The History of Racławice Panorama in Wrocław
Jolanta PAWNIK
Created in 1894 to uplift the spirits of a Polish nation beset by oppression, this monumental battle epic was miraculously preserved from the ravages of war and later defended against the pressures of Communist politicians. It spent many years rolled up, hidden away in museum storerooms. For the past 40 years, it has graced Wrocław as a testament to the courage of the Polish people.
.The origins of Racławice Panorama can be traced back to Lviv. The idea to commemorate the centenary of the Battle of Racławice, celebrated in 1894, was proposed by the renowned Lviv painter Jan Styka. He envisioned a monumental work – a massive painting measuring 15 by 114 metres, depicting, with meticulous accuracy and flair, one of the most significant victories of the Polish armed forces. On 4 April 1794, exactly one hundred years earlier, an army led by General Tadeusz Kościuszko had faced Russian troops commanded by General Alexander Tormasov and achieved a remarkable victory. ‘When I conceived the idea of creating this work, I did not merely wish to honour the triumph of the Polish army, for Poland has known greater victories. Rather, I wanted to illustrate that here, a hundred years ago, all the states united to defend the Fatherland. I aimed to honour the name of Kościuszkol, the grandest hero of freedom. He loved the land he fought to liberate so much that he carried a handful of it near his heart until his death,’ said Jan Styka upon the completion of the work.
The centenary celebrations in Lviv coincided with the opening of the General National Exhibition. The Lviv authorities were certain that a fitting commemoration of this event would involve unveiling a monumental work of art in a rotunda specially constructed for this purpose in Stryjski Park. Jan Styka’s first request for collaboration went to Wojciech Kossak, a prominent figure celebrated for his monumental battle scenes in Polish painting. They were further joined by other notable artists from that era: Ludwik Boller, Tadeusz Popiel, Zygmunt Rozwadowski, Teodor Axentowicz, Włodzimierz Tetmajer, Wincenty Wodzinowski and Michał Sozański.
Before creating the sketches, Jan Styka and Wojciech Kossak visited the site of the Battle of Racławice to study the lie of the land. They conducted a thorough historical investigation to gather details about the soldiers’ uniforms and armaments, consulting their sketches with historians from the Vienna Ministry of War and acquiring an 18th-century battle plan.
The talented team completed the artwork in nine months. It was painted on specially woven canvas imported from Brussels, divided into fourteen 15-metre-long sections. A total of 750 kg of paint was used to prime the canvas, which was stretched over a custom iron frame made in Vienna by Ludwik Ramułt.
The painting was created in the place where it was later exhibited – in a rotunda specially built for the purpose. A team of artists worked on the project between August 1893 and May 1894. The opening ceremony took place on 5 June 1894. The painting captivated attendees at the General National Exhibition, as well as thousands of tourists who flocked to Lviv to admire it in the decades that followed. Only once was it taken out of Lviv – in 1896, for a Budapest exhibition attracting 800,000 viewers.
The history of Racławice Panorama in Wrocław began shortly after the end of the Second World War. Before that, the painting had survived the bombing of Lviv in April 1944, hastily rolled up and hidden in a wooden box, stored in Lviv’s Bernardine monastery. After the war, it was transported to Wrocław, alongside other collections from the Ossolineum that Poland recovered from the Soviet Union.
Unfortunately, the painting’s politically sensitive theme made it inconvenient for the Communist regime, resulting in years of obscurity in museum storage. While occasional conservation efforts were made to maintain its condition, public display of the work was out of the question.
The authorities of the People’s Republic of Poland were determined to avoid offending the Soviet Union by exhibiting a painting that depicted the triumphant victory of Polish troops over their Russian adversaries. Therefore, all decisions relating to the construction of the Panorama site were taken slowly. The first architectural competitions for designing a pavilion for the painting were held in the 1950s. The winning design, finalised in 1956, was created by Ewa and Marek Dziekoński, but the project languished in a drawer for many years. By the late 1970s, the building was reimagined as a congress centre, while Styka and Kossak’s canvases were taken to the Royal Castle in Warsaw, owing to Professor Wiktor Zin, the General Conservator of Monuments at the time.
It wasn’t until the events of August 1980 that this iconic battle painting received the green light from the authorities. However, a lack of funding remained a significant obstacle. The Racławice Panorama Social Committee, established at that time, initiated the construction of the rotunda and the meticulous restoration of the masterpiece. Public fundraising efforts proved highly effective, demonstrating the deep commitment of the Polish people to reclaim Racławice Panorama for their cultural heritage.
.The rotunda on Jan Ewangelista Purkynie Street, where Styka and Kossak’s work is beautifully displayed, was ceremonially opened on 14 June 1985, swiftly becoming a landmark of the city. Since then, the Panorama has permanently resided in Wrocław, the exhibition only closing for essential maintenance work. In June 2025, we’re going to celebrate the 40th anniversary of its inauguration.
