Poland's Wedding to the Sea

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Poland's Wedding to the Sea by Wojciech Kossak. Painting of the ceremony in Puck.

Site of the 1920 Wedding in Puck

Memorial to the 1945 Wedding in Mrzeżyno

The flag on the left marks the site of the 1945 Wedding in Kołobrzeg.

Poland's Wedding to the Sea was a ceremony symbolizing restored Polish access to the Baltic Sea that was lost in 1793 by the Partitions of Poland.

It was first performed on February 10, 1920, by General Józef Haller at Puck. On the second occasion, it was performed by the Polish Army on March 17, 1945 in Mrzeżyno and on March 18 in newly-captured Kołobrzeg.

In the ceremonies, a military flag was dipped into the sea, while the commander cast in a ring. The speeches on these occasions emphasized the importance of access to the sea for the economic development of Poland.

[edit] See also

• Landlocked country

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