Postcard - Adolf Hitler Platz

Litewski Square in Lublin is a representative space of the city. Its name refers to the events of 1569, when the agreement creating the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was concluded. Noblemen from Lithuania coming to Lublin for the General Sejm were supposed to stay outside the city walls, in the suburb called Krakowskie, in the place of today's Lithuanian Square. The term was first used, however, at the beginning of the 19th century, in the oldest city guide by Seweryn Zenon Sierpiński. At that time, Lublin was the capital of one of the governorates of the Kingdom of Poland. Half a century later, a palace was erected on Litewski Square to house the Gubernian Government. The post-classical building was designed by Julian Ankiewicz. The building was situated next to the former Lubomirski Palace, which was converted into the Governor's Palace. Both buildings, standing in an equal line, faced Krakowskie Przedmieście Street.

After World War I, the Governor's Palace changed occupants. It housed the offices of the headquarters of the District Command of the Second Corps of the Polish Army and the Provincial Office. During the Nazi occupation, as part of propaganda activities, the name Litewski Square was changed to Adolf Hitler Platz. The building was occupied by the German military authorities. In 1940, two series of postcards with views of Lublin were published.

The postcards were printed in the German publishing company ‘Stengel’ in Dresden. Their publisher was Karl. J. Ludwig of the propaganda department, who ran a German bookshop in Lublin at 58 Krakowskie Przedmieście Street. After the Second World War, the building of the Palace of the Gubernial Government was handed over to Maria Curie-Skłodowska University. The motto on the façade read: 'Science in the Service of the People'. For some time the address was Stalin Square, only to be returned to its original name in later years.