Polish Underground State History of Poland
The authorities
Government
Administration
Parliament
Courts
Political organizations
Major
1PPS-WRN (socialists)
2SL (agrarian party)
3SN (right-wing party)
SP (Christian democrats)
Minor
4OZN (sanacja)
SD (centrist)
5Bund and Hatzoar (Jewish left)
6Betar (zionist)
Opposition
7ONR (far-right)
8PPR (communists)
Military organizations
Universal
SZP ZWZ
Armia Krajowa
Szare Szeregi KB
Significantly integrated into ZWZ-AK
1GL WRN
2BCh
Partially integrated
3NOW and NSZ
4OPW
7KN
Not integrated
5ŻOB
6ŻZW
Opposition
7OW ZJ
8GL and AL
See also
Cultural activities
Education
History of Poland (1939–1945)
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The Armia Krajowa (the Home Army, literally translated as the Country's Army), abbreviated "AK", was the dominant Polish resistance movement in World War II German-occupied Poland. Polish Underground State (Polskie Państwo Podziemne also known as Polish Secret State) refers to all underground resistance organizations in Poland during The history of Poland from 1939 to 1945 encompasses the German invasion of Poland through to the end of World War II The Government of the Polish Republic in Exile was the government of Poland after the country had been occupied by Germany and the Soviet Union during September–October Rada Jedności Narodowej ( Council of National Unity, RJN) was the quasi-parliament of the Polish Underground State during World War II. Directorate of Civil Resistance ( Polish Kierownictwo Walki Cywilnej, short KWC) was one of the branches of the Polish Government Delegate’s The Polish Socialist Party ( Polska Partia Socjalistyczna, PPS was one of the most important Polish Left-wing Political parties from its inception The People's Party ( Stronnictwo Ludowe, abbr SL was a Polish Political party, active from 1931 in the Second Polish Republic. Stronnictwo Narodowe ( SN, National Party was a Polish Political party formed in October 1928 after the transformation of Związek Ludowo-Narodowy Stronnictwo Pracy (Labor Party was a Polish Christian democracy Political party, active from 1937 in the Second Polish Republic and later part of the Obóz Zjednoczenia Narodowego (ˈɔbus zjɛdnɔˈtʃɛɲa narɔdɔˈvɛgɔ Polish for "Camp of National Unity" abbreviated " OZN " Sanacja (Sanation was a Coalition Political movement in the Interbellum Second Polish Republic. Stronnictwo Demokratyczne ( Democratic Party, SD) is a Polish centrist party established on April 15, 1939. Hashomer Hatzair (השומר הצעיר also transliterated Hashomer Hatsair or HaShomer HaTzair, translating as The Youth Guard) is a Socialist The Betar Movement (בית"ר also spelled Beitar) is a Revisionist Zionist youth movement founded in 1923 in History of Zionism|Timeline of Zionism|World Zionist Organization|Zionist political violence Zionism is an international political movement that originally supported the The National Radical Camp (Obóz Narodowo Radykalny ONR was a Polish Extreme right Anti-semitic, Because of its involvement in Boycott The Polish Workers' Party ( Polska Partia Robotnicza, PPR was a Communist party in Poland from 1942 to 1948 Służba Zwycięstwu Polski ( Service for Poland's Victory, or Polish Victory Service, abbreviated SZP) was the first Polish resistance movement in Związek Walki Zbrojnej ( ZWZ; Association of Armed Struggle or more commonly Union for Armed Struggle) was the name of the underground army formed Grey Ranks (Szare Szeregi was a codename for the underground Polish Scouting Association ( pl Związek Harcerstwa Polskiego) Państwowy Korpus Bezpieczeństwa ( Polish for National Security Corps, short PKB, sometimes also referred to as Kadra Bezpieczeństwa) was a Gwardia Ludowa WRN (GL WRN People's Guard of WRN was a part of the Polish resistance movement in World War II. Bataliony Chłopskie ( BCh, Polish Peasants' Battalions) was a Polish World War II Resistance movement and partisan Narodowa Organizacja Wojskowa (National Military Organization was one of the Polish resistance movements in World War II. Narodowe Siły Zbrojne ( English National Armed Forces, NSZ) was a faction of the Polish resistance movement in World War II, fighting the Obóz Polski Walczącej (OPW Camp of Fighting Poland or Fighting Poland Movement was a minor part of the Polish resistance movement in World War II. Konfederacja Narodu (Confederation of the Nation was one of the Polish resistance organizations in Occupied Poland during World War II. The Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa ( ŻOB, Polish for the Jewish Combat Organization; called in Yiddish יידישע קאמף ארגאניזאציע Żydowski Związek Wojskowy ( ŻZW, Polish for Jewish Military Union) was an underground resistance organization operating during Organizacja Wojskowa Związek Jaszczurczy ( Military Organization Lizard Union, short for Związek Jaszczurczy, abbreviated OW ZJ) was an organization of This is an article about a communist Polish resistance organization Armia Ludowa ( AL, pronounced lu'dɔva English People's Army) was a partisan force set up by the Polish Workers' Party during Polish culture during World War II was brutally suppressed by the country's occupiers, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, both of whom were This article covers the topic of underground education in Poland (Tajne szkolnictwo or pl tajne komplety) during World War II The history of Poland from 1939 to 1945 encompasses the German invasion of Poland through to the end of World War II The Polish resistance movement was a Resistance movement in Poland which fought against the Occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany during World Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers The history of Poland from 1939 to 1945 encompasses the German invasion of Poland through to the end of World War II It was formed in February 1942 from the Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Union for Armed Struggle) and over the next two years absorbed most other Polish underground forces. Związek Walki Zbrojnej ( ZWZ; Association of Armed Struggle or more commonly Union for Armed Struggle) was the name of the underground army formed It was loyal to the Polish government in exile and constituted the armed wing of what became known as the "Polish Secret State". The Government of the Polish Republic in Exile was the government of Poland after the country had been occupied by Germany and the Soviet Union during September–October Polish Underground State (Polskie Państwo Podziemne also known as Polish Secret State) refers to all underground resistance organizations in Poland during Estimates of its membership in 1944 range from 200,000 to 600,000, with the most common number being 400,000; that figure would make it not only the largest Polish underground resistance movement but among the two largest in Europe during World War II. A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups dedicated to fighting an Invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign nation ^[a] It was disbanded on January 20 1945, when Polish territory had largely been cleared of German forces by the advancing Soviet Red Army. History In the period following the emergence of Poland in the 10th century the Polish nation was led by a series of strong rulers of the Piast dynasty, who The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya

The AK's primary resistance operations were the sabotage of German activities, including transports headed for the Eastern Front in the Soviet Union. Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening an enemy oppressor or employer through subversion obstruction disruption and/or destruction The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The AK also fought several full-scale battles against the Germans, particularly in 1943 and 1944 during Operation Tempest, thereby tying down significant German forces, diverting much-needed supplies, while trying to support Soviet military. Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the The most widely known AK operation was the failed Warsaw Uprising of the 1944. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw The AK also defended Polish civilians against atrocities committed by non-German military organizations such as the Ukrainian Insurgent Army and the Lithuanian Security Police. Ethnic violence (also known as ethnic terrorism or ethnically-motivated terrorism) refers to Violence that is predominantly framed rhetorically by The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (Українська Повстанська Армія U krayins’ka P ovstans’ka A rmiya, UPA The Lithuanian Security Police, also referred to as Saugumas (Saugumo policija was a Lithuanian Nazi -sponsored collaborationist police force that operated The Armia Krajowa, due to its ties with the Polish government in exile, was viewed by the Soviet Union as an obstacle to its takeover of the country, which lead to increasing conflict between AK and Soviet forces both during & after the war. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 See also Soviet partisans This sub-article is about the activity of Soviet partisans during World War II in the former territories The ' cursed soldiers' (Żołnierze wyklęci is a name applied to a variety of Polish Resistance movements that were formed in the later stages of World War II Armia Krajowa, seen in modern Poland as a heroic resistance, has since become the subject of controversy and a more critical portrayal in communist Poland as well as outside of Poland. The People's Republic of Poland or Polish People's Republic ( Polish: Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL Russian

History and operations

World War II

The AK's origins were in the Służba Zwycięstwu Polski (Service for the Victory of Poland), which had been set up, just as the joint German & Soviet invasions of Poland were nearing completion, on September 27, 1939, by General Michał Karaszewicz-Tokarzewski. Służba Zwycięstwu Polski ( Service for Poland's Victory, or Polish Victory Service, abbreviated SZP) was the first Polish resistance movement in The Invasion of Poland (1939 precipitated World War II. It was carried out by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small German-allied The 1939 Soviet invasion of Poland was a military operation that started without a formal declaration of war on 17 September 1939 during the early stages of World War II, sixteen Events 489 - Odoacer attacks Theodoric at the Battle of Verona and is defeated again Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Michał Tadeusz Karaszewicz-Tokarzewski, Coat of arms of Trąby pseudonym Doktor, Stolarski, Torwid (b ^[1] Seven weeks later, November 17, 1939, on the orders of General Władysław Sikorski, this organization was succeeded by Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Union for Armed Struggle), which over two years later, on February 14, 1942, became the AK. Events 284 - Diocletian is proclaimed emperor by his soldiers Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Władysław Eugeniusz Sikorski (May 20 1881 – July 4 1943 pronounced) was a Polish military and political leader Związek Walki Zbrojnej ( ZWZ; Association of Armed Struggle or more commonly Union for Armed Struggle) was the name of the underground army formed Events 842 - Charles the Bald and Louis the German swear the Oaths of Strasbourg in the French and German Year 1942 ( MCMXLII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[1][2] While these two organizations were the founders of the AK, intended as the main Polish resistance movement, there were numerous other resistance organizations in Poland. ^[3] A majority of these groups would eventually merge with the ZWZ-AK during the years of 1939-1944, significantly contributing to AK's growth. ^[4][2][3]

Armia Krajowa members during the Warsaw Uprising. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw

According to the Polish government in exile, AK was to be a non-political, nationwide resistance organization. The Government of the Polish Republic in Exile was the government of Poland after the country had been occupied by Germany and the Soviet Union during September–October ^[5] The supreme command defined the main tasks of the AK as partisan warfare against the German occupiers, recreation of armed forces underground and, near the end of the German occupation, general armed revolt until victory. ^[1][2][5] At the war's end, AK plans envisaged the seizure of power in Poland by the Delegatura (Government Delegate's Office at Home) establishment, the representatives of the London-based government in exile; and by the government-in-exile itself, which would return to Poland. Power is a measure of a person's ability to control the environment around them including the behavior of other people London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. In addition to the London government there was also a political organization in Poland itself, a deliberative body of the resistance and the Polish Secret State. Polish Underground State (Polskie Państwo Podziemne also known as Polish Secret State) refers to all underground resistance organizations in Poland during The Political Consultative Committee (Polityczny Komitet Porozumiewawczy) was formed in 1940 after an agreement by representatives of several major political parties (PPS-WRN, SL, SN and SP); renamed to Home Political Representation (Krajowa Reprezentacja Polityczna) in 1943 and to Council of National Unity (Rada Jedności Politycznej) in 1944. Political Consultative Committee (Polityczny Komitet Porozumiewawczy PKP) was the beginning of the political arm of the Polish Secret State in Occupied Poland The Polish Socialist Party ( Polska Partia Socjalistyczna, PPS was one of the most important Polish Left-wing Political parties from its inception The People's Party ( Stronnictwo Ludowe, abbr SL was a Polish Political party, active from 1931 in the Second Polish Republic. Stronnictwo Narodowe ( SN, National Party was a Polish Political party formed in October 1928 after the transformation of Związek Ludowo-Narodowy Stronnictwo Pracy (Labor Party was a Polish Christian democracy Political party, active from 1937 in the Second Polish Republic and later part of the Home Political Representation (Krajowa Reprezentacja Polityczna PKP) was the representation of the four major Polish political parties continuing their activities underground Rada Jedności Narodowej ( Council of National Unity, RJN) was the quasi-parliament of the Polish Underground State during World War II. ^[6] The AK, although in theory subordinated to the civil authorities and the government in exile, often acted somewhat independently with both the AK commanders in Poland and London government not fully aware of the situation of the other. ^[6]

Following the German invasion of Russia in June 1941, Russia joined the Allies; the Anglo-Soviet Agreement was signed on July 12, 1941. Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II The Anglo-Soviet Agreement was a formal military alliance signed by the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union against Germany on July 12 1941 shortly after This shift put the Polish government in a difficult position, since it had previously pursued a policy of "two enemies". Although a Polish-Soviet agreement was signed in August, co-operation continued to be difficult, and deteriorated further after the Katyn massacre was publicized in 1943. The Sikorski-Mayski Agreement was a treaty between Soviet Union and Poland signed in London on August 17, 1941. ^[7]

Until the major revolt began in 1944, the AK concentrated on self-defence (freeing prisoners and hostages, defence against pacification measures) and striking at the German forces. Throughout the period of its existence AK units carried out thousands of armed raids and intelligence operations, sabotaging hundreds of railway shipments and participating in many partisan clashes and battles with German police and Wehrmacht units. A partisan is a member of an Irregular military force formed to oppose control of an area by a foreign power or by an army of occupation Wehrmacht (literally "defense force" was the name of the unified Armed forces of Germany from 1935 to 1945 The AK also conducted retaliatory operations to assassinate prominent Nazi collaborators and Gestapo officials in response to Nazi terror tactics imposed on the civilian population of Poland (notable individuals assassinated by AK include Igo Sym and Franz Kutschera). During World War II Nazi Germany occupied all or parts of the following countries Poland, Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, The ( contraction of ge heime Sta ats' po' lizei: "Secret State Police" was the official Secret police of Nazi Germany Karol Juliusz "Igo" Sym (born July 3 1896) was an Austrian Polish actor who after the German Invasion of Poland decided Franz Kutschera ( 22 February 1904 in Oberwaltersdorf in Lower Austria &ndash 1 February 1944 in Warsaw ^[1][5]

"Germany is kaput" (German: Deutschland kaput) - a defeatist poster published in the General Government by Action N after the battle of Stalingrad in 1943

Polish Home Army's 26th Infantry Regiment en route from the Kielce-Radom area to Warsaw in an attempt to join the Warsaw Uprising. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. The General Government (Generalgouvernement refers to a part of the territories of Poland (and Ostrava Czechoslovakia under German Military occupation The Action "N" (Akcja "N" where "N" derived from Polish word "Niemcy" = "Germans" or "Germany" The Battle of Stalingrad is a commonly used name in English sources for several large operations by Germany and its allies and Soviet forces conducted with the Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Kielce is a city in central Poland with 202609 inhabitants (2006 Radom is a city in central Poland with 227309 inhabitants It is located on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw

Armia Krajowa supplied valuable intelligence information to the Allies; 43 percent of all reports received by British secret services from continental Europe in 1939-45 had come from Polish sources. Intelligence (abbreviated int or intel) is not Information, but the product of evaluated information valued for its currency and relevance rather than The following is a partial list of current intelligence agencies. ^[8] Until 1942, most of British intelligence from Germany came from AK reports; until the end of the war AK would remain the main British source for news from Central and Eastern Europe. ^[9] Among other topics, Armia Krajowa intelligence provided the Allies with information on German concentration camps,^[10] as well as intelligence concerning the V-1 flying bomb and the V-2 rocket^[4][1] One Project Big Ben mission used a stripped-for-lightness RAF twin-engine Dakota (Operation Wildhorn III^[11]) (Most III) from Brindisi, Italy, to fly to an abandoned German airfield in Poland to retrieve information prepared by engineer and aircraft designer Antoni Kocjan, as well as 100 lb (45 kg) of cargo regarding V-2 rocket wreckage from a Peenemünde launch, including Special Report 1/R, no. See also List of Nazi-German concentration camps, Extermination camp Prior to and during World War II, Nazi Germany under Hitler maintained Aside from military operations the Polish Home Army was also heavily involved in intelligence work including work done with regard to the German " Wunderwaffe WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Operation Most III ( Polish for Bridge III) or Operation Wildhorn III (in British documents was a World War II Brindisi can also refer to a song in which a company is exhorted to drink such as the "Tea-Cup Brindisi" in Gilbert and Sullivan 's " The Antoni Kocjan (August 12 1902 &ndash August 13 1944 was a renowned Polish Glider constructor and a contributor to the intelligence services of the Polish See also Vergeltungswaffe The V-2 rocket ( Vergeltungswaffe 2 was the first Ballistic missile and first man-made object to achieve Peenemünde (peːnəˈmʏndə is a village in the northeast of the German (Western part of the Usedom island 242, photographs, a select set of eight parts, and drawings of the wreckage. ^[12] Sabotage was coordinated by the Union of Retaliation and later Wachlarz and Kedyw units. Związek Odwetu ( ZO, Polish for Union of Retaliation) was a Polish World War II resistance organization established on April 20, Wachlarz ( Polish for folding fan) was a Polish World War II resistance organization formed by the Armia Krajowa for Kedyw (acronym for Kierownictwo Dywersji, Polish Directorate of Sabotage and Diversion; probably also a play on the Turkish " Khedive ^[2] Psychological warfare was also waged, in which Action N was mounted to create the illusion of an internal German opposition movement to Hitler. The Action "N" (Akcja "N" where "N" derived from Polish word "Niemcy" = "Germans" or "Germany" ^[1]

Major military and sabotage operations included: the Zamość Uprising of 1942-1943, with AK sabotaging German plans for expulsion of Poles under the Generalplan Ost;^[2] the protection of the Polish population from the massacres of Poles in Volhynia in 1943-1944;^[2] Operation Wieniec sabotaging German rail transport in 1942;^[2] Operation Taśma in 1943, a series of attacks against German border outposts on the frontier between the General Government and the territories annexed by Germany; Operation Jula — another rail sabotage in 1944;^[2] and most notably Operation Tempest in 1944, a series of nationwide uprisings whose chief goal was to seize control of cities and areas where German forces were preparing their defenses against the Soviet Red Army, so that Polish underground civil authorities could take power before the arrival of Soviet forces. The Zamość Uprising refers to the actions by Polish resistance (primarily Armia Krajowa and Bataliony Chłopskie) against the forced expulsion of The Partitions of Poland had ended the existence of a sovereign Polish state in the 18th century Generalplan Ost ( GPO) was a secret Nazi plan of Genocide and Ethnic cleansing to be realised in the territories occupied The Massacre of Poles in Volhynia (Rzeź wołyńska (lit Volhynian slaughter was a massive Ethnic cleansing operation in German-occupied Volhynia and Operation Wieniec (Akcja Wieniec lit Operation Corona was one of the large-scale anti- Nazi operations of the Armia Krajowa during the World War II Operation Belt ( Polish Akcja Taśma) was one of the large-scale anti- Nazi operations of the Armia Krajowa Kedyw during the World The General Government (Generalgouvernement refers to a part of the territories of Poland (and Ostrava Czechoslovakia under German Military occupation Annexation ( Latin ad, to and nexus, joining is the legal incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity (either adjacent or non-contiguous Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya Civil authority is that apparatus of the State other than its Military units that enforces law and order. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 ^[13] The largest and best known of the Operation Tempest battles was the Warsaw Uprising — the attempt to liberate Warsaw, the capital of Poland. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. It started on August 1, 1944; the Polish troops took control of significant portion of the city and resisted the German-led forces until October 2 (63 days in total). Events 30 BC - Octavian (later known as Augustus enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule With no aid from the approaching Red Army, the Germans eventually defeated the rebels and burned the city, finally quelling the Uprising on 2 October 1944. The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[1] Other major city uprisings of AK included the Operation Ostra Brama in Wilno and the Lwów Uprising. Operation Ostra Brama was an armed conflict during World War II between the Polish Home Army and the Nazi German occupiers of The Lwów Uprising was the armed struggle started by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) against the Nazi occupiers in Lwów, during World War In addition, AK prepared Kraków Uprising, but it was canceled due to several circumstances. The Kraków (Cracow Uprising of February 1846 was an attempt led by Edward Dembowski to incite a Polish fight for national independence While the AK managed to liberate a number of places from German control, in the end due to hostility and lack of support from the Soviet Union, it failed to secure sufficient territory for the government in exile to return. ^[1][2][13]

Axis fatalities due to the actions of the Polish underground, of which AK formed the bulk of, are estimated at up to 150,000^[14] (one should however note that estimates of guerilla warfare inflicted casualties often have a wide margin of error^[15]). Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc The AK primary activity was sabotage of German rail and road transports to the Eastern Front in Russia. Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening an enemy oppressor or employer through subversion obstruction disruption and/or destruction The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign It is estimated that one eighth of all German transports to Eastern Front were destroyed or significantly delayed due to AK's activities. The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign ^[16] The battles with the Germans, particularly in 1943 and 1944, tied down several German divisions (about 930,000 German soldiers in total). A division is a large Military unit or formation usually consisting of around ten to thirty thousand soldiers ^[4][17]

"Der Klabautermann" - an issue of the periodical dated 3 January 1943 - a satire against the Third Reich, showing Nazi terror and genocide, on the right Adolf Hitler and Heinrich Himmler. Events 1431 - Joan of Arc is handed over to the Bishop Pierre Cauchon. Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. Creation of Action N. The Action "N" (Akcja "N" where "N" derived from Polish word "Niemcy" = "Germans" or "Germany"

Post-war

See also: Cursed soldiers

Kotwica, one of the symbols of the Armia Krajowa

The AK officially disbanded on 19 January 1945 to avoid armed conflict with the Soviets and civil war. The ' cursed soldiers' (Żołnierze wyklęci is a name applied to a variety of Polish Resistance movements that were formed in the later stages of World War II The Kotwica ( Polish for " Anchor " was a World War II emblem of the Polish Secret State and Armia Krajowa Events 1419 - Hundred Years' War: Rouen surrenders to Henry V of England completing his reconquest of Normandy. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 However, many units decided to continue their struggle under new circumstances. The Soviet Union and the Polish Communist Government it controlled viewed the underground, still loyal to the Polish government in exile, as a force which had to be removed before they could gain complete control over Poland. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Polish communists can trace their origins to early 1800s as is the case in nearby countries The Government of the Polish Republic in Exile was the government of Poland after the country had been occupied by Germany and the Soviet Union during September–October Future General Secretary of PZPR, Władysław Gomułka, is quoted as saying: "Soldiers of AK are a hostile element which must be removed without mercy". See also General Secretary. A number of International organizations, Communist parties and other bodies use the title Secretary The Polish United Workers' Party (PUWP Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza - PZPR was a Communist party in the People's Republic of Poland from 1948 to 1990 Władysław Gomułka ( February 6, 1905, Krosno - September 1, 1982) was a Polish Communist leader Another prominent Polish communist, Roman Zambrowski, said that AK had to be "exterminated". Roman Zambrowski ( July 15, 1909 in Warsaw – August 19, 1977 in Warsaw born Rubin Nusbaum (or Nussbaum) ^[19]

The first AK structure designed primarily to deal with the Soviet threat was NIE, formed in the mid-1943. NIE - Polish anticommunist resistance organisation formed in 1943 in a case of Soviet occupation of Poland. NIE's goals was not to engage the Soviet forces in combat, but rather to observe and conduct espionage while the Polish government in exile decided how to deal with the Soviets; at that time the exiled government still believed that the solution could be found through negotiations. On 7 May 1945 NIE ("NO") was disbanded^[19] and transformed into Delegatura Sił Zbrojnych na Kraj ("Homeland Armed Forces Delegation"), this organization however lasted only until 8 August 1945, when the decision was made to disband the organization^[19] and stop partisan resistance on Polish territories. Events 558 - In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses Events 1220 - Sweden is defeated by Estonian tribes in the Battle of Lihula.

Armia Krajowa Cross was awarded to veterans of AK by the Polish government in exile. Armia Krajowa Cross (or Cross of the Home Army, Krzyż Armii Krajowej is a Polish military decoration introduced by general Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski on The Government of the Polish Republic in Exile was the government of Poland after the country had been occupied by Germany and the Soviet Union during September–October

The first Polish communist government, PKWN, formed in July 1944, declined jurisdiction over AK soldiers, therefore for more than a year it was the Soviet Union agencies like the NKVD that took responsibility for disarming the AK. The Polish Committee of National Liberation ( Polish Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego, PKWN) also known as the Lublin Committee, was a The NKVD ( НКВД, ru Народный Комиссариат Внутренних Дел ''Narodnyy Komissariat Vnutrennikh Del'') or People's Commissariat ^[19] By the end of the war approximately 60,000 soldiers of AK were arrested, 50,000 of them were deported to the Soviet Union's Gulags and prisons; most of those soldiers were captured by Soviets during or in the aftermath of Operation Tempest, when many AK units tried to cooperate with the Soviets in a nationwide uprising against the Germans. The Gulag was the government agency that administered the penal labor camps of the Soviet Union. Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the ^[19] Other veterans were arrested when they decided to approach the government officials after being promised amnesty. Amnesty (from the Greek amnestia, oblivion is a legislative or executive act by which a state restores those who may have been guilty of an offense against it to After several such broken promises during the first few years of communist control, AK soldiers stopped trusting the government. ^[19]

Monument to Armia Krajowa, Rzeszów, Poland. Rzeszów (Ряшiв Reichshof Resovia ריישע- Reisha) is a city in south-eastern Poland with a population of 170722 (2008 granted a town charter in 1354

The third AK organization was Wolność i Niezawisłość ("Freedom and Sovereignty"). Zrzeszenie Wolność i Niezawisłość WiN ( Freedom and Independence) was Polish underground anticommunist organisation founded September Again its primary goal was not combat. Rather, it was designed to help the AK soldiers in transition from the life of partisans into that of civilians; while secrecy and conspiracy were necessary in the light of increasing persecution of AK veterans by the communist government. ^[20] WiN was however in significant need of funds, necessary to pay for false documents and to provide resources for the partisans, many of whom had lost their homes and entire life's savings in the war. Viewed as enemies of the state, starved of resources, and with a vocal faction advocating armed resistance against the Soviets and their Polish proxies, WiN was far from efficient. ^[19] A significant victory for the NKVD and the newly created Polish secret police, Urząd Bezpieczeństwa, came in the second half of 1945, when they managed to convince several leaders of AK and WiN that they truly wanted to offer amnesty to AK members. The Ministry of Public Security of Poland ( Ministerstwo Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or MBP) was a Polish Secret police, Intelligence In a few months they managed to gain information about vast numbers of AK/WiN resources and people. By the time the (imprisoned) AK and WiN leaders realised their mistake, the organizations had been crippled with thousands of their members having been arrested. ^[19] WiN was finally disbanded in 1952. By 1947 a colonel of the communist forces declared that "Terrorist and political underground has ceased to be a threatening force, although there are still men of the forests" that need to be dealt with. ^[19]

The persecution of AK was only part of the repressions under Stalinism in Poland. Stalinism is the political regime named after Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union from 1929–1953 In the period of 1944-1956, approximately 2 million people were arrested,^[19] over 20,000, including the hero of Auschwitz, Witold Pilecki, were executed or murdered in communist prisons,^[19] and 6 million Polish citizens (i. "Auschwitz" redirects here For the town see Oświęcim Auschwitz-Birkenau () was the largest of Nazi Germany Witold Pilecki (May 13 1901 &ndash May 25 1948 ˈvitɔld piˈletski Codenames Roman Jezierski Tomasz Serafiński Druh Witold) was a Soldier e. every third adult Pole) were classified as a reactionary or criminal element and subject to invigilation by state agencies. ^[19] In 1956 an amnesty released 35,000 former AK soldiers from prisons: for the crime of fighting for their homeland they had spent sometimes over 10 years in prisons. Even at this time however, some partisans remained in the countryside, unwilling or simply unable to rejoin the community; they became known as the cursed soldiers. The ' cursed soldiers' (Żołnierze wyklęci is a name applied to a variety of Polish Resistance movements that were formed in the later stages of World War II Stanisław Marchewka "Ryba" was killed in 1957, and the last AK partisan, Józef Franczak "Lalek", was killed in 1963^[19] — almost 2 decades after the Second World War ended. Józef Franczak (17 March 1918 - 21 October 1963 was a soldier of the Polish Army, Armia Krajowa World War II resistance, and last of the Cursed soldiers It was only four years later, in 1967, that Adam Boryczka, a soldier of AK and a member of the elite, Britain-trained Cichociemny ("The Silent and Hidden") intelligence and support group, was released from prison. Adam Boryczka (1913-1988 was a Captain of the Polish Army and member of the underground Home Army in the area of Wilno, where he fought the Germans and Cichociemni ( Polish for Silent dark ones) were a secret unit of the Polish Army in exile created to maintain contact with occupied Poland during World Until the end of the People's Republic of Poland AK soldiers remained under investigation by the secret police, and it was only in 1989, after the fall of communism, that the sentences of AK soldiers were finally declared invalid and annulled by the Polish courts. The People's Republic of Poland or Polish People's Republic ( Polish: Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL Russian "Fall of Communism" redirects here For the fall of the Soviet Union itself see History of the Soviet Union (1985–1991. ^[19] Many monuments to Armia Krajowa have been erected in modern Poland, and there are many museum exhibitions (the most notable being the Armia Krajowa Museum in Kraków and the Warsaw Uprising Museum in Warsaw). A monument is a structure either explicitly created to commemorate a person or important event or which has become important to a social group as a part of their remembrance of past A museum is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development open to the public which acquires conserves researches communicates and exhibits the Armia Krajowa Museum in Kraków (Muzeum Armii Krajowej w Krakowie was created in 2000 in Kraków to commemorate the Polish Secret State and the largest resistance The Warsaw Uprising Museum ( Muzeum Powstania Warszawskiego, officially translated into English as the Warsaw Rising Museum) located in Warsaw,

Membership

Soldiers of the 1st company of Sambor command of Drohobycz Armia Krajowa inspectorate armed with German-made arms and dressed in captured German field uniforms. The soldier on the lower left appears to be holding a Russian-made PPSh-41, or some derivative of that weapon. The PPSh-41 ( P istolet- P ulemyot Sh pagina; Пистолет-пулемёт Шпагина; Shpagin Machine Pistol; nicknamed

In February 1942, when AK was formed from ZWZ, it numbered about 100,000 members. ^[5] In the beginning of 1943, it had reached a strength of about 200,000. ^[5] In the summer of 1944 when Operation Tempest begun AK reached its highest membership numbers. Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the ^[5] Estimates of AK membership in the first half of 1944 and summer that year range from 200,000,^[21] 300,000,^[22] 380,000,^[5] 400,000,,^[4] 450,000-500,000^[23] to even "over 600,000". . ^[23] Most estimates put the highest numbers in summer 1944 between 300,000 and 500,000, with the average of 400,000. The strength estimates vary, due to constantly ongoing integration of other resistance organizations into AK; as well as because while the number of members was high and sympathizers even much higher, the number of armed members participating in actions would be smaller(due to insufficient number of weapons). ^[15][21][5] AK's numbers in 1944 include a cadre of more than 10,000-11,000 officers, 7,500 officers-in-training (podchorąży) and 88,000 NCOs. Chorąży ("Standard-bearer" is a Military rank in Poland and neighboring countries A non-commissioned officer (sometimes noncommissioned officer) also known as an NCO or Noncom, is an enlisted member of an Armed force ^[5] The officer cadre was formed from pre-war officers and NCOs, graduates of underground courses and elite operatives usually parachuted from the West (cichociemni). Cichociemni ( Polish for Silent dark ones) were a secret unit of the Polish Army in exile created to maintain contact with occupied Poland during World ^[5] A basic organization unit was a platoon, which numbered 35-50 people, with a skeleton, unmobilized version of 16-25; in February 1944 AK had 6287 regular and 2613 skeleton platoons operational. ^[5] Such numbers made Armia Krajowa not only the largest of the Polish resistance movements, but among the two largest in WWII-time Europe ^[a]. Casualties during the war are estimated at about 34,000^[22]-100,000,^[5] plus about 20,000^[22]-50,000^[5] after the war (casualties and imprisonment).

AK was intended as a mass membership organization, organized around a core of pre-war officers. ^[5] AK soldiers could be divided into three groups. The first two consisted of "full-time members": the undercover operatives, living mostly in urban setting under false identities (most senior AK officers belonged to this group) and uniformed (to a certain extent) partisans, living in the forested regions (see leśni), and fighting Germans openly (the numbers of that group can be estimated at about 40 groups numbering in total 1,200-4,000 in early 1943 but the numbers would grow significantly during Operation Tempest). Leśni (short for Leśni ludzie, Polish for the men from the forests) is one of the informal names applied to the partisan groups operating Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the ^[24] The largest group consisted of "part-time members", sympathizers leading 'double life', under their real names in their real homes, receiving no payment for their services, staying in touch with their undercover unit commander, but usually not called for any actions, as AK was planning to use them only during the planned nationwide uprising. ^[24]

AK was intended as a representative of the Polish nation, as its members were recruited from all social parties and classes (the communists sent by Soviets and Soviet created Armia Ludowa (People's Army) being the only notable exception). Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based Armia Ludowa ( AL, pronounced lu'dɔva English People's Army) was a partisan force set up by the Polish Workers' Party during ^[6] Growth of the AK was significantly based on integration of scores of smaller resistance organizations into its ranks. ^[5] Most of the other Polish underground armies became incorporated into the AK (retaining a varying amount of autonomy)^[4][2] including:

• The Konfederacja Narodu (Confederation of the Nation). Konfederacja Narodu (Confederation of the Nation was one of the Polish resistance organizations in Occupied Poland during World War II. Created in 1940 by far-right Obóz Narodowo-Radykalny (National Radical Camp) and opposed to more center SZP-ZWZ, it would partially merge with ZWZ around 1941 and finally join AK around fall 1943. The National Radical Camp (Obóz Narodowo Radykalny ONR was a Polish Extreme right Anti-semitic, Because of its involvement in Boycott
• The Bataliony Chłopskie (Peasants' Battalions). Bataliony Chłopskie ( BCh, Polish Peasants' Battalions) was a Polish World War II Resistance movement and partisan Created by leftist Stronnictwo Ludowe (People's Party) around 1940-1941, it would partially merge with AK around 1942-1943, although in 1944 parts would split and join the AL. The People's Party ( Stronnictwo Ludowe, abbr SL was a Polish Political party, active from 1931 in the Second Polish Republic.
• The Gwardia Ludowa WRN (People's Guard of WRN) of Polish Socialist Party (PPS) (joined ZWZ around 1940) and Socjalistyczna Organizacja Bojowa (Socialist Fighting Organisation) created in 1943 and subordinated to AK,
• The Narodowa Organizacja Wojskowa (National Military Organisation), (joined AK around the fall 1942/summer 1943) established by the Stronnictwo Narodowe (National Party). Gwardia Ludowa WRN (GL WRN People's Guard of WRN was a part of the Polish resistance movement in World War II. The Polish Socialist Party ( Polska Partia Socjalistyczna, PPS was one of the most important Polish Left-wing Political parties from its inception Narodowa Organizacja Wojskowa (National Military Organization was one of the Polish resistance movements in World War II. Stronnictwo Narodowe ( SN, National Party was a Polish Political party formed in October 1928 after the transformation of Związek Ludowo-Narodowy
• The Obóz Polski Walczącej (Camp of Fighting Poland), established by the Obóz Zjednoczenia Narodowego (Camp of National Unity) around 1942, subordinated to AK in 1943. Obóz Polski Walczącej (OPW Camp of Fighting Poland or Fighting Poland Movement was a minor part of the Polish resistance movement in World War II. Obóz Zjednoczenia Narodowego (ˈɔbus zjɛdnɔˈtʃɛɲa narɔdɔˈvɛgɔ Polish for "Camp of National Unity" abbreviated " OZN "
• From March to summer 1944, parts of the extreme right-wing organization, the Narodowe Siły Zbrojne (National Armed Forces) were also subordinated to AK. In Politics, right-wing, the political right, and the Right are positions that uphold traditional values and/or authorities Narodowe Siły Zbrojne ( English National Armed Forces, NSZ) was a faction of the Polish resistance movement in World War II, fighting the

The largest group which refused to join AK was the pro-Soviet and communist Armia Ludowa (AL), which at its height in 1944 numbered 30,000 people. A soviet (сове́т, "council" originally was a workers' local council in late Imperial Russia. Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based Armia Ludowa ( AL, pronounced lu'dɔva English People's Army) was a partisan force set up by the Polish Workers' Party during ^[25] As a result, individual AK units varied significantly in their political outlooks (notably in their attitude towards ethic minorities or the Soviets). ^[6]

Structure

Headquarters

AK's Headquarters was divided into five sections, two bureaus and several other specialized units:^[1][5]

• Section I: Organizations - organization, planning, personnel, justice, religion
• Section II: Information and Espionage - espionage and counterespionage
• Section III: Operations and Training - coordination, planning, preparing for the nationwide uprising
• Section IV: Logistics - information management (ex. maps), supplies
• Section V: Communications - communication (including with the Western Allies), air drops
• Bureau of Information and Propaganda, sometimes known as Section VI - propaganda
• Bureau of Finances and Control, sometimes known as Section VII - finances, budget
• Kedyw (acronym for Kierownictwo Dywersji, Polish for Directorate of Diversion), a highly independent special operations section, responsible for much of the ongoing resistance operations
• Directorate of Underground Resistance
• others

The Commanders of AK were subordinated to the Polish commander-in-chief (General Inspector of the Armed Forces) of the Government in Exile in the military chain of command^[5] and responsible to the Government Delegate's at Home in the civilian chain of command. The Bureau of Information and Propaganda of the Headquarters of Związek Walki Zbrojnej, later of Armia Krajowa (Biuro Informacji i Propagandy (Komendy Kedyw (acronym for Kierownictwo Dywersji, Polish Directorate of Sabotage and Diversion; probably also a play on the Turkish " Khedive Directorate of Underground Resistance (Kierownictwo Walki Podziemnej short KWP) was one of the agendas of the Polish Underground State created during the A commander-in-chief is the Commander of a nation's Military forces or significant element of those forces General Inspector of the Armed Forces (Generalny Inspektor Sił Zbrojnych was an office created in Poland in 1926 In a Military context the chain of command is the line of authority and responsibility along which orders are passed within a Military unit and between different Stefan Rowecki (pseudonym Grot, or "Arrowhead"), served as the AK's first commander until his arrest in 1943; Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski commanded from July 1943 until his capture in September 1944 and Leopold Okulicki, pseudonym Niedzwiadek ("Bear Cub") led the organisation in its final days. Stefan Paweł Rowecki (pseudonym "Grot" hence the alternate name Stefan Grot-Rowecki, December 25 1895 - August 2 1944 was a Polish general journalist General Count Tadeusz Komorowski ( Korczak Coat of Arms) (June 1 1895 - August 24 1966 better known by the name Bór-Komorowski (after one of his wartime code-names General Leopold Okulicki ( noms de guerre Kobra, Niedźwiadek; 1898-1946 was a General of the Polish Army and the last commander of ^[1]

Commanders of AK^[1]

	Name	Codename	Period	Replaced because	Fate	Photo
1.	General Michał Karaszewicz-Tokarzewski Technically, commander of Służba Zwycięstwu Polski and Związek Walki Zbrojnej as AK was not named such until 1942	Torwid	27 September 1939-March 1940	Arrested by the Soviets	Joined the Anders Army, fought in the Polish Armed Forces in the West. Michał Tadeusz Karaszewicz-Tokarzewski, Coat of arms of Trąby pseudonym Doktor, Stolarski, Torwid (b Służba Zwycięstwu Polski ( Service for Poland's Victory, or Polish Victory Service, abbreviated SZP) was the first Polish resistance movement in Związek Walki Zbrojnej ( ZWZ; Association of Armed Struggle or more commonly Union for Armed Struggle) was the name of the underground army formed Events 489 - Odoacer attacks Theodoric at the Battle of Verona and is defeated again Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events in March American Red Cross Month Fire Prevention month ( The Philippines) Women's History Month ( United Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Anders Army refers to the Polish Armed Forces in the East in the period of 1941-1942 which got its name from its commander Władysław Anders. Polish Armed Forces in the West refers to the Polish military formations formed to fight along the Western Allies and against Nazi Germany and its allies Emigrated to the United Kingdom.
2.	General Stefan Rowecki	Grot	18 June 1940-30 June 1943	Discovered and arrested by German Gestapo	Imprisoned in Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Stefan Paweł Rowecki (pseudonym "Grot" hence the alternate name Stefan Grot-Rowecki, December 25 1895 - August 2 1944 was a Polish general journalist Events 618 - Coronation of the Chinese governor Li Yuan as Emperor Gaozu of Tang, the new Emperor of China, initiating three centuries Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 350 - Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, is defeated and killed by troops of the Usurper Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The ( contraction of ge heime Sta ats' po' lizei: "Secret State Police" was the official Secret police of Nazi Germany Sachsenhausen (zaksənˈhaʊzən was a Concentration camp in Germany, operating between 1936 and 1945 Executed by personal decree of Heinrich Himmler after Warsaw Uprising has started. Heinrich Luitpold Himmler ( 7 October 1900 – 23 May 1945 was a Nazi German politician and head of the Schutzstaffel (SS. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw
3.	General Tadeusz Komorowski	Bór	July 1943-2 September 1944	Surrendered after the end of Warsaw Uprising. General Count Tadeusz Komorowski ( Korczak Coat of Arms) (June 1 1895 - August 24 1966 better known by the name Bór-Komorowski (after one of his wartime code-names Events in July The traditional period known as "fence month" (the closed season for deer in England ended July 9 (date varied Year 1943 ( MCMXLIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 44 BC - Pharaoh Cleopatra VII of Egypt declares her son co-ruler as Ptolemy XV Caesarion. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw	Emigrated to United Kingdom.
4.	General Leopold Okulicki	Niedźwiadek	3 October 1944-17 January 1945	Dissolved AK trying to lessen the Polish-Soviet tensions. General Leopold Okulicki ( noms de guerre Kobra, Niedźwiadek; 1898-1946 was a General of the Polish Army and the last commander of Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 38 BC - Octavian marries Livia Drusilla. 1287 - King Alfonso III of Aragon invades Minorca Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar	Arrested by the Soviets, sentenced for imprisonment in the Trial of the Sixteen. The Trial of the Sixteen (Proces szesnastu was a Staged trial of 16 leaders of the Polish Secret State held by the Soviet Union in Moscow in Likely executed in 1946.

Regional

Geographically, AK was divided into regional branches or areas (obszar). ^[1] Below the branches (or areas) were the subregions (or subareas) (podokręg) or independent areas (okręgi samodzielne). Smaller organizational units involved ; inspectorates (inspektorat) of which there was eighty-nine (89) and districts (obwód) of which there was two hundred eighty (280, as of early 1944). ^[5] Overall, AK regional structure resembled to a significant extent Polish interwar administration division, with okręg being similar to Polish voivodeship (see also Administrative division of Second Polish Republic). Voivodeship The voivodeship or province (województwo has been a high-level Administrative subdivision of Poland since the 14th century Administrative division of Second Polish Republic became an issue immediately after Poland regained independence in the aftermath of the First World War ^[5]

There were three to five areas: Warsaw (Obszar Warszawski, with some sources differentiating between left- and right-bank areas - Obszar Warszawski prawo- i lewobrzeżny), Western (Obszar Zachodni in the Pomerania and Poznań regions), South-Eastern (Obszar Południowo-Wschodni in the Lwów area); sources vary on whether there was a North-Eastern Area (centered in Białystok - Obszar Białystocki) or whether Białystok was classified as an independent area (Okręg samodzielny Białystok). Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. Poznań Lublin Voivodeship This article is about the city in Poland Lviv ( Ukrainian: Львів, L’viv, Lwów Lemberg Львов L'vov; see also other names) is a major city in western Białystok Lublin Voivodeship Białystok (also known by alternative names) is the largest City in northeastern Poland.

From 1943 AK started to recreate the organization of the pre-war Polish Army, with its various units being designated as platoons, battalions, regiments, brigades and divisions and operational groups. (ˈraɪk German ˈʁaɪç is a German Loanword cognate with the English Reign, Region, and Rich, but used most to designate Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. Operational Group (Grupa Operacyjna abbreviated GO) was the highest level of tactical division of the Polish Army before and during World War II and the ^[5]

Weapons and equipment

Soldiers of the 1st company of Sambor command, Drohobycz inspectorate during the Operation Tempest; the soldier on the right is equipped with Kb wz.98a while the one on the left with a German MP40 machine pistol

As a clandestine army operating in a country occupied by the enemy, separated by over a thousand kilometers from any friendly territory, the AK faced unique challenges in acquiring arms and equipment. Sambor may refer to Sambor I Duke of Pomerania Sambor II Duke of Pomerania Sambir, Ukraine Drohobych (Дрогóбич Cities' alternative names) is a City located at the confluence of the Tysmenytsia River and Seret, a tributary Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the Karabin wz98a (Kb wz98a - (pl rifle model 98a Polish bolt-action rifle based on Gewehr 98. The MP40 ( Maschinenpistole 40, literally "Machine Pistol 40" is a Submachine gun developed in Germany and used extensively by Paratroopers ^[26] AK was able to overcome these difficulties to some extent and put tens of thousands of armed soldiers into the field. Nevertheless, the difficult conditions meant that only infantry forces armed with light weapons could be fielded. Any use of artillery, armor or aircraft was impossible (except for a few instances during the Warsaw Uprising, like the Kubuś armored car). The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw Kubuś was a Polish World War II armoured car and Armoured personnel carrier (APC made by the Home Army during the Warsaw Uprising A military armored (or armoured) car (see spelling differences) is a wheeled armored vehicle lighter than other armored fighting vehicles primarily ^[26] Even these light infantry units were as a rule armed with a mixture of weapons of various types, usually in quantities sufficient to arm only a fraction of a unit's soldiers. ^[15][21][26]

In contrast, their opponents - the German armed forces and their allies – were almost universally supplied with plentiful arms and ammunition, and could count on a full array of support forces. Unit for unit, its German opponents enjoyed a crushing material superiority over the AK. This severely restricted the kind of operations that it could successfully undertake.

The arms and equipment for Armia Krajowa mostly came from four sources: arms buried by the Polish armies on the battlefields after the Invasion of Poland in 1939, arms purchased or captured from the Germans and their allies, arms clandestinely manufactured by Armia Krajowa itself, and arms received from Allied air drops. The Invasion of Poland (1939 precipitated World War II. It was carried out by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small German-allied ^[26]

AK manufactured grenades: Sidolówka (left) and Filipinka (right) on exhibition in the Museum of the Warsaw Rising

From the arms caches hidden in 1939, the AK obtained: 614 heavy machine guns, 1,193 light machine guns, 33,052 rifles, 6,732 pistols, 28 antitank light field guns, 25 antitank rifles and 43,154 hand grenades. Sidolówka (pron seedoloovka) was an unofficial yet common name of the R wz Filipinka (also Wańka, Perełka) was an unofficial yet common name for the ET wz The Warsaw Uprising Museum ( Muzeum Powstania Warszawskiego, officially translated into English as the Warsaw Rising Museum) located in Warsaw, ^[27] However, because of inadequate preservation which had to be improvised in the chaos of the September campaign, most of these guns were in poor condition. Of those that were hidden in the ground and dug up in 1944 during preparation for Operation Tempest, only 30% were usable. ^[28]

Sometimes arms were purchased on the black market from German soldiers or their allies or stolen from German supply depots or transports. ^[26] Purchases were made by individual units and sometimes by individual soldiers. As Germany's prospects for victory diminished and the morale in German units dropped, the number of soldiers willing to sell their weapons correspondingly increased and thus made this source more important. ^[28] All such purchases were highly risky, as the Gestapo was well aware of this black market in arms and tried to check it by setting up sting operations. The ( contraction of ge heime Sta ats' po' lizei: "Secret State Police" was the official Secret police of Nazi Germany For the most part this trade was limited to personal weapons, but occasionally light and heavy machine guns could also be purchased. It was much easier to trade with Italian and Hungarian units stationed in Poland, which more willingly sold their arms to the Polish underground as long as they could conceal this trade from the Germans. ^[28]

The efforts to capture weapons from Germans also proved highly successful. Raids were conducted on trains carrying equipment to the front, as well as guardhouses and gendarmerie posts. Sometimes weapons were taken from individual German soldiers accosted in the street. During the Warsaw Uprising, the AK even managed to capture several German armored vehicles. ^[28]

Polish insurgent weapons, including the Błyskawica submachine gun - one of very few weapon designed and mass produced covertly in occupied Europe. The Błyskawica (Lightning was a Submachine gun produced by the Armia Krajowa, or Home Army a Polish Resistance movement fighting the Germans

Arms were clandestinely manufactured by the AK in its own secret workshops, and also by its members working in German armament factories. ^[28][26] In this way the AK was able to procure submachine guns (copies of British Sten, indigenous Błyskawica and KIS), pistols (Vis), flamethrowers, explosive devices, road mines and hand grenades (Filipinka and Sidolówka). The Sten (or Sten gun) was a family of British 9 mm Submachine guns used extensively by British and Commonwealth forces throughout The Błyskawica (Lightning was a Submachine gun produced by the Armia Krajowa, or Home Army a Polish Resistance movement fighting the Germans Kis was the name of a Polish Machine pistol from the time of the Second World War. Vis (Polish designation pistolet wz 35 Vis, German designation 9 mm Pistole 35(p, often called incorrectly Filipinka (also Wańka, Perełka) was an unofficial yet common name for the ET wz Sidolówka (pron seedoloovka) was an unofficial yet common name of the R wz ^[26] Hundreds of people were involved in this manufacturing effort. AK did not produce its own ammunition, but relied on supplies stolen by Polish workers from German-run factories. ^[26]

The final source of supply were Allied air drops. An airdrop is a type of Airlift, developed during World War II to resupply otherwise inaccessible troops, who themselves may have been Airborne This was the only way to obtain more exotic but highly useful equipment such as plastic explosives or antitank weapons (PIAT). Plastic explosive (or the obsolete term plastique) is a specialised form of Explosive material. The Projector Infantry Anti Tank ( PIAT) was one of the earlier Anti-tank weapons using a high explosive anti-tank projectile During the war 485 air drop missions from the West (about half of which was flown by Polish airmen) delivered sbout 600 tons of supplies for Polish resistance. ^[29] Besides equipment, the planes also parachuted highly qualified instructors (the Cichociemni), of whom 316^[22] were inserted into Poland during the war. Cichociemni ( Polish for Silent dark ones) were a secret unit of the Polish Army in exile created to maintain contact with occupied Poland during World ^[27] Due to the large distance from bases in Britain and the Mediterranean, and lukewarm political support, the airdrops were only a fraction of those carried out in support of French, Yugoslavian, Greek or other resistance movements. An airdrop is a type of Airlift, developed during World War II to resupply otherwise inaccessible troops, who themselves may have been Airborne

In the end despite their efforts most of AK forces had inadequate weaponry. In 1944, when AK numbers where at their peak strength (200,000-400,000 according to various estimates), AK had enough weaponry only for about 32,000 soldiers. ^[21] On 1 August 1944 when Warsaw Uprising started, only one sixth of AK fighters in Warsaw were armed. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw ^[21]

Interaction with other forces

Interaction with Jewish resistance

Henryk Woliński, the head of the "Jewish Department" in AK's Bureau of Information and Propaganda, one of the Polish Righteous among the Nations. Henryk Woliński (1901-1986 was a member of the Polish resistance movement in World War II, specifically the Armia Krajowa (AK where he reached the rank of Righteous among the Nations (חסידי אומות העולם Chassidey Umot HaOlam) which may at times refer to the B'nei Noah or Noahides as well is a term used

In February 1942, the Operational Command of the AK Information and Propaganda Office set up the Section for Jewish Affairs, directed by Henryk Woliński. Henryk Woliński (1901-1986 was a member of the Polish resistance movement in World War II, specifically the Armia Krajowa (AK where he reached the rank of ^[30] This section collected data about the situation of the Jewish population, drafted reports and sent information to London. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ It also centralized contacts between Polish and Jewish military organizations. The AK also supported the Relief Council for Jews in Poland (codenamed Żegota) as well as the formation of Jewish resistance organizations in Poland. " Żegota " ( also known as the " Konrad Żegota Committee," was a codename for the Council to Aid Jews ( Rada Pomocy Żydom) an underground The Jewish resistance during The Holocaust was the resistance of the Jewish people against Nazi Germany leading up to and through World ^[31][32] One member of the AK, Witold Pilecki, was the only person to volunteer for imprisonment in Auschwitz. Witold Pilecki (May 13 1901 &ndash May 25 1948 ˈvitɔld piˈletski Codenames Roman Jezierski Tomasz Serafiński Druh Witold) was a Soldier "Auschwitz" redirects here For the town see Oświęcim Auschwitz-Birkenau () was the largest of Nazi Germany The information he gathered proved crucial in convincing Western Allies about the fate of Jewish population. ^[10]

The AK provided the Warsaw Ghetto with some firearms, ammunition and explosives. The Warsaw Ghetto was the largest of the Jewish Ghettos located in the territory of General Government during World War II, established by ^[31] During the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in 1943, AK units tried twice to blow up the ghetto wall, carried out holding actions outside the ghetto walls, and together with GL forces sporadically attacked German sentry units near the ghetto walls. The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (German "Aufstand im Warschauer Ghetto", Polish "Powstanie w getcie warszawskim") was the Jewish This is an article about a communist Polish resistance organization Security Cadre (Kadra Bezpieczeństwa or KB), one of the organizations subordinate to the AK, under the command of Henryk Iwański took a direct part in fights inside the ghetto together with Jewish fighters from ŻZW and ŻOB. Państwowy Korpus Bezpieczeństwa ( Polish for National Security Corps, short PKB, sometimes also referred to as Kadra Bezpieczeństwa) was a Henryk Iwański (1902-1978 Nom de guerre Bystry, was a member of the Polish resistance during WWII. Żydowski Związek Wojskowy ( ŻZW, Polish for Jewish Military Union) was an underground resistance organization operating during The Żydowska Organizacja Bojowa ( ŻOB, Polish for the Jewish Combat Organization; called in Yiddish יידישע קאמף ארגאניזאציע ^[33] During the Warsaw Uprising a year later, Batalion Zośka, one of the most notable units of the Uprising, liberated hundreds of Jews from the Warsaw Concentration Camp. The Warsaw Uprising ( Powstanie Warszawskie) was a World War II struggle by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) to liberate Warsaw Batalion Zośka was a Scouting Battalion of the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa or "AK" during World War II. The Warsaw concentration camp ( Konzentrationslager Warschau, short KZ Warschau) was an associated group of the Nazi concentration camps ^[31]

While AK was largely untainted with collaboration with Nazis in the Holocaust,^[34] there are criticism that AK was reluctant to accept Jews into its ranks,^[35] as well as accusations of the complicity of single AK members or groups in anti-Jewish violence. The Holocaust (from the Greek el ''ὁλόκαυστον'' (el-Latn holókauston holos, "completely" and kaustos, "burnt" also known as ^[34] AK members' attitudes towards Jews varied widely from unit to unit,^[36] and while the bulk of anti-semitic behavior can be ascribed to only a small minority of AK members,^[37] the fact that AK failed to protect the Jews from the extremists in their ranks (often affiliated with the far-right endecja spectrum of the Polish political scene, whose National Armed Forces organization was only partially incorporated into AK^[38]) has reflected negatively on the image of Armia Krajowa in Jewish historiography, leading some sources to generalizations characterizing the entire army as anti-Semitic. Narodowa Demokracja (National Democracy also known from its initials ND as " Endecja," was a Polish Right-wing Narodowe Siły Zbrojne ( English National Armed Forces, NSZ) was a faction of the Polish resistance movement in World War II, fighting the ^[39][40][41] The issue remains a controversial one and is subject to a difficult debate. ^[42][43]

Interaction with Lithuanian resistance and collaborators

For more details on this topic, see Polish-Lithuanian relations during the World War II.

Aleksander Krzyżanowski, commandant of the Armia Krajowa in the Wilno (now Vilnius) region. Aleksander "Wilk" Krzyżanowski (1895 - 1951 – was a Polish officer, Major, member of the

Although Lithuanian and Polish resistance movements had in principle the same enemies – Nazi Germany and Soviet Union – they started cooperating only in 1944-1945, after the Soviet re-occupation, when they both fought against the Soviet occupiers. ^[44] The main obstacle in forming an earlier alliance was a territorial dispute centering on Vilnius (see Żeligowski's Mutiny for background). Żeligowski's Mutiny (Bunt Żeligowskiego also żeligiada, Želigovskio maištas was a staged Mutiny led by Polish General Lucjan Żeligowski ^[45]

Some Lithuanians, encouraged by Germany's vague promises of autonomy,^[46] cooperated with the Nazis in their actions against Poles during the German occupation. Autonomy ( Greek: Auto- Nomos - nomos meaning "law" one who gives oneself his/her own Law) is the right to Self-government In autumn 1943, Armia Krajowa started retaliation operations against the Lithuanian Nazi supporters, primarily the Lithuanian Secret Police,^[47] and killed hundreds of mostly Lithuanian policemen and other collaborators during the first half of 1944. The Lithuanian Security Police, also referred to as Saugumas (Saugumo policija was a Lithuanian Nazi -sponsored collaborationist police force that operated In response, Lithuanian police, who had already murdered hundreds of Polish civilians since 1941 (most infamously in the Ponary massacre),^[48] intensified their operations against the Poles. The Ponary massacre (or Paneriai massacre) was the Mass-murder of 100000 people mostly Jews by German SD and SS and Lithuanian during In May 1944 in the battle of Murowana Oszmianka AK dealt a significant blow to the Lithuanian Nazi auxiliaries of the Lithuanian Territorial Defense Force. The Battle of Murowana Oszmianka of May 13 &ndash May 14 1944 was the largest clash between the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa AK and The Lithuanian Territorial Defense Force or LTDF (Lietuvos vietinė rinktinė LVR Lituanische Sonderverbande was a short-lived Lithuanian volunteer Armed force ^[49] What resulted was a low-level civil war between Poles and Lithuanians, encouraged by the German authorities,^[47] which most infamously culminated in the massacres of Polish and Lithuanian civilians in June 1944 in the Glitiškės (Glinciszki) and Dubingiai (Dubinki) villages. A civil war is a War between a State and domestic political actors that are in control of some part of the territory claimed by the state Glitiškės (Glinciszki is village in Vilnius district, on the eastern bank of the Širvys Lake. Dubingiai massacre was a Mass murder of up to 27 Lithuanians in the town of Dubingiai (Dubinki on 23 June 1944 (during World ^[48]

The postwar assessment of AK's activities in Lithuania has been a matter of controversy. During the decades of Soviet occupation of Lithuania, the AK were presented as a terrorist organization. The occupation of the Baltic states refers to the occupation of the Baltic states ( Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) first by the Its activities in Lithuania have been investigated by a special Lithuanian government commission in 1993. Only in recent years have Polish and Lithuanian historians been able to reach some compromises, even if they still differ in the interpretation of many events. ^[50][51]

Interaction with the Red Army

Polish afterwar communist propaganda poster showing soldier of Armia Ludowa and soldier of Armia Krajowa, saying: "The Giant and the spat dwarf of reactionism. Armia Ludowa ( AL, pronounced lu'dɔva English People's Army) was a partisan force set up by the Polish Workers' Party during Reactionary (also reactionist) is a derogatory term usually used by the Left wing in regards to movements which oppose radical change in society and seeks a return "

For more details on this topic, see Soviet partisans in Poland. See also Soviet partisans This sub-article is about the activity of Soviet partisans during World War II in the former territories

Armia Krajowa relations with the Red Army became increasingly poor over the course of the war. The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya Not only did the Soviet Union invade Poland following the German invasion of Poland in 1939, but even after Germans invaded Soviet Union the Soviet Union saw Polish partisans loyal to the government in exile as more of an enemy to their plans to take control of post-war Poland, than as a potential ally. The 1939 Soviet invasion of Poland was a military operation that started without a formal declaration of war on 17 September 1939 during the early stages of World War II, sixteen The Invasion of Poland (1939 precipitated World War II. It was carried out by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small German-allied Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II ^[52] On orders from Stavka sent on June 22 1943,^[53] Soviet partisans engaged Polish partisans in combat, and it has been claimed that they attacked the Poles more often than they did the Germans. Stavka (Ставка was the term used to refer to command element of Armed forces from the time of the Kievan Rus′, more formally during the history ^[52]

In late 1943, the actions of Soviet partisans, who were ordered to liquidate the AK forces,^[53] even resulted in a limited amount of uneasy cooperation between some units of AK & German forces. ^[34] While AK still treated Germans as the enemy and conducted various operations against them,^[34] when Germans offered AK arms and provisions to be used against the Soviet partisans, some Polish units in the Nowogródek and Wilno decided to accept them. Navahrudak, Novgorodok or Novogrudok (Навагрудак nava'ɣrudak Новогрудок also known as Nowogródek and Naugardukas is a city in the Hrodna However, any such arrangements were purely tactical and did not evidence the type of ideological collaboration as shown by Vichy regime in France or Quisling regime in Norway. Vichy France, or the Vichy regime are the common terms used to describe the government of France from July 1940 to August 1944 Vidkun Abraham Lauritz Jonssøn Quisling (18 July 1887 – 24 October 1945 was a Norwegian army Officer and politician ^[34] The Poles main motivation was to gain intelligence on German morale and preparedness and to acquire much needed equipment. ^[42] There are no known joint Polish-German actions, and the Germans were unsuccessful in their attempt to turn the Poles toward fighting exclusively against Soviet partisans. ^[34] Further, most of such collaboration of local commanders with the Germans was condemned by AK headquarters. ^[34] Tadeusz Piotrowski quotes Joseph Rothschild saying "The Polish Home Army was by and large untainted by collaboration" and adds that "the honor of AK as a whole is beyond reproach". Joseph Rothschild (1931 - January 30 2000 was an American Jewish professor of history and political science at Columbia University and an expert on European ^[34]

With the Eastern Front entering Polish territories in 1944, AK established an uneasy truce with the Soviets. The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign Even then the main forces of the Red Army and the NKVD conducted operations against the AK partisans, including during or directly after the Polish Operation Tempest, which was designed by the Poles to be a joint Polish-Soviet action against the retreating Germans and to establish Polish claims to those territories. The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya The NKVD ( НКВД, ru Народный Комиссариат Внутренних Дел ''Narodnyy Komissariat Vnutrennikh Del'') or People's Commissariat Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the ^[4][19] AK helped Soviet units with scouting or organizing uprisings and helping to liberate various cities (ex. Operation Ostra Brama, Lwów Uprising), only to find that immediately afterwards AK troops were arrested, imprisoned – or even executed. Operation Ostra Brama was an armed conflict during World War II between the Polish Home Army and the Nazi German occupiers of The Lwów Uprising was the armed struggle started by the Polish Home Army ( Armia Krajowa) against the Nazi occupiers in Lwów, during World War ^[16] Unknown to the Poles, Stalin's aim to ensure that an independent Poland would never reemerge in the postwar period made the Operation Tempest idea fatally flawed from the beginning. Joseph Stalin ( ნამდვილი გვარი ჯუღაშვილი|Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili; March 5 1953 was General Secretary of the Communist Party ^[54]

Soviet forces continued to engage the elements of AK long after the war.

Interaction with Ukrainian resistance and collaborators

Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) of Stepan Bandera, a Ukrainian nationalist force and the political arm of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), fighting against the Germans, the Soviets and the Poles – all three seen as occupiers of Ukraine – decided in 1943 to direct most of their attacks against the Poles. The Ukrainian Insurgent Army (Українська Повстанська Армія U krayins’ka P ovstans’ka A rmiya, UPA Stepan Andriyovych Bandera (Степан Андрійович Бандера ( January 1 1909 &ndash October 15 1959) was a Ukrainian Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists or OUN (Організація Українських Націоналістів Orhanizatsiya Ukrayins’kykh Natsionalistiv Bandera and his followers came to the conclusion that the war would end with the exhaustion of both Germany and the Soviet Union, and thus the Poles, which also laid claims to the territories of East Galicia (seen by Ukrainians as Western Ukraine, and Poles as Eastern Poland), had to be weakened before the Polish state could rise again. Galicia (Галичина ( Halychyna) Galicja is a historical region in East Central Europe, currently divided between Poland and Ukraine, The term Kresy, meaning Outskirts or Borderlands, was first used to define the Polish eastern frontier ^[55] The collaboration of some Ukrainian groups with Nazi Germany (although declining in 1943) had discredited Ukrainian partisans as potential Polish allies; Polish pretensions to restore the borders of pre-war Poland were opposed by the Ukrainians. ^[55]

Soldiers of the 27th Division crossing a forest in early 1944

The OUN decided to attack Polish civilians who constituted about a third of the population of the disputed territories. ^[55] The OUN equated Ukrainian independence with ethnic homogeneity; the Polish presence had to be removed completely. ^[55] By February 1943 OUN started a deliberate campaign of murdering Polish civilians. ^[55] OUN troops targeted Polish villages, leading to the formation of Polish self-defence units (ex. Przebraże Defence) and fights between Armia Krajowa and OUN. The Przebraże Defence was the World War II defence of Przebraże, a Polish settlement located in Lutsk county Volhynian Voivodeship ^[55] The Germans encouraged both sides against each other. Erich Koch once said: "We have to do everything possible so that a Pole, while meeting a Ukrainian, would be willing to kill him and conversely, a Ukrainian would be willing to kill a Pole"; a German commissioner from Sarny, when local Poles complained about massacres, answered: "You want Sikorski, the Ukrainians want Bandera. Erich Koch ( June 19, 1896 &ndash November 12, 1986) was a Gauleiter of the Nazi Party (NDSAP in East Prussia Sarny (Сарни Sarny translated as Deer, is a small City in the Rivne Oblast ( province) of western Ukraine. Władysław Eugeniusz Sikorski (May 20 1881 – July 4 1943 pronounced) was a Polish military and political leader Stepan Andriyovych Bandera (Степан Андрійович Бандера ( January 1 1909 &ndash October 15 1959) was a Ukrainian Fight each other". ^[56] In massacres of Poles in Volhynia in summer 1943 at least 40,000 Poles were killed; the death toll would rise in the following year although by that time Polish resistance would stiffen. The Massacre of Poles in Volhynia (Rzeź wołyńska (lit Volhynian slaughter was a massive Ethnic cleansing operation in German-occupied Volhynia and ^[55]

The Polish government in exile in London were taken by surprise; it had not expected a Ukrainian anti-Polish action of such magnitude. ^[55] There is no evidence that the Polish government in exile contemplated a general policy of revenge against the Ukrainians but local Poles, including commanders of AK units, would engage in various retaliations. ^[55] Polish partisans of all political stripes attacked OUN, assassinated prominent Ukrainians and burned Ukrainian villages. ^[55] According to Ukrainian estimates, the AK may have killed in retaliation as many as 20,000 Ukrainians in Volhynia. ^[57] By winter 1943 and spring 1944 AK was preparing for Operation Tempest; one of the goals of the operation was to reinforce Polish position in Volhynia. Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the Most notably, in January 1944 the 27th Infantry Division of Armia Krajowa, numbering 7,000, was formed, and tasked with defense of Polish civilians, engaging OUN and the German troops. 27 Volhynian Infantry Division (27 Wołyńska Dywizja Piechoty was the World War II Polish Armia Krajowa unit fighting in 1944 in Volhynia region ^[55] By mid-1944 the region was occupied by the Soviet Red Army; Polish partisans were disbanded or went underground, as did most of the Ukrainians; both would however increasingly concentrate on Soviets as their primary enemy – and both would ultimately be unsuccessful. ^[55]

Notes

a ^{^}  Several sources note that Armia Krajowa was the largest resistance movement in Nazi-occupied Europe. For example, Norman Davies wrote "Armia Krajowa (Home Army), the AK, which could fairly claim to be the largest of European resistance";^[58] Gregor Dallas wrote "Home Army (Armia Krajowa or AK) in late 1943 numbered around 400000, making it the largest resistance organization in Europe";^[59] Mark Wyman wrote "Armia Krajowa was considered the largest underground resistance unit in wartime Europe". Ivor Norman Richard Davies Fellow of the British Academy (born 8 June 1939 to Richard and Elizabeth Davies ^[60] The numbers of Soviet partisans were very similar to that of the Polish resistance. The Soviet partisans were members of a Resistance movement which fought a Guerrilla war against the Axis occupation of the Soviet Union ^[61]

References

Further reading

• Norman Davies, Rising '44, Macmillan, 2003. Ivor Norman Richard Davies Fellow of the British Academy (born 8 June 1939 to Richard and Elizabeth Davies
• Richard Lukasz, Forgotten Holocaust, The Poles under German Occupation 1939-1944 New York, 1997.
• Marek Ney-Krwawicz, The Polish Home Army, 1939-1945, London, 2001.
• Roger Moorhouse, Killing Hitler, Jonathan Cape, 2006. Roger Moorhouse (born 1968 is a British historian and author Though born in Stockport, Cheshire he was raised in Hertfordshire and was educated at Berkhamsted School ISBN 0-224-07121-1
• Michael Alfred Peszke, Polish Underground Army, the Western Allies, and the Failure of Strategic Unity in World War II, McFarland & Company, 2004, ISBN 0-7864-2009-X Google Print
• Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski. Michael Alfred Peszke (born 1932 Dęblin, Poland) is a Polish-American psychiatrist and historian of the Polish Armed Forces in World War General Count Tadeusz Komorowski ( Korczak Coat of Arms) (June 1 1895 - August 24 1966 better known by the name Bór-Komorowski (after one of his wartime code-names Secret Army. Macmillan Company, New York 1951. The City of New York ISBN 0-89839-082-6.

External links

• Polish resistance - AK - Site edited by the London Branch of the Polish Home Army Ex-Servicemen Association
• Warsaw Uprising Museum
• (Polish) Archiwum Pomorskie Armii Krajowej
• (Polish) Armia Krajowa, whatfor infoportal
• (Polish) Armia Krajowa, information from the pages of Primary School 11 "of Armia Krajowa soldiers" in Nowy Targ

See also

• Polish contribution to World War II