Jarosław Jacek Chrapek
DOI: 10.21858/msr.57.01
Vol. no: 57
The article discusses the origins, significance and landscape impact of the Transatlantic Radio Station in Babice – one of the most important technical achievements of the Second Polish Republic. The radio station was built between 1921 and 1923 under an agreement with the Radio Corporation of America and was a key element of the Poland’s transatlantic communication system, handling connections to New York and later also to Tokyo, Cairo, Beirut, Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro. Ten towers, each over 126 metres high, erected on marshy land near Warsaw, were the tallest structures in Poland between 1923 and 1931, dominating the skyline of the capital and its surroundings. An analysis of historical sources, press releases, promotional and iconographic materials, along with a visibility simulation, showed that the facility was visible at distances of up to 78 kilometres and within an area of approx. 7,800 square kilometres. The radio station was not only a strategic installation but also a symbol of modernity and a landmark of symbolic value, comparable to Warsaw’s most recognisable structures. During World War II, it served the Kriegsmarine as a transmitter for U-boat communication. Destroyed in 1945, it remained forgotten for decades and is now the subject of interdisciplinary research combining the history of technology, archaeology, landscape studies and cultural heritage.