Nikodem Sulik-Sarnowski (August 15, 1893 – January 14, 1954;

noms 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 individu ...

Jodko, Jod, Karol, and Sarnowski) was an officer of the

Russian Imperial Army The Imperial Russian Army (russian: Ру́сская импера́торская а́рмия, tr. ) was the armed land force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian Ar ...

, and

Generał brygady Generał brygady (, literally ''General of a brigade'', abbreviated gen. bryg.) is the lowest grade for generals in the Polish Army (both in the Land Forces and in the Polish Air Force). Depending on the context, it is equivalent to both the mod ...

of the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stret ...

Biography

Born August 15, 1893 in the village of Kamienna Stara near

Sokółka Sokółka (; lt, Sokulka, Sakalinė, be, Саку́лка, yi, סאקאלקע, Sokolke) is a town in northeastern Poland, seat of the Sokółka County in Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is a busy rail junction located on the international Warsaw–B ...

, Sulik began his military career in the Russian Army, as the part of Poland where he was born belonged to the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

. In 1918, he became a member of Samoobrona Grodzienska, a Polish organization for Grodnian self-defence; on January 22, 1919, he was named commandant of the Białystok Rifle Regiment of the 1st Lithuanian–Belarusian Division. Sulik fought in the Polish-Soviet War, and took part in the

Żeligowski's Mutiny Żeligowski's Mutiny ( pl, bunt Żeligowskiego, also ''żeligiada'', lt, Želigovskio maištas) was a Polish false flag operation led by General Lucjan Żeligowski in October 1920, which resulted in the creation of the Republic of Central Lithuan ...

, which resulted in capturing

Wilno Vilnius ( , ; see also #Etymology and other names, other names) is the capital and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the munic ...

in September 1920. In the 1920s, Sulik served in the Polish Army and was frequently transferred between several infantry divisions. In the period September 1927 - February 1929, he was director of the Central School of the

Border Guard A border guard of a country is a national security agency that performs border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard (as in Federal Police (Germany), Germany, Guardia di Finanza, Italy or State Border Gua ...

. Transferred to Regional Office of Military Preparation in

Toruń )'' , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_flag = POL Toruń flag.svg , image_shield = POL Toruń COA.svg , nickname = City of Angels, Gingerbread city, Copernicus Town , pushpin_map = Kuyavian-Pom ...

, he finally ended up in the

Border Protection 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 ...

(KOP) units located along eastern border of the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of ...

. He served in the KOP in Stolpce,

Baranowicze Baranavichy ( ; be, Бара́навічы, Łacinka: , ; russian: Бара́новичи; yi, באַראַנאָוויטש; pl, Baranowicze) is a city in the Brest Region of western Belarus, with a population (as of 2019) of 179,000. It is no ...

, and

Sarny Sarny ( uk, Сáрни), translated as '' Does'', is a small city in Rivne Oblast (province) of western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of Sarny Raion (district), and is a major railway node on the Sluch River. Population: History His ...

from October 1937 (see

Sarny Fortified Area Sarny Fortified Area (known in Polish in several names: ''Sarneński Rejon Umocniony'', ''Sarneński Odcinek Umocniony'', ''Bastion Polesie'') was a line of bunkers and trenches along both sides of the Sluch River, in the area of the town of Sarn ...

). After the Soviet invasion of Eastern Poland on September 17, 1939, Sulik commanded KOP units in several skirmishes with the advancing

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...

troops. He did not give up his weapons after the Battle of Kock, and joined the Polish resistance. In November 1939, he was nominated as deputy to Janysz Galadyk, commandant of Wilno district of the

Service for Poland's Victory Służba Zwycięstwu Polski (''Service for Poland's Victory'', or ''Polish Victory Service'', abbreviated SZP) was the first Polish resistance movement in World War II. It was created by the order of general Juliusz Rómmel on 27 September 1939, w ...

. On April 13, 1941, Sulik was arrested and subsequently tortured by the

NKVD The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union. ...

, but he was released just a few months later, under the Sikorski-Mayski Agreement. Sulik joined the Polish Armed Forces in the East, also called

Anders' Army Anders' Army was the informal yet common name of the Polish Armed Forces in the East in the 1941–42 period, in recognition of its commander Władysław Anders. The army was created in the Soviet Union but, in March 1942, based on an understand ...

. Sulik, promoted to general in 1944, was commandant of the 5th Eastern Borderlands Infantry Division during the Italian Campaign of 1943 to 1945. On July 23, 1944, he was awarded the

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari (Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', pl, Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was created in 1792 by Polish King Stan ...

; he received the

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 ...

posthumously. After the war, Sulik remained in the West, settling in London, where he died on January 14, 1954. He was buried at

Brompton Cemetery Brompton Cemetery (originally the West of London and Westminster Cemetery) is a London cemetery, managed by The Royal Parks, in West Brompton in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries. Estab ...

, and on September 12, 1993, his and his wife's ashes were moved to his native village of Kamienna Stara.

Honours and awards

* Gold Cross of the

(23 July 1944), previously awarded the Silver Cross * Commander's Cross of the

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

(posthumously 18, January 1954), previously awarded the Knight's Cross *

Cross of Independence with Swords 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 - four times * Gold Cross of Merit with Swords * Gold Cross of Merit (3 May 1933) * Commemorative Medal for War 1918-1921 * Ten Years Regained Independence Medal *

Monte Cassino Commemorative Cross The Monte Cassino Commemorative Cross ( pl, Krzyż Pamiątkowy Monte Cassino) is a commemorative medal awarded to all soldiers of the Polish II Corps who fought in the battle of Monte Cassino and the battles for Piedimonte and Passo Corno. After th ...

* Home Army Cross (posthumously, 15 August 1967)

Sources

* Krzysztof Filipow, Generał Nikodem Sulik (Kamienna Stara 1893 - Londyn 1954), Muzeum Wojska w Białymstoku, Białystok 1996, . * Tadeusz Kryska-Karski i Stanisław Żurakowski, Generałowie Polski Niepodległej, Editions Spotkania, Warszawa 1991, wyd. II uzup. i poprawione, s. 172. * Rocznik Oficerski 1924, Ministerstwo Spraw Wojskowych, Oddział V Sztabu Generalnego Wojska Polskiego, Warszawa 1924, s. 79, 227, 364. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sulik, Nikodem 1893 births 1954 deaths Russian military personnel of World War I Polish Army officers Recipients of the Gold Cross of the Virtuti Militari Recipients of the Cross of Independence with Swords Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Cross of Merit with Swords (Poland) Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Armia Krajowa Cross Polish people detained by the NKVD Polish people of the Polish–Soviet War Polish military personnel of World War II