Calm before the Storm...the last summer of the 2nd Republic of Poland

Calm before the storm is a very special moment. This is not about dead silence, but about a unique sense of anticipation. The air is almost completely still and nature remains motionless. Everyone knows that the storm is coming, but at the same time they hope that it will somehow pass them by. The closer it approaches, the stronger the wind gets. In the meantime, people are trying to prepare themselves, more and more frantically with every minute, for the inevitable disaster. And yet, they are all well-aware that they won't manage to get ready for what's coming. It tends to start with a sudden thunder...


The publication focuses on the social dimension of the last two months before the outbreak of WWII. For this reason you are not going to find here anything about organisation of military units, while the details of diplomatic manoeuvres made in the last weeks before the war received only a short mention in the timeline of important events. The exhibition mostly comprises press materials – including photos taken by the photographers from the Agency of “Ilustrowany Kurier Codzienny” ["Illustrated Daily Courier"], articles and opinions of the contemporary publicists, which, in our opinion, reflect most faithfully the prevailing atmosphere of those moments. As you are probably going to notice, some of the presented materials were published after 1 September 1939. This resulted from the publishing cycle of weeklies. Hence, situations were common in which readers could read about preparations for the war while the war was already being waged...