Polskie Motorcyckle all the Warsaw Technical Museum

My first success was a ticket to the Polish round of the Speedway World Championship where I was joined by 54,000 rowdy Poles who absolutely love the sport. I also discovered the Muzeum Techniki where there was a display of Polish motorcycles. I had no real knowledge of any Polish motorcycle brands before my visit so it was an interesting experience. A glossy catalogue (albeit in Polish) listed all the motorcycles on display in chronological order.

Historic Influences

In overview, Polish motorcycle history was pretty much dictated by the country’s history. Poland gained independence in 1918 after 150 years of German-Austrian and Russian rule. During that time everything was imported. Independence gave both government and private businesses the incentive to design and manufacture locally. The government began proceedings by deciding to replace its military motorcycles.

The other major force was a pre-WWII government policy which created a special market for maximum 100cc motorcycles (christened Setki – Polish for Hundreds) because they were exempt from government tax and you didn’t need a license to ride one. They became the most popular model and nearly every local manufacturer produced one.

All was going well until the 1st September 1939 when Poland was again invaded by Germany, bringing production to a halt. Many of the factories were ransacked and equipment was sent to Germany. Many of the engineers were either killed or transat ported to German slave camps. Then in 1945 the Red Army captured Poland and businesses restarted, nationalised under Soviet control. Various brands of motorcycle were made by either one factory or another and sometimes under the same roof.