Wacław Micuta (

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

''Wacek''; 6 December 1915, in

Petrograd Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

– 21 September 2008, in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

) was a Polish

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

veteran, and

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

functionary. He took part in the September 1939 defense of Poland and, in the 1944

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...

, commanded one of two tanks that had been captured from the Germans.

Life

Micuta was born to a Polish ''

Kresy Eastern Borderlands (), often simply Borderlands (, ) was a historical region of the eastern part of the Second Polish Republic. The term was coined during the interwar period (1918–1939). Largely agricultural and extensively multi-ethnic with ...

'' family in

, Russia. He was the son of Leonard Micuta (1885-1916) and Wanda Pawłowicz (1880-1956). In 1922 his family moved to

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

, in western Poland, where he completed secondary school and studied economics. He was also active in the

scouting Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth social movement, movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activi ...

movement. He finished his military enlistment at Włodzimierz Wołyński, in eastern Poland, in the rank of second lieutenant. After completing his studies in June 1939, he became secretary to the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of Silesia Province, Michał Grażyński, but he held this position only briefly due to the outbreak of

.Odznaczenie dla Wacława Micuty, Prezydent RP, 2007-04-10
/ref> Mobilized, he took part in the September Campaign of 1939, fighting, among others, at the

Battle of the Bzura The Battle of the Bzura (or the Battle of Kutno) was both the largest battle and Polish counter-attack of the German invasion of Poland and was fought from 9 to 19 September.''The Second World War: An Illustrated History '', Putnam, 1975, Goog ...

. On 19 September, during an attack on German positions at Laski, he suffered a serious wound to his right hand. Captured and sent to a German prisoner-of-war camp, he escaped in 1940 and made his way to

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. There he was brought into the

Armed Resistance A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily Weapon, armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable ...

by Jan Nowak-Jeziorański. At first he was

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), 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 ...

to Major Jan Włodarkiewicz. However, in September 1940 he became a '' Szare Szeregi'' (boy-scout soldiers) instructor. After 1941 he served as an instructor in

Lwów Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

until July 1942, when he was arrested by the

Gestapo The (, ), Syllabic abbreviation, abbreviated Gestapo (), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of F ...

. Under interrogation and torture he confessed to nothing and gave up none of his underground comrades. Thanks to friends' efforts on his behalf, after several months he was freed. He resumed underground activity and was promoted to first lieutenant. Warsaw Uprising by Deczkowki - Wacek Platoon - 15911

Warsaw Uprising by Deczkowki - Wacek Platoon - 15911

In summer 1944, Micuta returned to Warsaw, where he became a special-assignments officer for the

Home Army The Home Army (, ; abbreviated AK) was the dominant resistance movement in German-occupied Poland during World War II. The Home Army was formed in February 1942 from the earlier Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Armed Resistance) established in the ...

Scouting Scouting or the Scout Movement is a youth social movement, movement which became popularly established in the first decade of the twentieth century. It follows the Scout method of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activi ...

'' Batalion Zośka''. During the

the battalion captured two German

Panther tank The Panther tank, officially ''Panzerkampfwagen V Panther'' (abbreviated Pz.Kpfw. V) with Sonderkraftfahrzeug, ordnance inventory designation: ''Sd.Kfz.'' 171, is a German medium tank of World War II. It was used in most European theatre of ...

s, and Micuta was made commander of a newly formed armored

platoon A platoon is a Military organization, military unit typically composed of two to four squads, Section (military unit), sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the Military branch, branch, but a platoon can ...

(unique in its kind on the insurgent side) which fought in Warsaw's

Wola Wola () is a district in western Warsaw, Poland. An industrial area with traditions reaching back to the early 19th century, it underwent a transformation into a major financial district, featuring various landmarks and some of the tallest offi ...

district. Micuta was the actual commander of one of the captured tanks, which was nicknamed ''Magda'', and used it in an operation which liberated the Gęsiówka concentration camp., CNN Documentary, accessed on 3/30/09 The operation freed some 350 Polish, Greek, Hungarian and French Jews. One of the freed inmates, Henryk Lederman, organized a battalion from the liberated Jews, which he presented to Micuta. This unit fought under Micuta for the remainder of the uprising, according to Micuta " ightinglike mad... I think only three of them survived." On 11 August 1944 the Polish insurgents had to abandon the captured tanks, which had been heavily damaged, and evacuated Wola via the sewer system for Warsaw's

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

. In subsequent fighting Micuta was wounded in his left lung, but after a short stay at an insurgent hospital he returned to battle, later taking part in fighting in the Czerniaków and Śródmieście districts. During the Uprising he was promoted to captain.

Postwar

After the war, Micuta kept his activities with the

secret from the Communist authorities, who were prosecuting and persecuting former Home Army members. Rzeczpospolita, 02.10.04 Nr 232,
Wielkie polowanie: Prześladowania akowców w Polsce Ludowej
'' (Great hunt: the persecutions of AK soldiers in the People's Republic of Poland), last accessed on June 7, 2006 He worked in

Zakopane Zakopane (Gorals#Language, Podhale Goral: ''Zokopane'') is a town in the south of Poland, in the southern part of the Podhale region at the foot of the Tatra Mountains. From 1975 to 1998, it was part of Nowy Sącz Voivodeship; since 1999, it has ...

and

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

as a driving instructor. From 1946 he worked in the Ministry of Central Planning. In 1948 he obtained permission to travel with his family to

, where he decided to remain. He began working for the

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE or UNECE) is an intergovernmental organization or a specialized body of the United Nations. The UNECE is one of five regional commissions under the jurisdiction of the United Nations Econom ...

and afterwards in other U.N. commissions. His tasks included compiling economic data and writing economic reports about Poland and other countries of the

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...

. In 1960 he volunteered to take part in a U.N. peace mission to the war-torn

Belgian Congo The Belgian Congo (, ; ) was a Belgian colonial empire, Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960 and became the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville). The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Repu ...

. He also participated in other missions in

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

and

Burundi Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is located in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa, with a population of over 14 million peop ...

. Between 1965 and 1968 he was vice president of the U.N. Development Program for Europe. He served as U.N. representative in the Republic of Chad. In 1971 he was Deputy Director of Operations for the U.N.'s Division on Narcotic Drugs. After retiring in 1976, Micuta continued his activities on behalf of developing countries. He was also a pioneer in, and tireless promoter of,

renewable energy Renewable energy (also called green energy) is energy made from renewable resource, renewable natural resources that are replenished on a human lifetime, human timescale. The most widely used renewable energy types are solar energy, wind pow ...

and founder of the Renewable Energies Development Institute in

. While working for the institute, he developed a low-cost fuel-efficient stove which could be easily constructed and used in poor countries. This stove design was published by the HEDON Household Energy Network in their journal, ''Boiling Point''. He was the author of numerous professional publications and recipient of a number of awards. He was active in the Organization of Poles in Switzerland and in organizations concerned with Polish-Jewish relations. In February 2000 he was promoted to lieutenant colonel of the

Polish Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland (, ; abbreviated SZ RP), also called the Polish Armed Forces and popularly called in Poland (, roughly "the Polish Military"—abbreviated ''WP''), are the national Military, armed forces of the Poland, ...

on inactive duty. He died on 21 September 2008 in Geneva.Ambasada RP w Bernie (Polish Embassy in Bern) "Zmarł Wacław Micuta - uczestnik Powstania Warszawskiego"

/ref>

Awards

For his part in the Polish September 1939 Campaign, Micuta received the Krzyż Walecznych, Cross of Valor and the Order of Virtuti Militari. He was awarded a second Virtuti Militari for his part in the

. On 10 April 2007 he was awarded the Cross with Star of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta (, ) 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 alien (law), foreigners for outstanding achievements in ...

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Micuta 1915 births 2008 deaths People from Poznań People from the Russian Empire of Polish descent People who emigrated to escape Bolshevism Home Army members Recipients of the Virtuti Militari Commanders with Star of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland)

Life

Postwar

Awards

See also

Notes