Holy Cross Mountains Brigade
Encyclopedia
The Holy Cross Mountains Brigade was a tactical unit of the Polish underground
NSZ organization during World War II
, which did not obey orders to merge with the Home Army in 1944 and as a result was part of the NSZ-ZJ
faction.
During its wartime existence, the brigade fought practically every other armed faction in Poland, including both the German and Soviet armies as well as other Polish underground units.
region out of the 204th infantry battalion and Special Action Groups of the NSZ-ZJ. It varied in number from 822 soldiers in December 1944 to 1418 soldiers in May 1945. The purpose of the brigade was the realization of the political and military program of NSZ. The commander of the brigade was Colonel Szacki ("Bohun-Dabrowski"). The unit fought against the Germans (among others at Brzescie, Zagnansk, Cacow and Marcinkowice), the Soviet NKVD
forces, the Polish communist partisans of the Armia Ludowa
(at Fanislawice and Borow) and occasionally against the peasant partisans of the BCh.
The brigade used a four-month truce with German forces as well as questionable contacts with German Gestapo
officials to march behind German lines several hundred kilometers to the southwest in an ultimately successful bid to make contact with U.S. forces.
In January 1945 it began a retreat through Silesia
into the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
with the tacit approval of German forces who did not wish to have a second front open at their backs while they were trying to fight against the advancing Red Army. Between January 15, 1945 and May of the same year the brigade suspended all military operations against the German army. The brigade's movement to Czechoslovakia during this time was aided by the confusion reigning in the German Army's rear areas that had been created by the January offensive of the Red Army
.
In April 1945, now in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, the brigade found itself in an area surrounded by substantial German forces and its German contacts began insisting on closer collaboration. As a result the commanders of the brigade agreed to a limited plan whereby small units of the force were to cross or be parachuted by the Germans back into Poland in order to carry out intelligence work and possibly sabotage at the rear of the advancing Red Army. According to former soldiers, they were all instructed by the brigade's command to ignore their German assigned tasks once in Poland and instead try to make contact with NSZ headquarters. Out of the units sent, two turned around and made their way back to the main force, while several ran into Soviet and Polish communist forces and were liquidated. During the same period, the second in command, Władysław Marcinkowski pseudonym "Jaxa", took part in a German sponsored conference involving various collaborationist and fascist organizations during which, according to Marcinkowski, the Germans made an offer of forming a Vlasov
style formation out of the brigade. Marcinkowski refused the offer and tried to stall by claiming not to have the authority to agree to it.
Marcinkowski, along with Hubert Jura, pseudonym "Tom", who was the main liaison officer between the Germans and the brigade, were members of the extreme-right faction Szaniec within the NSZ-ZJ (which was itself a far right faction of pre-1944 NSZ). Jura's role in the actions undertaken by the unit during this time have not been fully explained. Jura was in fact a Gestapo or SD agent, he used internal politics of the NSZ-ZJ to settle personal scores (under the guise of "fighting communism within NSZ-ZJ"). There were outstanding death sentences on him issued by both the Home Army and the portion of pre-1944 NSZ which merged with it, for collaboration, although the leader of the brigade at the time, Szacki, may not have been aware of his identity.
Most of the controversy concerning the Holy Cross Mountains Brigade, and whether or not it actively collaborated with the Nazis, concern this period. However, during the same time, Col. Szacki made contacts with the anti-German Czech underground and became involved in clandestine plans for an uprising in Plzeň.
Even though the planned uprising in Plzeň never materialized (due to other reasons), with the onset of May, the brigade renewed the fight against the Germans and on May 5 liberated the concentration camp at Holýšov
, which led the United States to recognize it as an Allied military unit. On the following day, the brigade fought alongside troops of the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division
in the assault that liberated Plzeň from Wehrmacht
occupation forces and restored it to Czechoslovakia
.
Following the end of the war in Europe, the presence of the brigade in Czechoslovakia became a contentious political issue for the U.S. forces. The British War Office declined to accept the brigade as a reinforcement unit for Polish forces under their command and communist officials in Poland, the Soviet Union, and Czechoslovakia raised accusations that the brigade had collaborated with the Nazis and should be turned over to communist authorities for trial. On August 6, 1945, the brigade was disarmed and moved to a displaced persons camp in Coburg
. Ironically, this allowed Colonel Szacki to recruit from the Poles in the DP camp, and by November 1945, the brigade numbered some 4,000 personnel.
Subsequently, men of the brigade were used in the formation of 25 Polish guard companies in the American occupied zone of Germany. The U.S. CIC kept tabs on the brigade's leadership during this time as the U.S. Army did not want any incidents with the Soviet forces. The brigade headquarters was demobilized on June 17, 1946 and, under the pressure of diplomacy from the communists, most of the Polish guard companies were disbanded in 1947. The formal alliances among members of the brigade are believed to have gradually dissolved by 1950, and later some of the senior officers of the brigade resettled in the United States
.
Polish resistance movement in World War II
The Polish resistance movement in World War II, with the Home Army at its forefront, was the largest underground resistance in all of Nazi-occupied Europe, covering both German and Soviet zones of occupation. The Polish defence against the Nazi occupation was an important part of the European...
NSZ organization during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, which did not obey orders to merge with the Home Army in 1944 and as a result was part of the NSZ-ZJ
Military Organization Lizard Union
Organizacja Wojskowa Związek Jaszczurczy was an organization of Polish resistance in World War II...
faction.
During its wartime existence, the brigade fought practically every other armed faction in Poland, including both the German and Soviet armies as well as other Polish underground units.
History
The brigade was created in August 1944 in the KielceKielce
Kielce ) is a city in central Poland with 204,891 inhabitants . It is also the capital city of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship since 1999, previously in Kielce Voivodeship...
region out of the 204th infantry battalion and Special Action Groups of the NSZ-ZJ. It varied in number from 822 soldiers in December 1944 to 1418 soldiers in May 1945. The purpose of the brigade was the realization of the political and military program of NSZ. The commander of the brigade was Colonel Szacki ("Bohun-Dabrowski"). The unit fought against the Germans (among others at Brzescie, Zagnansk, Cacow and Marcinkowice), the Soviet NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
forces, the Polish communist partisans of the Armia Ludowa
Armia Ludowa
Armia Ludowa was a communist partisan force set up by the Polish Workers' Party during World War II. Its aims were to support the military of the Soviet Union against German forces and aid the creation of a pro-Soviet communist government in Poland...
(at Fanislawice and Borow) and occasionally against the peasant partisans of the BCh.
The brigade used a four-month truce with German forces as well as questionable contacts with German Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
officials to march behind German lines several hundred kilometers to the southwest in an ultimately successful bid to make contact with U.S. forces.
In January 1945 it began a retreat through Silesia
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
into the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia
The Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was the majority ethnic-Czech protectorate which Nazi Germany established in the central parts of Bohemia, Moravia and Czech Silesia in what is today the Czech Republic...
with the tacit approval of German forces who did not wish to have a second front open at their backs while they were trying to fight against the advancing Red Army. Between January 15, 1945 and May of the same year the brigade suspended all military operations against the German army. The brigade's movement to Czechoslovakia during this time was aided by the confusion reigning in the German Army's rear areas that had been created by the January offensive of the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
.
In April 1945, now in the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, the brigade found itself in an area surrounded by substantial German forces and its German contacts began insisting on closer collaboration. As a result the commanders of the brigade agreed to a limited plan whereby small units of the force were to cross or be parachuted by the Germans back into Poland in order to carry out intelligence work and possibly sabotage at the rear of the advancing Red Army. According to former soldiers, they were all instructed by the brigade's command to ignore their German assigned tasks once in Poland and instead try to make contact with NSZ headquarters. Out of the units sent, two turned around and made their way back to the main force, while several ran into Soviet and Polish communist forces and were liquidated. During the same period, the second in command, Władysław Marcinkowski pseudonym "Jaxa", took part in a German sponsored conference involving various collaborationist and fascist organizations during which, according to Marcinkowski, the Germans made an offer of forming a Vlasov
Andrey Vlasov
Andrey Andreyevich Vlasov or Wlassow was a Russian Red Army general who collaborated with Nazi Germany during World War II.-Early career:...
style formation out of the brigade. Marcinkowski refused the offer and tried to stall by claiming not to have the authority to agree to it.
Marcinkowski, along with Hubert Jura, pseudonym "Tom", who was the main liaison officer between the Germans and the brigade, were members of the extreme-right faction Szaniec within the NSZ-ZJ (which was itself a far right faction of pre-1944 NSZ). Jura's role in the actions undertaken by the unit during this time have not been fully explained. Jura was in fact a Gestapo or SD agent, he used internal politics of the NSZ-ZJ to settle personal scores (under the guise of "fighting communism within NSZ-ZJ"). There were outstanding death sentences on him issued by both the Home Army and the portion of pre-1944 NSZ which merged with it, for collaboration, although the leader of the brigade at the time, Szacki, may not have been aware of his identity.
Most of the controversy concerning the Holy Cross Mountains Brigade, and whether or not it actively collaborated with the Nazis, concern this period. However, during the same time, Col. Szacki made contacts with the anti-German Czech underground and became involved in clandestine plans for an uprising in Plzeň.
Even though the planned uprising in Plzeň never materialized (due to other reasons), with the onset of May, the brigade renewed the fight against the Germans and on May 5 liberated the concentration camp at Holýšov
Holýšov
Holýšov is a town in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It lies on the Radbuza River, some to the south-west from the region capital of Pilsen....
, which led the United States to recognize it as an Allied military unit. On the following day, the brigade fought alongside troops of the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division
U.S. 2nd Infantry Division
The 2nd Infantry Division is a formation of the United States Army. Its current primary mission is the defense of South Korea in the initial stages of an invasion from North Korea until other American units can arrive...
in the assault that liberated Plzeň from Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
occupation forces and restored it to Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
.
Following the end of the war in Europe, the presence of the brigade in Czechoslovakia became a contentious political issue for the U.S. forces. The British War Office declined to accept the brigade as a reinforcement unit for Polish forces under their command and communist officials in Poland, the Soviet Union, and Czechoslovakia raised accusations that the brigade had collaborated with the Nazis and should be turned over to communist authorities for trial. On August 6, 1945, the brigade was disarmed and moved to a displaced persons camp in Coburg
Coburg
Coburg is a town located on the Itz River in Bavaria, Germany. Its 2005 population was 42,015. Long one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined with Bavaria by popular vote in 1920...
. Ironically, this allowed Colonel Szacki to recruit from the Poles in the DP camp, and by November 1945, the brigade numbered some 4,000 personnel.
Subsequently, men of the brigade were used in the formation of 25 Polish guard companies in the American occupied zone of Germany. The U.S. CIC kept tabs on the brigade's leadership during this time as the U.S. Army did not want any incidents with the Soviet forces. The brigade headquarters was demobilized on June 17, 1946 and, under the pressure of diplomacy from the communists, most of the Polish guard companies were disbanded in 1947. The formal alliances among members of the brigade are believed to have gradually dissolved by 1950, and later some of the senior officers of the brigade resettled in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.