Utente:Vituzzu/seconda

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Secondo Corpo
Descrizione generale
Attivo1943 - 1947
NazionePOL
Dimensioneda 55.000 (1944) a 103.000 uomini (1946)
Battaglie/guerreBattaglia di Cassino
Voci su unità militari presenti su Wikipedia
General Anders, CO of the Polish II Corps in Italy

Polish II Corps (in polacco Drugi Korpus Wojska Polskiego), 1943–1947, was a major tactical and operational unit of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Władysław Anders and by the end of 1945 it had grown to well over 100,000 soldiers.

Storia[modifica | modifica wikitesto]

Following the signing of the Polish-Russian Military Agreement on August 14, 1941, a Polish Army on Soviet soil was born. The first commander, General Michał Tokarzewski, began the task of forming this army in the Soviet town of Totskoye on August 17. The commander chosen by General Władysław Sikorski to ultimately lead the new army, General Władysław Anders, had been just released from the Lubyanka prison in Moscow, on August 4, and did not issue his first orders or announce his appointment as commander until August 22.

This army would grow over the following two years and provide the bulk of the units and troops of the Polish II Corps.

The Polish II Corps was created in 1943 from various units fighting alongside the Allies in all theatres of war. The 3rd Carpathian Division was formed in the Middle East from smaller Polish units fighting in Egypt and Tobruk, as well as the Polish Army in the East that was evacuated from the USSR through the Persian Corridor. Its creation was based on British Army Act of 1940 that allowed the allied units of the exiled government of Poland to be grouped on one theatre of war. However, the British command never agreed to incorporate the exiled Siły Powietrzne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej into the Corps. [[:File:2polcorps ostrowski2.jpg|thumb|Soldiers from the 2nd Polish Corps pose during the Adriatic Offensive]] In 1944 the Corps was transferred from Egypt to Italy, where it became an independent part of the British Eighth Army under General Oliver Leese. During 1944-1945 the Corps fought with distinction in the Italian campaign, most notably during the fourth and final Battle of Monte Cassino, the Battle of Ancona during Operation Olive (the fighting on the Gothic Line in September 1944) and the Battle of Bologna during the Allies' final offensive in Italy in March 1945.

In 1944 it numbered about 50,000 soldiers. During the three subsequent battles the Corps suffered heavy losses (in the final stage of the Battle of Monte Cassino even the support units were mobilised and used in combat) and it was suggested to Gen. Anders that he withdraw his units. However, since the Soviet Union broke diplomatic relations with the Polish government and no Poles were allowed out of the USSR, Anders believed that the only source of recruits was ahead - in German POW camps and concentration camps.

By 1945 new units were added composed mostly from freed POWs and Poles forced to join the Wehrmacht, increasing the amount of soldiers to approximately 75,000; approximately 20,000 of them were transferred to other Polish units fighting in the West. After the war the divisions of the Corps were used in Italy until 1946, when they were transported to Britain and demobilised. The total establishment of the Polish Second Corps in 1946 was 103,000. The majority of soldiers remained in exile and settled in Britain.

Composizione[modifica | modifica wikitesto]

Nel maggio del 1945 il Secondo Corpo era formato da 55.780 uomini e circa 1.500 donne dei servizi ausiliari e l'orso Wojtek, mascotte del corpo sin da quando era di stanza in Iran. La maggior parte degli effettivi era formata da cittadini polacchi deportati dalla NKVD nei gulag sovietici nel 1939, a seguito dell'occupazione sovietica della Polonia orientale. A seguito dell'operazione Barbarossa e dell'accordo Sikorski-Mayski molti dei prigionieri furono rilasciati affinché potessero raggiungere l'esercito polacco in Oriente che si stava formando nel sud della Russia ed in Kazakistan. Per ragioni geopolitiche, tuttavia, l'URSS ritirò il suo appoggio alla formazione di quest'esercito sul suo territorio e ne ridusse di conseguenza gli approvvigionamenti. Ciò indusse il generale Władysław Anders a portare le sue truppe nella parte di Persia occupata dai britannici. Dall'Iran i polacchi si spostarono nella Palestina sotto mandato inglese, dove si unirono alle forze della terza divisione dei Carpazi, composta principalmente da soldati polacchi fuggiti nel Libano francese attraverso la Romania e l'Ungheria dopo l'invasione tedesca della Polonia.

La maggior parte degli uomini proveniva dai vovoidati orientali della Polonia prebellica, la maggior parte, inoltre, era tecnicamente polacca ma, tuttavia, anche altre nazionalità erano presenti, in particolare ebrei, bielorussi e ucraini. Dopo

The main bulk of the soldiers were from the eastern voivodeships of pre-war Poland. Although the majority of them were ethnic Poles, there were also members of other nationalities who joined the units of II Corps, most notably Jews, Belarusians and Ukrainians. After being relocated to Palestine, where there was little for the enlisted men to do, many Jewish soldiers of the corps "unofficially" discharged themselves by simply fading into the countryside. Menachem Begin, however, though encouraged to desert by friends of his, refused to remove the uniform until he was officially discharged from the army.

A Polish soldier Master Corporal Emil Czech plays the Hejnał Mariacki in the Monte Cassino monastery ruins.

L'equipaggiamento era così composto:

Perdite[modifica | modifica wikitesto]

Durante la campagna d'Italia il Secondo Corpo perse 11.379 uomini, dei quali 2.301 caduti in battaglia, 8,543 feriti e 535 dispersi.

Ordine di battaglia[modifica | modifica wikitesto]

At the time of its demobilisation in 1946, the 2nd Polish Corps establishment was as follows.
The coloured numbers refer to the Unit Code Signs marked on all vehicles. Black number on white denotes original colour no known
NB: There are some differences between this Ordre de Bataille and the one at the time of the Battle for Monte Cassino in 1944.

Emblem of the Polish 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division
Emblem of the Polish 5th Kresowa Infantry Division
Emblem of the Polish 2nd Warszawski Armoured Division
Gen Anders inspecting Armoured Forces Training Centre with Gen Przewlocki and Col Szostak in the background Italy 1945
Emblem of the Polish 14th Wielkopolska Armoured Brigade
Badge of the Polish 2nd Corps
  • 2nd Corps Artillery Group CO: Brig.Gen. Roman Odzierzyński
    • 9th Medium Artillery Regiment
    • 10th Medium Artillery Regiment Unit Code 3501
    • 11th Medium Artillery Regiment
    • 12th Medium Artillery Regiment
    • 13th Medium Artillery Regiment
  • Other HQ Units
    • 10th Engineer Battalion
    • 1st Railway Engineer Battalion
    • 10th Bridge Engineer Company
    • 10th Bomb Disposal Platoon
    • 301 Engineer Company
    • 306 Engineer Material Park Platoon
    • 11th Signals Battalion
      • 11th Radio Platoon
      • 12th Information Platoon
      • 385 Signals Company
      • 386 Signals Platoon
      • 387 Signals Platoon
      • 389 Radio Platoon
      • 104 Cipher Section
      • 390 Signals Company
      • 392 Radio Platoon
      • Air Traffic Control Platoon
      • 21st Transport Company File:Unit code no colour3521.gif
Wojtek soldier bear - mascote of 22nd Artillery Supply Company
      • 22nd Transport Company (Artillery Supply Company)
        • 61 Artillery Supply Platoon
        • 62 Artillery Supply Platoon
        • 63 Artillery Supply Platoon
        • 64 Artillery Supply Platoon
        • 65 Artillery Supply Platoon
      • 23rd Transport Company File:Unit code no colour3523.gif
      • 29th Ambulance CompanyFile:Unit code no colour3529.gif
      • 2nd Traffic Control Squadron
      • 11th Military Police (Provost) Squadron File:Unit code no colour3518.gif
      • 12th Military Police (Provost) Squadron
      • 460 Military Police (Provost) Squadron
        • Investigation Platoon
        • Dog Handling Platoon
      • 12th Field Court
      • 13th Workshop Company
      • 35th Workshop Company
      • 12th Geographic Company
        • 312 Map Store
      • 316 Transport Company: Women's Auxiliary Service (Poland) File:Unit code no colour3650f.gif
      • 317 Transport Company: Women's Auxiliary Service (Poland)
      • 318 Mobile Canteen/Mobile Library Company: Women's Auxiliary Service (Poland) File:Unit code no colour3652f.gif
      • 325 Supply Depot
      • 326 Supply Depot
      • 327 Supply Depot
        Officer Cadet (Armoured Cavalry) Graduation Col Szostak awarding Diplomas Italy 1945
      • 328 Supply Depot
      • 331 Field Bakery
      • 332 Field Bakery
      • 333 Field Butchery
      • 334 Fuel Depot
      • 335 Fire Fighting Team
      • 336 Stationary Supplies Depot
      • 31st Sanitary (Medical) Company
      • 31st Sanitary (Medical) Company
      • 32nd Field Hygiene Platoon
      • 34th Anti-malaria Section
      • Field Chemical-Bacteriological Section
      • 344 Medical Supplies Depot
      • 345 Field Surgery Team
      • 346 Field Surgery Team
      • 347 Field Surgery Team
      • 348 Field Surgery Team
      • 349 Field Blood Transfusion Team
      • 350 Field Surgery Team
      • 351 Field Surgery Team
      • 352 Field Blood Transfusion Team
      • 370 Material Salvage Depot
      • 371 Material Salvage Depot
      • 372 Material Salvage Depot
      • 375 Field Bath
      • 375 Field Bath and Laundry
      • 40 Material Park: Transport Section
      • 413 Forward Ammunition Depot
      • 104 Central Field Post Office
        • 117 Field Post Office
        • 127 Field Post Office
      • 55 Mobile Stores Repair Platoon

thumb|Two Soldiers of 5th (Polish) Field Hospital, just before coming to Britain.

  • 2nd CORPS BASE CO:Gen Przewlocki
    • Guard Battalion A
    • Guard Battalion B
    • Guard Battalion C
    • Guard Battalion D
    • 1st Military Hospital
    • 3rd Military Hospital
    • 3rd Field Hospital (Former 3rd Casualty Clearing Station)
    • 5th Field Hospital (Former 5th Casualty Clearing Station)
    • 14th Field Court
  • 7th INFANTRY DIVISION Reserve Unit.File:Unit code no colour3750f.gif
    • 17th Infantry Brigade
      • 21st Infantry Battalion
      • 22nd Infantry Battalion
      • 7th Armoured Regiment
      • 17th Artillery Regiment
        • 17th Machine Gun Company
        • 17th Engineer Company
        • 17th Signals Company
        • 17th Workshop Company
        • 17th Engineer Company
        • 17th Military Police (Provost) Squadron

See also[modifica | modifica wikitesto]

References[modifica | modifica wikitesto]

  • Władysław Anders, Mémoires, 1939-1946, La Jeune Parque (publ.), Paris 1948,
  • Piotr Żaroń, Armia Polska w ZSRR, na Bliskim i Środkowym Wschodzie, Warszawa 1981,
  • Witold Biegański, Krótki informator historyczny o Wojsku Polskim w latach II wojny światowej, tom 5, Regularne jednostki Wojska Polskiego na Zachodzie, Warszawa 1967,
  • Andrzej Przemyski, Ostatni komendant. Generał Leopold Okulicki, Lublin 1990,
  • Igor Błagowieszczański, Artyleria w II wojnie światowej, Warszawa 1983,
  • Bronisław Dzikiewicz, Z teodolitem pod Monte Cassino, Warszawa 1984,
  • Wacław Król, Polskie dywizjony lotnicze w Wielkiej Brytanii 1940-1945, Warszawa 1982,
  • Jan Paśnicki, Podniebni artylerzyści, Polska Zbrojna, 1994 (artykuł byłego pilota 663 DSA na temat 50 rocznicy powstania jednostki i kontynuowaniu jej tradycji przez brytyjski 663 Dywizjon Korpusu Lotnictwa Wojsk Lądowych),
  • Michał Polak, Logistyczne zabezpieczenie działań 2 Korpusu Polskiego (grudzień 1944 – kwiecień 1945), Przegląd Historyczno-Wojskowy, Nr 4 (209), Warszawa 2005,
  • Janusz Odziemkowski, Służba Duszpasterska Wojska Polskiego 1914-1945, Warszawa 1998,
  • Maciej Zajączkowski, Sztylet Komandosa, Warszawa 1991,
  • Adam Majewski, Wojna, ludzie i medycyna, Lublin 1972,
  • Kazimierz Frontczak, Siły Zbrojne Polski Ludowej. Przejście na stopę pokojową 1945-1947, Warszawa 1974,
  • Yury Hrybouski, Losy żołnierzy Polskich Sił Zbrojnych na Zachodzie po powrocie na Białoruś, Przegląd Historyczno-Wojskowy nr 2 (197) z 2003 r., ISSN 1640-6281 (WC · ACNP),

Collegamenti esterni[modifica | modifica wikitesto]

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