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January 27, 2025
History

Standing alongside our Royal Patron, King Charles III, on Holocaust Remembrance Day 

Cosmo

King Charles shaking hands with Maurice Helfgott

On Holocaust Remembrance Day, we welcomed our Royal Patron, His Majesty King Charles III, to the Jewish Community Centre of Krakow (JCC Krakow) to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.   

His Majesty was greeted on arrival by World Jewish Relief Chair, Maurice Helfgott, JCC Krakow CEO, Jonathan Ornstein, and the Chief Rabbis of Poland and the UK. His Majesty then met with Ukrainian refugees and Holocaust survivors supported by the Centre.  

In a public address to commemorate the liberation, His Majesty marked International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. His Majesty recalled those who were systematically murdered and the testimonies of Survivors, adding that these testimonies taught us to cherish freedom and challenge prejudice. Reflecting on the importance of the act of remembrance, the remarks spoke of the rebirth of the Jewish community and described his steadfast commitment to the Jewish community at a time when antisemitism is on the rise across the world.  

King Charles speaking at a lecturn
King Charles Speaking at JCC Krakow

His Majesty The King remarked: “Here in Krakow, from the ashes of the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been reborn. And there is no greater symbol of this rebirth than the Jewish Community Centre, in which we are gathered here today. Standing on the steps of this wonderfully vibrant Centre some seventeen years ago, having encouraged its construction and taken immense pride in opening it, I was filled with a sense of hope and optimism at the life and energy that coursed through the building.

So, returning today, along with World Jewish Relief, of which I am extremely proud to be Patron, that sense of hope and optimism has only grown. With their support, together with other generous benefactors, this Centre has blossomed from the bud of an idea into an essential hub for the community.”

He continued: “In a post-Holocaust world, projects such as this Centre are how we recover our faith in humanity. They also show us there is much work still to be done if we are not just to remember the past, but to use it to inspire us to build a kinder and more compassionate world for future generations; a world of which we can be truly proud. And this remains the sacred task of us all.”

Read His Majesty’s full speech at the bottom of this article. 

King Charles meeting staff at community centre
King Charles Packing Food for Ukrainian Refugees at JCC Krakow

During his visit, King Charles spent time at the JCC’s humanitarian distribution centre, an in-house food pantry that provides vital aid, including clothes and food, to thousands of Ukrainian refugees, and met a group of JCC Krakow’s community of 58 Holocaust survivors. 

One of those survivors was Ryszard Orowski (83), who first met with The King and Queen, as The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, in Krakow in 2002. It was during this visit that His Majesty recognised the need for a Jewish centre in Krakow to support the ageing community. At the time, Jewish life in the city was all but extinguished. It was his passion to support the community that inspired the creation of JCC Krakow, which was designed and funded by World Jewish Relief.  

King Charles Meeting Holocaust Survivors Bernard Offen, Ryszard Orowski, and Zofia Radzikowska alongside Jonathan Ornstein
King Charles Meeting Holocaust Survivors

His Majesty officially opened JCC Krakow in 2008, and the centre has since grown to serve over 1,100 members of all ages. Today, it is the beating heart of a growing, thriving Jewish community, only an hour’s drive from Auschwitz. 

World Jewish Relief’s Chair, Maurice Helfgott, commented:  

“World Jewish Relief, founded in 1933, supported Jews fleeing Nazi-occupied Europe, including many survivors of concentration camps. The Holocaust remains a defining chapter in history and its victims and lessons must never be forgotten. Today we welcomed our Royal Patron, King Charles III, to the Jewish Community Centre we helped to establish in Krakow at his personal initiative in 2008. We were reminded of the incredible resilience of the Jewish people to not only survive, but to rejuvenate and grow, and to continue to reach out and help those beyond our own community too. We are deeply grateful for His Majesty’s active and engaged Patronage, and his leadership representing Great Britain, the Commonwealth and the world in collective remembrance today.”

King Charles III: Full Speech  

Read His Majesty's full speech at the Jewish Community Centre of Krakow this Holocaust Remembrance Day

Ladies and Gentlemen,  

To be in Poland on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, as we commemorate eighty years since the liberation of Auschwitz, is both a sombre and indeed a sacred moment.  

It is a moment when we recall the six million Jews, old and young, who were systematically murdered, together with Sinti, Roma, disabled people, members of the L.G.B.T. community, political prisoners, and so many others upon whom the Nazis inflicted their violence and hatred.  

It is a moment when we recall the depths to which humanity can sink when evil is allowed to flourish, ignored for too long by the world. And it is a moment when we recall the powerful testimonies of Survivors such as Lily Ebert, who so sadly passed away in October, and who collectively taught us to cherish our freedom, to challenge prejudice and never to be a bystander in the face of violence and hate.  

In a world that remains full of turmoil and strife, and has witnessed the dangerous re-emergence of antisemitism, there can be no more important message – especially as the United Kingdom holds the Presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.  

As the number of Holocaust Survivors regrettably diminishes with the passage of time, the responsibility of remembrance rests far heavier on our shoulders, and on those of generations yet unborn. The act of remembering the evils of the past remains a vital task and in so doing, we inform our present and shape our future. 

Here in Krakow, from the ashes of the Holocaust, the Jewish community has been reborn. And there is no greater symbol of this rebirth than the Jewish Community Centre, in which we are gathered here today.  

Standing on the steps of this wonderfully vibrant Centre some seventeen years ago, having encouraged its construction and taken immense pride in opening it, I was filled with a sense of hope and optimism at the life and energy that coursed through the building. So, returning today, along with World Jewish Relief, of which I am extremely proud to be Patron, that sense of hope and optimism has only grown. With their support, together with other generous benefactors, this Centre has blossomed from the bud of an idea into an essential hub for the community.  

Ladies and gentlemen, in a post-Holocaust world, projects such as this Centre are how we recover our faith in humanity. They also show us there is much work still to be done if we are not just to remember the past, but to use it to inspire us to build a kinder and more compassionate world for future generations; a world of which we can be truly proud.  

And this remains the sacred task of us all.