Wacław Scaevola-Wieczorkiewicz (June 25, 1890 in the village of Polanowka near Lublin – December 7, 1969 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 ...

) was a

General brygady A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED Onlin ...

of the

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 ...

in the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 7 October 1918 and 6 October 1939. The state was established in the final stage of World War I ...

. He fought in

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 ...

, the

Polish–Soviet War The Polish–Soviet War (14 February 1919 – 18 March 1921) was fought primarily between the Second Polish Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, following World War I and the Russian Revolution. After the collapse ...

and

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 ...

. Waclaw Wieczorkiewicz was born into a noble family of landowners. He graduated from Stanislaw Staszic High School in Lublin, and continued his education at

University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna The University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, or simply BOKU (derived from its German name, , ), founded in 1872, is an education and research centre for renewable resources in Vienna, Austria. BOKU combines expertise in the field ...

. In 1911, he joined the

Riflemen's Association The Polish Riflemen's Association, known as ''Związek Strzelecki'' (in the plural, ''Związki Strzeleckie''), was an organization formed in great numbers prior to World War I. One of the better known associations, ''Strzelec'' (Rifleman), was a ...

, under

nom de guerre A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war. In Ancien régime, ''ancien régime'' Kingdom of France, France it would be adopted by each n ...

Rene Scewola (later he changed his last name into Scaevola-Wieczorkiewicz, it was officially confirmed by the

Voivode Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

Lwow 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 ...

, on November 7, 1931). In 1912, after completion of officer training, he was promoted to the rank of subcolonel ( podporucznik). From August 1914 until July 1917, Wieczorkiewicz fought in

Polish Legions in World War I The Polish Legions () was a name of the Polish military force (the first active Polish army in generations) established in August 1914 in Galicia (Central Europe), Galicia soon after World War I erupted between the opposing alliances of the Trip ...

. Wounded after the battle of Marcinkowice near Nowy Sacz (December 5–6, 1914), he recuperated in a military hospital, and in 1915 was promoted to captain of infantry. After 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 ...

, Wieczorkiewicz was imprisoned by the Germans at Fort Beniaminow. There, he organized a rebellion, and as a punishment, Scaevola was transferred to

Werl The pilgrimage town Werl (; Westphalian language, Westphalian: ''Wiärl'') is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia and belongs to the Soest, Germany, Soest district in the Arnsberg administrative district. The official name of pilgrimage town has been ...

Fortress. In late 1918, Wieczorkiewicz joined the Polish Army, and was immediately promoted to Major. In November 1918, he created a unit of volunteers, which fought in the Battle of Lwow. From August 15, 1919, he commanded 9th Legions Infantry Regiment, with which he fought in initial stages of the

. By the end of this conflict, Wieczorkiewicz commanded 3rd Legions Infantry Division. In 1921, Wieczorkiewicz was named commandant of Center of Army Training in Rembertow. In 1923, he was transferred to the 31st Kaniow Rifles Infantry Regiment, and during the years 1923 - 1925, he studied at a Military Academy in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. In June 1926, Wieczorkiewicz came to Jaroslaw, where he was named commandant of both 24th Infantry Division, and the Polish Army garrison of Jaroslaw. In 1927, he was promoted to

. Wieczorkiewicz actively supported various community organizations and development of culture at Jaroslaw. He was the local leader of the

Maritime and Colonial League The Maritime and Colonial League (Polish: ''Liga Morska i Kolonialna'') was a mass Polish social organization, created in 1930 out of the Maritime and River League (''Liga Morska i Rzeczna''). In the late 1930s it was directed by general Marius ...

, honorary chairman of sports club Ognisko Jaroslaw, and an active supporter of the

. Furthermore, he was chairman of Society of the Friends of Jaroslaw, and sponsored the renovation of its Benedictine Abbey. On June 23, 1937, City Council named him honorary citizen of Jaroslaw. During the 1939

Invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

, Wieczorkiewicz commanded reserve units of Krakow Army and

Karpaty Army Karpaty Army () was formed on 11 July 1939 under Major General Kazimierz Fabrycy after Nazi Germany created a puppet state of Slovakia and the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was proclaimed after the events that lead to the breakup of Czechos ...

. In 1940 he left the

General Government The General Government (, ; ; ), formally the General Governorate for the Occupied Polish Region (), was a German zone of occupation established after the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany, Slovak Republic (1939–1945), Slovakia and the Soviet ...

, and reached

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, via

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

. After the

Battle of France The Battle of France (; 10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign (), the French Campaign (, ) and the Fall of France, during the Second World War was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of the Low Countries (Belgium, Luxembour ...

, he remained in occupied country, and was active member of the

French Resistance The French Resistance ( ) was a collection of groups that fought the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, Nazi occupation and the Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy#France, collaborationist Vic ...

. In 1943, he moved to

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 ...

, and found a job at an insurance company. He died in

on December 7, 1969, and was buried at the local Saint-Georges Cemetery. In 1992, a street in Jaroslaw was named after him, and in 2010, 14th Artillery Regiment, stationed in Jaroslaw.

Promotions

* Porucznik – 1914, * Captain of Infantry – 1915, * Major – 1918, *

Podpolkovnik ''Podpolkovnik'' () is a military rank in Slavic and nearby countries which corresponds to the lieutenant colonel in the English-speaking states and military. In different languages the exact name of this rank maintains a variety of spelling ...

– 1920, *

Polkovnik (; ) is a military rank used mostly in Slavic-speaking countries which corresponds to a colonel in English-speaking states, ''coronel'' in Spanish and Portuguese-speaking states and ''oberst'' in several German-speaking and Scandinavian countr ...

– 1920, *

– 1927.

Honors and awards

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari (Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', ) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was established in 1792 by the last King of Poland Stanislaus II of Poland, ...

5th Class, * Commander's Cross 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 ...

, *

Cross of Independence Cross of Independence () was the second highest Polish military decoration between World Wars I and II. It was awarded to individuals who had fought actively for the independence of Poland, and was released in three classes. History The Cr ...

, * Cross of Valour, four times, * Gold Cross of Merit, * Commemorative Medal for the 1918 - 1921 War “Poland to her Defender”, * Medal of 10 Years of Independence,

Family

On April 6, 1929 in Warsaw, Wieczorkiewicz married Janina née Awernatus. They had two children: sons Tomasz (born 1930) and Wojciech (born 1932).

Sources

* Piotr Stawecki, Słownik biograficzny generałów Wojska Polskiego 1918–1939, Warszawa 1994, . * Henryk P. Kosk, Generalicja polska t. II M-Ż, Pruszków 2001, . * Z. Mierzwiński, Generałowie II Rzeczypospolitej, Warszawa 1995 * Zofia Kostka-Bieńkowska, Honorowi obywatele Jarosławia 1857-2003, Jarosław 2009

Promotions

Honors and awards

Family

Sources

See also