Since the Third Partition of 1795 Poland had effectively ceased to be a country, wiped off the map and carved between Imperial Russia, Prussia and Habsburg Austria. Poznań enjoyed brief freedom in 1806, when Napoleon’s conquering troops marched eastwards, liberating much of Poland and placing the city under the independent jurisdiction of the Duchy of  Warsaw. But Napoleon’s military disaster on the plains of Russia was to prove just years way, resulting in the 1815 Congress of Vienna which saw Poznań once more delivered back into Prussian hands. There it was to remain for over a century. With Europe reeling after years of war, Germany in collapse and Russia plunged into revolutionary chaos, the people of Poznań - - overwhelmingly Polish - - could sense independence was round the corner but there remained one crucial sticking point: German stubbornness to relinquish the Wielkopolska region. Woodrow Wilson’s plans for an independent Poland had failed to set any boundaries, and while Warsaw was back in the hands of a Polish government Poznań was still answerable to Berlin. Something had to give. Ever since the Kaiser’s abdication on November 9, 1918, the native Poznonian’s had been plotting an uprising, even going so far as to create a government in waiting. Positions in local government and industry were forcibly seized by Poles and the countdown was on for outright war. Following weeks of tension the fuse was finally lit on December 27. Historical accounts of how the Uprising started vary; some sources claim it was the shooting of Franciszek Ratajczak and Antoni Andrzejewski on the steps of the police headquarters that started the initial fighting, though most point to a stirring speech given by the pianist and patriot Ignacy Jan Paderewski on the balcony of what was then the Bazar Hotel. While addressing the Polish crowd assembled below a German counter-demonstration passed by – within moments shots had been fired and the Uprising had begun. Historians disagree on which side started the hostilities, but either way there was no turning back the clock. Within hours Polish forces had captured the train station and post office, while elsewhere in the region other towns rose up in rebellion upon hearing the news.  Under the temporary charge of Stanisław Taczak the Polish forces followed up with numerous swift successes against a German army mentally and physically shattered from four years of world war. In Poznań the Fort Winiary in the Cytadela Park was captured, while a German regiment of Grenadiers voluntarily left the city having given up their arms. Elsewhere towns like Kórnik, Ostrów Wielkopolski and Mogilno were liberated though several counter attacks suggested a stiffening in German resolve. Fighting continued into the New Year, with Poznań’s Ławica Airport falling into the insurgents hands without a single aircraft being damaged, and within days Polish pilots launched a bombing mission on military targets in Frankfurt Oder. By January the situation was out of hand. To save the region from a descent into anarchy the government in waiting (christened NRL) took charge of all civil and military issues, conscripting all men born between 1897 and 1899 into military service. Taking their oaths of allegiance in what is today (B-2) Pl. Wolnośći, the Polish troops continued to march into increasingly fierce battles with their German counterparts. Up until February ceasefire talks had repeatedly stalled, amid (unproven) accusations of Polish brutality towards civilians, and ludicrous demands that Poles pay reparations for damage during the fighting. Thankfully, peace was just around the corner, thanks in no small part to French intervention. February 14, 1919 saw the beginning of international peace talks, and within two days the French delegation had persuaded the Germans to sign an extension of the Allied-German armistice, this time including the Wielkopolska front. Sporadic fighting continued for the next few days, but to all intents and purposes, Poznań, and with it Wielkopolska, was liberated. In the months that followed Wielkopolska was absorbed into Poland, with Polish returned as the official language, and German street signs removed by law – with failure to comply resulting in a two year prison stretch.  To find out more about the Uprising visit the excellent Wielkopolska Uprising Museum.

Bazar Hotel
So what of the hotel at the centre of the action. Built on the initiative of Karol Marcinkowski, the Bazar (Al. Marcinkowskiego 10) was constructed between 1838 and 1841 to the designs of Ernst Steudener. The multi-purpose institution housed a hotel, shopping centre, concert hall and casino and by all accounts became a centre of Polish social, political and cultural life during the years of Prussian rule. It’s Paderewski’s December visit that it’s best known for today, and a plaque on the corner commemorates his fleeting but eventful stay. Throughout the Uprising the Bazar served as official HQ for the rebels and its colourful history prompted Professor A. M Skałkowski to write a book celebrating its centenary. Nazi occupation marked an end to its glory days and it suffered horrendous damage during the 1945 siege. Renovations began immediately after liberation and the building became the property of the Orbis group in 1950 who operated a hotel from there until 1990 when it was returned to its pre-war stockholders. No hotel exists here anymore though the building has since enjoyed a remarkable renaissance with its shopping arcades filled with designer stores.