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    © Imperial War Museums 2026

    Memorial

    Wojtek the Bear - Edinburgh memorial

    Wojtek

    Source: Copyright Daniela Cäsar

    1/9

    Current Location

    Close to Castle Street, Princes Street Gardens, Princes Street, Edinburgh, City Of Edinburgh, Lothian, EH2 3AA, Scotland

    OS Grid Reference

    NT 25024 73732

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    Names listed on this memorial

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    © WMR-73819

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    Type of Memorial
    Composite
    WMR Reference Number
    73819
    Description
    Life and a quarter size bronze sculpture of a Polish soldier with a bear (Wojtek). Behind the statue is a low relief pictorial panel set on a granite platform. The panel shows the bear and soldiers in different moments during the war. Next to the panel there is a carved inscription and the official badge of the 22nd Transport Company, with Wojtek holding a shell.
    Inscription
    WOJTEK/ In memory of the/ Polish men and women/ who fought/ "For Your Freedom/ and Ours"/ Pamieci polskich/ mezczyzn i kobiet/ ktorzy walczyli/ "Za Wasza/ Wiolnosc i Nasza"
    War
    Second World War (1939-1945)
    Maker(s)
    • Alan Beattie Herriot, Sculptor

    Sponsor Type
    private
    Sponsored By
    Wojtek Memorial Trust commissioned the memorial and raised around £300,000 in cash and in-kind contributions to build the memorial.

    Ceremonies

    Unveiled

    7th November 2015

    Wojciech Narebski (Polish Second Corps veteran); Edmund Szymczak; Witold Sobków (Ambassador of Poland), Donald Wilson (Edinburgh’s Lord Provost)

    Dedicated

    7th November 2015

    Most Rev Leo Cushley, Roman Catholic Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh

    Components

    Figures

    Made from: Bronze


    Condition: Good


    Wall

    Width: 4000mm


    Made from: Granite


    Condition: Good


    Plaque

    Made from: Brass


    Condition: Good


    • Edinburgh Evening News: http://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/polish-veteran-unveils-soldier-bear-wojtek-statue-1-3940806
    • BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-34748795
    • Ognisko Polskie: http://ogniskopolskie.org.uk/events/concert-wojtek-memorial-trust.aspx
    • http://www.thesoldierbear.com/wojtek.html
    • https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/edinburgh-soldier-bear-statue-honor-wwiis-wojtek-bear-unveiled-princes-street-gardens.html
    • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wojtek_(bear)