First Polish Armoured Division 1938-47: A History

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T-72M1Z main battle tank (T-72M1 main battle tank upgraded to PT-91 "Twardy" main battle tank standard) BBC Interview, A Polish Battle, Normandy 1944 http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/46/a2450846.shtml

After their arrival in Persia, more men were added via the overland route from Ashkhabad in Uzbekistan to the railhead at Mashhad in Persia. The "Anders Army" thus passed from Soviet control to British control. It was renamed the Polish Second Corps and joined the Polish Armed Forces in the West. They made its way through Iran to Palestine where the Jewish Poles left and joined Jewish veteran settlements there.(These Jewish soldiers was dubbed the "Anders Aliyah" and played an important role in the founding of the State of Israel in 1948.) The battle: history, archived from the original on July 24, 2011 , Memorial of Coudehard - Montormel The 1st Grenadier Division in Alsace formed part of the French 20th Corps and while the French army crumbled with troops simply walking away from the fight, This piece is my translation from "Dans la tourmente de la guerre", by M. l'abbé Marcel Launay, his book has been available in the bookshops around Falaise since the summer of 1946. I have his written permission to use the translation. I do so now in the hope of stimulating response from Polish soldiers who survived the action or from their relatives to whom they spoke.General Stanislaw Maczek escaped to French Algeria and then to Morocco disguised as an Arab – a soldier of the Foreign Legion. In Casablanca he found his family, they sailed together to Lisbon and from there they flew to Bristol, where they arrived on September 21st 1940 – during the fiercest fighting in the Battle of Britain. Many Polish were already in the fight, the Polish fighter pilots in Hurricanes over London – for the Polish tank men, time for fighting again seemed to be imminent. At this moment they were needed to defend the British coasts – In late summer of 1940 and in the ensuing months many still feared the German invasion on their home island.

The 1st Polish Armoured Division, which distinguished itself at Boisjos-en-Coudehard, reached the front in Normandy on August 1st, 1944, with thirteen thousand men, three hundred and eighty-one tanks and 4,431 vehicles. It was necessary to obtain reinforcements from every possible source and there was still insufficient time for training in units. The situation improved only during the long winter break from 1944 to 1945. At the same time there arrived new armored equipment that required a dose of training too (different ballistic properties of 76 mm guns in Shermans IIa). During the short campaign in April 1945 the Division once again proved its worth, despite the fact soldiers and officers were bitterly disappointed with the provisions of the Yalta Conference. The entire training of the tank units of the 2nd Polish Corps was conducted by the Centre, commanded by Lt.Col. Szostak. In March 1944 the Centre was stationed in St. Basilio and Metra in Italy and became part of the For several days, as the 5th and 7th German Armies faced encirclement, the Polish forces played a crucial part in the face of desperate efforts by German SS Panzer units to force an escape route. Problems with linking up with formations on the flanks left them at times surrounded and desperately low on ammunition. Jarosław Infantry Division (stationed in Jarosław) - Col. Aleksander Krzyżanowski, after September 8, 1939 Col. Bolesław Schwarzenberg-Czerny

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A. Suchcitz, M. Wroński: Barwa Pułku 7 Pancernego- zarys monograficzny. Wydawnictwo Instytutu Tarnogórskiego. Tarnowskie Góry 2002. Parts of the tank’s front armour were comparable to that of medium tanks. Against all shots hitting the front of the vehicle it counts its damage as 9+ In January–February 1945, the Regiment took up positions on the peninsula of St Philipsland and the island of Tholen, where there was heavy enemy activity. In late February 1945, the Regiment returned to the district of Dongen-Oosterhout, where the tanks were the advance guard. During this time, the Regiment was frequently on the move and engaged in minor skirmishes, but not without losses. A constant threat 24 hours a day, throughout this time, were the thousands of V-1, buzz bombs. They constantly flew by overhead and sometimes exploded nearby.

PT-91E "Twardy" main battle tank (demonstrator of export variant showed on MSPO 2006 military exhibitions, Poland) Western parts of Poland occupied by Germans – Pomerania, Wielkopolska, Upper Silesia – were incorporated to the Third Reich in September 1939 as they were considered to be a part of Germany because they belonged to German Empire until 1919-1921 (previously to Prussia mostly since 1772-1793 and Silesia since Middle Ages – first Austria then Prussia). Their Polish citizens were considered sufficiently “racially pure” to serve in the Nazi army.

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During the autumn of 1941, the Battalion received the new 40-ton Churchill tanks. The Churchill was later followed by three other tank models. As a result, the Poles were experienced in various types of armoured vehicles (not just tanks). Regimental Book Summaries of 24th Lancers, 10th Mounted Rifles, 1st Armoured Regiment, 2nd Armoured Regiment http://www.polishwargraves.nl/info/campaign.htm After World War I the Polish Armed Forces received the Renault FT light tank, with 174 FTs being used by its forces. In 1918 the newly organized Polish 1st Tank Regiment (1 Pułk Czołgów) had been equipped with 120 of the small but relatively fast Renault FT tanks. The 1st Tank Regiment consisted of four tank companies organised into two Battalions and saw fighting during the Polish–Ukrainian War after the dissolution of Austria-Hungary in a Polish offensive in Volhynia and Eastern Galicia carried out by units of the Polish Army aided by the newly arrived Blue Army of General Józef Haller de Hallenburg. This army, composed of Polish forces which had fought for the Entente on the Western front, [1] numbering 60,000 troops, [2] came with tanks supplied by the Western allies and partially staffed with experienced French officers. The unit was based on equipment and part of personnel of former French 505th Tank Regiment, and was equipped with the most modern tanks of the time, the Renault FT. After the war the 1st Tank Regiment, along with Gen. Haller's Army, returned to Poland, with all equipment. Thanks to this, Poland became the fourth biggest armoured power in the world at that time. M4A2 Sherman III medium tank (The Sherman was the basic tank in Polish armoured units in the West 1943-1947. The 2nd Warsaw Armored Brigade, fighting in Italy, used M4A2 Sherman III, later also M4 Sherman I, M4 Sherman IC Firefly, M4A1 Sherman II and M4A3 (105) HVSS Sherman IVBY.)

By 1045 hrs, the Canadians had linked up with the 2nd Armoured Regiment. In the afternoon, a Canadian Brigade arrived in the area of Hill 262 MACZUGA. They brought supplies for the armoured regiments. moved towards the faltering ‘front’ to Camp de Satory where they were equipped with new Renault R35 tanks while the cavalry took up positions at Arpagon. It had advanced 524km in 12 days. In the process, it had destroyed many German columns and captured large numbers of prisoners. Hard pressed our Poles requested air support: impossible! They were told that in the mêlée the aircrew could not tell friend from foe, the air forces were to concentrate on the approach roads. On 15 August, the Regiment took part in the crossing of the Dives River near Jort. On 16 August 1944, 3rd Rifle Brigade less 8th Rifle Battalion held the bridgeheads in Jort (1st Mountain Rifle Battalion) and Morieres (9th Rifle Battalion) reinforced by the 1st Armoured Regiment, which reconnoitered in the direction of the woods of Courcy. [10]On this day, 1st Armoured Regiment bypassed Ypres, thus cutting off the retreat of the Germans, who were still occupying the town. Anti-Tank Regiment (formed in 1945 from smaller units) ( 1 pułk artylerii przeciwpancernej) – Major R. Dowbór In September 1939, as the German troops approached, he left home carrying his pistol and with his father’s words resonating in his mind: “I may not see you again. In life, go straight.” He took the car and drove his sister to a maternity clinic in Warsaw. Unknown to her, her husband, a cavalry officer, had already been killed defending the city. Under-strength – The Poles did not have sufficient reinforcements to fully complement the casualties suffered in combat units. Infantry squads of the Polish 1st Armoured Division can never be 10 men strength.