Leopold Lis-Kula

Leopold Lis-Kula (nom de guerre Lis) was a Colonel of Infantry of the Polish Army, and recipient of the Virtuti Militari.

Young Leopold, raised in a patriotic spirit by his mother, attended Austrian State Gymnasium II, which now is a high school named after him.

He was an average student, who liked to cut classes: in spring 1911, on a day when Leopold decided not to go to school, he founded a secret youth organization, and soon afterwards, he joined boy scouts.

Józef Piłsudski, who attended the event, personally talked with Lis-Kula, congratulating the young activist on his skills and enthusiasm.

In spring of 1915, together with 1st Brigade, Polish Legions, Lis crossed the Vistula river, moving eastwards, to Volhynia.

In his spare time, Leopold studied French language and read works of Kant, Nietzsche and Spinoza.

Kula was buried at Rzeszów's Pobitne Cemetery; among flowers placed on his coffin was a wreath that said "To my brave boy – Józef Piłsudski".

The ceremonies, which were opened by a field mass and ended with a parade, were attended by representatives of the generality, the Sejm and the Senate, the government, local authorities and about 40 thousand people (more than the city counted at the time).

It became one of the most important personal models for the young generation of the time, promoted in the 1930s in the current curriculum of history teaching in primary and secondary schools.

The Leopold Lis-Kula monument thus became not only one of the symbols of Rzeszów (the city the hero was associated with) but also a place of patriotic manifestations and anniversary celebrations.

On the occasion of John Paul II's upcoming visit to Rzeszów in June 1991, it was decided that the statue of the Lis-Kula monument would be a gift from the Solidarity Region Board.

The tradition of solemn celebrations of the anniversary of the hero's death has been restored, which annually gather up to several thousand participants, including school delegations.

It has also become an important meeting place for reborn "riflemen" associations (a paramilitary social and educational organization, referring to the structures operating during the struggle for independence).