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 very interesting not only for historians, but also for everyone who is interested in the chronology of the events of the war.
What is the Polish Army?
It represents a combined arms formation or an 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. Kosciuszkoserved 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. The Soviet Union took this military formation seriously and provided it with 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 greatly 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, hostilities began. It should be said right away that the Polish Army played an important role in the Second World War. Military operations were carried out under the operational leadership of the 1st Belorussian Front. At the end of the month, part of the army crossed the Western Bug. 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 in the armymilitary personnel. 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, 66 aircraft.
Replenishment
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, Petr Yaroshevich, became prime minister in the futurePoland.
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 capital of Poland. The Polish Army in World War II in this operation acted as follows:
- the main forces of the army crossed the Vistula;
- 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 near Prague.
As a result of fierce and prolonged fighting on January 17, 1945, Warsaw gained freedom.
A little later, the Polish Army liberated Bydgoszcz, carrying out an operation to break through the central part of 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 accounted for 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 of the USSR
It is impossible to ignore the fact that the Soviet Union invested hugematerial and human 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 a huge number of 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. During the second half of 1944, Soviet educational institutions 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 (Home 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 kind that the Beurling army was not a Polish army, and also that the Polish Army was a mercenary unit 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. At the same time, it was the Soviet Union that played the key 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.
