The Cross of the Home Army () is a Polish military decoration that was introduced by General
Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski
Generał Tadeusz Komorowski (1 June 1895 – 24 August 1966), better known by the name Bór-Komorowski (after one of his wartime code names: ''Bór'' – "The Forest") was a Polish military leader. He was appointed commander-in-chief a day be ...
on 1 August 1966 to commemorate the efforts of the soldiers of the
Polish Secret State
The Polish Underground State (, also known as the Polish Secret State) was a single political and military entity formed by the union of resistance organizations in occupied Poland that were loyal to the Government of the Republic of Poland ...
between 1939 and 1945. The decoration was awarded to soldiers of the Home Army (
Armia Krajowa
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 ...
) and of its predecessor organizations (
Służba Zwycięstwu Polski,
Związek Walki Zbrojnej
The Union of Armed StruggleThus rendered in Norman Davies, ''God's Playground: A History of Poland'', vol. II, p. 464. (; ZWZ), also translated as the Union for Armed Struggle, Association of Armed Struggle, and Association for Armed Struggle ...
).
The first recipient (
posthumous
Posthumous may refer to:
* Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death
* Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death
* Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...
) was General
Stefan ''Grot''–Rowecki.
The award was supported by the
Polish government in exile
The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile (), was the government in exile
A government-in-exile (GiE) is a political group that claims to be the legitimate government of a sovere ...
in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
and was not recognized by the
People's Republic of Poland
The Polish People's Republic (1952–1989), formerly the Republic of Poland (1947–1952), and also often simply known as Poland, was a country in Central Europe that existed as the predecessor of the modern-day democratic Republic of Poland. ...
, which viewed members of the mostly
anti-communist
Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communist beliefs, groups, and individuals. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when th ...
Armia Krajowa as enemies of the state. After the
fall of communism
The revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, were a revolutionary wave of liberal democracy movements that resulted in the collapse of most Marxist–Leninist governments in the Eastern Bloc and other parts of the world. Th ...
, in 1992 it was recognized by the government of Poland and was awarded by the
president of Poland
The president of Poland ( ), officially the president of the Republic of Poland (), is the head of state of Poland. His or her prerogatives and duties are determined in the Constitution of Poland. The president jointly exercises the executive ...
until 8 May 1999.
Awards established in 1966
Awards disestablished in 1999
Military awards and decorations of Poland
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