Bydlin Cemetery (Legionnaires' Plot)

In the parish cemetery of Bydlin, at the foot of a hill crowned by castle ruins, stands a seven-metre sandstone cross. Beneath it, in a mass grave, lie 46 Polish Legionnaires killed at the Battle of Krzywopłoty in November 1914 — a clash Józef Piłsudski called the "Thermopylae of the Legions". A few steps away rest the men they fought against and alongside: soldiers of the Russian and Austro-Hungarian armies.

History: the Battle of Krzywopłoty

On 17–18 November 1914 (some sources extend the fighting to 19 November), the 4th and 6th Battalions of the 1st Infantry Regiment of the Polish Legions — the future First Brigade — supported by artillery, held back a Russian advance across the marshy ground between Bydlin and Załęże. The Legions were Polish volunteer units fighting on the Austro-Hungarian side in the hope of regaining Polish independence. The price was high: 46 Legionnaires died and around 130 were wounded or captured. Among the dead was Lieutenant Stanisław Paderewski, commander of the 3rd Company of the 6th Battalion and half-brother of the pianist and statesman Ignacy Jan Paderewski, as well as Lieutenant Eugeniusz Medyński. Stanisław Bytnar was badly wounded here — father of Jan Bytnar "Rudy", a hero of the wartime resistance classic "Stones for the Rampart".

What to see

• The Legionnaires' plot — rectangular, with a stone balustrade fence. In the centre stands a pedestal with a tall Latin cross, erected in 1920 on Piłsudski's initiative. Carved at its base are a cap, crossed sabres and a soldier's greatcoat; on the front, a crowned eagle and two crossed banners. Plaques list the names of the fallen and lines from a soldier's prayer; 12 Legionnaires remain unidentified.
• The war plot with three mass graves holding 284 soldiers: 206 from the Austro-Hungarian army and 78 from the Russian army. A dark stone plaque commemorates those who fell at Krzywopłoty, Załęże and Bydlin.
• The grave of five soldiers of the 11th Infantry Regiment of the Kraków Army, killed near Bydlin on 5 September 1939.
• The stone cemetery chapel from the second half of the 19th century — built from stone taken from the walls of the nearby castle.

Did you know?

The memory of the battle also took a practical form: in 1937 former Legionnaires initiated and paid for a school in Bydlin to commemorate it. The castle on the hill opposite the cemetery, recorded from 1400, was later converted into a church; in the 16th century it briefly served the Polish Brethren, a radical Protestant community, and in 1594 it was dedicated to the Holy Cross. Near the top of the hill, by the path to the ruins, you can still make out remnants of Polish trenches from 1914.

Tripto tip

This is a working parish cemetery — entry is free, but please keep quiet and respect the graves. Allow 20–30 minutes for both plots and the chapel, or about an hour if you also climb to the castle and trenches. The path to the ruins starts across the road, opposite the cemetery gate. Bydlin lies in Klucze municipality on the Trail of the Eagles' Nests, and the plot is a stop on Małopolska's Eastern Front of World War I Trail. Patriotic ceremonies are held here every 11 November, Poland's Independence Day. Nearby, visit the battlefield at Krzywopłoty and the Błędów Desert.