ex „Cietrzew”

Photo by: Bartosz Wardziak

Three-masted staysail schooner
Launched: 1952; converted: 1961
Owner: Polish Scouting Association (ZHP), Centre for Marine Education
LOA with bowsprit: 42.90
Beam: 6.76 m
Draught: 4.6 m
Gross tonnage: 171.71 RT
Sail surface: 626 m2
Engine: 390 hp, DWK, 6-cylinder, 1941
Crew: 46

A three-masted staysail schooner, converted in 1960-62 from the trawler-drifter Cietrzew (built in 1952) for the Polish Scouting Association (ZHP).

Those who have been members of the crew of the ZHP flagship even once call themselves "the Zawiszans". They say so and come back.

It is a second sailing ship of this name in the service of sea scouts. The Zawisza Czarny I, who began to take aboard sea enthusiasts - not only those in scouts' uniforms - in 1934, met her end at the bottom of the Bay of Puck in 1949. It was then that politics started to interfere in sea sailing, so sailors moved inland. However, the scouting community did not lose their sea spirit. The trawler-drifter Cietrzew was converted into a sailing ship: the superstructure was removed, a ballast keel and masts were installed, and the fish hold was fitted with bunks - and thus the Zawisza Czarny II was born, with Bolesław Komorowski as her first captain. "Under Zawisza's sails life is like in a fairy tale..." this is the song the boys from the Zawisza Czarny I stole from the girl scouts from the yacht Grażyna and turned into a hit, well-known even to those who have never stepped aboard a sailing ship. But those who call themselves "the Zawiszans" know how difficult it is to love the ship, popularly called "Zawias" (this is close to how foreigners pronounce her name; in Polish "zawias" means "hinge"). The ship, as a former fishing boat, does not bother about water raging over her deck, which is not a problem when sailing in warm areas, but at several degrees Beaufort, in a storm (which happens more often) cooking dinner in the small galley and carrying it to the forecastle, or going from the forecastle to the toilet can be a survival combat. Clinging on to the steering wheel or other attractions of the watch on the open bridge are things sailors are too proud to talk about. The Zawiszans know them all too well. But according to the theory that "difficult is beautiful", the ship is loved more than any other one. The Zawisza Czarny II is not an ocean record holder for speed, but the crew have a feeling of safety. The ship does her best to keep the good name of the knight she was named after, a symbol of honour and reliability. This is how she showed herself in 1984, when during the Operation Sail '84 in the American Great Lakes she withdrew from the race to go to the rescue of the English barque Marques who was sinking in the Bermuda area. The Zawisza crew rescued eight sailors, for which they were given the Fair Play Award by the International Olympic Committee. Success in international races gave rise to thoughts about a grand cruise. In 1989-1990, the ship went on a multi-stage scouting trip around the world. Feted heartily, despite the financial constraints of the emerging democracy in Poland, the ship crossed the Atlantic again two years later to participate in the Columbus Regatta '92. During those cruises, she not only gained new fans easily, but also played host to crew members of her predecessor, for example in 1994, when, together with the Pogoria, she was taking part in the Toronto Maritime Heritage Festival. It is a well known fact that everything is huge in America - except tradition. The Polish sailing ships met American and Canadian ones to celebrate the 180th anniversary of the fight for Canada between America and England, which took place in the American Great Lakes at the same time when the Napoleonic campaign was in progress in Europe. The Zawisza Czarny was Canada's special guest: everybody remembered her rescue operation on the Atlantic Ocean ten years earlier. Thousands of people were received on the deck with Polish bread, Polish sausages and pork hock with horseradish, especially the grey-haired scouts who had sailed with Captain Zaruski on the first Zawisza Czarny. Not only sail enthusiasts came to visit the ship, but also the fans of the ship's engine, coming from the 1941 German U-boot, which still works thanks to her engineers' hands and hearts. After a few months of roaming around the Great Lakes, the ship gained new friends in America and Canada; moreover, new sailing clubs and taverns came into being, inspired by the ship's visit.

In the late 1990s, the Zawisza set sail for a cruise which ended three and a half years later. Invited to the World Scout Jamboree in Chile, she sailed around South America in 1998-99. Her young crew had an opportunity to face up to Cape Horn. It was a success - the Zawisza rounded Cape Horn twice: in January and February 1999. Then she sailed to the Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station.

In 1999, under the patronage of the WOSM and EU, the Zawisza Czarny set sail for the Peace Cruise from Egypt via Palestine, Israel, Cyprus, Lebanon and Turkey to Greece. The youth from the countries involved, in spite of cultural, religious and political differences, learned how to live and work aboard together. In the same year, the ship sailed to Ukraine on an unusual mission: she carried a bell funded by the Rzeszów Marine Instructors' Circle and named after General Zaruski to the Polish church in Kherson, where the General died. The Zawisza Czarny II received the Cruise of the Year Award twice: for her grand voyages in 1989-90 and 1998-99. The longest cruise lasted 1,288 days, 2,522 people participated in it, and the ship covered a distance of 89,454 nautical miles, i.e. twice the length of the equator. When she returned home, she was welcomed by crowds of crew members from various cruises. They set up the "Zawiszans' Fraternity", and during each cruise they stand shoulder to shoulder: young and very grown-up, present and future "Zawiszans".

The Zawisza Czarny welcomes aboard all the people willing to sail, so naturally she took up another challenge. Romuald Roczeń, a blind author and performer of songs about the sea, dreamed about sailing, and decided to fulfil the dream together with his sailor friends and the Foundation "Gniazdo Piratów" (Pirates' Nest). In 2006, the project "To see the sea" was conceived. Marek Szurawski helped to develop the project, and Janusz Zbierajewski decided to lead the first cruise with a crew of sailors some of whom were blind. However, the ship had to be adjusted to the needs of such unusual crew members, and this required sponsors and volunteers. Her electronic engineer friends installed "talking" devices like compass, helm indicator and GPS. The description of sails and rigging was prepared in the Braille system. During the first cruise in 2006, the crew sailed on the Baltic Sea, in 2007 - the Baltic and the North Sea, and in 2008 they participated in The Tall Ships' Races. Blind sailors proved to be equally worthy as other crew members - a fact that even the accident suffered by Romek, the initiator of the project, will not change. The Zawisza was given the second prize of the Cruise of the Year 2006 Award, and Romek keeps on singing, sailing and convincing his blind colleagues that they should try to "see the sea". And the "Zawiszan" family has grown again, turning up on deck at every call.

The Zawiszans have a deep affection for their ship, and the analysis of this phenomenon shows that, besides the captain, the common forecastle plays a major role during cruises. It is here, in the former fish hold, that several dozen crew members work, sleep, have meals, and - no matter how old or experienced they are - run the life as if in a fairy tale. Being part of such a community makes you believe that you can rely on one another.

In 2007 Gdynia became the first Polish city to promote itself through a tall ship. The sails of the proud Zawisza Czarny II convey the message that the city is "Poland's Sailing Capital" worldwide.

Captains of Zawisza Czarny II:

Cdre Bolesław Romanowski - the first captain of Zawisza Czarny II

Marek Brągoszewski
Jan Dobrogowski
Tomasz Dobrucki
Andrzej Drapella
Dariusz Drapella
Henryk Frąszczak
Tomasz Grala
Franciszek Haber
Jerzy Idzikowski
Marek Ihnatowicz
Krzysztof Januszewski
Ziemowit Kłos
Piotr Kowalski
Wiktor Leszczyński
Maciej Leśny
Jan Ludwig
Waldemar Mieczkowski
Alfred Naskręt
Janusz Nowakowski
Wilhelm Okarmus
Bogdan Olszewski
Czesław Pazur
Stanisław Perkowski
Mirosław Peszkowski
Jan Piasecki
Wojciech Plewnia
Benon Przybyszewski
Krzysztof Raczyński
Sławomir Rudnicki
Jan Sauer
Maciej Sodkiewicz
Grzegorz Studziżba
Marcin Szugaj
Tomasz Szwed
Jan Tomaszewski
Ryszard Wabik
Mieczysław Wachowski
Janusz Zbierajewski
Andrzej Ziajko
Wojciech Zientara

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