Sikorski Museum, London

**A.J. Zawadzki** · 05-30-2010, 11:10 PM

by andrzejku98

. . . The Museum houses the Awards of some of the top Polish Generals of WW2:

General Wladyslaw Anders, General Stanislaw Maczek, General Bronislaw Duch, General Zygmunt Szyszko-Bohusz, General Tadeusz Bor Komorowski, General Stanislaw Kopanski, General Klemens Rudnicki, General Pil. Aleksander Gabsztewicz, General Antoni Grudzinski, General Ludwik Kmicic-Skrzynski, General Bronislaw Noel.

There are also smaller displays for the following Generals:

General Zygmunt Piasecki, General Aleksander Praglowski, General Stefan Strzemienski, General Stanislaw Sosabowski.

The display on the staircase wall from the 2nd to the 3rd floor , includes British D.S.O.'s & D.F.C.'s to Horbaczewski and Janus plus numerious other British awards including O.B.E.'s, D.S.M.'s, D.S.C.'s and has you turn the corner the awards given to President August Zaleski.

The displays just take your breath away, they are amazing normally the staircase from the 2nd -3rd floor is out of bounds to the public but if you are allowed up stairs it is really beautiful full diplays of Uniforms, Legitymacja, when I was taken up stairs for the first time over 30 years ago my eyes were ouy on stalks to actually see all these items in one place.

Anyway I have gone on too much sorry for that.

Best wishes

Andrzejku

by ccj

Any photos or does the museum have a book featuring a photographic tour of the inside?

Following andrzejku’s post in the IIRP “Auction Items good or bad” thread, and ccj’s follow up question, this is a topic worthy of its own thread. So here we go . . .

I don’t know of any books on the museum and the items it houses, but one would think there should be one or more. It’s a place I have not yet visited, although hope to one day soon to spend as many hours as possible closely examining historic groupings from Poland’s military heroes. The place seems packed to the rafters with fascinating items, and here are pictures sent to me by friends who have visited there. They show but a small sampling of the treasures on display. Anyone with pictures from their visit(s) please feel free to post them.

Amongst the pictures below are the decorations belonging to General Anders.

Regards,
Tony

**Adrian Stevenson** · 05-30-2010, 11:17 PM

To my eternal shame, I have never been....walked by the door after closing time

I WILL find the time this year.

Cheers, Ade.

**Gary J** · 05-31-2010, 05:33 AM

Ade, (and Tony !!!!!)
Once you have walked through the door, you WILL be amazed at the treasures before you.

This has to be one of the best "unknown" museums in London.

Please make it down there with Lez ...it's a fantastic place to visit !

Regards

Gary J.

**StefanM** · 05-31-2010, 08:32 AM

by Gary J

Ade, (and Tony !!!!!)
Once you have walked through the door, you WILL be amazed at the treasures before you.

This has to be one of the best "unknown" museums in London.

Please make it down there with Lez ...it's a fantastic place to visit !

Regards

Gary J.

I agree with Gary, PISM is one of the best unkown treasures of London.

When you go you will most likely get a guided tour by a 2PolCorps veteran! On my first visit the gentleman who gave me a private tour (I was the only guest that day) was a veteran of the Carpathian Lancers who not only gave me a great tour but when asked also told me about his own deportation to Siberia, the camps, and the battle Monte Cassino.

It is a pity that many of the exhibits are not adequately captioned --if at all. But I guess it is run more as a research archive rather than a 'public' museum.

At the moment the Sikorski is trying to raise funds to preserve and restore the regimental colours in its collection so any help with this I am sure would be very welcome as the institute is entirely funded by donations.

PISM did publish the first volume of an overview of its collection but there has been no funding available for a second. I have the first somewhere so will post the details.

**andrzejku98** · 05-31-2010, 03:53 PM

Hi everyone,

Over the years I have visited the Sikorski Museum on many occassions and have taken many photographs which I would share with you all but my scanner is playing up.

As you enter the Museum there are displays all over the walls, to the right of the staircase is what used to be General Anders Office, the last time that I was there is medals had changed from when I first viewed them his Cross of Valour 1918-1921 was originally a Albin Rozycki Undated Cross with 3 Bars, it has been replaced with a Cross of Valour looks like from WW2, with no Bars. General Anders Medals where on display to the Left and Right of the fireplace, his foreign awards to the left and his Polish awards to the right behind his desk.

Also on display was the Dress Uniform of General Sikorski with presentation Sabre's, etc.

Travelling up the staircase to the 1st Floor on the walls are paintings of Polish Airmen, Soldiers etc, on the landing their are 2 main rooms to the right the room was used for Concerts of the Chopin Society, to the left is a room that will simply blow you away, Their are paintings of General Sikorski, General Sosnkowski, General Haller, Marshal Smigly-Rydz and Marshal Pilsudski, then there are the Regimental Colours that managed to be smuggled out of Poland and WW2 Colours, the display of all awards is simply amazing, then there is the display of Regiment Badges Officers and Other Ranks .

The table displays have pull out cases underneath, which also contain many artifacts from the 2nd Republic. The room also had the awards of Generals: Bor-Komorowski, Duch, Bohusz-Szszyko, Gabszewicz and Kpt Antoni Glowacki D.F.C., D.F.M. etc.

Unknown to many people there is a conecting corridor into the recital room in which are numerous Virtuti Militari's and their Legitymacja's plus uniforms.

From the 1st floor the staircase takes you upto the 2nd Floor again with many artifacts from Poland's history including a tent taken from the turks after the battle of Vienna in 1683.

On the 2nd floor landing to the right there is the the displays for the 4th Armoured Regiment and the 1st Armoured Division including the awards of General Stanislaw Maczek, the room next to that contains Cavalry items including an awful lot of Virtuti Militari's , plus the awards of General Kopanski etc.

To the right is the reading room and the Archives, these are not only situated on the 2nd and 3rd floors but also in the sub basement.

The staircase to the 3rd floor is usually roped off to visitors, the staircase which also includes the Virtuti Militari and D.F.C. of Marian Belc of 303 Sqdn.

On reaching the 3rd floor landing their is also an overflow reading room to the right to the left their is the main restoration room, which has numerous uniforms, paintings, the room is only about 15 foot square but what is in it will take your breath away.

Their is then the staircase to the 4th floor which has numerous displays again unbelievable.

The archives also have the records of recommendations for Virtuti Militari's, the awards of the Army Medal, records of awards of the Cross of Valour and Cross of Merit with Swords for the 2nd Corps.

Again if you require information on a recipient please enclose a donation when writing to the Museum, the wait could be a couple of months but it is worth the wait.

I would once more agree with my fellow contributors that it is a rather overlooked museum in London.

I will end with the words that President Lech Walesa used when he visited the Museum in the 1990's, he said "that you are my best Embassy in the world, every one knows of the Sikorski Museum".

Best wishes

Andrzejku