Monument to the Chinese People of Tiananmen

The Monument to the Chinese People of Tiananmen stands in Wrocław on Oławska Street, on a small stretch of lawn by the pavement, where Piotra Skargi Street joins Świętej Katarzyny Street, near tram stops.

What it commemorates

The monument refers to the events on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, where in 1989 there were demonstrations and student protests. On 4 June 1989 the Chinese army entered the square, using tanks and machine guns. According to official figures, 241 people were killed and about 7,000 injured, though some sources speak of several thousand dead.

The form of the monument

The monument takes the form of a paved slab, into which a fallen bicycle is pressed, with a clear trace running across the paving resembling the imprint of a tank track. The current version was designed by Marek Stanielewicz.

History

The first version of the monument, by Igor Wójcik, Robert Jezierski and Joanna Czarnecka, was created in 1989, but was removed the very next day. The current version, in the form of a replica, was unveiled in 1999. The monument is maintained by the Road and City Maintenance Authority.

Practical information

• Address: Oławska Street, Wrocław, Old Town
• Getting there: on foot from the Market Square, a few hundred metres towards Świętej Katarzyny Street, near tram stops
• What to see: a small, unassuming monument on a stretch of lawn by the pavement, without signage directing visitors from a distance