During a recent trip to the United Kingdom, a family visiting Edinburgh encountered a bronze statue near their hotel depicting a bear and a World War II-era soldier. The inscription on the statue reads: “WOJTEK In memory of the Polish men and women who fought ‘For Your Freedom and Ours.’”
The presence of a Polish war memorial in Scotland is unusual, but the story behind it is even more so due to its subject—a bear named Wojtek. The origins of this statue are rooted in events following Russia’s invasion of Poland in September 1939. After Soviet forces invaded Poland, hundreds of thousands of Poles were deported deep into Russian territory. When Nazi Germany turned against the Soviet Union, Russian authorities decided to enlist exiled Poles to fight against the Nazis.
A group of these Polish soldiers made their way from Siberia to Alexandria, Egypt, with a stop in Iran. There they found an orphaned Syrian brown bear cub whose mother had been killed by hunters. According to Time Magazine, “Nursing the bear with a bottle of condensed milk in a vodka bottle, the soldiers treated Wojtek like a baby, perhaps because their own families had been torn apart by the war.”
The soldiers raised the bear and named him Wojtek—meaning “joyous warrior.” He became part of their unit and reportedly enjoyed wrestling, playing soccer, beer, and cigarettes. As one caretaker wrote: “He would accept lit cigarettes, take a puff and swallow them. He loved to drink from a beer bottle, and when it was empty, he would look through the opening to see where the rest of the beer was.”
Wojtek became important for morale among the troops serving with the 22nd Transport Company’s Artillery Division in the Polish 2nd Corps. However, when deployed to Europe during World War II, military rules prevented bringing pets—and especially not large bears—to combat zones. To resolve this problem, as reported by BBC: “When the Polish forces were deployed to Europe, the only way to take the bear with them was to ‘enlist’ him. So he was given a name, rank and number and took part in the Italian campaign.”
Wojtek played an active role during one of Italy’s most significant battles—the Battle of Monte Cassino—where he carried ammunition alongside his fellow soldiers. The BBC further reported: “In one interview, a British veteran told how taken aback he was to see the 1.82m (6ft) bear carrying shells during the Battle of Monte Cassino.” A daughter of one Polish soldier recalled: “He absolutely showed that he was scared by the explosions, but he got used to it and was carting artillery around the place in big boxes.” Some reports state that Wojtek also helped carry spent ammunition.
Following these events, Wojtek became famous within his division—so much so that its insignia changed to depict a bear carrying an artillery shell.
After World War II ended, instead of sending Wojtek back east where Soviet authorities might use him for propaganda purposes, arrangements were made for him to live at Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland. One former caretaker visited him there; although he considered crying unmanly, he admitted that he “sobbed like a baby” upon seeing his old friend again.
Wojtek died in 1963. In 2015 his statue was erected permanently in Edinburgh as a reminder of his unique story.
