Wiktor Thommée (1881–1962) was a Polish military commander and a brigadier general 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 ...

. A veteran of the

Great War 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 ...

and the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

, he is best known for his command over Piotrków Operational Group and the

battle of the Bzura The Battle of the Bzura (or the Battle of Kutno) was both the largest battle and Polish counter-attack of the German invasion of Poland and was fought from 9 to 19 September.''The Second World War: An Illustrated History '', Putnam, 1975, Goog ...

during the

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 ...

of 1939.

Early life

Wiktor Thommée was born 30 December 1881 in Sventiany,

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

(modern Švenčionys, Lithuania), to a Polish family of distant French provenance. After graduating from trade schools in

Lida Lida is a city in Grodno Region, western Belarus, located west of Minsk. It serves as the administrative center of Lida District. As of 2025, it has a population of 103,262. Etymology The name ''Lida'' arises from its Lithuanian name ''Ly ...

and Dyneburg (modern Daugavpils, Latvia), in 1901 he joined an officers' school in St. Petersburg. In 1904 he graduated and received the grade of second lieutenant, after which he was attached to the

Voronezh Voronezh ( ; , ) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the Southeastern Railway, which connects wes ...

-based 124th Infantry Regiment. With that unit he took part in the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

of 1904–1905. Twice wounded, he spent several months in various hospitals, after which he was dismissed from active service for recovery and joined the Trade Institute in

Kharkov Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

(modern Kharkiv, Ukraine). In 1912 he was again admitted to the

Russian Army The Russian Ground Forces (), also known as the Russian Army in English, are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces are the protection of the state borders, combat on land, ...

and until 1914 he studied at the Academy of the General Staff in St. Petersburg.

First World War

After the outbreak of the

, Thommée joined the 276th Infantry Regiment and served with distinction as a commanding officer of a company and then battalion. In 1916 he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and became an

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

at the staff of the 48th Corps in the area of the

Romanian front The Romanian Front (, FR) was a moderate fascist party created in Romania in 1935. Led by former Prime Minister of Romania, Prime Minister Alexandru Vaida-Voevod, it originated as a right-wing splinter group from the mainstream National Peasants' ...

. After the

Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

, he quit the army and on 25 September 1918 he joined the

in the area of

Kuban Kuban ( Russian and Ukrainian: Кубань; ) is a historical and geographical region in the North Caucasus region of southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, the Volga Delta and separated fr ...

. There, on 9 November he became the ''de facto'' chief of staff of Lucjan Żeligowski's Polish 4th Rifle Division, formally a part of the Polish Blue Army allied to

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and

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. After the division returned to Poland and was reformed into the 10th Infantry Division, Thommée served as the chief of its staff during the opening stages of the Polish-Bolshevik War until August 1919. On 22 August that year he became the head of the '' Third department of the staff'' (Offensive intelligence "B"), controlling the intelligence net in the European part of Russia, at the North-Western Front, Masovian Front and then the Polish 1st Army under Gen. Franciszek Latinik. A skilled officer of intelligence service, Thommée asked his superiors to move him to front-line service and on 17 June 1920 he was made the commanding officer of the famous 28th ''Kaniów Rifles'' Infantry Regiment. For the rest of the Polish-Bolshevik War, he commanded the 19th Infantry and then 20th Infantry Brigades. For his service during the conflict, in 1922 he was promoted to the rank of

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

(with precedence of 1 June 1919). After the

Peace of Riga The Treaty of Riga was signed in Riga, Latvia, on between Poland on one side and Soviet Russia (acting also on behalf of Soviet Belarus) and Soviet Ukraine on the other, ending the Polish–Soviet War (1919–1921). The chief negotiators o ...

had been signed, Thommée remained in the army and on 10 August 1921 he was made the commanding officer of the General Army Area

Brześć Brest, formerly Brest-Litovsk and Brest-on-the-Bug, is a city in south-western Belarus at the border with Poland opposite the Polish town of Terespol, where the Bug and Mukhavets rivers meet, making it a border town. It serves as the adminis ...

. On 20 October 1922 he became the first officer of the

Grodno Grodno, or Hrodna, is a city in western Belarus. It is one of the oldest cities in Belarus. The city is located on the Neman, Neman River, from Minsk, about from the Belarus–Poland border, border with Poland, and from the Belarus–Lithua ...

-based 3rd Military Area Command (DOK III) and at the same time he started his studies at the Higher War School in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. On 1 July 1923 he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general, and on 15 August 1924 he became the commanding officer of the 15th Infantry Division stationed in

Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its bank (geography), left-bank tributary, the Brda (river), Brda, the strategic location of Byd ...

. One of the most promising staff officers of his times, in 1926 he was sent to

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, where he graduated from the prestigious Ecole Superieure de Guerre. Upon his return to Poland, he continued his service at various posts, including the command over the

Toruń Toruń is a city on the Vistula River in north-central Poland and a World Heritage Sites of Poland, UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its population was 196,935 as of December 2021. Previously, it was the capital of the Toruń Voivodeship (1975–199 ...

-based 8th Military Area Command (DOK VIII; 1934–1938) and then the

Łódź Łódź is a city in central Poland and a former industrial centre. It is the capital of Łódź Voivodeship, and is located south-west of Warsaw. Łódź has a population of 655,279, making it the country's List of cities and towns in Polan ...

-based 4th Military Area Command (DOK IV).

Second World War

At the outbreak of the

, on 1 September 1939, Thommée assumed the command over the Piotrków

Operational Group Operational Group (, GO) was the highest level type of tactical division of the Polish Army at various points in the 20th century, mainly during the Second World War. Polish-Bolshevik War (1919-1921) Operational groups first appeared in the Polis ...

, one of Polish Army Corps within the Łódź Army. Renamed to ''Thommée Operational Group'' on 6 September, the unit was the only part of the Łódź Army not to suffer tremendous losses during the retreat from the borders. After Gen. Juliusz Rómmel left his army for Warsaw, Wiktor Thommée managed to reorganise the withdrawing forces of the Łódź Army and fight the battle of Cyrusowa Wola on 8 September, in which he defeated the German 10th Infantry Division. After the battle, on 13 September his forces moved to the

Modlin Fortress Modlin Fortress () is one of the largest 19th-century fortresses in Poland. It is located in the town of Nowy Dwór Mazowiecki in district Modlin (village), Modlin on the Narew river, approximately 50 kilometers north of Warsaw. It was original ...

, where Thommée assumed the command of the Modlin Army. Besieged, the forces under his command defended the area until 29 September. Due to lack of supplies, food and water, Gen. Thommée negotiated the capitulation of his forces under the condition that all the soldiers were to be treated as prisoners of war and were to be set free. Although initially the Germans honoured the treaty, on 7 November 1939, Thommée was arrested along with a large part of his staff and was sent to Germany. He spent the remaining part of

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 ...

in various German prisoner-of-war camps. Initially in Oflag IV-B Koenigstein and Stalag I-B Hohenstein, he was transferred to Oflag VIII-E Johannisbrunn. In 1942 he was sent to Oflag VII-A Murnau, from where he undertook numerous escape attempts and was finally sent to Oflag VI-B Dössel. Liberated in 1945, he moved to the

, where in April he joined the

Polish Armed Forces in the West The Polish Armed Forces in the West () refers to the Polish Armed Forces, Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Allies of World War II, Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its Axis powers, allies during World War II. Poli ...

. Unlike most of his war-time colleagues, in January 1947 he returned to communist Poland. Formally accepted into the army, he was retired and deprived of his pension. He lived in poverty in

Gdynia Gdynia is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With an estimated population of 257,000, it is the List of cities in Poland, 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in the Pomeranian Voivodeship after Gdańsk ...

, at times working as a

janitor A cleaner, cleanser or cleaning operative is a type of Industry (economics), industrial or domestic worker who is tasked with cleaning a space. A janitor (Scotland, United States and Canada), also known as a custodian, Facility Operator, porter ...

. It was not until the death of

Bolesław Bierut Bolesław Bierut (; 18 April 1892 – 12 March 1956) was a Polish communist activist and politician, leader of History of Poland (1945–1989), communist-ruled Poland from 1947 until 1956. He was President of the State National Council from 1944 ...

and the political thaw of 1956 that Wiktor Thommée was granted with a pension and a flat in

. He died on 12 September 1962 and was buried in the ''Alley of the Meritorious'' in Warsaw's Powązki Military Cemetery. On 1 January 1964 he was posthumously promoted to the rank of division general (Lt. Gen.).

Awards

Throughout his life, Thommée was awarded with some of the highest Polish military decorations. Among them were: *

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 and 4th classes) * Commanders' 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 Valour (''Krzyż Walecznych''), 4 times * Gold Cross of Merit (''Krzyż Zasługi'') * Independence Medal

References

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Томме Виктор Эдуардович
// Русская армия в Первой мировой войне (in Russian). {{DEFAULTSORT:Thommee, Wiktor 1881 births 1962 deaths People from Švenčionys People from Sventsyansky Uyezd Polish generals Recipients of the Gold Cross of the Virtuti Militari Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Medal of Independence World War II prisoners of war held by Germany Polish military personnel of World War II Polish prisoners of war in World War II Polish people of French descent Military personnel of the Russian Empire Burials at Powązki Military Cemetery