Muzeum Armii Krajowej im. gen. Emila Fieldorfa "Nila"

What to expect

The Home Army Museum in Krakow is the largest institution devoted to the Armia Krajowa (Home Army) - the underground military of the Polish resistance - and to the wider Polish Underground State, a clandestine parallel government with no real equivalent in occupied Europe. It is named after General Emil Fieldorf “Nil”, organiser of the Home Army’s sabotage command, executed by the communist authorities in 1953. The museum occupies a brick building of the former Austrian railway depot of the Krakow Fortress on ul. Wita Stwosza, covered with a modern glass roof.

The exhibition runs from the defeat of September 1939 through the building of the conspiracy - intelligence, sabotage, partisan warfare - to the post-war fate of Home Army soldiers, including the bitterest chapter: show trials, prisons and decades of enforced silence under communism. On display are clandestine weapons, uniforms, radio sets, documents and personal effects. This is a narrative museum in the dense, classical style: heavy on text and context, light on multimedia spectacle. If WWII history interests you, it is a solid two hours; if you are expecting the theatrics of the newest Polish narrative museums, parts will feel encyclopaedic.

Visiting in practice

Tickets are sold on site; the ticket office and last entry close 60 minutes before the end of the day, so arrive by 16:00 at the latest. Admission to the exhibitions is free every Sunday. Guided tours are offered in Polish, English and German (200 and 250 PLN respectively, plus admission) - given how dense the subject matter is, an English-speaking guide genuinely earns its fee for foreign visitors.

Getting there

Ul. Wita Stwosza runs along the eastern side of Kraków Główny railway station: from the platforms or the Galeria Krakowska mall it is roughly a ten-minute walk, heading north-east towards ul. Rakowicka. The Rondo Mogilskie tram hub is similarly close. From the Main Square, count on a 25-minute walk. If you arrive in Krakow by train, this museum could hardly be better placed.

Nearby

Next door at ul. Rakowicka 22A is MuFo, the photography museum in Krakow - the two pair easily into one afternoon. A 15-minute walk towards the Old Town brings you to the Czartoryski Museum and the Jan Matejko House on Floriańska street.