The 3rd Polish Infantry Brigade (''3 Brygada Strzelców'') was a Polish

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

which served during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Together with the

10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade The Polish 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade () was an armoured formation of the Polish Armed Forces in the West. It was organized in France during World War II as part of the Polish Army in France, mostly by veterans of the 10th Motorized Cavalry ...

they formed part of the

1st Polish Armoured Division The Polish 1st Armoured Division ( Polish ''1 Dywizja Pancerna, Pierwsza Dywizja Pancerna'') was an armoured division of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. Created in February 1942 at Duns in Scotland, it was commanded by ...

and was created from Polish soldiers who had already escaped from Poland to France, and after the fall of France made their way to Great Britain. Their wartime headquarters were in Biggar High School,

South Lanarkshire South Lanarkshire (; ) is one of 32 unitary authorities of Scotland. It borders the south-east of the Glasgow City council area and contains some of Greater Glasgow's suburban towns, as well as many rural towns and villages. It also shares bor ...

Formation

3rd Polish Infantry Brigade (''3 Brygada Strzelców'') - Col. Marian Wieroński: * 1st Polish Highland Battalion (''1 batalion Strzelców Podhalańskich'') - Lt.Col. K. Complak * 8th Polish Rifle Battalion (''8 batalion strzelców'') - Lt.Col. Aleksander Nowaczyński * 9th Polish Rifle Battalion (''9 batalion strzelców flandryjskich'') - Lt.Col. Zdzisław Szydłowski

Normandy

By the end of July 1944 the brigade, together with the rest of 1st Polish Armoured Division, was transferred to

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

. The final elements arrived on August 1 and the unit was attached to the

First Canadian Army The First Canadian Army () was a field army and a formation of the Canadian Army in World War II in which most Canadian elements serving in North-West Europe were assigned. It served on the Western Front from July 1944 until May 1945. It was Cana ...

. It entered combat on August 8 during

Operation Totalize Operation Totalize (also spelled Operation Totalise in recent British sources) was an offensive launched by Allied troops in the First Canadian Army during the later stages of Operation Overlord, from 8 to 9 August 1944. The intention was to bre ...

. The division twice suffered serious bombings by Allied aircraft yet it achieved a brilliant victory against the ''

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

'' in the battles for Mont Ormel, Hill 262 and the town of Chambois. This series of offensive and defensive operations came to be known as the

Battle of Falaise The Falaise pocket or battle of the Falaise pocket (; 12–21 August 1944) was the decisive engagement of the Battle of Normandy in the Second World War. Allied forces formed a pocket around Falaise, Calvados, in which German Army Group B, cons ...

in which a large number of German ''

'' and SS divisions were trapped in the

Falaise pocket The Falaise pocket or battle of the Falaise pocket (; 12–21 August 1944) was the decisive engagement of the Battle of Normandy in the Second World War. Allied forces formed a pocket around Falaise, Calvados, in which German Army Group B, c ...

and subsequently destroyed. 1st Polish Armoured Division, including the 3rd Polish Infantry Brigade had the crucial role of closing the pocket and closing the escape route of the German divisions, hence the fighting was absolutely desperate and the 2nd Polish Armoured, 24th Polish Lancers and 10th Dragoons, supported by the 8th Infantry and 9th Infantry Battalions took the brunt of German attacks trying to break free from the pocket. Surrounded and running out of ammunition they withstood incessant attacks from multiple fleeing

panzer {{CatAutoTOC, numerals=no Words and phrases Germanic words and phrases Words and phrases by language la:Categoria:Verba Theodisca ...

divisions for 48 hours until they were relieved.

Belgium and the Netherlands

After the Allied armies broke out from Normandy, the brigade was involved in the pursuit of the Germans along the coast of the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

. It liberated, among others, the towns of

Ypres Ypres ( ; ; ; ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality in the province of West Flanders. Though the Dutch name is the official one, the city's French name is most commonly used in English. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres/Ieper ...

Ghent Ghent ( ; ; historically known as ''Gaunt'' in English) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the Provinces of Belgium, province ...

and Passchendaele. A successful outflanking manoeuvre planned and performed by General Maczek allowed liberation of the city of

Breda Breda ( , , , ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant. ...

without any civilian casualties (October 29, 1944). The division spent the winter of 1944–1945 on the south bank of the river

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

, guarding a sector around

Moerdijk Moerdijk () is a municipality and a town in the South of the Netherlands, in the province of North Brabant. History The municipality of Moerdijk was founded in 1997 following the merger of the municipalities of Fijnaart en Heijningen, Klunde ...

in the Netherlands. In early 1945 it was transferred to the province of

Overijssel Overijssel (; ; ; ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the eastern part of the country. The province's name comes from the perspective of the Prince-Bishopric of Utrecht, Episcopal principality of Utrecht ...

and started to push along with the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...

along the Dutch-German border, liberating the eastern parts of the provinces of

Drenthe Drenthe () is a province of the Netherlands located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen to the north, and the German state of Lower Saxony to the east. As of Jan ...

and

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

with towns such as Emmen,

Coevorden Coevorden (; ; ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Drenthe, in the east of Netherlands, the Netherlands. During the ...

and

Stadskanaal Stadskanaal () is a town and municipality with a population of 32,715 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. It was named after the canal Stadskanaal. From 1800 until 1900 this area was ideal for its peat mining, and so ...

Germany

In April 1945 the brigade entered Germany in the area of

Emsland Landkreis Emsland () is a districts of Germany, district in Lower Saxony, Germany named after the river Ems (river), Ems. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Leer (district), Leer, Cloppenburg (district), Cloppenbur ...

. On May 6 they seized the ''

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official military branch, branche ...

'' naval base in

Wilhelmshaven Wilhelmshaven (, ''Wilhelm's Harbour''; Northern Low Saxon: ''Willemshaven'') is a coastal town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the western side of the Jade Bight, a bay of the North Sea, and has a population of 76,089. Wilhelmsha ...

, where General Maczek accepted the capitulation of the fortress, naval base, East Frisian Fleet and more than 10 infantry divisions. Here the division ended the war and was joined by the

Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade The 1st (Polish) Independent Parachute Brigade was a parachute infantry brigade of the Polish Armed Forces in the West under the command of Major General Stanisław Sosabowski, created in September 1941 during the Second World War and based in ...

. It undertook occupation duties until 1947, when the division was disbanded, see

Haren, Germany Haren ( Polish 1945: ''Lwów'', Polish 1945–1948: ''Maczków'') is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany in the district of Emsland. History Haren was first mentioned in the Middle Ages (around 890) in a registry of the Corvey Abbey. Around 1150 t ...

. The majority of its soldiers opted not to return to now Soviet occupied

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

and stayed in

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

References

External links

Website of Maczek Museum in BredaWebsite describing the campaign of the division
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Captain Kazimierz Duda - 1st Polish Armoured Division - C.K.M.Canadian Military History in Perspective
3 03 Military units and formations established in 1942

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...