Stefan Adolf Mossor (23 October 1896,

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

- 22 September 1957) was a Polish general. Member of the Polish Legions. 1928 - 1930 studied at École Supérieure de Guerre in Paris. In 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 reached the rank of the

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

. Taken prisoner by the Germans 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 aft ...

. Upon discovery of the

Katyn massacre The Katyn massacre, "Katyń crime"; russian: link=yes, Катынская резня ''Katynskaya reznya'', "Katyn massacre", or russian: link=no, Катынский расстрел, ''Katynsky rasstrel'', "Katyn execution" was a series of m ...

of Polish officers in the Soviet Union in 1943, Mossor still a POW was brought by the Germans to witness the opening of the mass graves. Upon this visit in August 1943, Mossor made a report for the Polish Commander in Chief general

Kazimierz Sosnkowski General Kazimierz Sosnkowski (; Warsaw, 19 November 1885 – 11 October 1969, Arundel, Quebec) was a Polish independence fighter, general, diplomat, and architect. He was a major political figure and an accomplished commander, notable in p ...

. Joined the Polish People's Army after the war in 1945; he was nominated deputy chief of the

general staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military un ...

. Mossor was the main one in the forced deportation of hundreds of thousands ethnic Ukrainians from Poland, which was named Operation Vistula. During the era of

stalinization Stalinism is the means of governing and Marxist-Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union from 1927 to 1953 by Joseph Stalin. It included the creation of a one-party totalitarian police state, rapid industrialization, the theory o ...

of Poland, he was arrested and sentenced in the

Trial of the Generals The Trial of the Generals ( pl, proces generałów) was a totalitarian show trial organized by the communist authorities of the Politics of Poland, Government of the Polish People's Republic, (''Today Poland''), between July 31 and August 31, 1951. ...

. Imprisoned for life in

Wronki Prison Wronki Prison ( pl, Zakład Karny Wronki) is the largest Anna Frankowska 2008-08-05, Money.pl Jacek DeptułaCiasno i duszno, Wysoki Sądzie Gazeta Pomorska, 27 września 2008 prison in Poland, holding over 1400 prisoners. Established by the Germ ...

, he was released and rehabilitated in 1956.

References

1896 births 1957 deaths Military personnel from Kraków Military personnel of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Polish Austro-Hungarians Polish People's Army generals Polish legionnaires (World War I) Polish people of the Polish–Soviet War Polish military personnel of World War II People detained by the Polish Ministry of Public Security Polish People's Republic rehabilitations Recipients of the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Grunwald, 3rd class Knights of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Silver Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Cross of Independence Commanders of the Legion of Honour Officers of the Legion of Honour Burials at Powązki Military Cemetery {{Poland-mil-bio-stub Polish prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Poland