The Independence March went through the streets of Warsaw on Wednesday. President Karol Nawrocki took part.
The Independence March set off toward the Poniatowski Bridge shortly before 3 p.m. While the head of the march reached the grounds of the National Stadium, its tail had not yet left Dmowski Roundabout.
President Karol Nawrocki took part in the march. Participants greeted him by chanting “Greetings, Mr. President,” and then sang the national anthem.
The president carried a white-and-red flag. He was accompanied by his older son and by ministers from the president’s office, including the head of the president’s chancellery, Zbigniew Bogucki; the head of the president’s cabinet, Paweł Szefernaker; the head of the National Security Bureau, Bartosz Grodecki; and the head of the International Policy Bureau, Marcin Przydacz. Nawrocki crossed the Poniatowski Bridge with the march and left it on the Praga side.
Politicians from Law and Justice (PiS) and Confederation also took part in the march. Judge Bogdan Święczkowski was there as well. Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, as the longest-serving judge, issued an order placing a break in his duties as president of the Constitutional Tribunal.
Participants dressed in white and red chanted, among other things: “Glory to a great Poland,” “Honor and glory to the heroes,” “This is Poland, not Brussels. Here, Tusk is not supported,” as well as the march’s slogan, “Poles are the hosts in Poland.”
Participants who spoke with PAP, the Polish Press Agency, stressed that the Independence March is an important event for them. Marian from Skarżysko-Kamienna was attending the march for the sixth time. “Every year on Nov. 11, I take a white-and-red flag and come to the capital to show that this is the most important Polish holiday,” he said.
“I’m proud that Poland exists, and I hope we will continue to carry on our Polishness,” said Karina from Warsaw, who was taking part in the march for the fourth time. “It’s slowly becoming my tradition,” she added.
The march included a large banner reading: “There will be no innovation in a country of mass immigration.” Despite a ban, flares and firecrackers were set off.
Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski said at a briefing at the Warsaw Security Center that, apart from violations of the rules on using fireworks, the gatherings in the capital marking the National Independence Day had been peaceful.
This year’s Independence March will end with a concert on the grounds of the National Stadium. (PAP)
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Estimates of attendance at the Independence March in 2026 range from 200,000–250,000 people (according to unofficial information from the services) to about 500,000 people (according to the organizers’ estimates). Police and Warsaw City Hall have not yet published an official statement with the final number of participants.
