Polish Army In France (1939–1940)
The Polish Army in France formed in France under the command of General Władysław Sikorski (and hence sometimes known as Sikorski's Army) in late 1939, after the fall of Poland resulting from the Polish Defensive War. About 85,000 troops were in the process of being organized into fighting formations (four infantry divisions, two independent brigades and air support) when the Battle of France started. The army was partially destroyed in the hostilities, but over 20,000 soldiers were evacuated and formed a new Polish army in the United Kingdom. The creation of Polish formations in France marked the beginnings of the Polish Armed Forces in the West. Creation The army began to be organized soon after the fall of Poland on October 6, 1939. France, a Polish ally, had formally declared war on Germany on September 3 in response to the invasion, but it had not yet undertaken any major operations against the Germans (see Phoney War) before the creation began. France welcome ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous member state of the European Union. Warsaw is the nation's capital and largest metropolis. Other major cities include Kraków, Wrocław, Łódź, Poznań, Gdańsk, and Szczecin. Poland has a temperate transitional climate and its territory traverses the Central European Plain, extending from Baltic Sea in the north to Sudeten and Carpathian Mountains in the south. The longest Polish river is the Vistula, and Poland's highest point is Mount Rysy, situated in the Tatra mountain range of the Carpathians. The country is bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukraine to the east, Slovakia and the Czech Republic to the south, and Germany to the west. It also shares maritime boundaries with Denmark and Sweden. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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1st Grenadiers Division (Poland)
The 1st Grenadier Division (; ) was a Polish infantry formation raised in France during the Phoney War. The division was created as a part of the Polish Army in France following the Invasion of Poland. The division fought in the Battle of France in 1940. Formation Due to the Franco-Polish alliance, the formation of a Polish division in France began in early September 1939, shortly after the Invasion of Poland. The French government gave over a military camp at Coëtquidan to the Polish military mission and permitted voluntary recruitment from the Poles in France, which were particularly numerous in the coal-producing regions of Flanders. After the fall of Poland and the formation of the Polish government-in-exile, the newly appointed Polish commander-in-chief Władysław Sikorski ordered the formation of the 1st Grenadier Division on 13 November 1939. Initially commanded by Colonel Stanisław Maczek, the division was taken over by Colonel Bolesław Bronisław Duch in January 194 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Polish Air Forces In France And Great Britain
The Polish Air Forces ( pl, Polskie Siły Powietrzne) was the name of the Polish Air Forces formed in France and the United Kingdom during World War II. The core of the Polish air units fighting alongside the Allies were experienced veterans of the 1939 invasion of Poland. They contributed to the Allied victory in the Battle of Britain and Allied air operations during the war. A total of 145 Polish fighter pilots served in the RAF during the Battle of Britain, making up the largest non-British contribution. By the end of the war, around 19,400 Poles were serving in the Polish Air Forces in Great Britain and in the RAF. History After the German-Soviet invasion of Poland of 1939, most of the flying personnel and technicians of the Polish Air Force were evacuated to Romania and Hungary, after which thousands found their way to France. There, in accordance with the Franco-Polish Military Alliance of 1921 and the amendments of 1939, Polish Air Force units were to be re-created. H ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Kingdom Of Romania
The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian royal family), until 1947 with the abdication of King Michael I of Romania and the Romanian parliament's proclamation of the Romanian People's Republic. From 1859 to 1877, Romania evolved from a personal union of two vassal principalities (Moldavia and Wallachia) under a single prince to an autonomous principality with a Hohenzollern monarchy. The country gained its independence from the Ottoman Empire during the 1877–1878 Russo-Turkish War (known locally as the Romanian War of Independence), when it also received Northern Dobruja in exchange for the southern part of Bessarabia. The kingdom's territory during the reign of King Carol I, between 13 ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 and 27 September ( O.S.) / 10 October 1914 is sometimes referred ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Polish Independent Carpathian Brigade
Polish Independent Carpathian Brigade (Polish ''Samodzielna Brygada Strzelców Karpackich'', SBSK) was a Polish military unit formed in 1940 in French Syria composed of Polish soldiers exiled after the invasion of Poland in 1939 as part of the Polish Army in France. It was commanded by General Stanisław Kopański. The division fought with distinction in the North African Campaign of World War II, notably during the Siege of Tobruk. In 1942 it formed the backbone of the 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division. History In December 1939, three months after the invasion of Poland, the Polish Commander-in-chief, General Władysław Sikorski, decided that a Polish unit be created in the French territory of Levant . On 12 April 1940 the brigade was officially formed in Syria, with Colonel Kopański as its commander. The main base of the brigade was established in Homs and the new unit instantly entered the ranks of the French ''Armée du Levant''. As a unit specializing in mountain warfa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mandatory Syrian Republic
The First Syrian Republic, officially the Syrian Republic, '; french: République syrienne was formed in 1930 as a component of the Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, succeeding the State of Syria. A treaty of independence was made in 1936 to grant independence to Syria and end official French rule, but the French parliament refused to accept the agreement. From 1940 to 1941, the Syrian Republic was under the control of Vichy France, and after the Allied invasion in 1941 gradually went on the path towards independence. The proclamation of independence took place in 1944, but only in October 1945 was the Syrian Republic ''de jure'' recognized by the United Nations; it became a ''de facto'' sovereign state on 17 April 1946, with the withdrawal of French troops. It was succeeded by the Second Syrian Republic upon the adoption of a new constitution on 5 September 1950. Mandatory Syrian Republic (1930–1946) The first Syrian constitution The project of a new constitution was di ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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French Mandate For Syria And The Lebanon
The Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon (french: Mandat pour la Syrie et le Liban; ar, الانتداب الفرنسي على سوريا ولبنان, al-intidāb al-fransi 'ala suriya wa-lubnān) (1923−1946) was a League of Nations mandate founded in the aftermath of the First World War and the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire, concerning Syria and Lebanon. The mandate system was supposed to differ from colonialism, with the governing country intended to act as a trustee until the inhabitants were considered eligible for self-government. At that point, the mandate would terminate and an independent state would be born. During the two years that followed the end of the war in 1918—and in accordance with the Sykes–Picot Agreement signed by Britain and France during the war—the British held control of most of Ottoman Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) and the southern part of Ottoman Syria ( Palestine and Transjordan), while the French controlled the rest of Ottoman Syria, Le ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Polish Independent Highland Brigade
The Polish Independent Highland Brigade () was a Polish military unit created in France in 1939, after the Polish Defence War, fall of Poland, as part of the Sikorski's Army, Polish Army in France. It had approximately 5,000 soldiers trained in mountain warfare and was commanded by General Zygmunt Szyszko-Bohusz. It was named after the region of Podhale in southern Poland. In February it was assigned to the Anglo-French expeditionary corps prepared to be sent to Finland. Eventually in May and June 1940 it took part in the Allied campaign in Norway and fought with distinction in the Battles of Narvik. After the Fall Gelb, beginning of hostilities on the Western Front (WWII), Western Front, the brigade was withdrawn to France, where it fought in the defence of Brittany. Disbanded, some of its soldiers were evacuated to United Kingdom, Britain and Egypt, while others joined the French resistance. See also * Norway–Poland relations * Podhale Rifles External links The Poles at Nar ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade (Poland)
The Polish 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade ( pl, 10 Brygada Kawalerii Pancernej, french: 10e Brigade de cavalerie blindée polonaise) was an armoured formation of the Polish Armed Forces in the West. It was organized in France during World War II as part of the Polish Army in France, mostly by veterans of the 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade who managed to escape from German and Soviet occupied Poland. Led by General Stanisław Maczek, it took part in the Battle of France in May 1940. It was later reformed in Great Britain as a part of the 1st Armoured Division. 1939-40 {{Black Brigade Under the terms of the Franco-Polish Military Alliance, France and Poland were allies in the lead-up to World War II. After Poland was defeated by Germany in September 1939, many Polish soldiers made their way to France where a new Polish Army in France was created to continue the fight against the Germans. These forces were commanded by General Władysław Sikorski, who was also Prime Minister ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. Brigades formed into divisions are usually infantry or armored (sometimes referred to as combined arms brigades). In addition to combat units, they may include combat support units or sub-units, such as artillery and engineers, and logistic units. Historically, such brigades have sometimes been called brigade-groups. On operations, a brigade may comprise both organic elements and attached elements, including some temporarily attached for a specific task. Brigades may also be specialized and comprise battalions of a single branch, for example cavalry, mechanized, armored, artillery, air defence, aviation, engineers, signals or logistic. Some brigades are classified as independent or separate and operate independently from the traditional divi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |