Janusz Korczak Monument (Inner City)

This Janusz Korczak monument is one of three monuments dedicated to the educator in Warsaw. It is located in the immediate vicinity of the Palace of Culture and Science in the city centre. The unveiling took place in 2006 on Children’s Day.

The design of the Janusz Korczak monument was selected as part of an international competition organised by the Shalom Foundation and the Polish Janusz Korczak Society.
The cornerstone was laid on 19 September 2003 by the then mayor of the city, Lech Kaczyński, and the monument was ceremonially unveiled on Children’s Day, 1 June 2006.

It depicts Janusz Korczak surrounded by children, beneath a withered tree stump whose dry branches are arranged in the shape of a seven-branched Jewish candelabrum, a menorah. On the reverse side of the monument there is a small fountain and commemorative plaques recalling the founders of the monument.
To the right of the monument stands a small stone with an engraved inscription:

JANUSZ KORCZAK
DR. HENRYK GOLDSZMIT
1878–1942

The monument stands on the site where the orphanage was located during the period of German occupation.

Who was Janusz Korczak?

Janusz Korczak, whose real name was Henryk Goldszmit, was a physician, educator, writer, and one of the most important pioneers of modern children’s rights. As early as the beginning of the 20th century, he advocated views that were far ahead of his time: children were not “unfinished adults” but independent individuals with rights, dignity, and their own voice. He put his educational concepts into practice in the orphanages he ran, among other things through children’s parliaments, children’s courts, and a newspaper written by children themselves.

Educational legacy and international significance

Korczak’s writings—including works such as How to Love a Child—influenced generations of educators worldwide. Many of his ideas later found their way into the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Central to his thinking was respect for the child, the right to make mistakes, participation in decision-making, and being listened to seriously. To this day, Korczak is regarded as a moral authority in education.

Symbolism of the monument

The depiction of Korczak with children beneath the menorah is rich in symbolism. The withered tree stump represents the destroyed world of European Jewry, while the menorah embodies hope, remembrance, and continuity. The children gathered closely around Korczak recall his life’s work—and his conscious, final act.

Final journey and significance of the site

In the summer of 1942, Korczak refused the rescue that was offered to him and voluntarily accompanied the children of his orphanage on their final journey from the Warsaw Ghetto to Treblinka. The location of the monument makes this story particularly powerful: this was where the children lived, played, and learned—whose dignity Korczak defended to the very end.

Today, the monument is not only a place of remembrance, but also a quiet appeal for responsibility, humanity, and the protection of the most vulnerable members of society.

All images © Walking Warsaw