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50 Zlotych Generał Władysław Sikorski
| Issuer | National Bank of Poland |
|---|---|
| Year | 1981 |
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| Technique | Milled |
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| Reverse description | The reverse presents a left-facing bust of General Władysław Sikorski in military uniform, wearing a peaked service cap with insignia, rendered in bold relief against a plain field. The portrait captures Sikorski's strong profile with careful attention to the details of his uniform collar and epaulettes. A circular legend along the lower periphery reads 'GEN.BRONI•WŁADYSŁAW•SIKORSKI•1881-1943', recording his military rank of General of Arms and his birth and death years, commemorating the centenary of his birth. The engraving style is characteristic of the medallic portraiture employed at the Warsaw Mint during this period. |
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| Reverse lettering | GEN.BRONI•WŁADYSŁAW•SIKORSKI•1881-1943 |
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| Additional information |
Sikorski died in a plane crash at Gibraltar on 4 July 1943 — a death so politically convenient for Stalin that conspiracy theories have never fully subsided. As commander-in-chief of the Polish Armed Forces in exile and head of the London-based government, his loss effectively ended the most credible challenge to Soviet influence over postwar Polish affairs. That the communist Polish state chose to commemorate him nearly four decades later reflects a careful rehabilitation: by 1981, Sikorski could be claimed as an anti-Nazi military hero while his fierce anti-Soviet credentials were quietly set aside.
The coin appeared the same year as the Solidarity crisis and the eventual declaration of martial law in December.