The poles traveled from everywhere in the nation to the capital, Warsaw, for a patriotic occasion on Saturday that celebrated 1,000 years from the coronation of the primary Polish king.
They danced Poloniise in historic costumes, sang the nationwide anthem, invoked their Catholic beliefs and sang slogans in assist of a conservative candidate in execution of the presidential elections subsequent month.
The march of 1000’s was supported by the regulation and the social gathering of justice, the conservative populists who dominated Poland for eight years till 2023, when an centrist, the pro-European prime minister Donald Tusk took over.
The regulation and justice hope to regain energy within the subsequent basic elections. In the meantime, he’s combating to elect an ally as president who’s commander in chief and has an affect on international coverage and on the facility of the veto on the legal guidelines.
The chief of the regulation and justice Jarosław Kaczyński invited “all patriots” to affix the march, which culminated in a gathering in entrance of the royal citadel the place the social gathering candidate, the 42 -year -old Karol Nawrocki, spoke with a assist crowd.
The citadel, rebuilt after it was destroyed by the Germans in the course of the Second World War, is a logo of the historical past and resilience of the nation.
Nawrocki, who was a historian who has turn into political, mentioned that Poland should safeguard “this inheritance, this magnificence, this crown that has been given to us”.
“We desire a Poland with aspirations, with goals, as a result of we’re busy with those that got here in entrance of us and with those that come after us,” Nawrocki mentioned. “We need an amazing Poland!”
Some US flags have been greeted within the march within the midst of a sea of Polish flags, whereas some supporters current on the occasion expressed their assist for the President of the United States Donald Trump. One of them, Stanislaw Bieniek, 81 years previous, mentioned he had fled the communist Poland for the United States, the place he earned citizenship.
“My complete household voted for Trump, and now I reside right here and I’ll vote for Nawrocki,” he mentioned.
The occasion comes whereas the Law and Justice social gathering tries to remove assist for his or her candidate, Nawrocki, who adopted the polls behind the liberal candidate of the front-runner, the mayor of Warsaw Rafał Trzaskowski.
Nawrocki additionally fought the rise of a challenger from the far -right Confederation Party. Sławomir Mentzen, who grew up in reputation represents a critical risk to the taking of the social gathering of justice for the appreciable conservative voters of the nation.
Saturday’s occasion was a celebration of the anniversary of the millennium of the coronation of the primary king of Poland, Bolesław the Brave. His coronation in 1025 was a historic second, saved in opposition to many Poles whereas he affirmed the nation’s nationwide independence.
The occasion additionally celebrated one other historic anniversary, marking the five hundredth 12 months because the Duke of Prussia paid formal loyalty to the Polish king in 1525. This has an emotional resonance for some in a rustic that has undergone German assaults for important durations in its historical past.
The organizers estimated that 100,000 folks took half, though the Town Hall – managed by Trzaskowski – positioned the quantity at 20,000.
ANNOUNCEMENTTrzaskowski voted over 30%, whereas Nawrocki moved simply over 20%. The two joined a debate on Friday attempting to excite their conventional voters and win new votes.
The Polish presidential elections are set for May 18. Poland makes use of an absolute majority system in its elections. If no candidate protects greater than the 50% threshold required to win, a stream between the primary two candidates.
The historic operator, Andrzej Duda, who acts as an impartial is an ally of the conservative regulation and justice. His second and final mandate ends this summer time and is now not appropriate to use for the workplace.
