Workers' Militia PPS-WRN ( pl, Milicja Robotnicza Polskiej Partii Socjalistycznej–Wolność, Równość, Niepodległość, MR PPS-WRN) often referred to simply as Militia PPS-WRN, was a

Polish underground The Polish Underground State ( pl, Polskie Państwo Podziemne, 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 Gover ...

paramilitary formation of the

Polish Socialist Party – Freedom, Equality, Independence Polish Socialist Party – Freedom, Equality, Independence ( pl, Polska Partia Socjalistyczna - Wolność, Równość, Niepodległość, PPS-WRN) was an underground political party in occupied Poland during World War II continuing the traditions o ...

active during the

occupation of Poland Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II between 1939 and 1945. The total number of clandestine members of MR PPS-WRN reached 30,000 at the time of the Soviet counter-offensive of 1944. They participated in both

Operation Tempest file:Akcja_burza_1944.png, 210px, right Operation Tempest ( pl, akcja „Burza”, sometimes referred to in English as "Operation Storm") was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II against occupying German forces by the Polish Home ...

against the Nazis (''Akcja Burza'') and in the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising ( pl, powstanie warszawskie; german: Warschauer Aufstand) was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from German occupation. It occ ...

of 1944. MR PPS-WRN was created in November 1939 amongst the prewar

labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

circles in

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 ...

Radom Radom is a city in east-central Poland, located approximately south of the capital, Warsaw. It is situated on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship (since 1999), having previously been the seat of a separate Radom Voivodeship (1975–1 ...

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

, in

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( pl, Górny Śląsk; szl, Gůrny Ślůnsk, Gōrny Ślōnsk; cs, Horní Slezsko; german: Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ; la, Silesia Superior) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located ...

(Śląsk) and in the

Dąbrowa Basin The Dąbrowa Basin (also, Dąbrowa Coal Basin) or Zagłębie Dąbrowskie () is a geographical and historical region in southern Poland. It forms western part of Lesser Poland, though it shares some cultural and historical features with the neighbo ...

(Zagłębie) mainly for self-protection. It was supposed to help recreate the Polish prewar police and counter—intelligence services. Pajdak

Since June 1940 the Commander-in-chief of the Workers' Militia PPS-WRN was Antoni Pajdak ''

nom de guerre A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

'' "Traugutt"; captured by the Soviet NKVD in March 1945 and sent to GULAG for 10 years after his Moscow trial. His second-in-command in occupied Poland were: Stanisław Sobolewski

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

"Krystian", and Jan Władysław Wilczyński pseudonym "Gnat". The organization was divided and subdivided into the units of five.

The status report for the organization as of 1944

Underground force of PPS-WRN in Silesia and in Zagłębie

According to fragmentary data in

Sosnowiec Sosnowiec is an industrial city county in the Dąbrowa Basin of southern Poland, in the Silesian Voivodeship, which is also part of the Silesian Metropolis municipal association.—— Located in the eastern part of the Upper Silesian Industria ...

in 1944, the Militia of PPS counted 475 members in five districts. In

Będzin County __NOTOC__ Będzin County ( pl, powiat będziński) is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government ref ...

, it was around 200 persons strong or 15

platoon A platoon is a military unit typically composed of two or more squads, sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the branch, but a platoon can be composed of 50 people, although specific platoons may range ...

s. In

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

, the Militia counted around 3,000, and in the

Cieszyn Cieszyn ( , ; cs, Těšín ; german: Teschen; la, Tessin; szl, Ćeszyn) is a border town in southern Poland on the east bank of the Olza River, and the administrative seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship. The town has 33,500 inhabitant ...

Silesia around 960.Jan Kantyka, ''Polska Partia Socjalistyczna na Śląsku i w Zagłębiu Dąbrowskim w latach 1939-1948,''

Katowice Katowice ( , , ; szl, Katowicy; german: Kattowitz, yi, קאַטעוויץ, Kattevitz) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area. It is the 11th most popul ...

, 1975, pp. 85-86. In addition, PPS tried to create industrial militia in Zagłębie, under the command of Stefan Kura-Granicki "Gromek", "Gołąb", "Oset", and later, under Henryk Żmijewski "Kuba". The Industrial Militia operated within the military factories gathering the intelligence and committing acts of

sabotage Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. One who engages in sabotage is a ''saboteur''. Saboteurs typically try to conceal their identitie ...

as well as, later on, tried to prevent demolition of factories by the withdrawing Germans.

The status report for the organization as of 1944

Underground force of PPS-WRN in Silesia and in Zagłębie

See also

Notes

Further reading