But over on the other side of Europe, Britain was marking a much more somber occasion. While November 11th is a day of celebration in Poland, for the UK and several other countries around the world, it’s Armistice Day, a day of quiet and sincere remembrance of veterans and those who suffer and sacrifice in war.
Sunday saw towns and cities all over Britain hold ceremonies at churches and war memorials in honour of those gave their lives for their country.
In London, tens of thousands of veterans marched through Westminster in honour of fallen comrades.
But this year, not far from the front of the parade, a special place was made for a group of Polish veterans.
2019 marks 75 years since 1944, a year which saw both the battle of Monte Cassino and the Warsaw Uprising.
In 1944, Polish troops fighting with the British stormed the hilltop monastery of Monte Cassino after weeks of bloody fighting around Rome, Italy.
Among the veterans, marching with red and white armbands, was Otton Hulacki, who fought at Monte Cassino, and 95 year old Marzenna Schejbal, a survivor of the Warsaw Uprising.
The Polish contribution to the war was also marked with a reading of Feliks Konarski’s Red Poppies on Monte Cassino and interviews with the Polish veterans broadcast on national television.
Poland’s newly elected parliament is sitting for its first full day today after last month’s elections.
Former defence minister, Antoni Macierewicz, opened the inaugural meeting of the lower house, the Sejm, just after midday.
Then, President Andrzej Duda addressed the new MPs, congratulating them on being elected while also thanking voters.
Last month, Poles elected a new set of 460 MPs and 100 senators. The incumbent Law and Justice party, allied with two smaller parties, won a second term in government and pledged to introduce a range of new policies within the first 100 days in power.
The new representatives also elected Speakers. The Speakers oversee debates and supervise parliamentary procedure.
In the Sejm, the incumbent Elżbieta Witek was re-elected by a wide margin, with 314 votes in favour and only 11 against; 134 didn’t vote.
Meanwhile in the Senate, it was much more nail biting. Tomasz Grodzki, a surgeon by profession, stood against incumbent Stanisław Karczewski, also a professional surgeon.
Grodzki won by 3 votes, 51-48, knocking out the incumbent.
Yesterday also say government ministers step down to make way for a new cabinet. President Duda accepted the resignations late yesterday evening. New ministers are expected to be sworn in later this month.
In Sports, Poland’s Łukasz Kubot and his Brazilian partner Mercelo Melo have been playing at the ATP tennis tournament in London.
On Sunday, Kubot and Melo saw off Croatia’s Ivan Dodig and Slovakia’s Filip Polasek in a tough match to win their opening encounter.
But yesterday the Polish-Brazilian pair narrowly lost to South Africa’s Klaasen and New Zealand’s Michael Venus.
In 2017, Kubot and Melo were named the best men’s doubles team in the world, and earlier this the pair won the Winston-Salem Open in the US.
The next challenge for Kubot and Melo will be tomorrow at 1pm, when they face an Anglo-American team of Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury.
Weather:
Weather for Wednesday, lots of thick cloud around today with rain expected throughout the afternoon. Temperatures reaching about 7° Celsius, 45° Fahrenheit.
RGEN News, Thomas Holdstock
