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Home , 2nd New Zealand Division, Alphonse Juin, Battle of Monte Cassino, Charles Keightley, Divisional general, Feliks Konarski

Game design and rules: Karol Madaj Text: prof. dr hab. Michał Polak Symbol selection and editing: dr Tomasz Ginter, prof. dr hab. Michał Polak Biographies: dr hab. Marek Gałęzowski (MG), dr Barbara Męczykowska (BM), Karol Litwin (KL) Reviewer: ppłk. dr Krzysztof Gaj Editing: Piotr Chojnacki, Anna Zawadzka, Magdalena Baj, Zofia Krzywicka-Vauthier Translation: Anna Brojer, Jason Franzen, Andrzej Lipson, dr Łukasz Michalski, Jerzy Giebułtowski, Russ Williams Graphic design and typesetting: Tomasz Ginter, Łukasz M. Pogoda Illustrations: Tomasz Ginter, The Institute of National This game teaches recognition of historical symbols. Remembrance Archives, Polish Army Museum, Each pair of cards always has one symbol in common. Imperial War Museum, Fundacja Niepodległości, The goal is to find it and name it as quickly as possible. Wikipedia Commons and collections Maps: Tomasz Ginter Game components Printed by: Trefl

This game reimplements “ZnajZnak” published in 2012 132 playing cards

Text based on: ZnajZnak – Monte Pomnik 3 Dywizji Strzelców The 3rd Carpathian Ri e Karpackich Monument Polski Cmentarz Wojenny Polish War Cemetery na at Monte Cassino

Maps based on: Matthew Parker, Monte Cassino: the story of Gen. (1885–1969) Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski (1885–1969) the hardest-fought battle of World War Two Plut. Emil Czech Emil Czech Gen. (1888–1967) Gen. Alphonse Juin (1888–1967)

Gen. por. Wilhelm Schmalz (1901–1983) Lt. Gen. Wilhelm Schmalz (1901–1983)

© Instytut Pamięci Narodowej – Flaga Wielkiej Brytanii (Union Jack) Flag of Great Britain (Union Jack) Komisja Ścigania Zbrodni przeciwko Pułk 4 Pancerny „Skorpion” 4th Armored “Scorpion” Legia Zasługi Legion of Merit Narodowi Polskiemu, 2019 Czołg M3A3 Stuart M3A3 Stuart Tank Sowiecki pociąg deportacyjny Soviet deportation train

2 Grupa Artylerii 2nd Group National Education Office C 65 ul. Wołoska 7, 02-675 Warszawa, front (symbols) back (descriptions)

PDF: ISBN 978-83-8098-615-2 l Second extended edition 1 How to read the cards? Whoever first finds the common symbol says its 3 name aloud, then moves their own card to the top Example card (back) of the stack in the center. If the player does not know the symbol’s name, then they must spend valuable Small Symbol definitions seconds to turn the card over and read aloud the symbols symbol’s name (printed on the back). Pomnik 3 Dywizji Strzelców The 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division Karpackich Monument Polski Cmentarz Wojenny Polish War Cemetery na Monte Cassino at Monte Cassino

Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski (1885–1969) Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski (1885–1969) The game ends when someone has moved their last Plut. Emil Czech Corporal Emil Czech card to the center stack. Gen. Alphonse Juin (1888–1967) Gen. Alphonse Juin (1888–1967) 4

Letter of the Gen. por. Wilhelm Schmalz (1901–1983) Lt. Gen. Wilhelm Schmalz (1901–1983) card set Flaga Wielkiej Brytanii (Union Jack) Flag of Great Britain (Union Jack) Pułk 4 Pancerny „Skorpion” 4th Armored Regiment “Scorpion”

(here: set C) Legia Zasługi Legion of Merit

Czołg M3A3 Stuart M3A3 Stuart Tank Pomnik 3 Dywizji Strzelców The 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division Karpackich Sowiecki pociąg deportacyjnyMonumentSoviet deportation train Symbol 2 Grupa Artylerii 2nd Artillery Group Polski Cmentarz Wojenny Polish War Cemetery 65 na Monte Cassino Cat Monte Cassino

Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski (1885–1969) Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski (1885–1969)

Plut. Emil Czech Corporal Emil Czech

Gen. Alphonse Juin (1888–1967) Gen. Alphonse Juin (1888–1967)

Name ofGen. the por. symbol Wilhelm Schmalz (Polish) (1901–1983) NameLt. Gen. Wilhelm of the Schmalz symbol (1901–1983) (English)

Flaga Wielkiej Brytanii (Union Jack) Flag of Great Britain (Union Jack)

Warm-upPułk 4 Pancerny (2–8 „Skorpion” players) 4th Armored Regiment “Scorpion”

Legia Zasługi Legion of Merit Deal the cards equally among the players. 1 EachCzołg M3A3 player Stuart stacks their ownM3A3 cardsStuart Tank face up. Sowiecki pociąg deportacyjny Soviet deportation train

The2 Grupa youngest Artylerii player puts 2thend Artillery card Group from the top of 2 their stack into the center of the playing area. From65 now on,C all players simultaneously search for the common symbol which appears both on the top card of their own stack card and the stack in the center.

2 3 Duel (from 1 to 13 pairs of players) Whoever finds it first says “Stop!”, points to the common 3 symbol, and says its name. Players sit together in pairs to play. Each player is dealt five cards and holds them in their hand, in a face-up stack. 1 STOP!

“Christmas tree”

Each player in a pair simultaneously puts the card from the 2 bottom of their stack onto the table. Both players look for the After naming the symbol (or saying “I don’t know”), common symbol appearing on both cards. 4 the player turns their card over and reads aloud the symbol’s name (printed on the back).

3 Dywizja Strzelców Karpackich 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division

Flaga Stanów Zjednoczonych Flag of the of America

3 Dywizja Strzelców Karpackich 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division 13 Wileński Batalion Strzelców „Rysie” 13th Wilno “Lynx” Ri e Batalion Flaga Stanów Zjednoczonych Flag of the United States of America

13 Wileński Batalion Strzelców „Rysie” 13th Wilno “Lynx” Ri e Batalion

Wzgórze Monte Calvario, 593Wzgórze Monte Calvario, Monte 593 Calvario, Monte Calvario, Hill Hill 593 593

Naszywka rozpoznawcza Patch of the Polish 2 Brygady Pancernej 2nd Armored

Naszywka rozpoznawcza Patch of theth Polish 2 Brygady Pancernej Pułk 4 Pancerny „Skorpion”2nd Armored 4 Armored Brigade Regiment “Scorpion” Krzyż św. Benedykta Saint Benedict’s Cross Pułk 4 Pancerny „Skorpion” 15 Wileński Batalion4th Strzelców Armored „Wilki” 15th WilnoRegiment “Wolves” Ri e Battalion “Scorpion” Sztandar 5 Kresowej Dywizji Piechoty 5th Kresovian Division banner

16 Lwowski Batalion Strzelców 16th Ri e Batalion Krzyż św. Benedykta Saint Benedict’s Cross Czołg M4A2 Sherman III M4A2 Sherman III tank

Flaga Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej Flag of the Republic of Poland 15 Wileński Batalion Strzelców „Wilki” 15Jth Wilno “Wolves” Ri e Battalion4 4 Sztandar 5 Kresowej Dywizji Piechoty 5th Kresovian Infantry5 Division banner

16 Lwowski Batalion Strzelców 16th Lviv Ri e Batalion

Czołg M4A2 Sherman III M4A2 Sherman III tank

Flaga Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej Flag of the Republic of Poland J 4 If the player did not correctly name the symbol (or said Multiplayer variant (3–8 players) 5 “I don’t know”), then they take their card from the table and put it on top of their stack, face up. Then they put the card from the Deal five cards to each player. Each player holds their cards bottom of their stack onto the table, and the game continues. 1 in their hand, in a face-up stack. Players should all sit so that each player can clearly see the cards of the player on their WRONG! left. Each player covers their stack with their second hand.

At the “start” command, all players uncover their own 2 stacks and search for the common symbol on their own stack and on the stack of the player on their left.

If the player correctly named the symbol, then they give their card 6 to the opponent, who puts it on top of their own stack, face up. Then the player who correctly named the symbol puts the card from the bottom of their stack onto the table, and the game continues.

“3rd Carpathian Rifle Division” RIGHT!

The game ends when one player has no cards left in their 7 hand and is the first to find the common symbol on the two cards on the table. As an exception to the normal rule, the player does not have to name this last symbol. 7 Whoever first finds the common symbol says “stop”, If the player did not correctly name the symbol 3 points to the symbol, and says its name. During this time, all 5 (or said “I don’t know”), then they move their other players except these two cover their own stacks. card from the top of their stack to the bottom, say “start”, and the game continues. STOP!

“Bugler” WRONG! After naming the symbol (or saying “I don’t 4 know”), the player turns their card over and reads aloud the symbol’s name (printed on the back).

Odznaka bojowa Strzelca Spadochrono- Luftwa e paratrooper wego (Fallschirmjäger) Luftwa e (Fallschirmjäger) combat badge

Flaga Indii Brytyjskich (1880–1947) Star of India (1880–1947)

Żołnierz niemiecki German soldier

Plut. Emil Czech Corporal Emil Czech

3 Dywizja Strzelców Karpackich 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division

15 Grupa Armii

Hinduska 4 Dywizja Piechoty Indian 4th Infantry Division

Jan Gazur (1925–2011) Jan Gazur (1925–2011)

Francuski Korpus Ekspedycyjny French Expeditionary in Odznaka bojowa Strzelcawe Włoszech Spadochrono- Luftwa e paratrooper wego (Fallschirmjäger)Czerwone Luftwa maki e (Fallschirmjäger)Red poppies combat badge

Polskie Siły Zbrojne na Zachodzie in the West Flaga Indii Brytyjskich (1880–1947) Star of India (1880–1947) 1 batalion 9 Pułku Gurkhów 1st Battalion, 9th Regiment 58 Żołnierz niemiecki KGerman soldier

Plut. Emil Czech Corporal Emil Czech

3 Dywizja Strzelców Karpackich 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division 9 15 Grupa Armii 15th Army Group

Hinduska 4 Dywizja Piechoty Indian 4th Infantry Division

Jan Gazur (1925–2011) Jan Gazur (1925–2011)

Francuski Korpus Ekspedycyjny we Włoszech French Expeditionary Corps in Italy Czerwone maki Red poppies

Polskie Siły Zbrojne na Zachodzie Polish Armed Forces in the West

1 batalion 9 Pułku Gurkhów 1st Battalion, 9th Gurkha Regiment K 58 If the player correctly named the symbol, then they The game ends when someone names the common 6 give their card from the top of their stack to the player 7 symbol on their last card. As an exception to the normal on their left, who puts it on the bottom of their own rule, the player does not have to name this last symbol. stack, says “start”, and the game continues.

“Corporal Emil Czech”

RIGHT!

Note: l If a player makes a mistake and says “stop” but does not show a symbol common to both cards, then as punishment they must wait and cannot say “stop” again until someone else says “stop”. l If several players say “stop” at the same time, the youngest player takes precedence. l Before the game you can set a timer for 10 minutes. If no one gets rid of all their cards in 10 minutes, then the player with the fewest cards in their hand wins. In case of a tie, the youngest tying player wins.

10 11 Tips for teachers prof. dr hab. Michał Polak ll The duel is the best variant to play during a lesson. If there are more than 28 people in the group, then deal only four cards to Battle of Monte each player. ll The cards are divided into 13 sets (lettered from A to N in the back- Cassino 1944 ground on the card backs). When playing a duel, using cards from a single set will let students learn the largest possible number of new symbols. When running a tournament, it’s a good idea to 1939 the thoroughly mix the cards between rounds so that players don’t On September 1, German army play with the same set twice. crossed the Polish border, and thus they started the Second World War, without declaring it. The Polish Army , not as numerous and well-equipped as the , mounted heroic resistance. But without the help promised by its Allies, and Great Britain, it was pushed back to defence. However, Joseph Stalin, ’s ally, honoured his agree- ment, and he invaded Poland from the east on Sep- tember 17 . Attacked on two fronts, the Polish Army was overwhelmed and defeated. The last Pol- ish units surrendered at the beginning of October, and and the split the defeated Poland amongst themselves. The Soviet Union took the Eastern Borderlands (Kresy Wschodnie) of the Repub- lic of Poland, including Lviv and . Both totalitarian regimes took planned actions from the very beginning. Their aim was the destruction of the Poles as a nation. During the terribly bitter win- Questions? Feedback? Missing pieces? ter of 1939/1940 the Soviets launched an operation Send a message to: [email protected] to deport several hundred thousand Poles to the East.

12 13 The deportation trains were directed to the and Polish citizens of other nationalities (Ukrainians, in Kazakhstan, Siberia and to many other Belarusians and Jews), denying them the right to join regions of the Soviet Union. the Polish army. Anders did not draw such a dis- The Polish officers, largely members of the intel- tinction, and despite the political exerted by ligentsia and landowners, faced an even grimmer fate the Soviets and the British, he evacuated them from when in September 1939 they became Soviet pris- the Soviet Union along with the whole army. Some oners of war. In the spring of 1940, on Joseph Stalin’s of the Jews deserted when the army arrived in Pal- orders, nearly 15 thousand Polish prisoners of war, who estine in order to build their own country (in a confi- were supposed to be protected by international trea- dential order, Anders forbade prosecuting them), but ties, were murdered along with 7 thousand civilians, many, like Jerzy Kluger – a man decorated with policemen, and army officers arrested by the Soviets the , Karol Wojtyła’s school friend – after they had taken Polish territories. Mass executions were carried out in several places, of which near he 2nd Corps of the Polish Armed Forces Smolensk is the most well-known. Tin the West was not a typical unit, as it had only On June 22, 1941, the Germans, Stalin’s allies until two divisions due to cadre shortages. Moreover, that day, launched a surprise attack on the USSR. In this its divisions were composed of only two new political situation, the Polish-Soviet Agreement (instead of the standard three). The first was the (Sikorski–Mayski Agreement) was signed in , 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division under the com- by virtue of which the deported Polish citizens and mand of Bronisław Duch . former prisoners of war were to form the Polish Armed Experienced soldiers from the Polish Independent Forces in the USSR, subordinated to the Government Carpathian Rifle Brigade, famous for their partici- of the Republic of Poland-in-exile. Gen. Władysław pation in the defence of Narvik, Norway, against Anders , until recently an NKVD prisoner, became German forces (April, 1940) and in Tobruk (August– their . November, 1941), constituted its core. The Polish Anders’s Army was to fight after it had been 5th Kresowa Infantry Division , lead by Briga- formed, but Stalin wanted the newly-organised and dier General Nikodem Sulik , was mostly com- insufficiently trained units to be sent separately to the posed of deportees and former inmates of Soviet front as soon as possible. Moreover, the Soviets delib- camps. It included the 5th Vilnius Infantry Brigade erately made it difficult for the Polish inmates of the (the Vilnius Infantry : The 13th ‘Lynx’ , Soviet camps to reach the centres where the army was 14th ‘Wildcat’ and 15th ‘Wolf’ Regiments) and being formed. Additionally, contrary to the treaty’s the 6th Lviv Infantry Brigade (the Lviv 16th, provisions, the Soviets distinguished between Poles 17th and 18th Infantry Regiments)

14 15 Unlike the British, the Polish Corps did not pos- onel Bronisława Wysłouchowa was the Pol- sess many armoured units . It comprised the ish Armed Forces superintendent of the 2nd Corps. 2nd Armoured Brigade , led by Brigadier Gen- Apart from quartermaster service, such as health eral Bronisław Rakow­ski , which in turn was care, supply and transport, or from services related formed from two armoured regiments: the 4th ‘Scor- to materials, manufacturing and repairs, and the Press pion’ Armoured Regiment and the 6th ‘Chil- and Culture Department, the 2nd Corps also had a min- dren of Lviv’ Armoured Regiment as well as istry service, which included such religions as Catholi- the 1st Krechowiecki Uhlan Regiment – an cism, the Orthodox Church, Judaism and the Lutheran armoured cavalry unit. On the other side, the corps Church. The vast majority of the soldiers in the Polish had strong artillery. The 2nd Artillery Group was corps (93.2 percent) was Catholic; Bishop Józef Gaw- composed of six regiments of different kinds of artil- lina became their field bishop. lery, like the 11th Heavy Artillery Regiment . Another factor contributed to the oddity of Recon units were also an essential part of the Polish corps. It had its own printing houses; the a modern unit. Among others, this was the role of corps published the periodicals, and later on, books. the 12th Podolski Uhlan Regiment and of the The most popular was the Orzeł Bialy 15th Poznań Uhlan Regiment , which continued (White Eagle) weekly but they also published an the tradition of pre-war cavalry units, as well as of illustrated weekly and specialist magazines for par- the Carpathian Uhlan Regiment. ticular military services and formations. They also Due to cadre shortages in the Polish Armed published albums, considered to be a great editorial Forces (Polskie Siły Zbrojne, PSZ) in the West, feat to this very day. the Women’s Auxiliary Service (Pomocnicza Służba Kobiet, PSK) grew on a scale unknown in stayed in the Polish Army in the East, and about a thou- other armies. These voluntary women’s units were sand Jews fought in later battles. formed on the initiative of General Anders The co-operation between Stalin and the Polish in 1941. Their ranks were joined by Polish women Armed Forces in the USSR did not run smoothly, and freed from Soviet labour camps, and at its peak, when the English offered to transfer the Polish troops around 7 thousand women served in the Polish to , Stalin agreed willingly. The evacuation from Armed Forces. The volunteers, called Pestki , the USSR to Iran lasted from February to August 1942. substituted the men at their duties in the military This is when the Polish soldiers bought a small Syr- chancellery, the canteen, the Press and Culture ian brown bear for a few tins of food and named him Department, in schools for Polish children, and in . As a full-fledged soldier, he served in the transportation as well as in repair companies. Col- 22nd Artillery Supply Company . In Iran, the troops

16 17 evacuated from the USSR joined the Polish Carpathian armies were separated by the valley of the inconspic- Rifle Brigade, which came from Palestine, thus forming uous river, which ran about 100 kilometers the Polish Army in the East. After training in , Pales- north from . The lowlands on the Adriatic coast tine and , the 2nd Polish Corps was formed from posed a threat of a malaria outbreak, and on other sec- these units, and it was sent to fight on the Italian front. tions of the German defence line, the terrain, numer- The German defeat at Stalingrad at the begin- ous streams and rivers as well as a lack of decent roads ning of 1943 was a turning point in the history of the made it virtually impossible to launch an attack. So the Second World War. The Allies began to consider the only way to reach , which would enable moto- possibility of opening a second front on the European rised and armoured units to pass, was through the continent. After many long disputes they decided Valley, a ten-kilometre-wide gap between the Aurunci to attack first from the south. The German defeat in Mountains and the Apennines. On these very heights, North Africa in May, 1943 enabled them to launch this Kesselring built the Gustav Line (), which plan, and in July, the Allied 15th Army Group (the was to stop the Allied march to the north. British 8th Army and the American 7th Army), led The German defensive strategy was nothing new. by Field Marshall Harold Alexander , landed in The significance of the Liri Valley in defending Rome Sicily. In September the British 13th Corps reached was known in ancient times. It was no accident that the Italian Peninsula. The government of the King- Hannibal (218 BC) – for whom this route from Car- dom of Italy broke the German–Italian Alliance thage would have been much shorter – made a diffi- and signed an armistice with the Allies. In the follow- cult march across the Alps in order to attack Rome from ing months they formed the Italian Co-Belligerent the north. The only commander who conquered Rome Army led by General Umberto Utili . At the from the south was the Byzantine leader Belisarius in same time, the German army led by Field Marshall 536. The strategic value of the Liri Valley was (and prob- entered Rome and took con- ably still is) discussed in every Italian military academy, trol over the Italian Peninsula. From September to the and Bonaparte summarised it aptly: ‘Italy is beginning of October, the Allies took , a boot; it must be entered from the top.’ including Naples as the most important city, but their The peak towering over the most narrow pass in offensive was hindered by the heavy rains of late Liri Valley was the key spot of the German defences. Its autumn, which turned roads into mires and streams remoteness was the reason why, in 529, a Roman aris- into swollen rivers. Meanwhile, the Germans rede- tocrat, , chose the two buildings ployed additional units from the Eastern front, and they situated there as his and his students’ abode. This is built numerous lines of fortifications, which benefited where he wrote the Rule of Saint Benedict , form- from natural terrain obstacles. At the end of 1943, both ing the world’s first Western monastic order. At the

18 19

ROME 6

CASSINO

0 50 100 km

same time, a women’s order was created there, formed treasures of culture and art, collected in the monas- by Benedict’s twin sister, Scholastica . The mon- tery, were in danger, the German officers astery, Monte Cassino , named after a nearby Julius Schlegel and Captain Maximilian town, soon became the centre of Western-Euro- Becker (a surgeon), in October 1943, convinced the pean , where works of science and cul- Monte Cassino Abbot, Bishop Gregorio Diamare , ture were stored and copied. The monastery was to allow them to move the collection elsewhere. Using destroyed and rebuilt many times, but the greatest the division’s trucks, around 80 thousand books, paint- threat appeared during the Second World War, when ings and other works of art were transported to Rome. the Germans decided to use the natural defen- The Monte Cassino hill became a key point of the sive features of nearby hills and to create a defensive German defence line. The Gustav Line in this region line. Aware of the fact that priceless, thousand-year-old constituted a perfectly organised system of fortifica-

20 21 tions. It took advantage of the natural terrain (solid rock, the Luftwaffe and the experienced 1st Para- boulders, caves) which seemed created for the sole chute Panzer Division ‘Hermann Göring’ led by purpose of defending against enemy assaults for a long Wilhelm Schmalz . During time. The typical feature of the German defence system the battle, the defending forces were also reinforced was an absolute lack of commonly used fortifications by soldiers of the Wehrmacht . and obstacles, such as ditches and barbed wire entan- The first direct assault on the Gustav Line started glements, which enabled the enemy to easily locate on . In unfavourable cold and windy defensive positions. The whole area of the upcoming weather conditions, the Algerian and Moroccan units of battle was covered by a dense network of bunkers the French Expeditionary Corps , led by General and shelters, partially connected by hidden passages. Alphonse Juin , attacked on the right wing north They were meticulously concealed by artificial rocks of Cassino, and the American and British and harmonised with the surroundings in such a way units, which were part of General Mark W. Clark’s that it was difficult for the attackers to spot them, even 5th Army, began their assault across the Garigliano and when attacking fire came from them. Some of them Rapido Rivers. The British, despite massive casualties, were located on opposite slopes, which enabled sur- captured and held lodgements at the Garigliano prise fire from the rear against the attacking soldiers. River. However, the American the 36th ‘Texas’ Infantry The Germans, who had plenty of time to prepare their Division , decimated by German counterattacks, defences, were able to precisely predict from where was pushed back from the narrow, yet rapid Rapido the Allies would attack. Therefore, the entire area of River. The 34th ‘Red Bulls’ Infantry Division had the anticipated assault was well prepared with mines more success, on January 31 capturing and inventive traps. Moreover, the fire from the bunkers and attacked both the city and the monastery could cripple the attacking side’s supply chain and the from the north. The perfectly organised defence of evacuation of the wounded and equipment. Cassino prevented the Americans from entering The main ramparts of German defence – the city. However, fierce battles were fought over on Hill and San Angelo Hill – were located so Monte Castellone, Colle Maiola, and Hill , which that they could support each other when threatened, changed hands many times, attacked by American, and the natural obstacles rendered them inaccessi- British and French divisions. The Germans continually ble. Lieutenant General Fridolin von Senger und managed to hold their positions on the Gustav Line Etterlin commanded the whole defence on the and to keep control of Cassino. The Allied forces, after Gustav Line. The defence locations were staffed they had lost around 15 thousand soldiers (some bat- with soldiers from elite parachute units of the talions lost up to 91 percent of their ranks), withdrew Luftwaffe : the elite 1st Parachute Division of on February 12 to their defensive positions. Moreover,

22 23 CAIRA Monte Corno 945

Monte Castellone 771 213

56

Villa Villa S. Lucia 706 Colle481 P Maiola H A Colle N T S. Angelo O 601 M R E I G Snake's Head D 324 R G 603Ridge O E G

E

H 175 575 T

593 Rapido 505Albaneta Farm 569 Castle Hill 445 800 CASSINO 700 Monastery 600 Flooded areas 500 The approximate front line 435 Hangman’s Cassino 400 Hill January 17 railway 300 station February 11 200 Assaults (approximate dates) 100 sea level above metres January 17–31 0 Road no. 6 February 1–3 (Via Casilina) 0 500 m February 3–11 First battle First the Allies did not exploit the opportunity given by the versal Carrier also had wide application, American Anzio landing operation (January 22) north although, in the difficult mountain terrain, col- of the Gustav Line. It was a great surprise to the Ger- umns of mules proved most useful, as they mans, but the assault was quickly contained. perfectly managed the narrow and steep paths otherwise inaccessible to motor vehicles. he Allies’ enemy, elite German units, were Tarmed with modern weapons proven in During the preparations for a second attack, many battles: MP 40 submachine guns and the Allied headquarters received unconfirmed intel- MG 42 general-purpose machine guns. ligence that the Germans had their observers in the The (multiple rocket launchers), monastery. In fact, despite having manned the posi- with rapid concentrated fire which made a fright- tions around the monastery, the German soldiers ening loud noise, spread terror among the Allied were prohibited from entering its grounds. Lieu- units. The German paratrooper helmets , tenant General Bernard Freyberg , commander were distinguished by their unusual shape. of the 2nd Division, which was to launch The shape of British helmets was also the second assault, categorically demanded the very distinctive. The Allied infantry was armed monastery to be bombed. Since both sides of the with 10-shot Lee-Enfield No. 4 Mk. I conflict tried to honour an unwritten agreement rifles, Thompson and Sten submachine on protecting historic sites in Italy, this provoked guns, Bren light machine guns and Vick- a heated discussion in the Allied headquarters. Finally, ers heavy machine guns. The German bunkers Field Marshall Alexander , the Allied Command- were breached using anti-tank PIAT gre- er-in-Chief in the Mediterranean Sea region and the nade launchers. The Armoured Cavalry and recon commander of the 15th Army Group , gave units used, American Staghound heavy permission for the bombing. On , Ameri- armoured cars and M3A3 Stuart American can aeroplanes dropped 576 tonnes of bombs on the light tanks. Artillery support was provided by 5.5- monastery turning it into a pile of debris. About 250 inch (139.7 mm) medium guns, 4.5-inch (114.3 mm) civilians, who were there within the monastery’s medium guns, and by the quick-firing 25-pound- grounds, died during the air raid, as well as a small ers (87.6 mm) , while armoured support was number of German soldiers in the nearby outposts. provided by M4A2 Sherman medium The air raid did not bring the intended result; in fact, tanks. The legendary Willys MB Jeep was it allowed the Germans to freely use the destroyed the most versatile vehicle of the Allies. The various building for defensive purposes. The German propa- models of the armoured personnel carrier Uni- ganda shrewdly used the bombing of the monastery,

26 27 depicting the Wehrmacht as defenders of European to Liri Valley. The attack on March 15 was preceded culture against the savagery of the Allies. by an air raid on Cassino, in which 775 aeroplanes The second battle, known as Operation Avenger, took part. Within 3.5 hours, over a thousand tonnes began on February 15, during the night after the air of bombs were dropped on the city and its vicinity, raid, with an attack by the 1st Battalion of the Royal and the Allies assumed this should have eliminated Sussex Regiment on Hill . The regiment, fired the German points of defence. Colonel John H. Green on from different directions Hill( , Hill 575, Massa describes this dramatic event in the following way: Albaneta), lost over half of its original strength by the ‘Between 8:30 and 12:00 the city of Cassino, from which end of the day. The assaults on the hills around the the civilians had been mercifully evacuated a few months monastery, launched on February 17 and 18 by the before, was blown to dust and reduced to a heap of debris Royal Gurkha Rifles , who were trained in moun- during a terrifying air raid.’ tain warfare, were also a failure. The dedicated Gur- The air raid was supported by a few hours of khas lost all the of the company and constant artillery fire. The Allied assault did not begin nearly 250 soldiers. At the same time, the 28th Māori immediately after the bombing; therefore, the Ger- Battalion of the 2nd mans, despite a severe loss of men and equipment, started an assault on the Cassino railway station. The survived the air raid and had time to prepare their Māori secured the station and the nearby area, but defences. The New Zealand companies were because they did not receive armoured support, they capturing territory with great difficulty – one house were forced to withdraw; they lost 130 out of 200 sol- after another. On top of that, heavy rain began to fall diers during this encounter. at night, which slowed down their operation, and the The third , called Oper- bomb damage made it impossible to provide armoured ation Dickens, began later as on March 15, a month support for the attacking soldiers. The New Zealanders after the conclusion of Operation Avenger. This was managed to capture most of the city and Castle Hill caused by the fact that Field Marshal Alexander towering above it, and the company of the 9th Gur- needed so much time to prepare the offensive and kha Rifles of the 4th Indian Infantry Division regroup the army. Once more, the mission of captur- took Hangman’s Hill, located a few hundred metres ing the city and Monastery Hill was assigned to the below the monastery. On March 19, the German para- 2nd New Zealand Corps. The plan was approved by the troopers began a counterattack on the New Zea- Allied command, and it included an assault on Cassino landers’ positions, but it was repelled. On the same and on the Monte Cassino massif from the north. The day, above the city of Cassino, armoured squadrons plan also involved securing a crossing across Rapido set off from the Gorge heading for Massa Albaneta, River. This operation was aimed at opening the access but when they left the ravine and moved to open

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metres above sea level above metres Assaults of 100 March 15–20 Cassino railway 0 500 m Air raid area station of March 15 Road no. 6 (Via Casilina) Third battle – Operation Dickens – Operation battle Third armies. Lieutenant General Bernard Freyberg , entire defence line. Eliminating German defences in the commander of the New Zealand Corps, exercised the Monte Cassino mountain range and in the Aurunci this privilege in the battles of Monte Cassino. Gen- Mountains was the requirement of opening the road erał Anders was given only ten minutes to make to Rome along the axis of the Liri Valley. a decision. Aware of the fact that this could aid the Pol- The battle began on the night of May 11/12 ish cause and counter the Soviet propaganda, which with massive fire on the German positions from 1,884 claimed that the Poles had fled the USSR to avoid guns (including 224 guns of the 2nd Corps) which combat, he accepted the offer. As a result, the smallest were part of the 5th and 8th Army’s equipment. The corps of the 8th Army received the most difficult assign- Allied assault began two hours later. The camouflaged ment: to capture the hills of Monte Cassino and then and rocket launcher nests . as well as the enemy’s guns, which were waiting What made this task even more difficult was that, on stand-by, immediately opened fire and peppered just like all other units of the Polish Armed Forces in the Polish infantry. Two battalions of the Carpathian the West , the 2nd Corps constantly struggled Rifle Division , supported by the squadrons of with a shortage of recruits. One of the solutions to the the 4th ‘Scorpion’ Armoured Regiment , first problem was the recruitment to the Polish Army of attacked Hill and Hill 569. After a fierce combat, former Wehrmacht soldiers – Poles from Silesia or the Polish units managed to take Hill , but they Pomerania (Pomorze) who had been conscripted into sustained heavy losses. Bloody battles over Hill 569 the German army by force. also took place. On the morning of May 12, the Ger- In April 1944, the 2nd Corps was strengthened by mans launched five heavy counterattacks on the Polish the 1st Independent Company , lead positions on Hill in quick succession. Although at by Władysław Smrokowski . It was incorpo- the time the Polish unit did not have any contact with rated into the 2nd Corps as a special operations unit, the rest of the division, this was already the sixth Ger- which remained at General Anders’s disposal. This com- man attack, which forced the exhausted Polish soldiers pany was the first Polish unit which landed in Italy, who were short of backup to withdraw. The assault and it was assigned to the British 2nd Special Service division of the 2nd Carpathian Rifle Battalion lost Brigade. At the end of 1943 it joined the battles in 70 percent of its original strength on that day (216 killed, Capracotta near the Sangro River. wounded or missing). The situation of the 1st Carpath- The fourth battle for the complex of Monte ian Rifle Battalion, which was fighting for the Gorge, Cassino hills was supposed to be part of the 8th and was not much better. There the squadrons of the 5th Army’s offensive. The premise behind this offensive 4th Armoured Regiment took heavy losses. was to tie the German forces down in battle along the

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200 Assaults of May 12 Gari metres above sea level above metres 100 Assaults of May 16–18 Patrol of the 12th Podolian 0 500 m Uhlan Regiment, May 18, before noon Road no. 6 (Via Casilina) Fourth and final battle – Operation – battle final and Fourth The 5th Kresowa Infantry Division attacked and captured it in the morning. Despite a strong in the San Angelo hill complex; here, Phantom Ridge German counterattack, the Poles managed to hold became the main strategic point. The German artillery the hill (except its summit). This enabled Polish tanks decimated the attackers. After a few hours, the mas- to pass through the Gorge, thanks to which the Allied sive German counterattack forced most of the soldiers forces could draw near the Massa Albaneta hill. to withdraw. Many soldiers and commanders consid- On May 16, the units of the 5th Kresowa Infantry ered this sudden retreat as the Corps’ failure. Although Division launched an attack on German defensive the Poles did not achieve the planned objectives, they positions guarding Phantom Ridge. The 16th Lviv Infan- locked 7–8 parachute battalions in battle, which greatly try Battalion held Phantom Ridge, from which, helped the Allied forces in other sections of the front, on May 17, the Polish assault supported by tanks was and the German soldiers taken prisoner from the Para- launched on San Angelo. The Germans, surprised chute and Mountain Divisions informed about heavy by the quick loss of their points of resistance on the losses on the defenders’ side. north-eastern slopes, counterattacked only after a long Afterwards, the Polish Corps postponed the period of time and forced the Polish battalion to retreat. attack until the British 13th Corps , led by Lieu- The Poles attacked once more after a few hours, cap- tenant General Sidney Kirkman, would breach the Ger- tured Phantom Ridge and a significant part of San man defences west of the Rapido River. Angelo Hill, and before May 18 they also took the Mas Albaneta . fter crossing the Rapido River on the night The fierce attacks of Polish soldiers greatly Aof May 11–12, the 3rd battalion of the 8th Pun- crippled the integrity of German defences, and jab Regiment of the 8th Indian Division was their units, harassed by gunfire and without rein- pressed to the ground by the accurate fire of Ger- forcements began to crumble. The advance of the man heavy machine guns. Private (Sepoy) Kamal 8th Indian and 4th British Infantry Division Ram (1924–1984), who was a volunteer, sin- (supported by the 1st Canadian Armoured gle-handedly eliminated three heavy machine gun Brigade under the command of General Eed- nests, which allowed the battalion to strengthen its son Burns ) of the British 13th Corps in the lodgement. For this feat, he was awarded the Victo- Liri Valley, and the advance of the French Corps ria Cross , the highest British military decoration, from the north, hindered the operations of German and he became the youngest soldier to receive it. paratroopers in the Monte Cassino area. Facing the threat of being surrounded and defeated, Field Mar- On the night of May 17–18, the 2nd Brigade of the shal Kesselring, on the night of May 17–18, ordered 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division attacked Hill the division to retreat.

40 41 Only stationary units remained on the spot. fied , which was being expanded for the They secured the retreat while mounting strong previous five months, with strategic locations Pon- resistance against the Poles, who were clearing tecorvo, Aquino and Piedimonte. The soldiers of the the area. The main stage of the battle came to an 2nd Corps , still participating in military operations, end. On May 18 , in the morning, a patrol of the took the town of Villa Santa Lucia on May 19, which lay 12th Podolski Uhlan Regiment raised the Polish on the foreground of the Hitler Line. The final chord of flag over the monastery’s ruins. At high noon, platoon the Polish participation in the Battle of Monte Cassino commander Emil Czech declared Polish victory was the battles over the Piedimonte towns and the and played the St. Mary’s Trumpet Call (hejnał mari- peaks of Pizzo Corno and Monte Cairo. acki), a centuries-old tradition in Cracow. On May 20, with the attack of tanks from the 6th Armoured Regiment , the main defen- an Gazur (1925–2011) came from Cieszyn Sile- sive line of steel bunkers was taken. The assault was Jsia (Śląsk Cieszyński), a region of Poland directly supported by a brigade of the Indian 8th Infantry incorporated into the Third Reich. In 1943, he was Division . Piedimonte was captured by the morn- conscripted into the Wehrmacht and in April, 1944, ing of May 25 . he ended up on the front near Monte Cassino. There he found out that Poles were fighting on the oppo- uring the attack on Monte Cairo, a unit of the Car- site side, and he decided to desert. He did not want Dpathian Uhlan Regiment, consisting of twenty any witnesses, for the Germans would have taken men, got caught in enemy crossfire, and one of the vengeance on his family. When on May 17 his com- missiles destroyed their radio, which made it impos- pany was under artillery fire and began to flee, he sible not only to efficiently direct their own artillery stayed in a one-man bunker. After a while the bun- fire, but also to withdraw. In order to provide the unit ker was approached by two Polish soldiers, who with a new radio, Corporal Franciszek Kurak wanted to check if anybody was inside. Gazur, ran twice along the mountain slope under constant unsure whether they would peek inside, or throw enemy fire. For this feat he was awarded a grenade in first, cried: Don’t‘ shoot, I’m Polish.’ After Order of , Poland’s highest mili- the battle, he was trained to handle new equipment, tary decoration. and fought as a soldier of the 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division during the battle of and . In the battles of Monte Cassino, over 900 soldiers from the 2nd Corps had fallen, but despite this, the The Gustav Line was breached, and the German Corps already returned to combat in June and took army made frantic preparations to defend the forti- part in liberating Loreto, Ancona, and later on, Bologna.

42 43 The Polish soldiers never got a chance to return ment of the Republic of Poland decorated the soldiers to a free motherland. The provisions of the Big Three for great deeds of valor with the Cross of Valour during the Yalta Conference on the question of (Krzyż Walecznych), and for exceptional heroism in post-war Poland clearly situated it in the Soviet sphere of the face of the enemy, with the Polish military deco- influence. The soldiers of the 2nd Corps, freed from ration (and one of the oldest military decorations in Soviet prisoner camps, knew what life in the Communist the world), the War Order of Virtuti Militari . The ‘paradise’ looked like. Besides, they had nowhere to return is its British equivalent. Many of the to: their family villages and cities, like Vilnius and Allied soldiers were awarded the high-ranking Ameri- Lviv had been incorporated into the Soviet Union. can military decoration, the Legion of Merit . Every Just after the end of the war, the governments of the Allied soldier fighting in the Italian Campaign was also Allied countries recognised the communist Provisional awarded the Italy Star . Government of the Republic of Poland, and withdrew their support for the rightful Polish government-in-ex- The free world was reminded of the Polish battles ile. The communist Polish authorities took away the by monuments. The tank of Ludwik Polish citizenship from General Anders and other Białecki, destroyed on May 12 by a German mine and left Polish commanders (including the former Command- untouched, became the monument of the soldiers er-in-Chief of the Polish Armed Forces, General Kaz- of the 4th ‘Scorpion’ Armoured Regiment . On top imierz Sosnkowski ), who were never considered of Hill 575, a monument commemorating the soldiers as privileged combatants and were forced to live doing of the 5th Kresowa Infantry Division was erected. manual labour. Despite the efforts of the communists Hill , the place of the bloodiest battles, is decorated in the country, the heroism of Polish soldiers was not by the obelisk in memory of the soldiers of the forgotten partially thanks to the song ‘The Red Poppies 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division , and on the slope on Monte Cassino’ (Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino) of the hill, opposite the monastery, is the Polish War written by on the day after the battle. It Cemetery . This is the cemetery where General was an expression of opposition in the years of Stalin’s Anders lies among his soldiers. He died exactly dictatorship and it virtually became the national anthem. on the 26th anniversary of the Battle of Monte Cassino. In 1989 the (the Polish Parliament) annulled fter the battle, the Commander-in-Chief of the the decision which deprived Anders of Polish citi- APolish Armed Forces introduced the Monte zenship, and in 1999, the General’s widow unveiled Cassino Commemorative Cross , which was a monument commemorating the battle, erected awarded to nearly fifty thousand soldiers of the on General Władysław Anders Street, one of the main 2nd Corps who took part in the battle. The Govern- streets of . n

44 in the Polish Victory Service in the Vilnius region. In Iran, Fates of veterans of Światocho commanded a reconnaissance platoon of nd Universal Carriers, light armored vehicles. He was seri- the Polish 2 Corps ously wounded in the Battle of Monte Cassino. With- out waiting for his wounds to heal, he returned to his unit and participated in further battles with 2nd Corps, Kazimierz including at Ancona and Predappio. Later he took com- mand of a company of the 18th Kresowa Battalion, which Światocho he led in the battle of Bologna. He was awarded a Vir- (1914–1990) tuti Militari Cross and appointed captain. After the war he remained in exile—in Great Britain, Argentina, and finally the United States, where he died. In exile, he played an important role in activities commemorating the Kresowa Division’s fight for independence, and also efore the war, Kazimierz Światocho lived in Vilnius. He in the scout movement. (MG) Bwas a reserve in the st41 Infantry Regiment. In autumn of 1939, he joined the underground movement that emerged in the Vilnius region. He was one of the Mieczysław first members of the Piłsudski-ite Committee Fighting for Liberation, founded by Senator Władysław Kamiński, Baczkowski and after its integration with the Polish Victory Service (1898–1972) (the first Polish in WW2), he was active in the propaganda and press section headed by Kamiński (who later died heroically at Monte Cassino). He organized printing for the Vilnius underground, including the periodical “Poland at War”. In the spring s a seventeen-year-old boy, Mieczysław Baczkowski of 1941, he was arrested by the NKVD. Imprisoned in Ajoined the Polish Legions. He was in all the WW1 a labor camp, he regained his freedom after the Sikor- battles of the III Brigade with the Russians. Interned after ski–Mayski Agreement. In the USSR, he lost both parents, refusing to take the oath to Germany and -Hun- who died after being released from exile. He served in gary, he was drafted into the Austrian army. Having General Anders’s army, in the 5th Kresowa Infantry Divi- thrown off the vicious uniform, he fled to the Polish sion under General Nikodem Sulik, a former commander 2nd Corps in . He fought with Germans under the

46 47 command of General Józef Haller in the famous Battle as a municipal cashier and office worker. In 1956 he of Kaniv (Polish: Kaniów). As a second lieutenant of the served in the administration of the district emergency Polish Army from 1918, he fought against Ukrainians service, and also served as a member of the Staszów and Bolsheviks in the wars for the eastern border of council. He died in Cracow. (MG) the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In the interwar period, he served in several units, including the 4th reg- iment of the Podhale Rifles, and after his promotion Ryszard to the rank of major, he commanded a battalion of the “Budsław” near Vilnius. He Kaczorowski defended Poland against the ’s aggression (1919–2010) on September 17, 1939. Three days later, wounded, he and the remains of his battalion managed to cross the border into Lithuania. Interned after the Soviets occu- pied Lithuania in the summer of 1940, he was deported to a camp in Kozielsk. Released after the Sikorski–Mayski he last president of the Republic in exile came from Agreement between Poland and the Soviet Union, he TBiałystok. There, as a boy, began joined the Polish army of General Anders. In 1942 he to work in scouting, which shaped his ideology and became the commander of the 17th Battalion of the 5th devotion to the cause of Polish independence. In the Kresowa Infantry Division. He was one of the heroes of autumn of 1939, he joined the nascent underground, the victory at Monte Cassino, and for his and and in the spring of 1940, he took command of units his plan to take the San Angelo hill, he was awarded of the Gray Ranks. Arrested by the NKVD, he was sen- the Golden Cross of the Virtuti Militari. In further battles tenced to death on February 1, 1941. He spent many days during the Italian campaign, he distinguished himself at waiting, until the sentence was changed to 10 years of Ancona, and ended the war with the rank of lieutenant exile. He was in a in Kolyma. Thanks to the Sikor- colonel. In January 1947, he returned to Poland. He set- ski–Mayski Agreement, however, he was soon released. tled in Staszów, where his wife Krystyna lived with their He accompanied General Anders’s army as a non-com- son Krzysztof (born a year before the lieutenant colonel missioned officer in the communications service. After had left for war), who would later distinguish himself the war, he remained in exile in Great Britain, graduated as a historian of modern history and professor at the from a school of international business, and worked in Jagiellonian University. Colonel Mieczysław Baczkow- various enterprises. He started his scouting activity again. ski, who had meritoriously fought for independence, After obtaining the rank of scoutmaster, in 1955 he was worked after the war in the communist-ruled country elected head of the scouts, and twelve years later—the

48 49 chairman of the Polish Scouting Association outside the Libiszów and Bliżyna. In September 1939, he served as country. He organized world meetings of Polish scouts. a chaplain in the 39th Infantry Regiment, smashed by The first of these was in Italy, on the twenty-fifth anni- the Germans near Lviv. Some of the soldiers, including versary of the Battle of Monte Cassino. Gen. Władysław Father Malinowski, then fell into the hands of the Sovi- Anders hosted and spoke for the last time at the site of ets approaching from the east. Imprisoned in a camp the famous victory of his soldiers. In the eighties, Kaczo- in Szepietówka, he fled and made his way to , rowski became a minister in the Polish government in and from there—after several months of internment— exile. After Kazimierz Sabbat became president in exile, to the Carpathian Rifle Brigade, which was forming Kaczorowski was appointed his successor, and took the in the Middle East. He became the chaplain of a Car- presidential oath on July 19, 1989, after Sabbat’s death. pathian Ulan regiment and took part in the defense of His mission ended when Poland regained its indepen- Tobruk. Later he served in 2nd Corps of General Anders. dence. On December 22, 1990, at the Royal Castle in During the Battle of Monte Cassino, he participated in Warsaw, President Ryszard Kaczorowski handed over the the attack on the monastery, and then—under contin- presidential insignia of the Polish Second Republic to the ual German fire—he personally carried the wounded President of the Republic of Poland, Lech Wałęsa. In later to the rear. For heroism, he was awarded the Virtuti years, he acted to commemorate the independence act Militari Cross. In May 1945, he became the head chap- of the Second World War and the Katyń massacre. He lain of the 2nd Warsaw Armored Division. After demobi- died on April 10, 2010, in the presidential plane crash lization, he left for Argentina. As a parish priest in Bue- near Smolensk. (MG) nos Aires, he served Polish immigrants. He was one of the organizers of veterans’ activities among the former Carpathians and soldiers of 2nd Corps. Upon hearing Rev. Jan news from Poland that the communists imprisoned the Polish Primate Stefan Wyszyński, he initiated Cru- Malinowski sade for Poland’s Freedom. He made numerous trips (1910–1974) throughout South America, resulting in parliamen- tary resolutions in various countries which protested Poland’s enslavement. Father Malinowski’s message also reached the and the President of the United States, Dwight Eisenhower. In the late 1950s efore the war, Jan Malinowski graduated from the he settled in , where he died. (MG) BJózef Piłsudski secondary school and the seminary in Sandomierz. He served as a priest in the parishes in

50 51 Wojciech returned to Poland in July, 1947. He studied chemistry at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. In 1952 Narębski he settled in Cracow, where he defended his PhD at (1925–) the Jagiellonian University and received his habilitation degree. He received honors including the Command- er’s Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta. He worked at the Polish Academy of Sciences Museum of the Earth. He is an active member of the ojciech Narębski was born in 1925 in Włocławek. Faculty of Natural Sciences of the Polish Academy of WHe spent his youth in Vilnius, where his father Learning. He often speaks about the history of 2nd worked as a city architect. After the outbreak of the Corps. (BM) war and the Soviet occupation of the city, he joined the underground organization Association of Free Poles. He distributed the periodical “For Our Freedom and Yours”. Emil Czech He was arrested in April 1941 and imprisoned in Łukiszki at the age of 16. After the outbreak of the German-So- (1908–1978) viet war, he was transported to Gorki on the Volga River, where he stayed in a state farm in Darovskoy. He managed to get to Buzuluk, where the Polish Army was forming. After time in the hospital, he was assigned to the 9th Infantry Division. He and his unit were evacuated by the Caspian Sea to Persia. In Pal- mil Czech was born on August 8, 1908, in the village estine, he was sent to a non-commissioned officer’s EBobowa, near Stróże in the Nowy Sącz district. He school. After a serious illness and another hospital stay, graduated from secondary school, and then an indus- he was assigned to the 22nd Artillery Supply Company. trial school. At the age of 19, he was enlisted for military In 1944, they were transported to Italy aboard the M/S service. He was assigned to the 1st Regiment of Railway Batory. He took part in the Battle of Monte Cassino and Sappers in Cracow. He played in the regimental orches- in the Adriatic campaign. tra. As war with Germany loomed, he was mobilized After the war, he was sent to high school courses to the 1st Battalion of Railway Bridges and took part in for soldiers of 2nd Corps in Alessano. He arrived in Great the defensive war in September 1939. He was interned Britain in 1946, where he passed a final examination at in Hungary, then in 1940 he made his way to Pales- the Polish high school in Cawthorne near Barnsley. He tine via the Balkans, , Turkey and Syria. There he

52 53 joined the Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade. He Aleksy fought at Tobruk, where his shoulder was wounded by shrapnel. After healing, he returned to the unit, which, Chowański after winning victories in Africa and conquering Sicily, (1913–…) was stationed in southern Italy, near Monte Cassino. On May 18, 1944, after the 12th Podolian Ulan Regiment captured the monastery, Emil Czech received an order to climb up to the abbey and play St. Mary’s Trumpet Call at 12:00 (a historical tradition in Cracow since medi- leksy Chowański was born in 1913 in Ruda, in the eval times). Under a raised Polish flag, in the presence AKossowski district in Polesia (now in ). He was of soldiers and war correspondents, he carried out the a farmer. In September 1939, he fought in the ranks of the order. He returned to Poland in 1947. As a soldier of 2nd Polish Army, in the 20th Light Artillery Regiment of the Mod- Corps, he was a “second-class” citizen in the Polish Peo- lin Army. He fought against the Germans in the battle of ple’s Republic. At first, he could not find work. Eventually Mława and in the defense of Warsaw. After the capital’s he got a job with the Polish state railroad in Kłodzko. He surrender, he returned to his homeland, which was then was a member of the railway orchestra, a court judge, occupied by the USSR. In February 1940, together with his and a board member of the Society of Fighters for Free- parents, his wife Maria, and his two-year-old son Wiktor, he dom and Democracy. He died on March 26, 1978. (KL) was deported by the Soviet authorities to the Arkhangelsk province. After the Sikorski–Mayski Agreement, he joined oldiers of II Corps came mainly from the east- Anders’s Army, serving in the 6th Infantry Division, then in the Sern Polish territories. Despite the fact that their 5th Kresowa Infantry Division. During this time, his relatives birthplaces were incorporated into the USSR by were in Uzbekistan. He fought in the Italian campaign— force after the war, some decided to return to their from Monte Cassino to Bologna. After demobilization in family homes. The Soviet authorities did not intend 1946, he returned to his family home in the Borderlands. to tolerate them there. In 1951, 888 former soldiers During this time his relatives also returned from exile. In 1951, of the Polish Armed Forces in the West, most of the Soviet authorities deported him and his family again, whom served under General Anders, and their this time to the Irkutsk province in Siberia. His youngest families were deported to Siberia. For many, it was children—Bazyli (born in 1948) and Aniela (born in 1950) their second deportation. Only in 1955 were they were also exiled. After his release, he moved with his family allowed to return to Poland, but not to their orig- to Poland and settled in the Gryfice district in the Western inal homes in the Borderlands. Among these was Territories assigned to Poland after the war in exchange for Aleksy Chowański. eastern Polish territories annexed by Soviet Union. (MG)

54 55 6 Troop No. 10 Commando Jan Gazur (1925–2011) The very rst Polish unit Pole forcibly conscripted into the Wehrmacht, from which he deserted May 18, 1944 and joined Polish 2nd Corps

Major Władysław Smrokowski (1909–1965) Mule Commander of the 6 Troop No. 10 Commando E cient mode of transport of supplies and ammunition in the mountain terrain 12th Podolian Cavalry Regiment German soldier Reconnaissance Armoured Cavalry Regiment part of the Polish 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division Wehrmacht soldier in typical uniform

Corp. Franciszek Kurak (1915–1996) Col. Bronisława Wysłouchowa (1896 – 1947) Sapper in Polish 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division, of the Order of Virtuti Militari for the battle on Hitler Line Polish Women’s Auxiliary Service (PSK) General Inspector Victoria Cross M3A3 Stuart Tank Highest military decoration of the Standard American light reconnaissance tank used by armored units of the Allied forces, also by the Polish 2nd Corps New Zealand 2nd Infantry Division Bishop Józef Gawlina Fought under Maj. Gen. Howard Kippenberg’s command as a part of New Zealand II Corps Field bishop of the Polish Force

Gen. Władysław Anders (1892–1970) Staghound Armoured Car Commander of the Polish Army in USSR, Polish Armed Forces in the East and Polish 2nd Corps T17 American Armoured Car used by allied reconnaissance armored cavalry units Cross of Valor Yalta High Polish military decoration for courage in the battle eld The Big Three conference in February 1945 that gave Central Europe up to the Soviet zone of in uence Major Flag of New Zealand (New Zealand Blue Ensign) Higher o cer rank in the Polish Army

1st Paratroop Panzer Division “Hermann Göring” Gen. Umberto Utili (1895–1952) Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1, German armoured unit under the command of Gen. Paul Conrath that defended the Gustav Line Commander of the Italian Liberation Corps (Corpo Italiano di Liberazione) within Allied 15th Army Group

The shortest text report of World War II Lt.Gen. Mark Wayne Clark (1896–1984) The report about taking over Albaneta hill by the Polish soldiers on May 18, 1944, sent by the carrier pigeon to the Polish 2nd Corps HQ Commander of the American 5th Army 6th Lviv Infantry Brigade Sergeant Part of Polish 5th Kresovian Infantry Division Higher non-commissioned o cer rank in the Polish Army

Gen. Maj. Eedson L.M. “Tommy” Burns (1897–1985) commander Beginning of the fourth Monte Cassino Battle The Benedictine Order Flag of the of Italy The oldest Catholic monastic order. Established by Saint Benedict of Nursia in 529 Used in years 1860–1946 6th Armored Regiment “The Children of Lviv” Corpo Italiano di Liberazione Its squadrons supported the Polish attack on Piedimonte Italian Liberation Corps, formed March 22, 1944 within the Western Allies Armed Forces

Gen. Nikodem Sulik (1893–1954) Polish Armed Forces in the West Commander of Polish 5th Kresovian Infantry Division The stripe from the uniform sleeve Ordnance QF 25 pounder Wilno (Vilnius) Main gun of British eld artillery, used during the World War II One of the main Polish cities lost to Soviet Union, currently within borders of independent Lithuania Thompson M1 British 78th Infantry Division “Battleaxe” American submachine gun also known as the “Tommy gun” Fought under Maj. Gen. Charles Keightley’s command as a part of New Zealand II Corps The Piedimonte Capturing American Soldier The breaking of the Hitler Line near the Piedimonte San Germano with heavy casualties on both sides American infantry soldier in typical uniform Indian 4th Infantry Division PIAT (Projector, Infantry, Anti Tank) Division fought under Maj. Gen. Francis Tucker’s command as a part of New Zealand II Corps British man-portable anti-tank weapon Polish War Cemetery at Monte Cassino German paratroop helmet model 38 Polish 2nd Corps soldiers cemetery built on Hill 593 slope 16th Lwów Ri e Batalion Soviet deportation train A part of Polish 5th Kresovian Infantry Division In such trains Soviets deported hundreds of thousands Poles into the USSR

56 57 5th Kresovian Infantry Division 8th Indian Infantry Division The infantry division commanded by Gen. Nikodem Sulik, the part of the Polish 2nd Corps Division under the command of Gen. Maj. Dudley Russell, part of the British 8th Army Polish 2nd Corps Flag of Polish Armed Forces corps ghting in the Italian campaign, part of the British 8th Army A  ag of the political-military movement founded by Gen. to continue the ght again (1940–1944) Flag of Nazi Germany Polish Military Eagle A symbol of expansionistic German Nazism Polish military insignia (land forces), placed on military uniform hats 15th Poznań Cavalry Regiment (The Bren Gun Carrier) Reconnaissance Armoured Cavalry Regiment part of the 5th Kresovian Infantry Division British light armored tracked vehicle

War Order of Virtuti Militari Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski (1885–1969) Highest Polish military decoration established in 1792 for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy Commander-in-chief of the Polish Armed Forces 1st Krechowiecki Cavalry Regiment Monte Cassino Commemorative Cross Armoured Cavalry Regiment, part of the 2nd Armoured Brigade Commemorative medal awarded to all soldiers of the Polish 2nd Corps who fought in the battle of Monte Cassino Helmet worn by the Polish 2nd Corps soldiers Patch of the Polish 2nd Armored Brigade Standard helmet (Mk II) The stripe from the uniform sleeve The beginning of World War II 2nd Armoured Brigade The German attack on Poland Commemorative badge of armoured forces of the Polish 2nd Corps

Monte Calvario, Hill 593 Lt. Gen. Wilhelm Schmalz (1901–1983) One of the hills in the area of Monte Cassino. An important point of the German defense Commander of the 1st Paratroop Armoured (Fallschirm-Panzer) Division “Hermann Göring” 13th Wilno “Lynx” Ri e Batalion Star of India (1880–1947) A part of Polish 5th Kresovian Infantry Division Flag used to represent British India internationally The Red Army assault on Poland 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade Aggression of Soviet Red Army on Poland, in agreement of German-Soviet secret pact Armoured brigade, part of the British 8th Army 34th Infantry Division “Red Bulls” American division under the command of Gen. Charles W. Ryder in the American 5th Army Luftwa e paratrooper (Fallschirmjäger) combat badge th Gen. Bronisław Duch (1885–1980) 15 Wilno “Wolves” Ri e Battalion Commander of Polish 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division A part of Polish 5th Kresovian Infantry Division Corporal Emil Czech French Expeditionary Corps in Italy The soldier who May 18, 1944 played the famous St. Mary’s Trumpet Call on the monastery ruins, announcing the Polish victory Corps commanded by Gen. Alphonse Juin, consisting of one French, one Algerian and two Moroccan divisions 28th Māori Batallion Flag of the United States of America Māori Unit in the New Zealand 2nd Division Used in years 1912–1959 5th Kresovian Infantry Division banner Monte Cassino Abbey A design for typical banner of Polish military unit The oldest Benedictine abbey in the world. Established by Saint Benedict of Nursia in the 6th century 4th Armoured Regiment “Scorpion” 11th Medium Artillery Regiment Supported the Polish attack on Monte Cassino Artillery Regiment, part of the Polish 2nd Corps 15th Army Group Katyń All allied forces in Italy under the command of Marshall Harold Alexander Soviet in which the NKVD murdered over 20,000 Polish o cers, the prisoners of war

Divisional General LCpl. Wojtek (1941–1963) General rank in the Polish Army Domesticated Syrian brown bear, soldier of the Polish 2nd Corps M4A2 Sherman III tank 22nd Artillery Supply Company American medium tank, one of WWII’s most numerous tanks Artillery supply and transport unit of Polish 2nd Corps in which LCpl. Wojtek served Red poppies 2nd Carpathian Ri e Battalion Important Polish symbol of the Battle of Monte Cassino. Created by the Polish military song Red Poppies of Monte Cassino The part of Polish 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division

Gen. Alphonse Juin (1888–1967) British Eighth Army Commander of the French Expeditionary Force (Corps Expéditionaire Français) British Army commanded by Gen. , part of the 15th Army Group

58 59 nd Polish 2 Corps Soldier Capt. Jerzy Kluger (1921–2011) In a typical British Army battledress uniform One of a thousand Polish Jews serving in the Polish 2nd Corps, decorated with a Cross of Valor, personal friend of Karol Wojtyła

Field Marshall Harold Alexander (1891–1969) Willys Jeep Commander-in-chief of the allied forces in the Mediterranean and 15th Group Army commander American light vehicle widely used in the Allied armies

Gen. Fridolin von Senger und Etterlin (1891–1963) Flag of the Republic of Poland Commander of Wehrmacht XIV Armoured Corps Captain Lt Gen. Bernard Freyberg (1889–1963) O cer rank in the Polish Army Commander in Chief of the New Zealand II Corps Lance Corporal Lee-En eld ri e No. 4 Mk 1 Lower non-commissioned o cer military rank in the Polish Army Standard ri e widely used by British Commonwealth armies

Bishop Gregorio Diamare (1865–1945) The German 1st Airborne Division Abbot of the Monte Cassino Benedictine Abbey during the war Fallschirmjäger-Division 1, the elite German paratroop unit, defending Monte Cassino

Saint Scholastica (c. 480–542) Legion of Merit Saint Benedict’s twin sister, founder of the women’s branch of Benedictine monastic order A high United States military award The 4th Armoured Regiment Monument British 4th Infantry Division Preserves the original state of Lt. Białecki’s tank, destroyed on May 12, 1944, by a land mine explosion. All the crew perished Division within the British 8th Army under the command of Gen. Alfred Ward

Field Marshall Albert Kesselring (1885–1960) The 3rd Carpathian Ri e Division Monument German commander-in-chief in the Mediterranean, a war criminal The monument on the Hill 593 unveiled on July 18, 1945

Sapoy (Private) Kamal Ram (1924–1982) L u f t w a  e Soldier of the 8th Punjab Regiment, the youngest receipient of the Victoria Cross, decorated for ght on the Gustav Line Identi cation badge of the German which included among others the paratroop forces

Gen. Bronisław Rakowski (1895–1950) “Orzeł Biały” (“The White Eagle”) Commander of the 2nd Armored Brigade of Polish 2nd Corps The Polish 2nd Corps newspaper

Saint Benedict of Nursia (c. 480–543[547]) 1st Battalion, 9th Gurkha Regiment Founder of the Benedictine monastic order and the Monte Cassino abbey, patron saint of Europe Elite Nepalese infantry battalion in the Indian 4th Infantry Division Bren light machine gun Nebelwerfer British forces’ primary infantry light machine gun in World War II, in use until 1991 German multiple rocket launcher Lt. Gen. Oliver Leese (1884–1978) 36th (Texas) Infantry Division “Arrowhead” Commander of the British 8th Army American division under the command of Gen. Fred Walker in the American 5th Army Lwów (Lviv) German MP-40 submachine gun One of the main Polish cities lost to Soviet Union, currently within borders of independent Ukraine German submachine gun produced since 1940 Beginning of the Monte Cassino Battle 5th Battalion, January 17, 1944 the American 5th Army and British make an unsuccessful attempt to cross the Garigliano river British infantry battalion, part of the Indian 4th Infantry Division British XIII Corps German MG-42 machine gun Corps under the command of Lt. Gen. Sidney Kirkman in the British 8th Army Wehrmacht general purpose machine gun, used since 1942 Saint Benedict’s Cross The Monte Cassino Battle Monument in Warsaw Important Catholic medallion in use since the 11th century Unveiled on the Gen. Anders Street by the widow, Irena Anders on the 55 anniversary of the Battle Polish Women’s Auxiliary Service Flag of (Canadian Red Ensign) Volunteer of Women’s Auxiliary Service within Polish 2nd Corps Used in years 1921–1957

Seizure of the Monte Cassino abbey Lt.Col. Julius Schlegel (1895–1958) Polish soldiers seize the German-occupied abbey German o cer (Austrian) who evacuated art treasures from the abbey, saving them from destruction Italy Star 2nd Artillery Group Campaign medal of the British Commonwealth, awarded for service in the Italian and Mediterranean area during WWII Corp Artillery within the Polish 2nd Corps rd Col. (1897–1992) 3 Carpathian Ri e Division Deputy Commander of the Polish 5th Kresovian Infantry Division Polish infantry unit, a part of Polish 2nd Corps Flag of Great Britain (Union Jack) 60