Poland in World War II. Poland in World War II
Small arms of the Polish Army
By the beginning of World War II Polish army was equipped with a variety of small arms. A significant part of these weapons were Russian and German models of the early 20th century (i.e. weapons of those countries that included Poland before the 1st World War), but the Poles also had new domestic weapons, developed by Polish gunsmiths in the interwar period.
OFFICER WEAPONS
Revolver Nagant 1930
After the restoration of the statehood of Poland in 1918, the Russian Nagan revolvers of the 1895 model of the tsarist production were in service with its army.
In 1930, licensed production of the Nagant revolver began in Poland at the state arms factory in the city of Radom under the name Nagant 1930. The weapon turned out to be quite reliable and surpassed the Tsarist-made Nagant 1895 revolvers in quality. Nagant 1930 was, with identical external dimensions of the weapon of 1895, somewhat lighter than its predecessor.
The Nagan 1930 revolvers were armed with police units in Poland, which in 1935 had at their disposal about 7000 of these weapons. Also, at the beginning of the Second World War, on September 1, 1939, military units of Poland were also armed with the Nagant 1930 revolver.
Pistol WiS vz35 / WiS vz35
Tactical and technical characteristics: Cartridges 9x19 mm Parabellum. Length 211 mm. Weight without cartridges 1050. Barrel 115 mm, 6 grooves. The magazine is removable, box-type, with a capacity of 8 rounds. The initial speed of the bullet is 350 m / s. Effective firing range 50 m.
The WiS vz35 pistol is known under various names: F.B. Radom / F.B. Radom - by the name of the factory in which it was produced, WiS - by the initials of the developers Piotr Vilniewczyc, associate professor of the artillery school, professor and Jan Skrzypinski, director of the state arms factory in Warsaw ( Wilniewczyc i Skrzypinski).
The locking of the bolt of the weapon is controlled by a cam located on the barrel (the same as in the Belgian pistol FN Browning mod. 1935). On the side of the bolt of the weapon is a latch that controls the trigger when the chamber is loaded. It allows, after first blocking the trajectory of the movement of the hammer in the direction of the striker, to produce a subsequent cocking of the hammer with the thumb. In fact, the latch on the shutter is a mechanism that facilitates its disassembly. Single action trigger mechanism.
The only safety on the WiS vz35 pistol is the manual safety. On request, a trigger lock can also be installed on the WiS vz35 pistol. The WiS vz35 pistol has an automatic safety on the back side of the handle, which is turned off when the hand grips the handle, and a safety trigger lever located on the left side of the bolt.
During German occupation Poland, the weapon was produced for the German army under the name Pistole 35 (p) / Pistole 35 (p) and met with a very rough finish, without a latch on the bolt. Pistols WiS vz35, produced at a different time, are easily recognizable by the embossed Polish eagle on the handle, excellent assembly and finish of the weapon. Models of pistols WiS vz35, produced for Germany, were marked Pistole 35 (p) and standard stamping of the Wehrmacht. Sometimes at the Radom enterprise they did not put three German letters on the pistol, but marked it in the usual way, omitting only the year of production and the engraving of the Polish eagle on the handle of the weapon. The WiS vz35 pistol model, firing 9mm Parabellum caliber cartridges, unlike similar pistols from other brands, has large dimensions and weight, so it is quite convenient to shoot from it.
SOLDIER WEAPONS
Multi-shot carbine model m1891/98/25
After the restoration of the Polish state in 1918, the Polish army inherited various rifles of the Mauser, Mannlicher, Lebel systems, Berthier carbines, as well as Russian repeating Mosin rifles.
Although the Polish military did not rate the Mosin rifle very highly in terms of ballistic performance compared to the Mauser rifle, they still respected it for its reliability, unpretentiousness, constant readiness for use and very high accuracy of fire. The Polish military was also satisfied with the Mosin rifle ammunition, which included 4 rounds in the magazine and 1 round in the rifle chamber. Mosin rifles were used to a limited extent in the Polish army - both long and dragoon.
From 1924 to 1927, the Mosin rifles were converted to the 7.92 mm Mauser cartridge. The alteration was carried out by Polish gunsmiths in close cooperation with Lviv gunsmiths. The converted rifles had 200 mm shorter barrels, with altered rifling and front sight position. The chamber, lock mechanism, magazine, sight, handguard and handguard were also replaced. The front part of the forearm is shortened by 250 mm, the pad - by 240 mm. All modified rifles received a common name - the repeating carbine m1891/98/25. In total, about 77 thousand rifles were redone. M1891/98/25 carbines were adopted by the cavalry, artillery and gendarmerie in the late 1920s.
Repeating rifles and carbines models m1898 / m1898a / m1929
Cartridges 7.92x57 mm. Length 1100 mm. Weight without cartridges 4.0 kg. Barrel 600 mm, 4 grooves. Shop built-in, with a capacity of 5 rounds. Rate of fire 15 rds / min. Sighting range 2000 m. Effective range 400 m. Muzzle velocity 845 m/s.
By the time the Second World War began, Polish soldiers were mainly equipped with weapons of the Mauser system of their own production - rifles and carbines m1898a, m1898 and m1929.
In 1921, in accordance with the Versailles Treaty of June 28, 1919, the German Mauser factories transferred about 1000 machine tools to Poland as reparations, which were installed at the arms factory in Warsaw. In 1923, the Warsaw plant was taken over by mass production weapons of the Mauser system, and in 1927 began the mass production of Mauser weapons and a factory in Radom.
Basically, Polish-made rifles and carbines of the Mauser m1898 / m1898a system did not differ much from the German originals of the Kar98 and Kar98a weapons, although they were much worse than the German ones in quality and reliability. So, the details of the shutter models 1898 / 1898a could fail after a few shots. And although the designers in 1936 made changes to the already produced rifles and carbines, including the 1929 carbine, the improved rifles and carbines m1898 / m1898a never became a quality weapon. All types of rifles and carbines of that time were supplied with type 22, 23 and 27 bayonets, similar to German production. The total length of the bayonets ranged from 380 to 385 mm, the length of the blade - from 258 to 252 mm. M1929 carbines used bayonets of a new design, which had a stronger mount with a locking ring.
The m1929 carbine differed slightly from the m1898a carbine and was similar to the German Mauser Kar98k carbine. The weapon has a sector sight, designed for a distance of up to 2000 meters, a more massive body and a durable shutter. The handguard and handguard are shortened by 75 mm, the barrel has become more reliable and of high quality. Many metal parts began to be made by stamping.
Submachine gun Mors 1939 / Mors 1939
Tactical and technical characteristics:
Cartridges 9x19 mm Parabellum. Length 930 mm. Weight without cartridges 4.37 kg. Barrel 295 mm. The magazine is removable, box-type, with a capacity of 25 rounds. Rate of fire 500 rds / min. The initial speed of the bullet is 400 m / s. Sighting range 200 m. Effective range 200 m.
The Mors 1939 submachine gun is one of the rarest weapons from the Second World War. Although it was declared on December 22, 1938 as an army standard weapon, it could not take part in the battles. Today, there are two copies of this type of weapon, which were preserved in the Museum of the Armed Forces in Moscow and one of which, with serial number 38, was transferred to the Museum of the Polish Army in Warsaw in August 1983.
The designers of the Mors 1939 submachine gun were Associate Professor of the Artillery School, Professor Piotr Vilniewczyc and Jan Skrzypinski, Director of the State Arms Factory in Warsaw.
The Mors 1939 submachine gun is a pneumatically retarded blowback weapon that is an interesting technical solution. In the ledge of the shutter there was a cavity with a hole, with the help of which, during firing, the pressure inside the cavity was equalized with external pressure. When the weapon is not in working condition, this cavity is open, as soon as the bolt moves to the rear position during firing, the hole closes and the pressure in the cavity begins to grow, exerting a braking effect on the bolt, reducing the rate of fire. After the last cartridge is used up, the bolt is locked in its rearmost position, releasing the magazine mount.
The Mors 1939 submachine gun was powered from a box magazine inserted from below at the very end of the forearm. The Mors 1939 submachine gun had 2 triggers, the front of which was intended for firing bursts, the rear for single fire. The reloading handle is located on the right and can be fixed in a cutout in the rear of the bolt box, thereby putting the weapon on the fuse. The barrel is removable, placed in a steel casing with slots for cooling, could be equipped with a muzzle compensator. The weapon has a sector sight, which is installed at a distance of 100 and 200 meters. The Mors 1939 submachine gun has a wooden stock and a front grip from which a telescoping stop extends to form a bipod for prone firing.
ANTI-TANK WEAPONS
Anti-tank rifle m35 Maroshek
Tactical and technical characteristics
Cartridges 7.92x107 mm. Length 1760 mm. Weight without cartridges 9.5 kg. Barrel 1200 mm, 4 grooves (right-handed). Removable magazine, box type, with a capacity of 10 rounds. The initial speed of the bullet is 1290 m / s. Effective firing range 300 m. Effective firing range 200 m.
At the end of 1935, the Polish army began to purchase anti-tank rifles based on the design of a standard repeating rifle. However, it was decided to remove all accessories in order to reduce the overall weight of the weapon.
The Maroshek M35 anti-tank rifle fired tungsten-core bullets, and this is said to have spurred the Germans and Russians to develop similar core bullets. The release of these bullets also accelerated British research in this area, which resulted in the creation of 303 caliber bullets with a core placed in 55 caliber cartridge cases. This new ammunition was used in the British modernized Boyce anti-tank rifle.
The Maroshek m35 anti-tank rifle was loaded with a pack of 5 rounds and had a muzzle brake to reduce the recoil of the weapon. The Maroshek m35 anti-tank rifle was ahead of its contemporary weapon models in its class, as it was more compact, and the core bullets provided greater penetrating power.
Unfortunately, the advantages achieved in one, sometimes entail new disadvantages. The service life of the barrel of the weapon was limited to 200 shots, after which the initial velocity of the bullet, and hence the penetration power, decreased very quickly.
In 1939, work began on weapons with cone drilling according to the Gerlich principle. In this weapon, when firing, a tungsten core was used, placed in a soft lead casing and cupronickel sleeve, which had a larger diameter in the middle. The diameter of the weapon table at the rear was 11 mm, and at the exit - 7.92 mm, which ultimately led to deformation of the expanded part of the sleeve and a reduction in its diameter. The use of a similar barrel drilling principle in combination with new ammunition increased the muzzle velocity and doubled the penetration power.
When all of Poland was occupied by German troops, production drawings and a sample of the Maroszek m35 anti-tank rifle were secretly taken to France, where work on the model of the weapon continued. At a time when France was already on the verge of defeat in 1940, the weapons were being tested for the last time in the city of Satori, near Versailles. The dates for the start of the production of the rifle had already been scheduled, but in the confusion that came along with the arrival of the German army, it was lost.
MACHINE GUNS
Machine gun model m1910/28
After the restoration of the Polish state in 1918, the first machine guns of the Polish army were the German machine guns Maxim MG08 and the Russian Maxims PM 1905 and PM 1910, partly captured, and partly supplied from the reserves of the victorious countries in the First World War.
Because in 1921 military leadership Poland decided to adopt German Mauser rifles firing 7.92 mm cartridges, while Russian-made PM 1905 and PM 1910 machine guns firing 7.62 mm cartridges had to be redone and reduced as much as possible, replacing them with German MG08 machine guns. This problem was solved by exchanging machine guns with Romania and Finland. The remaining PM 1910 machine guns were modified by changing the caliber of the barrel and chamber, and the lock was replaced with a similar part from the MG08 machine gun. The water radiator, front sight and rear sight of the weapon were also changed. The machine has remained unchanged. These machine guns were called model 1910/28.
Machine gun model m1925
The m1925 machine gun is a 7.92 mm machine gun converted by the French Hotchkiss m1914 machine gun, which were bought in France in 1919-1920.
M1925 machine guns were standard weapons for infantry and cavalry. Although these machine guns did not perform well, they remained in service until the outbreak of World War II on September 1, 1939. M1925 machine guns often failed, the accuracy of firing from them left much to be desired. The Polish army had a total of 1247 converted M1925 machine guns and 2620 Hotchkiss machine guns.
Machine gun Browning m1930
Tactical and technical characteristics of the model m1929
Cartridges 7.92x57 mm. Length 1200 mm. Weight without cartridges 21.0 kg, weight of machine type 30 - 29.3 kg, weight of machine type 34 - 26.3 kg, weight of machine type 36 - 17.0 kg. Coolant weight 4.0 kg. Barrel 720 mm. Food: machine-gun belt for 330 rounds. Rate of fire 600 rds / min. Sighting range 2000 m. Effective range 1000 m. Muzzle velocity 845 m/s.
In Warsaw, in 1927, a competition for the development of machine guns was held, in which leading arms firms from many countries of the world took part. As a result of the tests, the American Browning M1917 machine gun from Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Coproration from Hartford and Armstrong from Newcastle turned out to be out of competition. Based on the documentation transferred by the Americans, the Polish designers of the arms factory in Warsaw in 1919 began developing their own Browning m1930 machine gun.
The Polish version of the Browning m1930 machine gun differed from the original in an elongated barrel with an improved mount, a modified cooling system, an upgraded trigger mechanism and an improved sight with the ability to install an anti-aircraft sight. The automatics of the Browning m1930 machine gun worked on a recoil system when fired with a short barrel stroke and its rigid engagement with the bolt. The weapon is equipped with a pistol grip, the trigger is located in the rear of the machine gun body. Sights are adjustable, and are set at a distance of 2000 meters.
In 1938, the Browning M1930 machine gun was modernized by improving the drummer, bolt, feeder spring, ejector, barrel mount and handle. The upgraded version of the machine gun was named Browning M1930A. Tests of the modernized Browning m1930A machine gun showed its high reliability.
Browning m1928 light machine gun
Tactical and technical characteristics of the model m1929
Cartridges 7.92x57 mm. Length 1110 mm. Weight without cartridges 8.85 kg. Barrel 610 mm, 4 grooves right-handed. Trapezoidal magazine, with a capacity of 20 rounds. Rate of fire 500 rds / min. Sighting range 1600 m. Effective range 800 m. Muzzle velocity 760 m/s.
In July 1924, a competition was held to replace existing light machine guns, in which leading arms firms from many countries of the world took part. As a result of the competitive selection, the model of the Belgian Browning FN 1924 light machine gun won, which, in turn, was developed on the basis of the American Browning BAR M 1922 machine gun. After military tests, the Browning FN 1924 light machine gun in 1927 was put into service under the designation Model 1928. Weapons were purchased in the amount of 10 thousand pieces and a license was acquired for their production, which began in 1930 at the state arms factory in Warsaw.
The automatics of the Browning m1928 machine gun work on a system for removing powder gases from the barrel bore, which are fed through a hole in the lower part of the barrel into the gas cylinder, where they act on the gas piston, and through it on the weapon automation mechanisms. The Browning m1928 machine gun could conduct single and automatic fire.
The barrel has cooling fins and a conical flash hider. Sights consist of a frame diopter sight and a front sight fixed in a dovetail groove. It is also possible to install an anti-aircraft sight.
The Browning M1928 machine gun is equipped with a folding bipod. It is also possible to install it on a tripod machine. The machine gun has a fuse, which is located on the left side of the weapon and also serves as a translator for the types of fire.
The Browning m1928 machine gun was produced in two modifications: with a flash hider, a protected front sight and a long butt, and without a flash hider, with an open front sight and a shortened butt.
Handshake of Polish Marshal Edward Rydz-Smigly and German attache Colonel Bogislaw von Studnitz at the Independence Day parade in Warsaw on November 11, 1938.
It would be interesting to understand on which side of the front line of the Second World War more Poles fought. Professor Ryszard Kaczmarek, director of the Institute of History of the Silesian University, author of the book "Poles in the Wehrmacht", for example, told the Polish "Gazeta Wyborcza" about this: "We can assume that 2-3 million people in Poland have a relative who served in the Wehrmacht. How many of them know what happened to them? Probably few. Students constantly come to me and ask how to establish what happened to my uncle, to my grandfather. Their relatives were silent about this, they got off with the phrase that their grandfather died in the war. But this is no longer enough for the third post-war generation.”
For 2-3 million Poles, a grandfather or uncle served with the Germans. And how many of them died "in the war", that is, on the side of Adolf Hitler, how many survived? “There is no exact data. The Germans considered Poles drafted into the Wehrmacht only until the autumn of 1943. Then, 200 thousand soldiers arrived from the Polish Upper Silesia and Pomerania attached to the Reich. However, recruitment into the Wehrmacht lasted for another year and on a much larger scale.
From the reports of the representative office of the Polish government in occupied Poland, it follows that by the end of 1944, about 450 thousand citizens of pre-war Poland were drafted into the Wehrmacht. In general, it can be considered that German army about half a million of them passed during the war,” the professor believes. That is, the conscription was carried out from the territories (mentioned above Upper Silesia and Pomerania) annexed to Germany.
The Germans divided the local population into several categories according to the national-political principle. Polish origin did not prevent him from leaving to serve in the Nazi army with enthusiasm: “During the departure of recruits, which at first were carried out at railway stations with great fanfare, Polish songs were often sung. Mostly in Pomerania, especially in Polish Gdynia. In Silesia, in areas with traditionally strong ties with Polish speech: in the area of Pszczyna, Rybnik or Tarnowskie Góra. Recruits began to sing, then their relatives joined in, and soon it turned out that during the Nazi event the entire station was singing. Therefore, the Germans abandoned ceremonial farewell because it compromised them. True, they sang mostly religious songs. Situations when someone fled from mobilization happened extremely rarely.”
In the early years, the Poles were well served by Hitler: “At first it seemed that everything was not so bad. The first recruitment took place in the spring and summer of 1940. While the recruits went through training and got into their units, the war on Western front has already ended. The Germans captured Denmark, Norway, Belgium and Holland, defeated France. Hostilities continued only in Africa. At the junction of 1941 and 1942, the service was reminiscent of peacetime. I was in the army, so I can imagine that after a while a person gets used to new conditions and becomes convinced that it is possible to live, that no tragedy has occurred. The Silesians wrote about how well they lived in occupied France. They sent home pictures with the Eiffel Tower in the background, drank French wine, spent free time in French society. They served in the garrisons on the Atlantic Wall, which was rebuilt at that time.
I got on the trail of a Silesian who spent the whole war in the Greek Cyclades. Completely at peace, as if on vacation. Even his album, in which he painted landscapes, has survived. But, alas, this serene Polish existence in the German service with French women and landscapes was cruelly “broken off” by the evil Muscovites in Stalingrad. After this battle, the Poles began to be sent in large numbers to the Eastern Front: “Stalingrad changed everything ... that at one moment it turned out that conscription into the army means certain death. Recruits died most often, sometimes after only two months of service ... People were not afraid that someone would pay them off for service to the Germans, they were afraid of sudden death. The German soldier was also afraid, but in the center of the Reich, people believed in the meaning of war, in Hitler, in the fact that some miracle weapon would save the Germans. In Silesia, with few exceptions, no one shared this faith. On the other hand, the Silesians were terribly afraid of the Russians... It is clear that the biggest losses were on the Eastern Front... given that every second Wehrmacht soldier died, we can assume that up to 250,000 Poles could have died at the front.
According to the director of the Institute of History of the Silesian University, the Poles fought for Hitler: “on the Western and Eastern fronts, at Rommel in Africa and in the Balkans. In the cemetery in Crete, where the dead members of the German landing of 1941 lie, I also found Silesian surnames. I found the same names in military cemeteries in Finland, where Wehrmacht soldiers who supported the Finns in the war with the USSR were buried. Professor Kaczmarek has not yet given data on how many Red Army soldiers, US and British soldiers, partisans of Yugoslavia, Greece and civilians were killed by Hitler's Poles. I guess I haven't calculated yet...
According to military intelligence Red Army, in 1942, the Poles made up 40-45% of the personnel of the 96th Infantry Division of the Wehrmacht, about 30% of the 11th Infantry Division (together with the Czechs), about 30% of the 57th Infantry Division, about 12% of the 110th infantry division. Earlier in November 1941, intelligence discovered a large number of Poles in the 267th Infantry Division.
By the end of the war, 60,280 Poles were in Soviet captivity, fighting on the side of Hitler. And this is far from a complete figure. About 600,000 prisoners from the armies of Germany and its allies, after appropriate verification, were released directly at the fronts. “For the most part, these were people of non-German nationality, forcibly drafted into the Wehrmacht and the armies of Germany’s allies (Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, Romanians, Bulgarians, Moldovans, etc.), as well as non-transportable disabled people,” official documents say.
Poles as allies of the USSR
On August 14, a military agreement was signed in Moscow, which provided for the formation of a Polish army on the territory of the USSR for subsequent participation in the war against Germany on the Soviet-German front.
Already by August 31, 1941, the number of the Polish army exceeded 20,000, and by October 25 - 40,000 people. Despite the most difficult situation in which the USSR was at that time, it was generously supplied with everything necessary. The Polish ambassador in Moscow, Kot, in his reports to London, where the Polish emigrant government had settled since 1940, reported: “The Soviet military authorities greatly facilitate the organization of the Polish Army, in practice they fully comply with Polish requirements, giving the Army soldiers already mobilized into the Red Army on the lands Eastern Poland».
However, the Poles were by no means eager to fight the Germans. On December 3, Sikorsky, who arrived in Moscow, together with the commander of the Polish army in the USSR, General Vladislav Anders and Kot, was received by Stalin. The Germans stood near Moscow, and Anders and Sikorsky argued that the Polish units should be sent to Iran (in August 1941, Soviet and British troops were sent to Iran to fight the pro-German regime of Reza Shah. - Note ed.). Outraged, Stalin replied: “We can do without you. We'll handle it ourselves. We will recapture Poland and then we will give it back to you.”
Colonel Sigmund Beurling, one of the Polish officers determined to cooperate honestly with the Soviet side, later said: Anders and his officers "did everything to drag out the period of training and arming their divisions" so that they would not have to oppose Germany, terrorized Polish officers and soldiers who wanted to accept the help of the Soviet government and go with weapons in their hands to the invaders of their homeland. Their names were entered in a special index called "file cabinet B" as sympathizers with the Soviets.
T. n. "Dvuika" (the intelligence department of the Anders army) collected information about Soviet military factories, railways ah, field warehouses, the location of the troops of the Red Army. It was simply dangerous to have such "allies" in one's rear. As a result, in the summer of 1942, Anders' army was nevertheless withdrawn to Iran under the auspices of the British. In total, about 80,000 military personnel and more than 37,000 members of their families left the USSR.
However, thousands of Polish soldiers under the command of Beurling chose to remain in the USSR. Of these, a division was formed. Tadeusz Kosciuszko, who became the basis of the 1st Army of the Polish Army, who fought on the Soviet side and reached Berlin.
Meanwhile, the Polish government in exile continued to harm the USSR to the best of its ability: in March 1943, it actively supported the propaganda campaign about the "Katyn massacre", raised by the Reich Minister of Propaganda Goebbels.
On December 23, 1943, Soviet intelligence provided the country's leadership with a secret report by the minister of the Polish government in exile in London and the chairman of the Polish commission for the post-war reconstruction of Seida, sent to the President of Czechoslovakia Benes as an official document of the Polish government on issues post-war settlement. It was entitled: "Poland and Germany and the post-war reconstruction of Europe."
Its meaning boiled down to the following: Germany should be occupied in the west by England and the United States, in the east by Poland and Czechoslovakia. Poland must receive land along the Oder and the Neisse. The border with the Soviet Union was to be restored under the 1921 treaty.
Although Churchill was in solidarity with the plans of the Poles, he understood their unreality. Roosevelt called them "harmful and stupid" and spoke in favor of establishing the Polish-Soviet border along the Curzon line, which generally coincided with the state border of the USSR, established in 1939.
The Yalta agreements of Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill on the creation of a new democratic government of Poland, of course, did not suit the Polish government in exile. In the spring of 1945, the Home Army, under the leadership of General Okulicki, the former chief of staff of the Anders army, was intensively engaged in terrorist acts, sabotage, espionage and armed raids in the rear of the Soviet troops.
On March 22, 1945, Okulitsky informed the commander western district Home Army, designated by the pseudonym "Slavbor": "Considering their interests in Europe, the British will have to start mobilizing the forces of Europe against the USSR. It is clear that we will be in the forefront of this European anti-Soviet bloc; and it is also impossible to imagine this bloc without the participation of Germany in it, which will be controlled by the British.
These plans of Polish emigrants turned out to be unrealizable. By the summer of 1945, 16 arrested Polish spies, including Okulitsky, appeared before the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the USSR and received different dates conclusions. However, the Craiova Army, formally disbanded, but in fact transformed into the organization "Liberty and Inconsistency", waged a terrorist war against the Soviet military and the new Polish authorities for several more years.
3. Regimental badges military formations- infantry, cavalry and artillery regiments, tank battalions, aviation and military educational institutions of Poland.
4. Uniform and overcoat buttonholes according to the military branches, military chaplains have three types of buttonhole crosses - Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox.
5. Cockades for headdresses of the Polish Army 1921-1939, as well as awards and badges of Polish veteran organizations. The sign with a reverse swastika in the center is the sign of the Association of Polish Veterans "For the Defense of the Motherland".
6. Patterns of uniforms of Polish veteran organizations.
7. Uniform of infantry units, on the left - the female uniform of the captain of the Women's Volunteer Legion (1920), in the center - an infantry corporal, on the right - a major.
8. On the left is the uniform of a lieutenant colonel of a mountain infantry brigade, on the buttonholes of his raincoat there is a sign with a swastika. On the right is the uniform of a Brigadier General of the Polish Army.
9. Here is such a sign with a swastika and spruce branches worn by the "Podhalian Riflemen", Polish mountain shooters, on raincoats and hats (they attached a feather to their hats).
10. Polish 37-mm anti-tank gun "Bofors" M1936, found during construction in Warsaw in 1979.
11. Mace and hat of Marshal Rydz-Smigly, Supreme Commander of Poland in 1939.
12. Samples of ceremonial sabers of the Polish Lancers.
13. Polish infantry weapons - 46-mm wz.36 mortar in combat and stowed position, Shosha light machine gun and Ckm wz.30 easel machine gun, Mosin rifle with a Mauser bayonet.
14. A box of spare parts and accessories for the Ckm wz.30 machine gun.
15. Dashing Polish motorcycle Sokół 600.
16. Camping riding equipment of the Polish lancer.
17. Uniform and weapons of the defenders of Wasterplatte.
18. Field uniform of Polish infantrymen - an officer and a private.
19. Fragments of downed German aircraft and personal belongings of Luftwaffe pilots. Stamps with a swastika and the year "1939", judging by the description - for marking coffins (or crosses?) German soldiers killed in the Polish campaign.
20. Uniform of Polish pilots and tankers.
21. Uniform of a civil defense soldier.
22. 7.92 mm Ckm wz.30 machine gun on a mount installed for anti-aircraft fire, and next to it is a large-caliber 12.7 mm Maxim (Vickers) machine gun.
23. Uniform of the Border Protection Corps, a formation specially created to protect the eastern border of the Republic of Poland (from the USSR).
24. Uniform of a sailor from the monitor "Pinsk" (ORP on a peakless cap - a ship of the Commonwealth). An interesting fate of this monitor, on September 18, 1939, it was flooded by the crew, was raised by Soviet divers and, under the name "Zhitomir", first became part of the Dnieper River Flotilla, and then part of the Pinsk Flotilla. Participated in the battles of 1941 and ran aground (or was damaged by German artillery) on August 31, 1941, the next day was destroyed by the crew.
25. Polish 81 mm wz.31 mortar, Ckm wz.30 machine gun on a cavalry mount and wz.35 anti-tank rifle.
26. Light machine gun "Browning" rkm wz.28 with spare magazines and a sight for anti-aircraft fire.
27. Naval and infantry uniforms.
28. Weapons and ammunition found on the battlefields of 1939 in Poland.
29. Tops of the Polish banners.
30. Samples of headdresses of the Polish Army.
31. A set of tools for maintenance of the PZL P.11 fighter.
32. The uniform of the artillery units of the Polish army.
33. Two different sample German Enigma cipher machine, the first attempts to analyze the code and decrypt Enigma messages were started in Poland in the mid-1920s.
34. A section of a 75 mm shrapnel projectile and an anti-tank gun wz.35 and a 7.92 mm cartridge for it.
35. The uniform of the air force and naval forces Second Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
His plan is to defend the western border of Poland and to carry out offensive operations in East Prussia.
On the border with East Prussia the Modlin army was deployed (4 infantry divisions and 2 cavalry brigades, as well as 2 infantry divisions and 2 cavalry brigades in the Suwalki area. In the Polish corridor - the Pomorie army (6 infantry divisions).
Against Pomerania - the Lodz army (4 infantry divisions and 2 cavalry brigades).
Against Silesia - the army "Krakow" (6 infantry divisions, 1 cavalry and 1 motorized brigades).
Behind the armies "Krakow" and "Lodz" - the army "Prussia" (6 infantry divisions and 1 cavalry brigade).
The southern border of Poland was to be defended by the Karpaty army (from reserve formations).
Reserves - 3 infantry divisions and 1 cavalry brigade - near the Vistula near Warsaw and Lublin.
In total, the Polish armed forces had 39 infantry divisions, 2 motorized brigades, 11 cavalry brigades, 3 mountain brigades.
fighting
Partition of Poland by the Soviet Union and Germany
However, Poland did not capitulate, its government and part of the armed forces continued their service in exile.
Polish Armed Forces in Exile
Polish units in France and Norway
Polish military units in France began to form after the signing of the Franco-Polish Protocol on September 21, 1939.
General Władysław Sikorski became the commander-in-chief of the Polish forces in France. At the end of 1939, the Polish 1st and 2nd Infantry Divisions were formed.
In February 1940, a separate mountain rifle brigade was formed (commander - General Zygmunt Bohush-Shyshko). This brigade was included in the Anglo-French expeditionary forces, scheduled to be sent to Finland for the war against the USSR. However, on March 12, 1940, peace was concluded between Finland and the USSR, and the brigade was sent in early May 1940 as part of the Anglo-French expeditionary corps to Norway for the war against the Germans.
There, the Polish brigade successfully stormed the villages of Ankenes and Nyborg occupied by the Germans, the Germans were pushed back to the Swedish border. However, due to the advance of the Germans in France, the Allied forces, including the Poles, left Norway.
At the time when a separate mountain rifle brigade was sent to Norway, the Polish 1st Infantry Division (May 3, 1940 renamed the 1st grenadier division) under the command of General Bronislav Spirit was sent to the front in Lorraine. On June 16, the Polish division was almost surrounded by the Germans and received an order from the French command to retreat. On June 19, General Sikorsky ordered the division to retreat to the south of France or, if possible, to Switzerland. However, this order was difficult to fulfill, and therefore only 2 thousand Poles managed to reach the south of France, about a thousand left for Switzerland. The exact losses of the division are still unknown, but at least a thousand Poles were killed, and at least 3 thousand were wounded.
The Polish 2nd Infantry Division (renamed 2nd rifle division) under the command of General Prugar-Ketling. On June 15 and 16, this division covered the retreat of the French 45th Corps to the Swiss border. The Poles crossed into Switzerland on 20 June and were interned there until the end of World War II.
In addition to the infantry, the Polish armed forces in France included the 10th Armored Cavalry Brigade under the command of General Stanisław Maczek. She was stationed at the front in Champagne. From June 13, the brigade covered the withdrawal of two French divisions. Then, on orders, the brigade retreated, but on June 17 it was surrounded. Having managed to break through the German lines, the brigade was then evacuated to Britain.
In addition to the aforementioned Polish units, several Polish anti-tank companies attached to French infantry divisions took part in the fighting in France.
The Polish 3rd and 4th Infantry Divisions were in the process of formation in June 1940 and did not have time to take part in the battles. In total, at the end of June 1940, the Polish armed forces in France numbered about 85 thousand.
When the defeat of France became apparent, the commander-in-chief of the Polish forces decided to evacuate them to Britain. On June 18, 1940, General Sikorsky flew to England. At a meeting in London, he assured British Prime Minister Winston Churchill that the Polish troops were not going to surrender to the Germans and wanted to fight until complete victory. Churchill ordered the organization of the evacuation of Polish troops to Scotland.
While Sikorsky was in England, his deputy, General Sosnkovsky, asked the French General Denin to help the Poles evacuate. The Frenchman replied that "the Poles themselves need to hire ships for evacuation, and you have to pay for it in gold." He also suggested that the Polish troops surrender to the Germans, as did the French.
As a result, 17 thousand Polish soldiers and officers managed to evacuate to Britain.
Polish units in Syria, Egypt and Libya
In April 1940, the Polish Carpathian Rifle Brigade was formed in Syria under the command of Colonel Stanisław Kopanski (from Polish soldiers and officers who fled through Romania).
After the surrender of French troops in Syria to the Germans, the French command ordered to surrender in German captivity and the Poles, but Colonel Kopansky did not obey this order and took the Polish brigade to British Palestine.
In October 1940, the brigade was redeployed to Egypt.
In October 1941, the Polish Carpathian Brigade was landed in the Libyan town of Tobruk, besieged by the Germans, to help the Australian 9th Infantry Division, which was defending there. In December 1941, the allied forces attacked the German and Italian troops, and on December 10 the siege of Tobruk was terminated. On December 14-17, 1941, the Polish brigade took part in the battle in the Gazala region (in Libya). Of the 5 thousand fighters, the Poles lost more than 600 killed and wounded.
Polish units in Britain
In August 1940, British Prime Minister Churchill signed the Polish-British military agreement, which allowed Polish troops to be stationed in Britain. The Polish armed forces in Britain received the same status as the troops of the countries of the British Commonwealth, and received the right to form new Polish units.
By the end of August 1940, the Polish ground forces in Britain consisted of 5 infantry brigades (3 of them were almost exclusively staffed by officers, due to a lack of privates).
On September 28, 1940, the Polish commander-in-chief, General Sikorsky, ordered the formation of the 1st Polish Corps.
In October 1941, the 4th Rifle Brigade was reorganized into the 1st Separate Parachute Brigade (under the command of Colonel Sosnovsky). In February 1942, the formation of the Polish 1st Panzer Division (under the command of General Maczek) began.
After the death of General Sikorsky in 1943, General Sosnowsky became the commander-in-chief of the Polish troops.
Polish units in the USSR (1941-1942)
In August 1942, the destroyer Schlensack supported the British landing at Dieppe with artillery fire.
The submarines "Falcon" and "Dzik" operated in the Mediterranean Sea and received the nickname "Terrible Twins".
Polish warships took part in supporting Allied landing operations in 1940 in Narvik, in 1942 in North Africa, in 1943 in Sicily and in Italy. They were also part of the protection of the Arctic convoys of the allies, which delivered weapons, food and other military materials to the USSR under the Lend-Lease program.
In total, Polish naval sailors sank several enemy warships (German and Italian), including 2 German submarines, shot down about 20 aircraft and sank about 40 transport ships.
About 400 (out of a total of about 4 thousand) Polish sailors died. Most of the survivors of World War II ended up living in the West.
Polish aviation abroad
After the September campaign of 1939, many Polish military pilots tried to move to France. During the defense of France, Polish pilots shot down about 50 German aircraft, 13 Poles pilots died.
Then the Polish pilots crossed over to Britain, where 2 Polish squadrons were formed as part of the British Air Force (302nd and 303rd, the Poles also served in other British squadrons). The Battle of Britain (July-October 1940) involved 145 Polish fighter pilots who shot down 201 enemy aircraft.
In total, the AK partisan detachments, operating since 1943, took part in more than 170 combat clashes with the Germans, destroying over a thousand Germans. Also, AK was actively engaged in intelligence activities (including in the interests of the Western allies). AK activists engaged in sabotage and sabotage, they organized the collapse of 732 trains, destroyed about 4.3 thousand cars, blew up 40 railway bridges, carried out about 25 thousand acts of sabotage at military factories and released prisoners from 16 prisons. Achievements include:
- collection of data on the location of factories for the production of gasoline (Operation "Synthesis");
- collection of data on the development of V-1 and V-2 missiles and their testing at the Peenemünde training ground;
- the murder of a number of high-ranking functionaries of the German occupation administration (in particular, they killed SS Brigadeführer Franz Kuchera).
In 1942-1943, the units of the Guard of Ludova conducted more than 1400 operations (including 237 battles), they destroyed 71 German officers, 1355 gendarmes and policemen, 328 German agents; as a result of sabotage on the railways, they derailed 116 freight and 11 passenger trains, destroyed 9 long sections of railways and suspended traffic for 3137 hours; destroyed and put out of action 132 motor vehicles and 23 locomobiles; destroyed and burned 13 bridges, 36 railway stations, 19 post offices, 292 volost administrations, 11 factories and industrial enterprises, 4 fuel depots with fuel and oil products, 9 livestock branding points, as well as a number of other facilities.
During 1944, units of the People's Army conducted 904 combat operations (including 120 major battles); destroyed 79 highway and railway bridges and 55 railway stations, organized the collapse of 322 echelons; destroyed over 19 thousand Nazis, 24 tanks, 191 vehicles, 3 aircraft, 465 locomotives and 4000 wagons.
Polish army in the USSR (1943-1945)
In May 1943, at the initiative of the "Union of Polish Patriots" and with the support of the Soviet government, the formation of new Polish military units began on the territory: first, the 1st Polish Infantry Division named after. T. Kosciuszko, and later - and other Polish military units and divisions. Colonel Zygmund Berling (former head of the military camp of the Anders Army in Krasnovodsk) was appointed commander of the first Polish division, and Alexander Zavadsky was appointed political commissar.
In June 1943, the formation of the 1st Infantry Division was completed, on July 15, 1943, the fighters of the division took the military oath
On July 20, 1944, the artillery of the 1st Army of the Polish Army supported units of the 69th Army with fire while crossing the Western Bug. On the same day, the first Polish soldiers set foot on Polish soil. During the next three days, the main forces of the 1st Polish Army crossed to the western bank of the Bug. In late July - early August 1944, the 1st Polish Army was at the junction of the 8th guards army and the 69th Army, she participated in battles with units of the 4th German Panzer Army, the offensive on Chelm and Lublin, the liberation of Deblin and Pulaw.
The 1st Polish Tank Brigade participated in the defense of the Studzyansky bridgehead on the western bank of the Vistula south of Warsaw. In three-day defensive battles on the line Magnuszew - Rychevul - Studzyanka farm, Polish soldiers destroyed about 1,500 enemy troops, 2 tiger tanks, 1 panther tank, 12 T-IV tanks, one T-III tank, 8 self-propelled guns, 9 armored personnel carriers, eleven 75 mm guns and sixteen anti-tank guns.
On July 28, 1944, units of the 1st Army of the Polish Army took up combat positions on the eastern bank of the Vistula and received an order from Marshal Rokossovsky to cross the river. On the night of August 1, the 2nd Polish division tried to do this. As a result, one company crossed the Vistula, another company was able to reach one of the islands in the middle of the river. All units that tried to cross the Vistula suffered heavy losses.
On the afternoon of August 1, the 1st and 2nd Polish infantry divisions tried to cross the Vistula. As a result, the 2nd regiment of the 1st division was almost completely destroyed. On August 2, the army did not try to advance, since all 9 attempts to force the Vistula ended in failure. On August 3, attempts by the 2nd Division to cross were stopped by German artillery.
On September 10, 1944, Soviet and Polish troops went on the offensive in the Warsaw region and on September 14 captured Prague, a suburb of Warsaw on the eastern bank of the Vistula. Immediately after the end of the fighting in the Prague region (a suburb of Warsaw), units of the 1st Army of the Polish Army made an attempt to cross to the western bank of the Vistula in order to assist the rebels.
On the night of September 15-16, 1944, in the Saska-Kempa area, the crossing of units of the 3rd Infantry Division of the Polish Army began. Despite fierce opposition from the enemy, landing operation continued until September 19, 1944 and was terminated due to heavy losses. On September 23, 1944, the previously transferred units of the Polish Army, as well as a group of rebels who had joined them, were evacuated to the eastern bank of the Vistula. During the operation, the total losses of the Polish Army amounted to 3764 soldiers and officers, including 1987 people. killed on the western bank of the Vistula (1921 soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division of the Polish Army and 366 soldiers of the 2nd division of the Polish Army), the loss of the wounded amounted to 289 soldiers.
On January 12, 1945, a new Soviet offensive began, in which the 1st Polish Army took part. On January 16-17, 1945, Warsaw was liberated, which the Germans turned into ruins.
At the end of January 1945, the 1st Polish Army (93 thousand people) was stationed in Pomerania. In February, she went on the offensive.
In February-March 1945, the Polish 1st Army fought fierce battles for ten days for the city of Kolberg, which was given the status of a fortress by the Nazi command. On March 18, 1945, units of the 1st Army of the Polish Army established control over the city. In the battles for Kolberg, German troops lost 5,000 soldiers killed and 6,992 prisoners.
In January 1945, the formation of the 2nd Army of the Polish Army was completed. She was transferred to the Neisse River, which she crossed on April 17. The next day, German troops under the command of Field Marshal Schörner, who were marching to defend Berlin, were partially driven back, partially surrounded by units of the 2nd Polish Army.
On April 20, German troops left their positions on the western bank of the Oder and began to retreat to the west.
The contribution of Polish soldiers to the victory received appreciated: more than 5 thousand military personnel and 23 formations and units of the Polish Army were awarded Soviet orders, 13 times the Polish Army was noted in the orders of the Supreme Commander Armed Forces USSR . The best soldiers of the Polish Army took part in the Victory Parade on Red Square on June 24, 1945.
In May-June 1945, the Polish Army numbered about 400,000 people. It was the largest regular military force fighting alongside Soviet troops. The Polish Army (1st, 2nd armies and the Reserve of the High Command) had 2 army directorates, 1 tank corps; 14 infantry, 1 artillery and 3 anti-aircraft artillery divisions; 10 artillery, 1 mortar, 1 motorized rifle, 5 engineering and sapper, 1 cavalry and 2 separate tank brigades, 4 aviation divisions, as well as a number of special, auxiliary and rear units and several military educational institutions. It was armed with 4,000 guns and mortars, 400 tanks and self-propelled guns, 600 aircraft, and 8,000 machine guns.
In total, during the war, the USSR transferred to the Polish Army about 700 thousand rifles and machine guns, more than 15 thousand heavy machine guns and mortars, 3500 guns, 1000 tanks, 1200 aircraft, 1800 vehicles and a significant amount of other equipment and military equipment, and also ensured the supply of the Polish Army with uniforms, food, ammunition, fuel and medicines.
Polish citizens took an active part in the Soviet partisan movement in the occupied territory of the USSR.
The BSSR was attended by 2,500 Poles, of which 703 were awarded Soviet government awards.
2000 Poles took part in the Soviet partisan movement on the territory of the Ukrainian SSR.
In addition, the Poles took part in the Soviet partisan movement on the territory of other republics of the USSR:
In total, 5 thousand Poles took part in the Soviet partisan movement in the occupied territory of the USSR. For participation in the anti-fascist struggle in the underground and partisan detachments On the territory of the USSR, 993 Polish citizens were awarded Soviet government awards.
Notes
Main theaters of war:
Western Europe
Eastern Europe
mediterranean
Africa
Southeast Asia
Pacific Ocean
We all know what the Polish Army is. History lessons were hardly in vain. However, much is forgotten. In the article, we will recall the history of the Polish Army in order to better have information and understand the course of some historical events. This topic will be of great interest not only to historians, but also to anyone interested in the chronology of the events of the war.
What is the Polish Army?
It is a combined arms formation or army. The history of the Polish Army begins in the USSR in 1944. The army consisted mainly of Poles. There were also many ordinary military personnel of the USSR Armed Forces of various nationalities. In official documents and orders it has the name "1st Polish Army".
The army was involved in the Great Patriotic war, and specifically in the following operations:
- Lublin-Brest.
- Warsaw-Poznan.
- East Pomeranian.
- Berlin.
The beginning of the story
The military formation was created in the spring of 1944 by the number of soldiers who served in the Polish corps. It was created a year before. Infantry division them. T. Kosciuszko served as the basis for the formation of the corps. Not only Poles could join the army. It was also open to Soviet citizens with Polish roots. Soviet Union took this military formation seriously and provided it with a decent military support. Sigmund Berling became the commander of the army.
In the spring of the same year, the Polish Army received new soldiers. 52 thousand people arrived. Unfortunately, there were no more than 300 officers among them. There were even fewer cadets, and they served only in the pre-war Polish army. All this significantly exacerbated the already present problem of the lack of competent officers.
Already in the summer, the Polish Army could boast: cavalry, armored, anti-aircraft artillery brigades, 2 air regiments and 4 infantry brigades. By 1944, the personnel amounted to 90 thousand people.
Start of hostilities
In the summer of 1944 began fighting. It’s worth saying right away that the Polish Army in the Second World War played important role. Military operations were carried out under operational management 1st Belorussian Front. At the end of the month, part of the army crossed. As a result, the army entered the territory of Poland. In July of the same year, the 1st Army of the Polish Army merged with the People's Army (partisan army). Only after this event, the army began to be called the united Polish Army, but the first name still continued to appear in the documents.
By that time, there were already 100 thousand military personnel in the army. At the same time, about 2,500 young soldiers were trained as officers, and about 600 as pilots. The army owned approximately 60,000 machine guns and rifles, had at its disposal about 4,000 machine guns, 779 radio stations, 170 motorcycles, and 66 aircraft.
Replenishment of forces
In July 1944, the 1st Polish Tank Corps was created as part of the Army, commanded by Colonel Jan Rupasov. At this time, the Polish army managed to get to the eastern bank of the Vistula, which served as the beginning of the fighting to conquer the left-bank territory. A little later, the army fought on the Magnushevsky bridgehead. It is also worth noting that the armored brigade already known to us fought on the western bank of the river for the Studzyansky bridgehead.
In August 1944, the Polish Committee of National Liberation issued a mobilization decree, which provided for the conscription of young men born in 1921-1924 into the army. All military specialists, officers and sub-officers fit for service were also called up. As a result of this order, in just a few months, the armed forces of Poland were replenished with several dozen newly arrived soldiers. Approximately 100 thousand people were called up from the liberated territory of Poland, the rest from the USSR. At the end of autumn 1944, there were about 11,500 servicemen from the USSR in the Polish Army.
An interesting fact is that the army had deputy commanders for work with political agencies and chaplains. At the same time, the deputy commander of the army, Piotr Yaroshevich, became the prime minister of Poland in the future.
Liberation of Warsaw
In 1944, in the fall, the Polish armed forces were able to liberate Prague. After that, an ill-conceived attempt was made to force the Vistula, which failed. In the winter of 1945, the army took an active part in the defense of the Polish Army in World War II in this operation, it acted as follows:
- the main forces of the army crossed the Vistula;
- The 2nd Infantry Division was engaged in forcing the Vistula, it was she who launched the operation to attack Warsaw from the north;
- The Soviet 31st special division of armored trains and the 6th infantry division of the Polish Army crossed the Vistula in the Prague region.
A little later, the Polish Army liberated Bydgoszcz, carrying out an operation to break through central part Poland. After some time, the main forces were concentrated on the assault on Kolberg. At the same time, the First Polish Armored Brigade attacked Gdansk as part of the East Pomeranian operation. The army stopped in Stettin to count the losses. They amounted to about 3,000 missing and 5,400 killed.
By 1945, the size of the army was 200,000 people. This number is 10 of the total number of soldiers who participated in the Berlin operation. During its implementation, the Polish army lost about 7,000 killed and 4,000 missing.
Help from the USSR
It is impossible to ignore the fact that the Soviet Union has invested huge material and personnel resources in the creation of the army. During 1944, the Soviet Union handed over to the Polish military units about 200,000 carbines and rifles, as well as great amount anti-aircraft, light and machine guns, anti-tank rifles, submachine guns, mortars, tanks, armored vehicles and aircraft. And this is if you do not take into account the captured and training weapons. For the second half of 1944, the Soviet educational establishments trained more than 5,000 Polish troops.
Reaction
At the same time, in the UK, the Polish government in exile, as well as those who supported it in Poland (the Craiova Army), reacted very negatively to the fact that Polish armed formations were being created on the territory of the USSR. They spoke extremely negatively about such activities in the USSR. The reaction was covered in the press, where there were statements of the sort that Beurling's army was not a Polish army, and also that the Polish Army was a detachment of mercenaries in Soviet service.
Summing up the article, let's say that this army had a worthy history. She took part in a number of important operations. Wherein key role it was the Soviet Union that played the role in creating and maintaining the army. The army has become an example of how forces can join forces when needed. Our people had conflicts with the Poles, but still it is worth recognizing that we are kindred close peoples.
- The displacement is called the vector connecting the start and end points of the trajectory The vector connecting the beginning and end of the path is called
- Trajectory, path length, displacement vector Vector connecting the initial position
- Calculating the area of a polygon from the coordinates of its vertices The area of a triangle from the coordinates of the vertices formula
- Acceptable Value Range (ODZ), theory, examples, solutions