On my recent trip to Warsaw, I spent some time filming guns in the collection of the Polish Army Museum. In an effort to create something of a library of museum tours, I made sure to take some time to film a short virtual tour of the exhibits for you – note that I did this after the museum had closed, so there is nobody else in the halls.
Also note that the museum is in the process of slowly moving to a new location, so some of their exhibits are not on display (notably material form the 19th century). They do still have a full Winger Hussar on his mount, though! Outside the main building is a vehicle park with a very cool assortment of armor and aircraft, but the inclement weather prevented me from filming that (sorry).
If you find yourself in Warsaw, it is definitely worth stopping in to see the museum.I found the sections on Polish underground manufacturing and the Warsaw Uprising particularly unique. This museum may not have the popular awareness of the dedicated Warsaw Uprising Museum, but it has artifacts that are every bit as good (if not better, but you didn’t hear me say that…). You can find the Museum’s web site here, in both Polish and English:
http://www.muzeumwp.pl/?language=EN
“(…)Outside the main building is a vehicle park with a very cool assortment of armor and aircraft, but the inclement weather prevented me from filming that (sorry).(…)”
To anyone planning visit to Warsaw and interested in armored warfare another museum namely https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_Polish_Military_Technology should be point of interest.
It’s really a shame that this respectable institution promotes the myth of Winged Hussars. Wings – usually attached to saddles, not armours – were worn solely as a parade gear (see https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Stockholm_Roll); just try to mount a horse with such a contraption fixed to your cantle or just behind it. There is absolutely no iconography mentioning the wings used in any battle. No memoires, Polish or foreign, from XVI to XVIII century, mention them in this capacity (and one gathers – they perhaps should had they been really fluttering over battlefields, as this would have been kind of a spectacle).
The first time the Polish hussar wing saw a real battle was when it was adopted as a symbol of the 1st Polish Armoured Division. My Grandpa had it on his sleeve. In soldiers’ parlance it was called ‘squirrel’. 🙂
Anyway, the Ian’s visit to this great museum squeezes some tears from my eyes…
It’s good they are relocating. The stuff of amazing value was crowded over a very limited space.
Could you post a link to the actual video? When I click I get a poor museum site that apologies for not working. I love Poland, but Poland is worse than Wales for arguing with themselves, in a way that saves the next invader at least 3 divisions.
That’s the link to the museum.
Ian’s videos of the tour were posted today on Utreon and Youtube.
https://utreon.com/v/raznxs0_QcK
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iMhR0_dpfI
Yeah, they’re about as bad as the Welsh or the Irish, but when they all get on the same sheet of music…?
Ask Sultan Mehmet IV about how all that Polish arguing worked out for him.
Wish you had posted this two months ago. I was in Warsaw two months ago visiting my GF’s brother. Poland is awesome. Great food! Warning, do not attempt to drink with the locals.
we did have a lot of that armor and older weapons in one place in the united states. the Higgins Armory in Massachusetts had the largest collection of such things outside of the Tower of London.
sadly, it’s gone now. they just ran out of money.