Forgotten WW2 soldiers

[Domen123]

Polish soldiers in the Wehrmacht and Polish soldiers in the Red Army during WW2.

In total up to 500,000 Poles served in the Wehrmacht during WW2. Most of them were from the areas of Poland incorporated by the III Reich in October of 1939 (so called Neue Ostgebiete - Provinz Oberschlesien, Reichsgau Danzig-Westpreussen, Reichsgau Wartheland, Bezirk Bialystok), the remaining ones were from the areas of Poland captured in 1941 (Reichskomissariat Ostland, Reichskomissariat Ukraine), from GG and from all other areas. Poles from the incorporated areas - especially those who signed the Volksliste (and most of them on these areas did it, from practical reasons - to survive) were obliged to fulfil military duty in the German army in the same way as German citizens.

That's why Poles from the incorporated areas were being conscripted to the German army (contrary to those from the Generalgouvernment, who were not being conscripted and those of them who served in the German army were either those who signed the Volksliste - and signing the Volksliste in GG was not as helpful to survive the occupation as in incorporated areas so very few did - or those who volunteered).

Out of them around 350 - 400 thousands were from Silesia (like Ludwik Machalica, Robert Uszok, Alojzy Lysko, Robert Czarnynoga, Franciszek Siedlaczek and others). Further 80,000 were from the areas of Pomerelia (Pommern) incorporated by Germany in 1939, so from the pre-war Województwo Pomorskie. In that second group (those from Pomerelia) was for example the grandfather of present Polish prime minister (Donald Tusk) - Józef Tusk, who served in 328. Grenadier-Ersatz-und Ausbilldungsbatallion and fought on the Eastern Front and later on the Western Front (in October of 1944 he deserted or was captured by English forces and by the end of November 1944 he joined the Polish Forces in the West). The remaning 20+ thousands were from other incorporated regions, GG and other areas.

Polish soldiers of Wehrmacht captured by Allied forces as well as Polish deserters from Wehrmacht were the most important source of reinforcements for Polish forces fighting alongside the Allies in Western Europe. For example Polish 2nd Corps under command of gen. Wladyslaw Anders alone (the same which successfuly fought for Monte Cassino in 1944) absorbed 16,500 Polish "Wehrmachters" in 1944 and further 18,000 in period January - May 1945.

Over 2,000 Poles - former soldiers of Afrika Korps - reinforced the 1st Polish Armoured Division of gen. Maczek and later fought in France, Belgium and Holland.

In total over 85,000 Polish Wehrmacht POWs reinforced Polish forces in the West. Most of them were Silesians. On the other hand, only 70,000 Polish POWs from Wehrmacht reinforced the Polish People's Army fighting alongside the Red Army, despite the fact that probably much more Polish "Wehrmachters" were captured on the Eastern Front. It is not known exactly what happened to the remaining ones, maybe they "enjoyed" the same very hard situation as German POWs in Russian captivity.

Aditionally, it is worth noticing, that over 240,000 Poles from Kresy (areas of Poland incorporated by the Soviet Union in October of 1939) were serving in ranks of the Red Army when the Great Patriotic War started, on 22 June 1941.

The exact number of Poles who died while serving in Wehrmacht is still unknown, but is estimated (basing on partial data, fragmentary sources) as much more than 100,000. Many thousands Poles also died serving in the Red Army.

--------------------------------------------------------

Memoirs of several Poles from Upper Silesia from their service in the Wehrmacht:

"W 1940 roku wziyni mnie do niymieckigo wojska. W jednym roku szeł żech na Paryż, a w drugim na Moskwa. Na ta Moskwa fajnie sie maszyrowało, bo było lato. Ale jak przyszła zima, niyjedyn z nos przeklon dziyń, że przyszedł na świat. Jo tam był ciężko ranny i dostołech sie do niewole. Do dom przyszło, żech jest zaginiony. Toż w kobiórskim kościele zrobili mi już pogrzeb. A jo - dzięka Bogu - wylizał sie z ran i zostołech niywolnikiym, swoji żech odrobił i doczekał szczęśliwie końca. W 1947 roku wypuścili nos."

"In 1940 they conscripted me to the German army. In one year I was marching on Paris, and in the next year towards Moscow. It was fine to march on Moscow, because it was Summer. But when the Winter came, many of us cursed the day, when they were born. I was heavily wounded there and I got captured. A message to my home arrived, that I had been missing. They even organized my funeral in the forest of Kobiór. And I - thank God - pulled through from my wounds and became a slave, I worked out my job and happily reached the end. In 1947 they released us."

Ludwik Machalica from Kobiór (in Upper Silesia).

"Szeł na nich ruski atak, ćma ich było. W bunkrze, kaj sie bronili, wszyscy byli wyzbijani. Ino Robert jakimś cudym żył. Siedzioł taki ogłupiały i rzykoł do Panienki, żeby Rusy z nim niy skończyły. Bo ta nie było u nich pardonu. Mioł jednak żyć. Dali mu spokój. A przy Rusach było dużo Poloków. I tak sie chneda dostoł do polskigo wojska pod Berlinga."

"They were under the attack of Ruskies, there were plenty of them. In the bunker, where they were defending, all were killed. Only Robert by some miracle was still alive. He was sitting so dazed and praying to the Lady Mary, asking Her to save him from Rusy. There was no mercy among them. But he was to live. They let him live. And there were many Poles with Rusy. And that's how soon after that he got to the Polish army under general Berling."

Helena Uszok from Bojszowy (in Upper Silesia) about her husband Robert Uszok.

"Z pociągu, który odjechał z Hanoweru, zostało nos jeszcze sześciu. Reszta - wszyscy zabici. Amerykony biją w dzień i noc. Ziemia się trzęsie, wszystko się pali, nawet kamienie. Kryjemy się w dziurach wykutych w skale, a krew się na nos leje, jak woda z deszczu. Wszędzie darci, wołani, płacz. Mamo, żegnom się z Wami, bo już z tej wojny niy powróca. Już Wos nigdy niy zobocza, ani moich Bojszów. Niech będzie pochwalony Jezus Chrystus."

"From the train, which arrived at Hannover, only six of us remained. The rest - all of them killed. Americans are firing days and nights. The ground is shaking, everything is burning, even stones. We hide in holes forged in the rock, and blood is pouring on us, like rainwater. Everywhere screams, cries, tears. Mom, I am saying good bye to You, because I won't come back from this war. I will never see You again, neither my Bojszowy. Praised be Jesus Christ!"

Robert Czarnynoga from the village of Bojszowy - his last letter to his mother.

Robert was KIA during the battle of Monte Cassino and is buried there.

Another inhabitant of Bojszowy - Alojzy Lysko - wrote a letter to his wife in October 1943:

"Leża w ruskim polu w dziurze i pisza tyn list z wielkim strachym, bo mi kule nad łebym gwizdajom. Niy gorsz się, Moja Żono, że Ci mało pisza, bo jo musza maszerować każdy dziyń po 20 kilometrów, to mi się na wieczór nic niy chce. Tela mnie ino cieszy, że maszeruja bliżyj chałpy."

"I am lying in a Ruski field in a trench and writing this letter with great fear, because bullets are whistling over my head. Don't resent, My Wife, that I don't write much to You, because I have to march 20 kilometres each day, so I am very tired each evening. The only thing which pleases me, is that each day I march closer to my home."

Alojzy Lysko was KIA on 12th of January 1944 near the village Jamki in western Ukraine.

300 - 320 inhabitants of the small village of Bojszowy in Upper Silesia served in the Wehrmacht during WW2 (yet in March of 1940 all Gornoslazacy born between 1894 and 1926 were listed in the German registery of conscripts). Of them 60 were KIA on the fronts of WW2 and further 40 were seriously WIA. Only 1 of these 320 was a volunteer.

Bojszowy was just one of many similar villages in Upper Silesia.

[Coldfire88]

that was great to read and very sad..

+ rep

[Domen123]

Thanks Coldfire!

I must also mention, that just after the end of WW2 in Communist Poland many Poles who served in the Wehrmacht were sometimes considered as traitors.

It was considered shameful. Situation of those who were lucky enough to be captured and enjoy the possibility of joining the Polish army was better.