Poland in WWII

[HorseSoldier]

The Polish 1st Armored Division in the Falaise Gap is a topic that just about begs for a well done big Hollywood-style epic. I suppose it's too obscure, which is a shame.

[Legbreaker]

They were popped off their share of Nukes to decimate the fleeing NATO units. Which would reinforce in some cases what the Polish High Command had always feared since 1979, that during the war-game in which the Soviets introduce that the Americans and NATO had started to nuke units along Vistula River that were in transit to the front. Many Poles had doubted that the Americans would be the the ones using Polish property to slow reinforcements.

Do not forget that NATO implemented a scorched earth policy using nukes in their 1997 withdrawal. This would account for at least 50% of the destruction, and quite possibly more.
Although the Soviets were equipped and had trained for a nuclear battlefield, not having to use gas masks, etc is always preferred in the assault. It's far more likely the withdrawing Nato forces, who did not expect to be advancing through the radioactive wastelands they were creating, used the majority of nukes in this phase of the war.

This is certainly not going to endear the majority of Poles to the western forces (it's not going to heap the Soviets either, but at least they get the time to apply their propaganda machine over the next few years).

[dragoon500ly]

The Polish 1st Armored Division in the Falaise Gap is a topic that just about begs for a well done big Hollywood-style epic. I suppose it's too obscure, which is a shame.

It's sorta like watching A Bridge Too Far and hearing somebody ask what side the people with the blue berets and funny accent are supposed to be on.

And the Poles in Italy!! I've actually been accused of making that up!

Sadly, the study of history in the U.S. and especially military history is looked upon much the way that Victorian England stuided sex...everyone knows it happens, but if nobody discusses the horrid thing, then it will go away.

[Mohoender]

And the Poles in Italy!! I've actually been accused of making that up!

Not at all, the Polish 2nd Corp was in the peninsula. The Poles were fighting at Monte Cassino and actually were the first to enter the abbey (raising the Polish flag there). However, unlike what you can find somewhere on the Web, they didn't take it all by themselves (still they had lost around 4000 men in the battle).

The French army did brake the stalemate. Again, the French army doesn't mean the French but mostly the Moroccans and Algerians fighting under French colors.

[Legbreaker]

Again, the French army doesn't mean the French but mostly the Moroccans and Algerians fighting under French colors.

The French themselves having previously surrendered to a passing dog.

Seriously though, the French that did continue to fight played a big part in the eventual Allied victory. It's also not like as a nation they had much choice in WWII, what with the sudden appearance of German armour in their streets and being completely caught out of position up around Belgium.

[simonmark6]

After the war though the Poles were generally treated like a second unwelcome class. Many Poles returned to Poland, not because they felt they had a bright future back home, nor any real ties to the land, but more from frustration that they simply weren't being given a fair go in Britain.
I can't say what percentage went back and how many stayed to suffer through the insults and general indifference though.

Interestingly enough, this wasn't the experience of my family or the ex-Polish community in my town. At the end of the war there were seventy Polish servicemen billeted in the village, my maternal grandfather was one of them. The local community insisted that the men that had helped defend their country had a home here and indeed they raised the money to bring over as many of the polish families as they could once it became clear that the Soviets weren't going to move out of Poland.

In fact, the local Catholic Church still employs at least one Polish speaking priest to serve the needs of the older members of the community. True, our village may be atypical, it certainly was in WW1 but not all Poles were treated as second class citizens.

[Rainbow Six]

Probably also worth mentioning the Polish Home Army, which fought against the Germans in occupied Poland, and was considered to be an official part of the Polish Armed Forces (and even acknowledged as such by the Germans after the 1944 Warsaw Rising). Several sources quote its strength as being somewhere around the 400,000 mark and credit it with tieing down several German Divisions.