Polish Army in Scotland

	Polish Army in Scotland

As a result of the defeat of France most of the Polish ground forces units were destroyed. In this situation an attempt was undertaken to re-create Polish Armed Forces on British soil. It was not easy however, since only a few groups of soldiers managed to be evacuated from France. By the summer of 1940 Polish troops numbered as few as 27,614 soldiers.

On 18th July an accord was signed between the Polish and the British government on cooperation in the political and military domain, whilst on 5th August an agreement was signed determining the organizational and operational status of the Polish Armed Forces. They were to consist of land, air and sea forces.

The land troops evacuated from France were dispatched to Scotland. It was there where the 1st Polish Corps was created, consisting of the 1st and 2nd Marksmen's Brigades; the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th and 8th Cadre Marksmen's Brigades, as well as formations of special troops. On 17 October the Corps had over 14,000 soldiers, though with inadequate equipment.
 

Facing the threat of a German invasion of Great Britain, the Corps' troops were given the task of defending the eastern seaboard of Scotland from the Firth of Forth to Montrose. Simultaneously 12 armoured trains were manned with Polish crew, whilst some officers were assigned to the service in the colonial forces in West Africa.

Lack of a basis for recruitment made it impossible to expand the armed forces, and attempts to recruit volunteers in both Americas brought no effects. In this situation the Polish military authorities put particular emphasis on the development of the Air Force and the Navy.
 

In April 1941 the Corps adapted the organizational structures of its two brigades to British standards. The number of soldiers rose slightly and reached 18,000. On September 23rd the 4th Cadre Marksmen's Brigade was renamed the 1st Independent Parachute Brigade and was subordinated directly to the orders of the Supreme Commander. On 16th December, on the basis of the dissolved brigades, a new Training Brigade was set up, and later on, the 1st Grenadiers' Division was also formed - which in turn was renamed on 6th August and became the 4th Infantry Division.

The possibility of expanding the land forces became more conceivable, or realistic, after the outbreak of the German - Soviet hostilities (22 June 1941) and after the signature of the Polish - Soviet accord. Some of the soldiers evacuated from the USSR were assigned to the 1st Polish Corps.

This in turn made it possible to form the 1st Armoured Division, which in 1944 became a part of the allied invasion forces. After its detachment from the 1st Corps it numbered just 5314 soldiers. As early as autumn new reinforcements arrived, enabling the 4th Infantry Division and the 16th Independent Army Brigade to expand, and to attain almost the standard complement of officers and soldiers. Those units, however, took no part in combat operations.

Uniform emblem of the officers and soldiers
of the Polish Armed Forces in the West

 

General Kazimierz Sosnkowski (1885-1969) During the First World War he was the chief of staff of the Polish Legions' 1st Brigade, one of the closest collaborators of J. Piłsudski. In the years 1917- 1918 he was imprisoned by the Germans. From 1918 he was in the Polish Army. During the war with Bolsheviks (1919-1920) he was the army commander and the Minister of Military Affairs, he also held other posts. Later he was Inspector of the Army; from 1936 he served as a Lieutenant General. During the 1939 campaign he commanded at the front. On arriving in France, he commanded the Armed Fighting Unit (Zwišzek Walki Zbrojnej). During the period 1940-1941 he was the vice-President of the Polish Republic. From 8 August 1943 to 30 September 1944 he was the Supreme Commander of the Polish Army. After the war he lived in Canada, keeping a farm, and died on 11 October 1969 in Arundel. He was decorated with the Virtuti Militari orders of the 2nd, 4th and 5th class, the French Honorable League - 1st class, and the Order of the British Empire - 2nd class.

 

1st Polish Corps in Scotland Established in July 1940, from mid-October of that year, its task was to defend the eastern seaboard of Scotland. In April 1942 it was renamed the 1st Tank - Mechanized Corps. During the war several units were formed on its basis, amongst others the 1st Armoured Division and the 1st Independent Parachute Brigade, which in 1944 took part in the invasion of the continent. Composition (in 1944): - 1st Armoured Division, - 16th Independent Armoured Brigade, - 4th Infantry Division. Commanders: - Gen. Marian Kukiel (1940-1942) - Gen. Mieczysław Boruta-Spiechowicz (1943-1945) - Gen. Józef Zajšc (1943) - Gen. Stanisław Maczek (1945-1947) The 1st Polish Corps was liquidated in 1947.