Britain's new king once visited a small Muslim village in eastern Poland

Kruszyniany is a tiny village located just a few kilometres away from the Belarusian border. Less than 100 people live there and most of them are members of the Tatar community. In the heart of this place stands a wooden mosque. Until recently the locals would boast that King of Poland Jan III Sobieski had visited the village twice in the 17th century. However, 12 years ago the royal traces in Kruszyniany were extended by a visit of Queen Elizabeth II's son Prince Charles, who has just a few days ago became new King of the United Kingdom, taking the name Charles III. It took the residents of the village a week to prepare for the prince's visit.

"A whole selection of services arrived. They were doing their thing, taking care of security issues. We were also preparing, as a certain etiquette was required," head of Muslim Religious Community Bronisław Talkowski told TVN24.

Initially it was planned that the British prince would visit the village with his wife Camilla Parker Bowles. That's why, says Bronisław Talkowski, local residents who were to greet the royal guest were told to appear at the ceremony accompanied by their wives.

"It was all planned, who would be responsible for what. I had the honour to welcome the prince, I was the host of his visit," Talkowski added.

The locals prepared dishes for the prince's arrival, including pierekaczewnik (or sarburma or burma - edit.) - a traditional pie stuffed with meat. The cooking process was closely watched by sanepid inspectors. Kruszyniany residents were soon told, however, that most likely the guest from Great Britain would not be tasting local delicacies.

"It was announced as a typical official visit, that the prince would not be tasting anything. It was quite a surprise for us because, on the one hand, we were to welcome the prince, and on the other, it was all supposed to be done at a distance," says Maksymilian Witczak, the man who hosted Queen Elizabeth II's son in his home.

The reality - Witczak says - turned out to be much nicer than expected. Prince Charles arrived on March 16, 2010, and spent an hour at Mr Witczak's place.

"I remember I was carrying a hot pierekaczewnik out of the kitchen, when my mother-in-law finished making a raw one. It was a quick introduction. The prince tasted the pierekaczewnik and spoke with us a little. Then we took photos together," Maksymilian Witczak recollected. He still does not know why the prince bent the strict rules, but he suspects he guest might have been tempted by the lovely smell of the dish.

Bronisław Talkowski remembers that the hosts were instructed not to engage in loose talk when speaking with Prince Charles.

"We were cautioned during the preparations not to dilute the discussion. Not to wander outside the topics interesting for the prince. We were more prepared to hear questions from the prince. And he did ask us a lot, about history, culture and religion," he said.

But how did it happen that Prince of Wales decided to visit this village in particular? It all started when the local authorities were promoting Podlasie region by showing the village inhabited by Polish Tatars. Dozens of ambassadors, including British, had paid visits there before Prince Charles, and all of them loved that place.

"I remember that my mother-in-law hosted people from the British embassy. They would ask her then how would she reacted if someone important visited Kruszyniany. They wouldn't tell who they had in mind," Witczak said.

In 2018, a fire broke out in Tatarska Jurta - an agrotourism farm in Kruszyniany. After the tragedy, Prince Charles reached out to the devastated owners.

"We received a letter in which he wrote he felt sorry to hear what had happened and that he was keeping his fingers crossed for us. Later on I contacted people who assisted the prince - and not the new king - on a daily basis. I told them that as soon as we rebuild, he was welcome to visit again," Maksymilian Witczak added.