Józef Konstanty Olszyna-Wilczyński (; 27 November 1890 – 22 September 1939) was a

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

general and one of the high-ranking commanders of the Polish Army. A veteran of World War I, the Polish-Ukrainian War and the Polish-Soviet War, he was executed by the Soviets during the Invasion of Poland of 1939.

Early life

Józef Wilczyński was born 27 November 1890 in Kraków (Cracow). In 1910 he graduated from the St. Anne's gymnasium in Kraków in

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

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and started his studies at the architectural department of the

Lwów University of Science and Technology Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in Western Ukraine, western Ukraine, and the List of cities in Ukraine, seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is o ...

. During his studies, between 1912 and 1913 he also received military training in Kraków and

Lwów Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...

, after which he joined the ''

Drużyny Strzeleckie The Polish Rifle Squads () was a Polish pro-independence paramilitary organization, founded in 1911 by the Youth Independence Organization in the Austro-Hungarian sector of partitioned Poland. Among its founders were Norwid Neugebauer, Marian Ja ...

'', where he also worked as a tutor of infantry tactics. About that time he adopted the ''Olszyna''

nom de guerre A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

, which later became part of his

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

First World War

After the outbreak of the Great War he was mobilized to the Austro-Hungarian Army in the role of a platoon commanding officer, but on 6 August 1914 he was allowed to join the Polish Legions. He served with distinction in the rank of Second Lieutenant and then First Lieutenant in most of the battles of the 1st Brigade of the Polish Legions. Initially a company commander in the 1st Regiment, in 1915 he was promoted to the rank of Captain and became a battalion commander within the 5th Regiment. After the

Oath Crisis The Oath crisis ( pl, Kryzys przysięgowy) was a World War I political conflict between the Imperial German Army command and the Józef Piłsudski-led Polish Legions. Initially supporting the Central Powers against Imperial Russia, Piłsudski ...

of 1917, as an Austro-Hungarian citizen, Olszyna-Wilczyński was drafted into the Austro-Hungarian Army and dispatched to the Italian Front, along with many of his colleagues. He commanded infantry platoons within 50th, 62nd and 59th platoons, after which he was transferred to Ukraine as a commander of the 3rd battalion of the 16th Regiment. There, he organized a cell of the Polish Military Organization. Olszyna Wilczyński

After Poland regained its independence, on 4 November 1918, Olszyna-Wilczyński and his battalion (composed of Poles mostly) joined the Polish Army. An experienced officer, he was attached to the ad hoc formation of Col.

Czesław Rybiński Czesław, ( cz, Česlav, be, italic=yes, Časłaŭ; Česłaŭ, lt, Česlovas) is an old given name derived from the Slavic elements ''ča'' (to await) and ''slava'' (glory). Feminine form: Czesława/Česlava. The name may refer to: * Ceslaus, ...

fighting in Volhynia during the Polish-Ukrainian War. On 27 November his company was defeated in a skirmish near

Mikulińce Mykulyntsi ( uk, Микулинці, pl, Mikulińce, yi, מיקיליניץ, Mikolintza) is an urban-type settlement in Ternopil Raion (district) of Ternopil Oblast (province) in western Ukraine. The settlement lies on the banks of the Seret Ri ...

near

Tarnopol Ternópil ( uk, Тернопіль, Ternopil' ; pl, Tarnopol; yi, טאַרנאָפּל, Tarnopl, or ; he, טארנופול (טַרְנוֹפּוֹל), Tarnopol; german: Tarnopol) is a city in the west of Ukraine. Administratively, Ternopi ...

and Olszyna-Wilczyński himself was heavily wounded and taken prisoner of war by the Ukrainians. It was not until their defeat in June 1919 that he was released and allowed to return to the Polish Army. Promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, he became the commanding officer of the 3rd Polish Legions Infantry Brigade, and then (since 28 September 1919) the 1st Polish Legions Infantry Brigade. With the latter unit he took part in the Polish-Soviet War. During the

Kiev Offensive Kyiv offensive or Kiev offensive may refer to: * Kiev Offensive (1920), a campaign during the Polish–Soviet war * Kyiv offensive (2022) The Kyiv offensive was a theater in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. It involved attacks by Russia a ...

in 1920 he briefly returned to the 3rd Brigade and briefly served as the military commander of Kievan military garrison. During the Polish withdrawal he commanded a number of units, including the

6th Infantry Division 6th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 6th Division (Australia) * 6th Division (Austria) *6th (United Kingdom) Division * Finnish 6th Division (Winter War) *Finnish 6th Division (Continuation War) * 6th Division (Reichswehr) * 6th Divisi ...

, an Operational Group within Wacław Iwaszkiewicz's 6th Army, 14th Infantry Brigade, and then the 13th Infantry Brigade. After the battle of Warsaw he was promoted to the rank of Colonel. After the war he was withdrawn to the rear and, together with his unit, was responsible for shielding the border with Germany in the area of Zagłębie during the Third Silesian Uprising. A skilled organizer rather than front-line commander, between 1922 and 1923 Józef Olszyna-Wilczyński headed the engineering units of the Kraków-based 5th Military Area Command (DOK V). Then, until October 1924 he served as the head of all the engineering units of the Polish Army in the Polish Ministry of Military Affairs. After the creation of the

Border Defence Corps The Border Protection Corps ( pl, Korpus Ochrony Pogranicza, KOP) was a military formation of the Second Polish Republic that was created in 1924 to defend the country's eastern borders against armed Soviet incursions and local bandits. Other b ...

(KOP), on 10 October 1924 he became the commanding officer of the 2nd Brigade of that force, based in Baranowicze. The following year he was transferred to the same post in the 1st Brigade of the KOP based in Zdołbunów. Sent to the

Higher War School The National Defence University of Warsaw ( – AON) was the civil-military highest defence academic institution in Poland, located in Warszawa–Rembertów. In 2016 it was succeeded by the War Studies University. The National Defence Universit ...

in Warsaw, on 19 March 1927 he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general and became the commanding officer of the 10th Infantry Division. Promoter of order, cleanness and mustering, he was generally disliked by his subordinates. At the same time he proved to be a skilled organizer and an outstanding rear-line commander. Because of that between 1935 and 1937 he served as director of Państwowy Urząd Wychowania Fizycznego i Przysposobienia Wojskowego (The National Office of Physical Education and Military Training) and then in January 1938, he was made the commander of the

Grodno Grodno (russian: Гродно, pl, Grodno; lt, Gardinas) or Hrodna ( be, Гродна ), is a city in western Belarus. The city is located on the Neman River, 300 km (186 mi) from Minsk, about 15 km (9 mi) from the Polish b ...

-based 3rd Military Area Command (DOK III). Soon before the outbreak of the

Polish Defensive War The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week after ...

the DOK III was converted into the Grodno Operational Group.

Second World War

After the outbreak of the war, Olszyna-Wilczyński's unit was to prepare the defense of the area between

Biebrza Biebrza ( lt, Bebras, '' be, Bobra'', ''german: Bober'') is a river in northeastern Poland, a tributary of the Narew river (near Wizna), with a length of and a basin area of 7,092 km2 (7,067 in Poland).Suwałki, and Wizna. However, due to German breakthrough in Lesser Poland the Operational Group was disbanded and its units withdrawn to

, where they later took part in the battle for that city. Olszyna-Wilczyński himself escorted his units to

Pińsk Pinsk ( be, Пі́нск; russian: Пи́нск ; Polish: Pińsk; ) is a city located in the Brest Region of Belarus, in the Polesia region, at the confluence of the Pina River and the Pripyat River. The region was known as the Marsh of Pinsk a ...

, where he met with Marshal of Poland Edward Rydz-Śmigły. After the Soviet Union invaded Poland on 17 September, the Polish government issued orders to its military that they should avoid fighting with Soviet forces. Nonetheless both pro-Communist rebels ( Skidel rebellion) and various Soviet units did not shy away from attacking Polish units. The Soviet offensive caught much of the eastern Poland virtually undefended, as most of the Polish forces from the area had already been transferred to the German front. After breaking through overstretched defenses of the

, the Soviet 15th Armored Corps started a fast advance towards the city of Grodno. Commander of the prewar Grodno Military Area Command, Gen. Józef Olszyna-Wilczyński together with the mayor of Grodno

Roman Sawicki Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

began organizing city defenses, basing mostly on

march battalions A march battalion (french: Bataillon de Marche, , it, Battaglione di marcia or ) is a military unit comprising replacement and support personnel, usually for a regiment or brigade-sized formation. The term rear echelon – especially in the armi ...

, volunteers,

Boy Scouts Boy Scouts may refer to: * Boy Scout, a participant in the Boy Scout Movement. * Scouting, also known as the Boy Scout Movement. * An organisation in the Scouting Movement, although many of these organizations also have female members. There are ...

and police forces. Ill-equipped, undermanned and lacking any anti-tank artillery, the Polish defenders relied mostly on improvised anti-tank defences, such as bottles of gasoline or turpentine and anti-tank obstacles. On September twenty the Soviet tanks reached the city's outskirts. After two days of heavy fights, often in close quarters, much of the city centre was destroyed by Soviet artillery. Seeing no chance for further defense, on 22 September the remainder of the Polish forces withdrew towards the

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

n border. General Olszyna-Wilczyński's car, in which he traveled with his family and

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

captain Mieczysław Strzemeski were stopped by a tank-artillery group under command of Maj. Chuvakin on 22 September near

Sopoćkinie Sapotskin ( be, Сапоцкін, lt, Sapackinė, russian: Сопоцкин, pl, Sopoćkinie, yi, סאַפּעטקין, Sapetkin) is a small town in Belarus, north-west of Hrodna with circa 2,000 inhabitants. Sapotskin became one of the cent ...

. The general and his adjutant were shotThe Fate of Poles in the USSR 1939~1989" by Tomasz Piesakowski Page 38 after a brief interrogation, while his wife and driver were allowed to continue the journey.

2002 Polish investigation

On 11 February 2002 the Polish Institute of National Remembrance started an enquiry and investigation on the murder of Gen. Wilczyński and Capt. Strzemeski (signature akt S 6/02/Zk). In the course of the inquiry in Polish and former Soviet archives, the exact unit responsible for their capture, interrogation and murder was identified. Consequently, on 26 September 2003 the Russian Military Prosecutor's Office was asked to investigate the matter on the basis of the IV Hague Convention on Laws and Customs of War on Land of 18 October 1907. The war crimes against the convention are not liable for expiration or non-claim. However, the Russian office returned the Polish application stating that the soldiers and officers of the Red Army committed a common crime rather than a war crime, and as such their crimes were subject to expiration. Because of that, on 18 May 2004 the investigation was closed due to inability to find those responsible.

Awards

* Virtuti Militari, Silver Cross *

Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on foreigners for outstanding achievement ...

Cross of Independence Cross of Independence ( pl, Krzyż Niepodległości) was second highest Polish military decorations between World Wars I and II. It was awarded to individuals who had fought actively for the independence of Poland, and was released in three cl ...

* Cross of Valour – 4 times * Cross of Merit, Golden Cross * Officers' badge "Parasol" * Military Merit Cross, 3rd class (Austria-Hungary) * Légion d'honneur, Knight rank (France) * Order of Lāčplēsis, 3rd class (Latvia) * and others

References

PWN Encyclopedia Encyklopedia PWN can refer to several encyclopedias published by Polish publisher Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe *Wielka Encyklopedia Powszechna PWN - published from 1962 to 1970 *Wielka Encyklopedia PWN - published from 2001 to 2005 *Internetowa en ...

entry on OLSZYNA-WILCZYŃSKI JÓZEF KONSTANT
online
* Tomasz Zbigniew Zapert, Generałowie Września, Tygodnik Ozon, 2 February 200

* Alfreda Olszyna-Wilczyńska, Moje wspomnienia wojenne (My war memories), Instytut Polski i Muzeum gen. W. Sikorskiego (dalej: IPMS), B I 70/A, s. 2–3 *

Mikhail Meltyukhov Mikhail Ivanovich Meltyukhov (russian: Russian: Михаил Иванович Мельтюхов, ), (born 14 March 1966), is a Russian military historian. Works Meltyukhov was born in Moscow. In 1995, he defended the dissertation “Contemporary ...

. ''Soviet-Polish Wars'', Moscow, ''Veche'', 2001.

External links

*
Detailed description of the investigation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Olszyna-Wilczynski, Jozef 1890 births 1939 deaths Military personnel from Kraków People from the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Polish Austro-Hungarians Polish generals Polish legionnaires (World War I) Polish military personnel killed in World War II Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari Recipients of the Cross of Independence Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Order of Lāčplēsis, 3rd class Polish people of the Polish–Ukrainian War