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Poland marks All Saints’ Day as nationwide cemetery fundraisers begin

01.11.2025 10:25
On 1 November, Poland observes a national holiday devoted to remembering the dead and reflecting on the passage of life.
On 1 November, Poland marks All Saints Day, when people visit cementeries to honour the dead. The photo shows the historic Stare Powązki Cementery in Warsaw.
On 1 November, Poland marks All Saint's Day, when people visit cementeries to honour the dead. The photo shows the historic Stare Powązki Cementery in Warsaw.Photo: PAP/Darek Delmanowicz

People across the country visit cemeteries, laying flowers and lighting candles - even on neglected or unmarked graves - in an act of remembrance and continuity.

Across Poland, volunteers are taking part in charity collections to support the restoration of historic cemeteries and monuments.

At Warsaw’s Stare Powązki Cemetery, one of the country’s oldest and most renowned burial grounds, the traditional All Saints’ Day fundraiser is under way. More than 300 artists, writers and scholars are collecting donations to help restore its historic tombs - a tradition begun in the 1970s by writer and music critic Jerzy Waldorff.

Grave of Jerzy Waldorff (1910-1999) at Warsaw's Powązki Cemetery (photo: PAP/Albert Zawada) Grave of Jerzy Waldorff (1910-1999) at Warsaw's Powązki Cemetery (photo: PAP/Albert Zawada)

Among this year’s volunteers are actors Maja KomorowskaJoanna Szczepkowska, Magdalena Zawadzka, Emilia Krakowska, Olgierd ŁukaszewiczKazimierz Kaczor and Artur Barciś.

Marcin Święcicki, head of the Committee for the Care of Stare Powązki, said that proceeds from the collection, together with a grant from the city authorities, will fund conservation work on the cemetery’s oldest sections.

Marcin Święcicki (photo: PAP/Darek Delmanowicz) Marcin Święcicki (photo: PAP/Darek Delmanowicz)

Below is a report showing Polish artists taking part in last year’s charity collection to support the preservation of Stare Powązki Cemetery in Warsaw.

Opublikowany przez Społeczny Komitet Opieki nad Starymi Powązkami im. Jerzego Waldorffa Czwartek, 7 listopada 2024

The following day, 2 November - known as All Souls’ Day - extends this period of reflection, as Poles commemorate not only the saints but all departed loved ones.

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Source: Radio Poland/IAR/Facebook.com/Powazki