DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.29195#0146
The Ministry of Culture
and Nationai Heritage
in a nutshell...
The history of the Polish ministry of culture goes back to the restoration of Po-
land’s independence in 1918 and the establishment of national institutions in the
Second Republic of Poland. That was when the Ministry for the Protection of Cul-
ture and Fine Arts (Ministerstwo Ochrony Kultury i Sztuk Pifknych) was founded.
In 1922 it was amalgamated with the Ministry of Religious Denominations and
Public Education (Ministerstwo Wyznah Religijnych i Oswiecenia Publicznego) as
a department for the arts (Departament Sztuki), and its head was the well-known
painter Julian Falat (1853—1929), one of the most distinguished Polish watercol-
ourists, an individual deeply committed to the revival of Polish cultural life on the
restoration of independence.
During the Second World War Poland’s government operated in exile, and there
was a Department for Cultural Affairs (Dzial Spraw Kulturalnych) attached to the
Ministry of Internal Affairs. Its chief concern was the preservation and care of the
national cultural heritage, and assistance for artists living in Poland and in exile.
When the People’s Republic of Poland was established in 1944 a department of art
and culture was set up, and its first minister was the journalist and politician Win-
centy Rzymowski (1883—1950). The Czartoryski-Potocki Palace, which had been
gutted by fire during the War, was reconstructed in the late 1940s after a design by
Jan Zachwatowicz (1900—1983). Ever since it has housed the Ministry of Art and
Culture (Ministerstwo Kultury i Sztuki), the name we have been known by for the
longest time. In 1999 it was changed to Ministerstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Naro-
dowego (the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage); in 2001 it was shortened
to Ministerstwo Kultury (the Ministry of Culture), and in 2005 it reverted to Minis-
terstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Narodowego, the current name.
and Nationai Heritage
in a nutshell...
The history of the Polish ministry of culture goes back to the restoration of Po-
land’s independence in 1918 and the establishment of national institutions in the
Second Republic of Poland. That was when the Ministry for the Protection of Cul-
ture and Fine Arts (Ministerstwo Ochrony Kultury i Sztuk Pifknych) was founded.
In 1922 it was amalgamated with the Ministry of Religious Denominations and
Public Education (Ministerstwo Wyznah Religijnych i Oswiecenia Publicznego) as
a department for the arts (Departament Sztuki), and its head was the well-known
painter Julian Falat (1853—1929), one of the most distinguished Polish watercol-
ourists, an individual deeply committed to the revival of Polish cultural life on the
restoration of independence.
During the Second World War Poland’s government operated in exile, and there
was a Department for Cultural Affairs (Dzial Spraw Kulturalnych) attached to the
Ministry of Internal Affairs. Its chief concern was the preservation and care of the
national cultural heritage, and assistance for artists living in Poland and in exile.
When the People’s Republic of Poland was established in 1944 a department of art
and culture was set up, and its first minister was the journalist and politician Win-
centy Rzymowski (1883—1950). The Czartoryski-Potocki Palace, which had been
gutted by fire during the War, was reconstructed in the late 1940s after a design by
Jan Zachwatowicz (1900—1983). Ever since it has housed the Ministry of Art and
Culture (Ministerstwo Kultury i Sztuki), the name we have been known by for the
longest time. In 1999 it was changed to Ministerstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Naro-
dowego (the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage); in 2001 it was shortened
to Ministerstwo Kultury (the Ministry of Culture), and in 2005 it reverted to Minis-
terstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Narodowego, the current name.