Krasiński Library

The Krasiński Library in Warsaw, originally founded in 1844 by Wincenty Krasiński, grew out of family archives to become one of the most important collections of Polish cultural treasures. In 1930 it was reestablished on Okólnik Street. During the German invasion in September 1939, the building was heavily damaged by bombing, though the holdings in the storage rooms were initially spared. The occupiers confiscated rare manuscripts and in 1941 incorporated the library into the Warsaw State Library, which they had established. Despite the efforts of the librarians, who suffered severe destruction again during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944, about 150,000 objects were lost, including irreplaceable family pieces. The surviving holdings, particularly those relating to the Napoleonic Wars and the November Uprising, were handed over to the National Library of Poland after the war. A symbolic remnant of the destroyed collection, an urn containing ashes from the ruins, was digitally cataloged in 2017.