Military Organization Lizard Union
Encyclopedia
Organizacja Wojskowa Związek Jaszczurczy (Military Organization Lizard Union, short for Związek Jaszczurczy, abbreviated OW ZJ) was an organization of Polish resistance in World War II. Created in 1939 and transformed into National Armed Forces (Narodowe Siły Zbrojne, NSZ) in 1942, it represented far-right of the Polish political spectrum (related to the National Radical Camp (Obóz Narodowo-Radykalny, ONR) political party) and thus refused to recognize the Polish Underground State (although there was some uneasy tactical cooperation for practical reasons).
ONR-ABC, a faction of the National Radical Camp (Obóz Narodowo-Radykalny, ONR). On a structural level it was subordinated to Organizacja Polska, a military department of ONR.
ONR-ABC was not supportive of the mainstream Polish Underground State related to the Polish government in exile
, and thus OW ZJ became an alternate Polish military, a counterweight to the ZWZ
-AK
of the Underground State. Perhaps ironically, the OW ZJ and its nemesis, the communist NKVD
-controlled Gwardia Ludowa
/Armia Ludowa
, were the two major factions of Polish resistance that did not recognize the mainstream ZWZ-AK.
The Związek Jaszczurczy conducted intelligence and sabotage operations within territory of Nazi occupied Poland as well as in and around Berlin, Brandenburg area, München, Silesia, Bavaria, Westfalen, Ruhr Basin, Hamburg, Bremen, western and eastern Pomerania area including Krolewiec, and Gdansk. The eradication of the Związek Jaszczurczy became of such importance to the Nazis, that already at the end of 1940, the Gestapo
created dedicated unit, known as the SS-Sonderkommando ZJ [ger. Special Unit ZJ], in order to stop its sabotage and intelligence activities. In December 1941 the first wave of arrests of the NSZ / Zwiazek Jaszczurczy's agents began. At the end of 1943 alone, 80 individuals were arrested. The Military Tribunal of III Reich, German military laws, more rigorously expanded during war, dealt with those arrested mercilessly. From among dozens of arrested, only 3 individuals (among them one German national) were found not guilty. The others were sentenced to lengthy imprisonment, and the half of them were sentenced to death. The names of the ZJ agents of the Intelligence Unit “West” sentenced to death and executed by the Nazis by beheading at the Moabit prison in Berlin, are immortalized on a commemorative plaque at the St. Brigida's Basilica in Gdansk
, Poland.
In September 1942 OW ZJ merged with part of National Military Organization
(Narodowa Organizacja Wojskowa, the rest of which merged with ZWZ-AK) and formed the National Armed Forces (Narodowe Siły Zbrojne). The OW ZJ faction would also be opposed when the NZS decided to cooperate with AK in 1944, and the so called NZS-ZJ faction would break off the main NSZ and refuse most cooperation with AK. Members of the OW ZJ, and later, NZS, considered Soviet Union
to be enemy of the Polish people just as Nazi Germany
was and thus were opposed to the Soviet communist regime which became established in Poland after World War II. For political expediency reasons, the communist regime branded them enemies of the state and the communist propaganda apparatus consistently referred to them as Fascists and Nazis. (see cursed soldiers
).
, with various propaganda
operations.
Among many accomplishments of the ZJ Intelligence Unit “West” which played significant role in the outcome of the II World War were: obtaining information about Nazi aggression on Greece, obtaining a date of attack by the Afrika Korps
, led by Erwin Rommel
, towards Alexandria
, establishing the location of Nazi battleship “Tirpitz
”, establishing locations of ultra-secret Nazi V-2 rocket manufacturing facility in Peenemünde
, establishing the location of the test-site of German V rockets along with their precise drawings and dimensions.
The ZJ also managed to infiltrate its agents into the Deutsche Werke Kiel
repair shipyard in Gdynia
in order to ascertain the number and types of vessels being repaired there, and the extent of their battle damage – this allowed them, in turn, to locate the German battleship Gneisenau
which escaped the British Navy seeking to destroy it amidst the Norwegian
fjord
s .
ZJ is credited with a destruction of Nazi experimental submarine in Gdansk.
In 1942 OW ZJ had most likely about 10,000 members, some Polish historians give a higher estimates, even up to the rank of 70,000.
OW ZJ had most influence in Warsaw
, Kielce
, Radom
and Łódź.
History
It was created in October 1939 by Group Szaniec, itself originating from the far rightFar right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
ONR-ABC, a faction of the National Radical Camp (Obóz Narodowo-Radykalny, ONR). On a structural level it was subordinated to Organizacja Polska, a military department of ONR.
ONR-ABC was not supportive of the mainstream Polish Underground State related to the Polish government in exile
Polish government in Exile
The Polish government-in-exile, formally known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in Exile , was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Poland of September 1939, and the subsequent occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, which...
, and thus OW ZJ became an alternate Polish military, a counterweight to the ZWZ
Zwiazek Walki Zbrojnej
Związek Walki Zbrojnej was an underground army formed in Poland following its invasion in September 1939 by Germany and the Soviet Union that opened World War II.The precursor to the ZWZ was the Service...
-AK
Armia Krajowa
The Armia Krajowa , or Home Army, was the dominant Polish resistance movement in World War II German-occupied Poland. It was formed in February 1942 from the Związek Walki Zbrojnej . Over the next two years, it absorbed most other Polish underground forces...
of the Underground State. Perhaps ironically, the OW ZJ and its nemesis, the communist 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....
-controlled Gwardia Ludowa
Gwardia Ludowa
Gwardia Ludowa or GL was a communist armed organisation in Poland, organised by the Soviet created Polish Workers Party. It was the largest military organization which refused to join the structures of the Polish Underground State. It was created in 1942 and in 1944 it was incorporated by 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...
, were the two major factions of Polish resistance that did not recognize the mainstream ZWZ-AK.
The Związek Jaszczurczy conducted intelligence and sabotage operations within territory of Nazi occupied Poland as well as in and around Berlin, Brandenburg area, München, Silesia, Bavaria, Westfalen, Ruhr Basin, Hamburg, Bremen, western and eastern Pomerania area including Krolewiec, and Gdansk. The eradication of the Związek Jaszczurczy became of such importance to the Nazis, that already at the end of 1940, the 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...
created dedicated unit, known as the SS-Sonderkommando ZJ [ger. Special Unit ZJ], in order to stop its sabotage and intelligence activities. In December 1941 the first wave of arrests of the NSZ / Zwiazek Jaszczurczy's agents began. At the end of 1943 alone, 80 individuals were arrested. The Military Tribunal of III Reich, German military laws, more rigorously expanded during war, dealt with those arrested mercilessly. From among dozens of arrested, only 3 individuals (among them one German national) were found not guilty. The others were sentenced to lengthy imprisonment, and the half of them were sentenced to death. The names of the ZJ agents of the Intelligence Unit “West” sentenced to death and executed by the Nazis by beheading at the Moabit prison in Berlin, are immortalized on a commemorative plaque at the St. Brigida's Basilica in Gdansk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
, Poland.
In September 1942 OW ZJ merged with part of National Military Organization
National Military Organization
Narodowa Organizacja Wojskowa was one of the Polish resistance movements in World War II. Created in 1939, it did not agree to merge with the Service for Poland's Victory /Union of Armed Struggle /Armia Krajowa but recognized the Polish government in exile. Politically related to the National Party...
(Narodowa Organizacja Wojskowa, the rest of which merged with ZWZ-AK) and formed the National Armed Forces (Narodowe Siły Zbrojne). The OW ZJ faction would also be opposed when the NZS decided to cooperate with AK in 1944, and the so called NZS-ZJ faction would break off the main NSZ and refuse most cooperation with AK. Members of the OW ZJ, and later, NZS, considered Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
to be enemy of the Polish people just as Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
was and thus were opposed to the Soviet communist regime which became established in Poland after World War II. For political expediency reasons, the communist regime branded them enemies of the state and the communist propaganda apparatus consistently referred to them as Fascists and Nazis. (see cursed soldiers
Cursed soldiers
The cursed soldiers is a name applied to a variety of Polish resistance movements formed in the later stages of World War II and afterwards. Created by some members of the Polish Secret State, these clandestine organizations continued their armed struggle against the Stalinist government of Poland...
).
Contributions to the Allied Cause
OW ZJ did not carry out many combat operations (in any case uncommon until the 1942-1944 period), but instead had a well-developed intelligence network. It also engaged in psychological warfarePsychological warfare
Psychological warfare , or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations , have been known by many other names or terms, including Psy Ops, Political Warfare, “Hearts and Minds,” and Propaganda...
, with various propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
operations.
Among many accomplishments of the ZJ Intelligence Unit “West” which played significant role in the outcome of the II World War were: obtaining information about Nazi aggression on Greece, obtaining a date of attack by the Afrika Korps
Afrika Korps
The German Africa Corps , or the Afrika Korps as it was popularly called, was the German expeditionary force in Libya and Tunisia during the North African Campaign of World War II...
, led by Erwin Rommel
Erwin Rommel
Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel , popularly known as the Desert Fox , was a German Field Marshal of World War II. He won the respect of both his own troops and the enemies he fought....
, towards Alexandria
Military history of Egypt during World War II
- Introduction :In 1882 Egypt became a de facto British colony. This continued until 1922 when Egypt was granted its independence, but British troops remained in the country and true self rule did not occur until 1952 with the rise to power of Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser.-History of British rule:In...
, establishing the location of Nazi battleship “Tirpitz
Tirpitz
Tirpitz may refer to:* Alfred von Tirpitz, German admiral* German battleship Tirpitz, named for the admiral* Tirpitz , a pig rescued from the sinking of the SMS Dresden, and named after the admiral...
”, establishing locations of ultra-secret Nazi V-2 rocket manufacturing facility in Peenemünde
Peenemünde
The Peenemünde Army Research Center was founded in 1937 as one of five military proving grounds under the Army Weapons Office ....
, establishing the location of the test-site of German V rockets along with their precise drawings and dimensions.
The ZJ also managed to infiltrate its agents into the Deutsche Werke Kiel
Deutsche Werke
Deutsche Werke was a German shipbuilding company founded in 1925 when Kaiserliche Werft Kiel and other shipyards were merged. It came as a result of the Treaty of Versailles after World War I that forced the German defence industry to shrink...
repair shipyard in Gdynia
Gdynia
Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...
in order to ascertain the number and types of vessels being repaired there, and the extent of their battle damage – this allowed them, in turn, to locate the German battleship Gneisenau
German battleship Gneisenau
Gneisenau was a German capital ship, alternatively described as a battleship and battlecruiser, of the German Kriegsmarine. She was the second vessel of her class, which included one other ship, Scharnhorst. The ship was built at the Deutsche Werke dockyard in Kiel; she was laid down on 6 May 1935...
which escaped the British Navy seeking to destroy it amidst the Norwegian
Norwegian
Norwegian may refer to:* Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe* Norwegian people* Demographics of Norway* The Norwegian language, including the two official written forms:...
fjord
Fjord
Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...
s .
ZJ is credited with a destruction of Nazi experimental submarine in Gdansk.
Structure and membership
OW ZJ commander for most of its period was Władysław Marcinkowski "Jaxa".In 1942 OW ZJ had most likely about 10,000 members, some Polish historians give a higher estimates, even up to the rank of 70,000.
OW ZJ had most influence in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Kielce
Kielce
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...
, Radom
Radom
Radom is a city in central Poland with 223,397 inhabitants . It is located on the Mleczna River in the Masovian Voivodeship , having previously been the capital of Radom Voivodeship ; 100 km south of Poland's capital, Warsaw.It is home to the biennial Radom Air Show, the largest and...
and Łódź.
External links
Organizacja Wojskowa Związek Jaszczurczy in PWN Encyklopedia Związek Jaszczurczy Związek Jaszczurczy i „Grupa Szańca” Z kart Historii Wywiadu "Zachod" ZJ i NSZ National Armed Forces - Historical BriefFurther reading
- Zbigniew S. Siemaszko, Narodowe Siły Zbrojne, Londyn 1982
- Stanisław Żochowski, O Narodowych Siłach Zbrojnych – NSZ, Lublin 1994
- Władysław Marcinkowski "Jaxa", Wspomnienia 1934-1945, Warszawa 1998
- Krzysztof Komorowski, Polityka i walka. Konspiracja zbrojna ruchu narodowego 1939-1945, Warszawa 2000
- Kazimierz Litwiejko, Narodowa Organizacja Wojskowa. Okręg Białystok 1941-1945, Białystok 2001
- Krzysztof Kaczmarski, Podziemie narodowe na Rzeszowszczyźnie 1939-1944, Rzeszów 2003