Remembrance
There is a small monument in Kosciuszko’s Garden that was dedicated many years ago by the Polish American veterans of Massachusetts. It is my understanding that there are Polish American veterans groups throughout the United States and that Poles and Polish Americans have served in many major American wars. This legacy was established by Kosciuszko and Pulaski in the American Revolution. Kosciusko designed fortifications in many major Revolutionary battlefields and Pulaski was responsible for helping save Washington’s life at Brandywine. Pulaski eventually gave his life during the American Revolutionary War in the Battle of Savannah and died in 1779. A year older than Kosciusko, he died of his wounds at age 34. Kosciuszko returned to Poland after the war and led his country’s efforts to achieve independence against the foreign invaders of Russia and Prussia. He too was severely wounded in battle and served as a prisoner of war for several years in one of Catherine the Great’s prisons. This is what I think of when I’m working down in the Garden and notice this small memorial. I wonder about the legions of Poles and Polish Americans who have fought in almost all our wars and of the Polish American cadets at West Point today. This small stone edifice in Kosciuszko’s Garden serves a gesture of thanks to all those known and unknown heroes and their known and unknown acts of bravery and commitment.
Monday, November 11, 2013