Post
by michael mills » 06 Jun 2004 04:52
Up to March 1944, the NSZ fought against German occupation forces, and also against the communist underground, the Gwardia Ludowa, later the Armia Ludowa.
In March 1944, the NZS forces split up into different factions, depending on their view of how the armed struggle should proceed. By that time it was clear that the German Army was rapidly retreating from the Soviet Union, and that the Soviet Army would soon enter Polish territory. The question was whether to go on fighting the present German occupiers, or to concentrate on opposing the future Soviet occupiers.
Since the beginning of 1943, the German Government had been sending out peace feelers to the Delegatura, the clandestine representatives in Poland of the Government-in-Exile in London, trying to get an informal agreement to a cease-fire and a combined defence against the advancing Soviet army.
In the eastern territories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union in 1939 and conquered by Germany in 1941, the German propaganda had some success, and local units of the Armia Krajowa collaborated with german forces in fighting Communist partisans, particularly in Belorussia. In West Ukraine (Volhynia), the german occupation authorities helped Armia Krajowa units to resist the Ukrainian nationalist partisans who had deserted from German auxiliary units and were now massacring ethnic Poles.
However, in Central Poland, both the Armia Krajowa and the NSZ continued to fight against the German occupation forces. By March 1944, the Polish Government-in-Exile was pressing the Armia Krajowa (the underground force under its control) to rise up in revolt against the German occupation and seize some territory on which a Polish Government could be proclaimed before Soviet forces entered Polish territory and proclaimed a Communist Government (as they did in Lublin).
In March, part of the NSZ forces joined the Armia Krajowa in its preparations for the revolt which occurred in August. That meant that they had to cease fighting against Communist partisans, since otherwise they could not get the support of the Western Allies.
The other part of the NSZ refused to give up the fight against the Communist partisans, and thus did not join the Armia Krajowa. Since they now saw the approaching Soviet Army as the main threat to Polish independence, they ceased fighting against the German forces, and began an informal co-operation with them for the purpose of opposing the Soviet advance.
The Brygada Swietokrzyska was one of those elements that began cooperating with the German forces in March 1944. Although it was not under German command, it received logistical support and arms from the german authorities.
In May 1945, the Brygada, realising that Germany was going to lose, and hoping to gain credit with the Western Allies, turned against its former informal ally, and began launching attacks on German forces in Bohemia. In that respect it copied the Vlasov Army, the ROA which likewise revolted against Germany and captured Prague from the German occupiers, a couple of days before the arrival of the Soviet Army.
The story of the Brygada Swietokrzyska and other NSZ forces demonstrates the complexity of the relationship between Germany and Poland during the Second World War. It is simply not true that 100% of Poles opposed Germany, and that none collaborated. Once Germany began to lose its war with the Soviet Union, many highly placed Poles, including some leaders of the Polish underground, such as Grot-Rowecki, saw the Soviet Union as the greater threat and stopped fighting against Germany.
