had to integrate different experiences and traditions, so we – residents of this land – form one community, oriented toward cooperation and the pursuit of shared goals for the benefit of all inhabitants,” said Vice-Marshal Zbigniew Ostrowski at the Tomb of the Unknown Wielkopolskie Insurgent. “Our region – bringing together the history, fates, and achievements of those insurgents and their descendants – is living proof of how diversity can strengthen the common good. I believe that the spirit of that unity still lives in the hearts of the residents of Bydgoszcz and Toruń, and of the towns and villages across the entire region. By paying tribute to the heroes of the Wielkopolska Uprising, we renew our commitment to work for a shared future. May their memory be a source of strength and inspiration for us.”

The ceremonies at the Tomb of the Unknown Wielkopolskie Insurgent were preceded by a Holy Mass at the garrison church in Bydgoszcz.

After Poland regained independence in November 1918, the lands of the former Prussian partition still remained within Germany’s borders. The arrival in Poznań of the eminent pianist and future prime minister Ignacy Jan Paderewski became an impulse for the residents of the capital of Greater Poland to demonstrate their Polish identity. In response to German provocations and a counter-demonstration, street clashes broke out in the city on 27 December 1918, and within a few days spread across nearly the entire former Province of Poznań. From the outset, fierce fighting also took place in Pałuki, western Kujawy, and Krajna, and it was not halted by the armistice signed in Trier in February 1919. Only the Treaty of Versailles of June 1919 granted Poland most of the Wielkopolskie Region portion of the former Prussian partition.

To commemorate the uprising of the people of Wielkopolskie Region, in 2021 the Sejm of the Republic of Poland established 27 December as a national holiday: the National Day of the Victorious Wielkopolska Uprising.

Beata Krzemińska
Spokesperson of the Marshal’s Office

29 December 2025