Polish General Staff, formally known as the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces ( Polish: ''Sztab Generalny Wojska Polskiego'') is the highest professional body within the

Polish Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Siły Zbrojne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, abbreviated ''SZ RP''; popularly called ''Wojsko Polskie'' in Poland, abbreviated ''WP''—roughly, the "Polish Military") are the national armed forces of ...

. Organizationally, it is an integral part of the

Ministry of National Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in stat ...

and the Chief of the General Staff is the highest ranking military officer at the Ministry. It was created in 1918, and for a time bore the name Main Staff (''Sztab Główny''). Currently the position of Chief of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces (''Szef Sztabu Generalnego Wojska Polskiego'') is General Rajmund Andrzejczak, since 2 July 2018.

History and structure

On 25 October 1918, a decision was made to establish the directorate of the chief of staff 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 str ...

. In 1928 the General Headquarters of the Polish Army was established, known commonly at the time as the Main Staff (''Sztab Główny''). In September 1939, during the

Invasion of Poland 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 af ...

by the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previou ...

and the

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

, all the institutions of the General Staff ceased to function and were transferred to joint German and Soviet. control. On 8 August 1944, the General Command of the Polish Army was created and on 1 January 1945, the National Council of Poland decided to establish the General Staff of the Polish Army, the head of which was appointed Soviet-Polish General

Vladislav Korchits Vladislav Vikentyevich Korchits ( pl, Władysław Korczyc) (1 September 1893 in Bogdanowicze, Slonim, now Belarus – 17 October 1966, Moscow) was a Soviet and Polish general. He supported the Bolshevik side during the Russian Revolution, join ...

. The General Staff consists of the following command personnel and organizational units at the Ministry of National Defence (MON): Command personnel (''Kadra kierownicza''): * Chief of the General Staff (Szef Sztabu Generalnego WP) - Generał Rajmund T. Andrzejczak * First Deputy Chief of the General Staff (''I Zastępca szefa Sztabu Generalnego WP'') - Generał broni (Air Force) Tadeusz Mikutel * Deputy Chief of Staff (''Zastępca szefa Sztabu Generalnego WP'') - Generał brygady Dariusz Pluta * Director of the Chief of the GS's Secretariat (''Szef Sekretariatu Szefa SG WP'') - Col. Cezary Kiszkowiak * Director of the Legal Department (''Szef Zespołu Prasowego - rzecznik prasowy SG WP'') - Col. Joanna Klejszmit * Director of the Coordination Center (''Szef Centrum Koordynacyjnego'') - Col. Adam Górecki * Chief NCO (''Starszy podoficer SG WP'') - Starszy chorąży sztabowy Andrzej Woltmann General Staff Directorates (''Zarządy Sztabu Generalnego WP''): *Organization and Manpower Complement Directorate (Zarząd Organizacji i Uzupełnień P1) - Colonel * Intelligence and Reconnaissance Analysis Directorate (Zarząd Analiz Wywiadowczych i Rozpoznawczych P2) - Generał brygady * Armed Forces Application Planning and Training Directorate (''Zarząd Planowania Użycia Sił Zbrojnych i Szkolenia - P3/P7'') - Generał brygady * Logistics Directorate (''Zarząd Logistyki - P4'') - Colonel * Armed Forces Development Planning and Programming Directorate (''Zarząd Planowania i Programowania Rozwoju Sił Zbrojnych - P5'') - Colonel * Management and Command Directorate (''Zarząd Kierowania i Dowodzenia - P6'') - Colonel * Material Planning Directorate (''Zarząd Planowania Rzeczowego - P8'') - Colonel

List of Chiefs

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ...
(1917–1918)

;Head of the Inspectorate ;Chief of Staff

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

Polish government-in-exile The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile ( pl, Rząd Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej na uchodźstwie), was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Pola ...
(1939−1946)

Republic of Poland /
People's Republic of Poland The Polish People's Republic ( pl, Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa, PRL) was a country in Central Europe that existed from 1947 to 1989 as the predecessor of the modern Republic of Poland. With a population of approximately 37.9 million nea ...
(1945−1989)

Third Polish Republic (1990−present)

References

External links

* {{Chief of military by country 1918 establishments in Poland Military of Poland

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

History and structure

List of Chiefs

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 * Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exi ... (1917–1918)

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