Statue of Tadeusz Kościuszko (Washington, D.C.)

Memorial by Antoni Popiel in Washington, D.C., U.S.

United States historic place

Brigadier General Thaddeus Kosciuszko

U.S. National Register of Historic Places

U.S. National Historic Landmark District
Contributing Property

D.C. Inventory of Historic Sites

Statue of Tadeusz Kościuszko in 2008

Location| Lafayette Square, Washington, D.C.
Coordinates| 38°54′0″N 77°2′7.4″W﻿ / ﻿38.90000°N 77.035389°W﻿ / 38.90000; -77.035389
Built| 1910
Architect| Antoni Popiel (sculptor)
M. J. Falvey & Kyle Granite Company (contractors)
Jules Berchem & American Art Foundry (founders)
Part of| American Revolution Statuary
Lafayette Square Historic District
L'Enfant Plan
NRHP reference No.| 78000256[1] (American Revolution Statuary)
70000833[2] Lafayette Square Historic District
97000332[3] (L'Enfant Plan)
Significant dates
Added to NRHP| August 29, 1970 (Lafayette Square Historic District)
July 14, 1978 (American Revolution Statuary)
April 24, 1997 (L'Enfant Plan)
Designated DCIHS| January 19, 1971 (L'Enfant Plan)
June 19, 1973 (Lafayette Square Historic District)
March 3, 1979 (American Revolution Statuary)

A bronze statue of Tadeusz Kościuszko by Antoni Popiel is installed in Washington, D.C.'s Lafayette Park, in the United States. The statue is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, as a part of American Revolution Statuary in Washington, D.C. A copy of the monument was unveiled in Warsaw, Poland, in 2010. The monument was dedicated by William Howard Taft, on May 11, 1910. During the George Floyd protests, on the night of May 31, 2020, the statue was defaced by protestors.

## History[edit]

### Biography[edit]

Tadeusz Kościuszko, born Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko, was born in 1746 near Kosava, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. His father, who had minor landholdings, died when Kościuszko was a young teenager. He was sent to receive education at a Piarist school and later attended the Corps of Cadets in Warsaw, where Kościuszko was promoted to captain. After leaving the Corps of Cadets, he traveled to France and attended the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture.[4]

While in Paris, Kościuszko also studied in military academy libraries, and became a strong believer in human liberty during the Age of Enlightenment. Recalling his time while in France and other countries, Kościuszko stated: "During the five years of my life spent in foreign countries, I have endeavored to master those arts which pertain to solid government, aiming at the happiness of all, also economics and military art; I earnestly tried to learn this, inasmuch I had a natural passion for these things."[4]

After briefly returning to his homeland, Kościuszko came back to France before moving to the Thirteen Colonies in 1776, a few months before the Declaration of Independence was signed. Although he had received some military training earlier in his life, Kościuszko was eager to assist the Continental Army. He was commissioned a colonel of the army's engineer division. In 1777, Kościuszko joined General Horatio Gates who was fighting in the Northern theater, and who wrote to another officer a letter praising Kościuszko's skills. His engineering skills were put to use at Fort Ticonderoga, Mount Independence, and during the Battles of Saratoga. General George Washington praised Kościuszko's skill after the latter. The following year Kościuszko assisted with engineering and building of defenses at West Point.[4]

When Gates was stationed to the Southern theater, Washington agreed to let him bring along Kościuszko. General Nathanael Greene and other officers considered Kościuszko to be one of the Army's best engineers. After assisting with various campaign in the South, Kościuszko returned to New York with Greene, and in 1783, became one of the founders of the Society of the Cincinnati. Following the defeat of the Kingdom of Great Britain, Kościuszko was promoted to brigadier general on the recommendation of Washington.[4]

After the war, Kościuszko returned to Poland, where he spent a few years in retirement. This ended when he assisted in leading the Kościuszko Uprising against Prussian and Russian influences of the Commonwealth. The Polish were defeated and Kościuszko spent two years in a Russian prison. Sick and frail, he was released on the condition he return to the United States. He reached the U.S. in 1797, where he stayed for one year. He returned to Europe under an alias and died in Switzerland in 1817.[4]

### Memorial[edit]

### Dedication[edit]

### Later history[edit]

The Kościuszko statue is one of 14 American Revolution Statuary that were collectively listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) on July 14, 1978. The statuary was added to the District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites (DCIHS) the following year on March 3, 1979. Because of its location on a square planned by Pierre Charles L'Enfant, the statue is a contributing property to the L'Enfant Plan, listed on the NRHP and DCIHS on April 24, 1997, and January 19, 1971, respectively. In addition, the statue is a contributing property to the Lafayette Square Historic District, a National Historic Landmark which was added to the NRHP on August 29, 1970, followed by the DCIHS on June 19, 1973.[5] The statue and surrounding park are owned and maintained by the National Park Service.[6]

In addition to the statue in Washington, D.C., Kościuszko is memorialized in the U.S. with an equestrian statue in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a monument on the battlefield at Saratoga, and a statue at West Point.[4] In 2010, a replica of the statue in Washington, D.C., was unveiled in Warsaw, in front of the Lubomirski Palace.[7] In 2020, during the George Floyd protests in Washington, D.C., protesters defaced the Washington, D.C., statue with spray paint. The Polish ambassador, Piotr Wilczek, reacted with anger: "I am disgusted and appalled by the acts of vandalism committed against the statue of Thaddeus Kościuszko in DC, a hero who fought for the independence of both the US and Poland."[8]

## Location and design[edit]

### Inscriptions[edit]

The inscriptions read as follow:[9]

(Pedestal, front)

KOÅšCIUSZKO

(Base, north side)

SARATOGA

(Base, west side)

MILITARY ENGINEER

IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION

FORTIFIED SARATOGA AND WEST POINT

(Base, south side)

RACÅ,AWICE

(Pedestal, back)

AND FREEDOM SHRIEKED

AS KOSCIUSZKO FELL
ERECTED BY THE POLISH NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF AMERICA
AND PRESENTED TO THE
UNITED STATES ON BEHALF OF THE POLISH AMERICAN CITIZENS

MAY 11, 1910

(Base, east side)

GENERAL THADDEUS KOÅšCIUSZKO

1745-1817

SON OF POLAND

## See also[edit]

* Equestrian statue of Tadeusz Kościuszko (Milwaukee)
* List of public art in Washington, D.C., Ward 2
* National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.
* Outdoor sculpture in Washington, D.C.

## References[edit]

1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
3. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
4. ^ a b c d e f Magaziner, Henry J. (February 20, 1973). "Study Report: Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
5. ^ "District of Columbia Inventory of Historic Sites" (PDF). District of Columbia Office of Planning – Historic Preservation Office. September 30, 2009. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
6. ^ "Comte de Rochambeau Statue". DC Preservation League. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
7. ^ "The Krakow Museum shows a sculpture of Tadeusz Kościuszko - part of a model of the monument in Washington". Polish History Museum. June 5, 2020. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
8. ^ Dowell, Stuart (June 1, 2020). "Rioters vandalise statue of Polish-US hero Tadeusz Kościuszko as violent protests erupt across America". Polish Press Agency. Retrieved January 13, 2024.
9. ^ "General Kosciuszko Statue". National Park Service. Retrieved January 13, 2024.

## External links[edit]

* Media related to Tadeusz Kościuszko Monument in Washington, D.C. at Wikimedia Commons

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