Trial of the Generals
Encyclopedia
The Trial of the Generals was a totalitarian show trial
organized by the communist authorities of Poland
between July 31 and August 31, 1951. Its purpose was to cleanse the new pro-Soviet Polish Army of officers who had served in the armed forces of democratic Poland
or in the anti-Nazi resistance
during World War II
. The trial was used by the authorities in the political struggle for power within the new communist administration, and against Marshal of Poland Michał Rola-Żymierski as well as Generals Marian Spychalski
and Wacław Komar, whose political faction had fallen out of grace. The trial was led by Stalinist Colonel Stanisław Zarakowski.
All of the arrested officers were falsely accused of conspiracy against the Party and collaboration with British
and American
intelligence services. The following so-called TUN court case – an acronym for the names of three most notable participants: Tatar-Utnik-Nowicki, was launched in 1951 against the custodians of the Fund of National Defense (FON) secretly stolen by Berman's
security forces in 1947.
All of the accused Generals were sentenced to life imprisonment, including Franciszek Herman, Jerzy Kirchmayer
, Stefan Mossor
and Stanisław Tatar. The Colonels Marian Jurecki, Marian Utnik and Stanisław Nowicki were sentenced to 15 years in prison, while Major Roman and Commander Wacek were sentenced to 12 years in prison. In the so-called "splinter trials", additional 86 officers of the Polish Army, Navy and Air Forces were arrested and tried. Most of them were tortured by the secret police (Urząd Bezpieczeństwa) under Roman Romkowski
. Around 40 indicted officers were condemned to death. Only the first 20 executions were carried out (see also: 1951 Mokotów Prison execution
).
In 1956, after the end of Stalinism
in Poland, all of the imprisoned were set free, and rehabilitated
soon afterwards during the Polish October
, except for Gen. Herman who was killed in prison. It was not until 1990 that all wrongfully accused were fully rehabilitated (except for General Mossor).
Show trial
The term show trial is a pejorative description of a type of highly public trial in which there is a strong connotation that the judicial authorities have already determined the guilt of the defendant. The actual trial has as its only goal to present the accusation and the verdict to the public as...
organized by the communist authorities of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
between July 31 and August 31, 1951. Its purpose was to cleanse the new pro-Soviet Polish Army of officers who had served in the armed forces of democratic Poland
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
or in the anti-Nazi resistance
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...
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...
. The trial was used by the authorities in the political struggle for power within the new communist administration, and against Marshal of Poland Michał Rola-Żymierski as well as Generals Marian Spychalski
Marian Spychalski
Marian "Marek" Spychalski was a Polish architect, military commander, and communist politician.Born to a working-class family in Łódź, he graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at the Warsaw University of Technology in 1931...
and Wacław Komar, whose political faction had fallen out of grace. The trial was led by Stalinist Colonel Stanisław Zarakowski.
All of the arrested officers were falsely accused of conspiracy against the Party and collaboration with British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
intelligence services. The following so-called TUN court case – an acronym for the names of three most notable participants: Tatar-Utnik-Nowicki, was launched in 1951 against the custodians of the Fund of National Defense (FON) secretly stolen by Berman's
Jakub Berman
Jakub Berman was born into a middle-class Jewish family. Berman first became a prominent communist in prewar Poland. Toward the end of World War II he joined the Politburo of the Soviet-formed Polish United Workers' Party...
security forces in 1947.
All of the accused Generals were sentenced to life imprisonment, including Franciszek Herman, Jerzy Kirchmayer
Jerzy Kirchmayer
Jerzy Maria Kirchmayer was a Polish historian and military commander, a brigadier general of the Polish Army and one of the first historians of the Warsaw Uprising of 1944.-Life:...
, Stefan Mossor
Stefan Mossor
Stefan Mossor was a Polish general. Member of the Polish Legions. In the Second Polish Republic he reached the rank of the colonel. Taken prisoner by the Germans during the invasion of Poland. Joined the Ludowe Wojsko Polskie after the war; was involved in the Operation Vistula...
and Stanisław Tatar. The Colonels Marian Jurecki, Marian Utnik and Stanisław Nowicki were sentenced to 15 years in prison, while Major Roman and Commander Wacek were sentenced to 12 years in prison. In the so-called "splinter trials", additional 86 officers of the Polish Army, Navy and Air Forces were arrested and tried. Most of them were tortured by the secret police (Urząd Bezpieczeństwa) under Roman Romkowski
Roman Romkowski
General Roman Romkowski born Natan Grünspau [Grinszpan]-Kikiel, was a Polish-Jewish communist, second in command in Berman's Ministry of Public Security during the late 1940s and early 1950's. Along with several other high functionaries including Dir. Anatol Fejgin, Col. Józef Różański, Dir...
. Around 40 indicted officers were condemned to death. Only the first 20 executions were carried out (see also: 1951 Mokotów Prison execution
1951 Mokotów Prison execution
On March 1, 1951, the Soviet-controlled communist Polish secret police, Urząd Bezpieczeństwa , carried out an execution of seven members of the 4th Headquarters of anti-Communist organization Wolność i Niezawisłość in the Mokotów Prison in Warsaw...
).
In 1956, after the end of Stalinism
Stalinism
Stalinism refers to the ideology that Joseph Stalin conceived and implemented in the Soviet Union, and is generally considered a branch of Marxist–Leninist ideology but considered by some historians to be a significant deviation from this philosophy...
in Poland, all of the imprisoned were set free, and rehabilitated
Rehabilitation (Soviet)
Rehabilitation in the context of the former Soviet Union, and the Post-Soviet states, was the restoration of a person who was criminally prosecuted without due basis, to the state of acquittal...
soon afterwards during the Polish October
Polish October
Polish October, also known as October 1956, Polish thaw, or Gomułka's thaw, marked a change in the Polish internal political scene in the second half of 1956...
, except for Gen. Herman who was killed in prison. It was not until 1990 that all wrongfully accused were fully rehabilitated (except for General Mossor).