The Little Insurgent Statue – Warsaw

The Little Insurgent statue stands on Podwale Street in Warsaw, just outside the Barbican walls that protect Warsaw Old Town. Designed and created by sculptor Jerzy Jarnuszkiewicz (1919–2005), it is a poignant reminder of the scope of the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, when even little children took up arms to help in the attempt to defeat the German occupiers.

Jarnuszkiewicz designed the statue in 1946 as a memorial to all the children who fought and died in the Uprising, but it wasn’t until 1983 that the statue was realized. Polish scouts raised all the funds necessary for the statue.

Although mostly destroyed in World War II, the Barbican and Old Town itself, were rebuilt after the war to such authentic historic standards that they are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.