Uniform of lieutenant of Polnische Wehrmacht

The Polish Armed Forces (,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

: ''Polnische Wehrmacht)'' was a military formation created during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

.David G. Williamson (2011),
Poland Betrayed: The Nazi-Soviet Invasions of 1939
' Stackpole Books, page 3. It was created from the more Polish dominated, Polish Auxiliary Corps (also called Polish Legions), headed by Pilsudski. It was the armed forces of a puppet

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...

envisioned by the Prussian ''Mitteleuropa'' Plan. The results of the recruiting campaign were dismal.Jesse Curtis Kauffman (2008),
Sovereignty and the Search for Order in German-occupied Poland, 1915-1918
' ProQuest, page 61. The Polish Armed Forces was nevertheless established, as part of the

German Army The German Army (, 'army') is the land component of the armed forces of Federal Republic of Germany, Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German together with the German Navy, ''Marine'' (G ...

and under complete German command. The commander-in-chief of the Polish Armed Forces became general-governor

Hans Hartwig von Beseler Hans Hartwig von Beseler (27 April 1850 – 20 December 1921) was a German colonel general. Biography Beseler was born in Greifswald, Province of Pomerania (1815–1945), Pomerania as the son of Georg Beseler, then a law professor at the Uni ...

, while the ''de facto'' commander was General der Infanterie Felix von Barth, head of the training branch.Jerzy Jan Lerski (1996),
Historical Dictionary of Poland, 966-1945
' Greenwood Publishing, page 462. The Polish Armed Forces was created on 10 April 1917, as a result of the

Act of 5th November The Act of 5th November of 1916 was a declaration of Emperors Wilhelm II of Germany and Franz Joseph of Austria. This act promised the creation of the Kingdom of Poland out of territory of Congress Poland, envisioned by its authors as a puppet s ...

of 1916 and the creation of the

. The backbone of the formation were the soldiers of the Polish Legions (

Polish Auxiliary Corps Polish Auxiliary Corps (, , ) was the name of the Polish military formation in the Austro-Hungarian Army. Formed from the Polish Legions, it was created on 20 September 1916 and existed until 19 February 1918. In the aftermath of the Oath crisi ...

), fighting together with the

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...

Army against Russia. As a result of the

Oath Crisis The Oath crisis (; German language, German: ''Eidkrise'') was a World War I political conflict between the Imperial German Army command and the Józef Piłsudski-led Polish Legions in World War I, Polish Legions. Initially supporting the Central P ...

of July 1917, 3/4 of the soldiers of the Polish Legions declined to pledge loyalty to the German

Kaiser Kaiser ( ; ) is the title historically used by German and Austrian emperors. In German, the title in principle applies to rulers anywhere in the world above the rank of king (). In English, the word ''kaiser'' is mainly applied to the emperors ...

. Approximately 15,000 of them were confined in internment camps in

Beniaminów Beniaminów is a village in central Poland, administratively located in the Legionowo County in the Masovian Voivodeship. It is located east of Warsaw, between Legionowo and Nieporęt within the Warsaw metropolitan area. History Within the vi ...

and

Szczypiorno Szczypiorno is a municipal neighbourhood of the city of Kalisz, Poland, located in its south-western part. Formerly until 1976 a separate village at the outskirts of the city, it is best known as a seat of a World War I and Polish–Soviet War pr ...

, while almost 3,000 were drafted to the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army, also known as the Imperial and Royal Army,; was the principal ground force of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. It consisted of three organisations: the Common Army (, recruited from all parts of Austria-Hungary), ...

. Despite the planned force of 70,000, only 5,000 declared loyalty to the kaiser. After the command of the unit was transferred to the Polish

Regency Council In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

on 19 October 1918, the number soon reached 9,000. After Poland declared her independence on 11 November 1918, the Polish Armed Forces became the basis of the newly formed

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Polska Sila Zbrojna Infantry divisions of Germany in World War I Military units and formations established in 1917 Military units and formations disestablished in 1918 20th-century military history of Poland Poland in World War I History of Germany–Poland relations Kingdom of Poland (1917–1918) Military units and formations of Poland in World War I

See also

References