The Internal Security Corps ( pl, Korpus Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego, KBW) was a special-purpose military formation in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

under

democratic government Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choose gove ...

, established by the Council of Ministers on 24 May 1945.

History

The KBW consisted of 10 new cavalry regiments, an infantry division and two buffer brigades. The corps itself was subordinate to the Ministry of Public Security. By the end of August 1945, its force was made up of 29,053 soldiers and 2,356 officers. The KBW was called forth to protect key public infrastructure such as railways, but mainly to combat and suppress the anti-communist resistance in Poland including activities of the

Cursed soldiers The "cursed soldiers" (also known as "doomed soldiers", "accursed soldiers" or "damned soldiers"; pl, żołnierze wyklęci) or "indomitable soldiers" ( pl, żołnierze niezłomni) is a term applied to a variety of anti-Soviet and anti-communist ...

as well as all organizations which continued their armed struggle against the Communist takeover; such as the Freedom and Independence (WiN), the

National Armed Forces National Armed Forces (NSZ; ''Polish:'' Narodowe Siły Zbrojne) was a Polish right-wing underground military organization of the National Democracy operating from 1942. During World War II, NSZ troops fought against Nazi Germany and communist ...

(NSZ), and the remnants of the

Polish Home Army The Home Army ( pl, Armia Krajowa, 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) est ...

(AK) among others. Koszary Piastów 4

Between 1945 and 1954, the KBW fell under the responsibility of Minister

Jakub Berman Jakub Berman (23 December 1901 – 10 April 1984) was a Polish communist politician. Was born in Jewish family, son of Iser and Guta. An activist during the Second Polish Republic, in post-war communist Poland he was a member of the Politburo of ...

of the

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the executive committee for communist parties. It is present in most former and existing communist states. Names The term "politburo" in English comes from the Russian ''Politbyuro'' (), itself a contracti ...

, who was in charge of the Ministry of Public Security. Later, it was part of the

Ministry of Internal Affairs An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

. Between March 1945 and April 1947 alone, units of the KBW killed over 1,500 members of the Cursed soldiers, wounded 301, and apprehended 12,200 others. In 1965, the KBW was renamed as the Wojska Obrony Wewnętrznej (Internal Defense Force). It was included in the framework of National Defense. Also, in 1962, the Silesian Unit of the Engineering Army nr KBW-4 built roads in the Bieszczady region in the extreme south-east of Poland, strategically important but an uninhabited area.

Commanding officers

#March 1945 – May 1945: Col. Henryk Toruńczyk #Jun 1945 – September 1946: Gen. Bolesław Kieniewicz #1946–1948: Brigadier General Konrad Świetlik #1948–1951: Brigadier General

Juliusz Hibner Juliusz Hibner (real name Dawid Szwarc; 11 October 1912 – 13 November 1994) was a brigadier general in the Polish People's Army and recipient of the title of Hero of Soviet Union. He also served as the commander of the Internal Security Corps an ...

(born Dawid Szwarc) #1 March 1951 – 12 March 1965: Brigadier General Włodzimierz Muś #12 March 1965 – 1 July 1965: Brigadier General Bronisław Kuriata

References

External links

Narodowe Siły Zbrojne

The Doomed soldiers – Polish Underground Soldiers 1944–1963 – The Untold Story

Antykomunistyczne Podziemie Zbrojne po 1944 roku

National Armed Forces Historical Brief
{{Authority control 1945 establishments in Poland Military of Poland Stalinism in Poland

History

Commanding officers

See also

References

External links