Poland's President, First Lady to be Buried Sunday in Krakow

Marta Kaczynska kneels in front of the coffins of late Polish president Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria Kaczynska in the Column Hall of the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Poland, 13 April 2010. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Poland's president and first lady will be buried Sunday in a state funeral in Krakow's Wawel Cathedral, the historic resting place of the country's kings and former leaders, officials said, as cited by Polish media.

Stanislaw Kracik, Krakow province governor, said the presidential couple will receive a funeral at 2 p.m. (1200 GMT) Sunday in the 1,000-year-old cathedral — the main burial site of Polish monarchs since the 14th century.

The body of Poland's first lady, who was killed alongside her husband and nearly 100 other Polish leaders and dignitaries in an air crash in Russia, arrived in the country Tuesday morning as thousands waited to pay tribute.

Maria Kaczynska's body was scheduled to be taken on the same route as that of her husband, Polish President Lech Kaczynski, who was taken Sunday through the streets of central Warsaw to the presidential palace, officials said.

A short ceremony was scheduled Tuesday outside the palace, once the first lady's body arrived, officials said. Then the body was to be taken inside the palace where many of the mourners will be allowed in to view the coffin. A ceremony also was scheduled for later in the day during a special Parliament meeting.

The couple had been traveling with a Polish delegation to Russia for a commemorative service marking the 70th anniversary of the Russian massacre of Polish prisoners of war in the village of Katyn when the plane went down.

About 20,000 Poles, including soldiers and civilians, were executed there during World War II.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!