The Polish Armed Forces in the East ( pl, Polskie Siły Zbrojne na Wschodzie), also called Polish Army in the USSR, were the Polish military forces established in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. Two armies were formed separately and at different times. ''

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 ...

'', created in the second half of 1941, was loyal to the

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 ...

. After

Operation Barbarossa Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named after ...

and the consequent Polish-Soviet Sikorski–Mayski agreement, an

amnesty for Polish citizens in the Soviet Union Amnesty for Polish citizens in USSR is the one-time amnesty in the USSR for those deprived of their freedom following the Soviet invasion of Poland in World War II.Mikolajczyk, S. (1948) ''The Pattern of Soviet Domination'' Sampson Low, Marston & C ...

was declared, which made the formation of Polish military units possible. In 1942, Anders' Army was evacuated to

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

and transferred to the command of the

Western Allies The Allies, formally referred to as the United Nations from 1942, were an international military coalition formed during the Second World War (1939–1945) to oppose the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan, and Fascist Italy ...

. It became known as the

Polish II Corps The Polish II Corps ( pl, Drugi Korpus Wojska Polskiego), 1943–1947, was a major tactical and operational unit of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Władysław Anders and fought wit ...

and went on to fight

Nazi German Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

forces in the Italian Campaign, including the Battle of Monte Cassino. From Poles who remained in the Soviet Union, the

Polish 1st Tadeusz Kościuszko Infantry Division Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

was formed in May 1943. It was enlarged and reorganised into the

Polish First Army Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

(''Berling's Army'') and the Polish Second Army. Together they constituted the

Polish People's Army The Polish People's Army ( pl, Ludowe Wojsko Polskie , LWP) constituted the second formation of the Polish Armed Forces in the East in 1943–1945, and in 1945–1989 the armed forces of the Polish communist state ( from 1952, the Polish Pe ...

(''Ludowe Wojsko Polskie'', LWP); it fought on the Eastern Front under Soviet command all the way to the Battle of Berlin. Like other communist-led Polish institutions, the People's Army operated in opposition to the Polish government-in-exile. After the war, the Polish People's Army became the military of communist-ruled Poland.

Anders' Army: 1941–1942

At the outset of the

Soviet invasion of Poland The Soviet invasion of Poland was a military operation by the Soviet Union without a formal declaration of war. On 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Poland from the east, 16 days after Nazi Germany invaded Poland from the west. Subs ...

(17 September 1939), the Soviets declared that the Polish state and government—as a result of the German

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 ...

that began on 1 September 1939—no longer existed and proclaimed any treaty or diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and Poland invalid.See telegrams
No. 317
of September 10: Schulenburg, the German ambassador in the Soviet Union, to the German Foreign Office. Moscow, September 10, 1939-9:40 p.m.

of September 16

of September 17 Source: The Avalon Project at Yale Law School. Last accessed on 14 November 2006

(Note of the Soviet government to the Polish government on 17 September 1939 refused by Polish ambassador Wacław Grzybowski). Last accessed on 15 November 2006. Diplomatic relations were re-established in 1941 after the

German invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa (german: link=no, Unternehmen Barbarossa; ) was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and many of its Axis allies, starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during the Second World War. The operation, code-named afte ...

, when the British government allied itself with the attacked Soviet Union and pressured the Polish government to act accordingly. Consequently, the military agreement of 14 August and the Sikorski–Mayski agreement of 17 August, between the

and the Soviet government, were signed;

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...

agreed to abrogate the Poland-related aspects of the

Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union that enabled those powers to partition Poland between them. The pact was signed in Moscow on 23 August 1939 by German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ri ...

.René Lefeber, Malgosia Fitzmaurice, ''The Changing Political Structure of Europe: aspects of International law'', Martinus Nijhoff Publishers,
Google Print, p.101
/ref> As an

was negotiated, tens of thousands of

Polish prisoners of war Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

held in Soviet camps, as well as hundreds of thousands of Polish citizens who had been deported to the USSR, were released. Polish Prime Minister, General

Władysław Sikorski Władysław Eugeniusz Sikorski (; 20 May 18814 July 1943) was a Polish military and political leader. Prior to the First World War, Sikorski established and participated in several underground organizations that promoted the cause for Polish i ...

, nominated General

Władysław Anders ) , birth_name = Władysław Albert Anders , birth_date = , birth_place = Krośniewice-Błonie, Warsaw Governorate, Congress Poland, Russian Empire , death_date = , death_place = London, England, United Kingdom , serviceyear ...

—one of the Polish officers held captive in the Soviet Union—as commander of a new Polish army which immediately began to be formed in the USSR with the aim of fighting against the Germans alongside the Soviet

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, afte ...

. The new formation became known as

and started to organise in the Buzuluk area, by recruiting from

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. ...

camps for Polish POWs. By the end of 1941, 25,000 soldiers (including 1,000 officers) had been recruited, forming three

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

divisions: the

5th Fifth is the ordinal form of the number five. Fifth or The Fifth may refer to: * Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, as in the expression "pleading the Fifth" * Fifth column, a political term * Fifth disease, a contagious rash tha ...

, 6th and 7th. In the spring of 1942, the force was moved to the area of

Tashkent Tashkent (, uz, Toshkent, Тошкент/, ) (from russian: Ташкент), or Toshkent (; ), also historically known as Chach is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of 2 ...

. The

8th 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...

and 9th divisions were also formed that year (divisions numbered 5 to 9 existed both within Anders' Army and Berling's First (1,2,3,4,6) and Second Armies (5,7,8,9,10). In the second part of 1942, during the German

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...

offensive (the most notable part of which was the Battle of Stalingrad), Stalin agreed to the transfer of the Polish formations to the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

ern front. Anders' Army went via the

Persian Corridor The Persian Corridor was a supply route through Iran into Soviet Azerbaijan by which British aid and American Lend-Lease supplies were transferred to the Soviet Union during World War II. Of the 17.5 million long tons of U.S. Lend-Lease aid pro ...

to Pahlavi,

. About 77,000 combatants and 41,000 civilians—Polish citizens—left the USSR. Anders' Army thus passed from Soviet control to that of the British government and joined the

Polish Armed Forces in the West The Polish Armed Forces in the West () refers to the Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its allies during World War II. Polish forces were also raised within Soviet territories; th ...

, forming the bulk of what would become the Polish Second Corps.

Berling's Army: 1943–1945

After Anders' Army left Soviet controlled territory, the Soviet-Polish relations deteriorated and the Soviets decided to assume much greater control over the remaining Polish military potential in the USSR. Activities of organisations and people loyal to the Polish government-in-exile, particularly the Polish embassy in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...

, were curtailed and its assets confiscated. Diplomatic relations between the Soviet Union and the Polish government were suspended by the Soviet side as news 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 ...

emerged in 1943. In June 1943, the

Union of Polish Patriots Union of Polish Patriots (''Society of Polish Patriots'', pl, Związek Patriotów Polskich, ZPP, russian: Союз Польских Патриотов, СПП) was a political body created by Polish communists in the Soviet Union in 1943. The ...

(ZPP) was founded in Moscow. The ZPP was a mass-membership, communist-led organization for Polish citizens. It conducted political activities and organized large-scale social welfare and relief programs for Polish communities in the Soviet Union. The ZPP was led by the pro-Soviet

Polish communist Communism in Poland can trace its origins to the late 19th century: the Marxist First Proletariat party was founded in 1882. Rosa Luxemburg (1871–1919) of the Social Democracy of the Kingdom of Poland and Lithuania (''Socjaldemokracja Król ...

Wanda Wasilewska ukr, Ванда Львівна Василевська rus, Ванда Львовна Василевская , native_name_lang = , birth_date = , birth_place = Kraków, Austria-Hungary , death_date = , death_place ...

. At the same time, due to the efforts of Wasilewska and

Zygmunt Berling Zygmunt Henryk Berling (27 April 1896 – 11 July 1980) was a Polish general and politician. He fought for the independence of Poland in the early 20th century. Berling was a co-founder and commander of the First Polish Army, which fought on th ...

, a new army was established—the

(''Ludowe Wojsko Polskie'', LWP). Its first unit, the

(''1 Dywizja Piechoty im. Tadeusza Kościuszki''), was created in the summer of 1943, reaching operational readiness by June/July. In August, the division was enlarged to a corps, becoming the Polish 1st Corps. It was placed under command of General Berling; other notable commanders included General

Karol Świerczewski Karol Wacław Świerczewski (; callsign ''Walter''; 10 February 1897 – 28 March 1947) was a Polish and Soviet Red Army general and statesman. He was a Bolshevik Party member during the Russian Civil War and a Soviet officer in the wars foug ...

and Col.

Włodzimierz Sokorski Włodzimierz Sokorski (2 July 1908, Oleksandrivsk – 2 May 1999, Warsaw) was a Polish communist official, writer, military journalist and a brigadier general in the People's Republic of Poland. He was the Minister of Culture and Art responsible ...

. The division with its supporting elements was sent to the Eastern Front in September 1943 and its first major engagement was the

Battle of Lenino The Battle of Lenino was a tactical World War II engagement that took place on 12 and 13 October 1943, north of the village of Lenino in the Mogilev region of Byelorussia. The battle itself was a part of a larger Soviet Spas-Demensk offensi ...

. By March 1944, the corps had been strengthened with increasing armoured and mechanical support and numbered over 30,000 soldiers. In mid-March 1944, the corps was reorganized into the

First Polish Army First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

. Subsequent Soviet-created Polish army units on the Eastern Front included the Second (1945) and Third Polish Armies (the latter was quickly merged with the Second due to recruitment problems); the smaller formations included 10 infantry divisions (numbered from 1st to 10th) and 5 armoured brigades. Plans for a Polish Front were considered but dropped, and the Polish First Army was integrated into the

1st Belorussian Front The 1st Belorussian Front ( Russian: Пéрвый Белорусский фронт, ''Perviy Belorusskiy front'', also romanized " Byelorussian") was a major formation of the Soviet Army during World War II, being equivalent to a Western army ...

. These formations were led by Soviet commanders and fought under Soviet general command (the Second Army, for example, was led by the Soviet and Polish general

Stanislav Poplavsky Stanislav Gilyarovich Poplavsky (russian: Станислав Гилярович Поплавский, pl, Stanisław Popławski) (22 April 1902 – 10 August 1973) was a general in the Soviet Army, Soviet and Polish army, Polish armies. Early li ...

). There was a shortage of Polish officers (most were killed at Katyn or departed with Anders' Army) and in the Polish First Army and the Second Army approximately 40% of officers and engineers were Soviet. Special political officers, almost exclusively made up of Soviets, oversaw the Polish soldiers. The Soviets also created political

military police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear rec ...

, which later became the

Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army ''Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego'' (''GZI WP'' - "Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army"), was a name of a first military Police and counter-espionage organ of the Polish People's Army in communist Poland during and aft ...

(Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego).Polish historian Paweł Piotrowski on LWP

Institute of National Remembrance The Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation ( pl, Instytut Pamięci Narodowej – Komisja Ścigania Zbrodni przeciwko Narodowi Polskiemu, abbreviated IPN) is a Polish state resea ...

, from

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

. Last accessed on 23 March 2006. The First Army entered Poland from Soviet territory in the summer of 1944, on the right wing of the Lvov–Sandomierz Offensive, fighting in the battles during the Soviet crossing of the

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

River around

Dęblin Dęblin is a town at the confluence of Vistula and Wieprz rivers, in Lublin Voivodeship, Poland. Dęblin is the part of the agglomeration with adjacent towns of Ryki and Puławy, which altogether has over 100 000 inhabitants. The population o ...

and

Puławy Puławy (, also written Pulawy) is a city in eastern Poland, in Lesser Poland's Lublin Voivodeship, at the confluence of the Vistula and Kurówka Rivers. Puławy is the capital of Puławy County. The city's 2019 population was estimated at 47,4 ...

.''Polish Army, 1939–1945'' by Steven J Zaloga, p. 27 In September 1944, units of the First Army were involved in heavy fighting during the latter stages of the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising ( pl, powstanie warszawskie; german: Warschauer Aufstand) was a major World War II operation by the Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from German occupation. It occurred in the summer of 1944, and it was led ...

, after crossing the Vistula following the capture of

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

's eastern

Praga Praga is a district of Warsaw, Poland. It is on the east bank of the river Vistula. First mentioned in 1432, until 1791 it formed a separate town with its own city charter. History The historical Praga was a small settlement located at ...

district, but suffered heavy losses. After eventually taking control of Warsaw in January 1945, the First Army took part in the Vistula–Oder Offensive. Subsequently it fought in

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

, breaking through the Pomeranian Wall (''Pommernstellung'') fortified line and capturing Fortress Kolberg, a heavily fortified city, in March. In April–May 1945, the First Army took part in the Soviet invasion of Germany and the final capture of Berlin. The Second Army reached operational readiness in January 1945. During the Soviet invasion of Germany it suffered very heavy losses at the Battle of Bautzen. Later it took part in the Prague Offensive, which was the last major Soviet operation of World War II in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

First Polish Army (Berling's Army)

Second Polish Army

Formations as of 1 May 1945 *Second Army Headquarters * 5th Infantry Division (''Saxonian'') * 7th Infantry Division – postwar 2nd War Mechanised Division * 8th Infantry Division * 9th Infantry Division – postwar 9th Mechanised Division. * 10th Infantry Division – postwar 10th Armored Division * 2nd Artillery Division ** 6th Light Artillery Brigade ** 7th Howitzer Artillery Brigade ** 8th Heavy Artillery Brigade * 3rd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Division * 9th Antitank Brigade * 14th Antitank Brigade * 3rd Mortar Regiment *

1st Tank Corps First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

(''1st Dresden'' Armored Corps) * 16th Tank Brigade * 5th Heavy Tank Regiment (IS-II) * 28th Armoured Artillery Regiment (self-propelled guns) * 4th Sapper Brigade

References

External links