History of the Warsaw University of Technology

4 January 1826 – 19 November 1831

Operation of the Preparatory School for the Polytechnic Institute – the first technical school in Warsaw, founded by Stanisław Staszic. The school provided education in technical and business fields.

4 September 1895

Opening of the Hipolit Wawelberg and Stanisław Rotwand School of Mechanics and Technology – a secondary technical school, financed by Polish philanthropists and patriots.

8 June 1898

Establishment of the Tsar Nicolas II Warsaw Polytechnic Institute – a technical university in the Russian partition area, where classes were conducted in Russian.

5 September 1898

Commencement of classes at three faculties of the Polytechnic Institute: the Faculty of Mechanics, of Chemistry and of Engineering and Construction. In 1902, the fourth faculty was opened – the Faculty of Mining. Poles constituted only 20% of the teaching staff, though Polish students accounted for over 70% of all those studying. 

1897 – 1899

Architects Stefan Schyller and Bronisław Rogóyski designed the buildings of the Polytechnic Institute: the Main Building, the Building of Chemistry, the Building of Mechanics, the Building of Physics and two residential buildings for the administration and professors.

22 August 1899

Celebration of setting the cornerstone for the Main Building of the University.

28 January 1905

Strike of Polish students who demanded the autonomy of the University and Polish as the language of instruction.

15 November 1915

Establishment of the first Polish technical university – Warsaw University of Technology. Studies were conducted in Polish at the faculties of: Architecture, Machine Design and Electrical Engineering, Chemistry and Civil and Agricultural Engineering. The first rector was prof. Zygmunt Straszewicz.

1 September 1939

Outbreak of World War II, which stopped the activity of the thriving University. In the academic year 1938/39, the number of students exceeded 5000. Among 6200 diplomas issued at the time, 320 were awarded to women.

1942–1945

Creation of the State Higher Technical School, a two-year-long half-higher school with Polish as the language of instruction. During the German occupation at the time, secret courses were taken by circa 3000 students and engineering diplomas were awarded to 198 people.

22 January 1945

Resumption of classes at Warsaw University of Technology. By the end of the year, all faculties operating before the war had been reopened.

1951

Joining the Hipolit Wawelberg and Stanisław Rotwand Engineering School with Warsaw University of Technology.

1967

Establishment of the Scientific and Teaching Centre in Płock. At present, Warsaw University of Technology, Branch in Płock.

2013

Year of professor Jan Czochralski (1885-1950) - ”world-renown scientist and inventor, crystallographer, chemist, metallurgist”, creator of the fundamentals of the electronic industry. Since 1929 professor at the Faculty of Chemistry of Warsaw University of Technology – the Division of Metallurgy and Metals Science. On 17 November 1929, in recognition of his scientific achievements, he was awarded the honoris causa doctorate of Warsaw University of Technology. On 27 October 2011 he was included, as an outstanding Pole, in the Pantheon of Polish Inventors and Discoverers.

15 November 2015

100 years of Warsaw University of Technology.