The 1st Uhlans Regiment of Polish Legions was a cavalry unit of the Polish Legions during World War I. Members of the unit were named ''"Beliniaki"'', after their original leader Władysław Zygmunt Belina-Prażmowski. The regiment was created on August 13, 1914, from a

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, de ...

composed of 140 soldiers formed by Belina-Prażmowski. The unit was based on

The Seven Lancers of Belina The Seven Lancers of Belina, also called Belina’s Seven and The Seven Uhlans (Polish: Ulanska siodemka) was a name given to a mounted reconnaissance group of the Riflemen's Association. On August 2, 1914, upon order of Józef Piłsudski, the seve ...

, the vanguard of the march of the

First Cadre Company The First Cadre Company ( pl, Pierwsza Kompania Kadrowa) was a Polish military formation created in the Austro-Hungarian Army at the outbreak of World War I. The company was founded by Józef Piłsudski on August 3, 1914 in Kraków. It was the p ...

on August 6, 1914. The cavalry unit was composed of

Janusz Głuchowski Janusz Julian Głuchowski (nom de guerre ''Janusz'') was a divisional general of the Polish Army in the Second Polish Republic. Born on August 6, 1888, in Bukowa (Congress Poland), he fought in Polish Legions in World War I, Polish–Ukrainian ...

"Janusz", Antoni Jabłoński "Zdzisław", Zygmunt Karol Karwacki "Stanisław Bończa",

Stefan Kulesza Stefan may refer to: * Stefan (given name) * Stefan (surname) * Ștefan, a Romanian given name and a surname * Štefan, a Slavic given name and surname * Stefan (footballer) (born 1988), Brazilian footballer * Stefan Heym, pseudonym of Germa ...

"Hanka", Stanisław Skotnicki "Grzmot", and "Kmicic" under Prażmowski's command. In February and March 1917, the regiment organized and implemented

officer training A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...

(for officers and non-commissioned officers) and administrative courses. On August 10, 1917, the leader of the Polish Legions handed over the command of the regiment to captain Albert Kordecki of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment.''Odprawy Komendy Legionów Polskich'', Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe, sygn. I.120.1.295b, s. 51

{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305140753/http://caw.wp.mil.pl/plik/file/legiony_polskie/i_120_1/I_120_1_295c.pdf , date=2016-03-05 .

Beliniaks

; Command * cavalry major Juliusz Ostoja-Zagórski The commanding staff in 1917 r. * commander of the regiment– major Władysław Belina-Prażmowski * squadron commander – cpt. Janusz Głuchowski (since 1 Jan 1915) * squadron commander – Poruchik, porucznik Jerzy Pytlewski (since 1 June 1915) ; COs * Konstanty Abłamowicz * Stanisław Bietkowski * Tadeusz Bietkowski * Wacław Budzyński * Bolesław Wieniawa-Długoszowski * Stanisław Korczak * Tadeusz Korniłowicz * Włodzimierz Nieprzewski * Zygmunt Piasecki * Zygmunt Młot-Przepałkowski * Kazimierz Stamirowski * Leon Strzelecki * Mariusz Zaruski * Wacław Calewski * Eugeniusz Chrościcki * Wojciech Bucior * Tadeusz Ścibor-Rylski * Tadeusz Faliszewski * Ksawery Święcicki * Janusz Żuławski * regiment medic Ksawery Maszadr ; NCOs and Ułans * Marian Józef Czerkawski * corp. Stanisław Gąssowski * Franciszek Koziej * sr. ułan Jan Władysław Lemański *

wachtmeister (Wm; German for 'master-sentinel' or 'watch-master') is a military rank of non-commissioned officers (NCO) in Austria and Switzerland. The was initially responsible for the guard duty of the army. Later, it became the equivalent NCO-grade of ...

Emil Franciszek Mecnarowski * Jan Maria Romański *

plutonowy Plutonowy (literally ''Platoon-man'') is an NCO rank in the Polish Armed Forces rank insignia system, located between the ranks of Senior Corporal and Sergeant. As one of two OR-4 ranks in the Polish Army (the other being the rank of starszy ka ...

Leon Trojanowski

Legacy

From this regiment, three further were formed, namely: * 1 Pułk Szwoleżerów Józefa Piłsudskiego. * 7 Pułk Ułanów Lubelskich im. gen. Kazimierza Sosnkowskiego. * 11 Pułk Ułanów Legionowych im. marszałka Edwarda Śmigłego-Rydza.

Medal

The medal, designed by corporal Kajetan Stanowicz, was instated on 5 November 1916. It has a round shield of a 41 to 45mm diameter with a twisted-rope-like edge. On it is engraved the monogram "1PU" on the background of an Uhlan hat and two dates: "II VII 1914" the date on which Belina's patrol left Galicia for the kingdom; and "V XI 1916" the day the medal was instituted. The medal was approved by the Minister of Military Affairs on 5 May 1920. Bearing it required being part of the regiment for at least a year. All in all 800 medals were issued.

References

Bibliography

* „Księga jazdy polskiej”: pod protektoratem marsz. Edwarda Śmigłego–Rydza. Warszawa 1936. Reprint: Wydawnictwo Bellona Warszawa 1993 Polish Legions in World War I