Wojtek the Polish Soldier Bear Duns
Introduction
The photograph on this page of Wojtek the Polish Soldier Bear Duns by Jennifer Petrie as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
Wojtek the Polish Soldier Bear Duns
Image: © Jennifer Petrie Taken: 13 Nov 2020
Wojtek was Syrian brown bear bought as a cub by the Polish soldiers. He went with them to Italy in 1944 and during the Battle of Monte Cassino helped move crates of ammunition. He became a celebrity with visiting Allied Generals and Statesmen. At the end of the War he was transported to Berwickshire with the rest of the 22nd Artillery Supply Company when they were stationed at Hutton. After that he was sent to live out his life in Edinburgh Zoo, where he died aged 21 in 1963. The statue of Wojtek was donated by the town of Zagan in Poland, Duns'twin town. There is another beautiful bronze statue of Wojtek beside a Polish soldier in West Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh. Zagan also has its own statue of the bear. Wojtek is a nickname from "Wojciech" (Happy Warrior).
Images are licensed for reuse under creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0
Image Location
Latitude
55.777761
Longitude
-2.344802