Following the third partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795 by the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Austrian Empire, Poland was erased from the political map of Europe for 123 years. Yet Polish culture, language, and national identity survived through uprisings, clandestine schools, and romantic literature. On November 11, 1918, coinciding directly with the Western Front Armistice, the Regency Council in Warsaw transferred military control to legendary Polish independence leader and statesman Józef Piłsudski, who proclaimed the rebirth of the independent Second Polish Republic. Celebrated annually with the ceremonial changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw's Piłsudski Square, November 11 embodies Poland's unbreakable resolve.
Following the third partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795 by the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Austrian Empire, Poland was erased from the political map of Europe for 123 years. Yet Polish culture, language, and national identity survived through uprisings, clandestine schools, and romantic literature. On November 11, 1918, coinciding directly with the Western Front Armistice, the Regency Council in Warsaw transferred military control to legendary Polish independence leader and statesman Józef Piłsudski, who proclaimed the rebirth of the independent Second Polish Republic. Celebrated annually with the ceremonial changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw's Piłsudski Square, November 11 embodies Poland's unbreakable resolve.
