THE INFLUENCE OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR ON THE LANDSCAPING OF WARSAW
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32782/2415-8151.2023.27.26Keywords:
landscaping, Warsaw, World War II, city reconstruction, public spaces, parksAbstract
The purpose of the article is to analyze the impact and consequences of the Second World War on landscaping, vegetation and some infrastructure objects in Warsaw. Before the beginning of the Second World War, Warsaw was a very bright city, it was the cultural, economic and political center of Poland. The city was also known for its ancient architecture, including the Old Town, which was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. The city had a large number of universities and was known for numerous artistic and scientific achievements. Due to the Second World War, Warsaw suffered severe destruction, including the damage or destruction of infrastructure, historical monuments, libraries, universities, government buildings and important historical churches. It was fairly quickly assessed that 41% of the buildings were slightly damaged or not damaged at all, that is, they could be repaired fairly quickly or they did not need repair at all, 15% of the buildings were considered suitable for repair, and 44% were not suitable for restoration at all. During the 6 years of the war, a lot of people were injured, it is very difficult to estimate the exact number of people who survived. People either moved themselves or were forcibly evicted by the Germans. Of the 1 300 000 people who lived in Warsaw in 1939, approximately 500 000 were refugees somewhere around Warsaw, who then quickly began to return to the city and fill the ruins with life. None of the bridges over the river survived. Therefore, long-term planning was quite a difficult task, but in the short term it was planned to restore the infrastructure and provide housing for people. It took more than 20 years for Warsaw to recover. One of the most popular parks in pre-war Warsaw was Lazenki Park, built by the Polish king Stanisław August Poniatowski in the 18’th century. Another important green space for the townspeople is the Saxon Garden, which is considered the first public garden. During the reconstruction, much attention was paid to the restoration of green spaces, thanks to which modern Warsaw often finds itself among the rankings of green European capitals.
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