Solidarity Union Walking Tour (Self Guided), Gdansk

For decades, the word 'Solidarity' (Polish: Solidarność) has been synonymous with the city of Gdansk. The peaceful Solidarity revolution, started here in the August of 1980, marked the outset of the fall of communism not only in Poland but also throughout Eastern Europe.

Stemmed from the country's first free labor union born out of strikes at the Lenin Shipyard (now the Gdansk Shipyard), Solidarność bloomed into a nationwide social movement. Even though many other Polish cities also partook in the struggle against communist rule, Solidarity is still strongly associated with its cradle in Gdansk and its leader Lech Wałęsa. Here, Wałęsa, the future president of Poland, had worked as an electrician in the 1970s. After being sacked for opposing the regime, he had formed the Inter-Enterprise Strike Committee whose activities would ultimately contribute to bringing down the iron curtain across the entire continent.

For most guests of the city, a visit to the local shipyard and other Solidarity sights forms part of a popular shore excursion that combines well with their Gdansk city tour. The best place to start it is the European Solidarity Centre (aka Solidarity Museum) highlighting some of the complicated chapters of Polish history (from the end of WWII to the free elections of 1989), outlining reasons for the strikes, the Gdansk Agreement, the carnival of Solidarity and Martial Law.

Nearby you will find the Monument to the fallen Shipyard Workers, commemorating the victims of police brutality during the strikes in 1970. Also, you will see a fragment of the shipyard wall that Lech Wałęsa famously climbed during the strike in 1980.

If you are a history buff with a keen interest in post-war Europe, we invite you to take this self-guided walking tour for a chance to explore Solidarity cause and places in Gdansk.