| Dar Młodzieży |
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Photo by: Marek Czasnojć
Specifications: A three-masted full-rigged ship
In the early 1970s, discussions were held in Gdynia Maritime Academy on the need to carry on the training of young people on a new sailing ship, although the Dar Pomorza was still in service, and successful in races. There was everything necessary for such undertaking: specialists' acceptance, design, contractor. Everything but the money. Today, in order to find sponsors, a good promotional slogan is needed. At that time, in order to get the authorities' acceptance (i.e. money), a campaign, preferably a nation-wide, had to be organized. On 28 January, 1978, there was a meeting of Gdańsk youth and students' organizations during which the Gdynia Maritime Academy graduate with Diploma No 1, marine engineer Lechosław Bar, called for support in starting a fundraising campaign for a new sailing ship. On 19 June 1978, the Regional Committee of the Polish United Workers' Party called a plenary session which was attended by the Party's First Secretary Edward Gierek who came to Gdańsk to award Krystyna Chojnowska-Listkiewicz for her single-handed cruise around the world. It was then that the famous declaration was announced: "(...) young people of Gdańsk (...) are putting forward a proposal to build a successor to the Dar Pomorza and calling all the Polish youth for support. (...) Let the Dar Młodzieży be built!" Gierek's answer was: "Our Party will provide full and far-reaching support. Let your will come true." This declaration opened the gate to the construction of the sailing ship worth an enormous amount of money in the late 1970s, i.e. ca. 300.000 zloty. Her construction was planned for 1981, when Polish political situation was becoming more and more complicated, and people thought about bread rather than about a new sailing ship. However, thanks to the determination of the then rector of the Maritime Academy, Professor Daniel Duda MM, and the captain of the Dar Pomorza, Kazimierz Jurkiewicz MM, on 4 March 1981, in Gdańsk Shipyard, the keel was laid to start the construction of the Dar Młodzieży. The main designer, engineer Zygmunt Choreń, a beginner in building sailing ships, had difficulties in convincing the shipyard workers of original solutions. When martial law was declared, the Shipyard stopped working, and so the works on Dar Młodzieży stopped as well. The "Solidarność" trade unionists in the Shipyard and Maritime Academy were arrested and tried, the Rector of the Academy was dismissed and replaced following military procedures. In spite of this, in 1982 work on the ship's apparel was resumed. On 4 July 1982, during the the Dar Młodzieży commissioning ceremony, she took over watch from Dar Pomorza. The ship's godmother was Helena Jurkiewicz, captain Jurkiewicz's wife (captain Jurkiewicz had been the commander of the Dar Pomorza for many years), and the bridge was taken by Tadeusz Olechnowicz MM, the last captain of the Dar Pomorza. The ship's first test was participation in The Cutty Sark Tall Ships' Races 1982. The captain and the crew felt the burden of responsibility and expectations of the ship's numerous fans, as well as grumblers for whom nothing was right: the yards, the stern, plastic instead of wood, a black cloud when the engines were started - causing a lump in traditionalists' throats - and the smell from lavatories which in stormy weather could make sailors sick, and the odium of communist patronage. The debut of the Dar Młodzieży was ravishing. Not only did she win the A-Class race for the biggest tall ships, but also rescued a sailor from the burning yacht Peter von Danzig, which meant a break in the race. For this deed, the ship was awarded with a Fair Play prize by the International Olympic Committee. The training ship of the maritime school started her life, gathering aboard young people who, working, learning and spending leisure time together, become a "nation", as Karol Olgierd Borchardt used to say, thus becoming part of the ship, with whom they share the joy of reading winds and waters, overcoming their weaknesses and crossing borders separating from the world, although there are no borders at sea. It happens, however, that in spite of their common goal, people do not become a crew. Then both the ship and the sea, although not vengeful, remind about their rights. That was what happened to the Dar Młodzieży in her third training cruise to the Canary Islands: the storms in the English Channel verified the new ship and her crew. And as it sometimes happens in life, and at sea very often, the highest yards, almost twenty storeys high, with a heeling of 50 degrees, were reached by those who were not doing very well on the deck. The students, now captains, drew a conclusion from that experience for their future life: all the problems are small from the perspective of the yard. A standard training cruise ended with an unexpectedly long stay in London, where the ship was a guest of honour at the opening ceremony, performed by Queen Elizabeth II, of a new seat of the International Maritime Organisation. The Dar Młodzieży berthed in Greenwich, opposite the famous clipper Cutty Sark which stood in the dry dock. Responding to the media people's request, Captain Wiktorowicz hoisted the sails on the Thames; earlier such a feat was performed only once - by Captain Gorazdowski, the commander of the Dar Pomorza. The winged tall ship was admired by the whole Britain, and newspaper headlines informed that the Dar Młodzieży came to give a bow to Her - The Cutty Sark. It was then and there, amidst heartfelt raptures expressed by knowledgeable audiences, that we started to verify our opinions on the new ship. And the visit of the pre-war naval officers and the soldiers of the General Maczek 1st Armoured Division (it was 1983, and Poland was still under martial law) proved once again that the sea was free of political affiliation. In the same year, the Dar Młodzieży set off for her first long (seven months) cruise to Osaka, Japan, to participate in the ceremony of the 400th anniversary of the beginning of the construction of Shogun's castle. It was the second visit of a Polish sailing ship in Japan: in 1935 the Dar Pomorza was received extremely ceremonially there, the Dar Młodzieży, however, started her own tradition. It was her who was chosen out of a dozen or so world's tall ships to host a traditional wedding ceremony of a Japanese young couple. Successful participation in European and world races made it possible to plan an expedition which is elevation for every sailing ship - a cruise around the world. An opportunity emerged in 1987 when the ship was invited to Australia to participate in the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the continent's first settlement. The voyage looked tempting, because Cape Horn was on the way, and sailing around it under sail is as prestigious as the Nobel prize. Setting off for this cruise, the Dar Młodzieży once again followed the tracks of the Dar Pomorza, who sailed around the world in 1934-35, and around Cape Horn in 1937. Dar Młodzieży made her longest voyage to Australia in 1987, covering a distance of 32.352 nautical miles in 274 days. She received a Boston Tea Pot Trophy for the longest uninterrupted passage under sail, i.e. 1.241 nautical miles. The ship left Fremantle for the crowded roadstead under full sail in most daring way, proved her determination in the races with light wind, went under The Sydney Harbour Bridge under full sail, watched by Prince Charles and Princess Diana, and repeated the same exploit in Melbourne, thus gaining fame in Australia. Australian Prime Minister thanked the Dar Młodzieży and her captain Leszek Wiktorowicz for her unusual participation in the ceremony. After visiting Tasmania and New Zealand the ship sailed towards Cape Horn. Cape Relentless warned of its power over a thousand miles ahead. The ship sailed in violent storms of up to 11 B. Just before Cape Horn there was 12 B and a record heel of 60 degrees. Huge waves spared neither the ship nor her crew. Everyone survived, and an entry in the log-book said: Rounding Cape Horn on 6 March 1988, at 7.15 ship's time. Other opportunities to make an appearance among the world's tall ships and meet Poles living in America were the Grand Columbus Regatta '92 (to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the discovery of America), participation in the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the port of Osaka and in Osaka Sail '97 races, where she won the Class A race, and in Sail Boston 2000. Yet another opportunity to meet other tall ships was competition at sea which included the participation in The Cutty Sark Tall Ships' Races, where the Dar Młodzieży won the Cape Horn Trophy twice, in 1994 and 2001, for being the best of the biggest vessels. The Dar Młodzieży, like her predecessors the Lwów and the Dar Pomorza, proudly carries the Polish flag across the oceans and seas, and makes new friends in ports. She trains future Polish and foreign seafarers well: in 2007 the trainees were African maritime school students. Also maritime secondary school students, journalists and ordinary civilians experience their sea adventure on her. They are those who are impressed by her appearance most: masts almost twenty storeys high, sail surface as big as the surface of fifteen tennis courts, and twenty kilometres of ropes, whose names must be recited at any time of the day or night. After their first voyage they find out that everything is verified by the sea and the ship.
Tadeusz Olechnowicz MM, - the first captain of Dar Młodzieży Waldemar Szczuka MM
Dar Pomorza | Dar Młodzieży | Pogoria | Iskra I | Iskra II | Zawisza Czarny I | Zawisza Czarny II | Lwów | Elemka |
