Major General Aleksander Waszkiewicz (, , often transliterated as Vashkevich; 1901–1945) was a

Soviet The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

military officer of Polish descent. He served in the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

as commander of the 793rd Rifle Regiment during 1942–1944 and later as Deputy Commander of the 116th Rifle Division in 1944. Transferred to Polish LWP in 1944 and assigned as commander of the 5th Infantry Division of the LWP. He died in the

Battle of Bautzen (1945) The Battle of Bautzen (or Battle of Budziszyn, April 1945) was one of the last battles of the Eastern Front (WWII), Eastern Front during World War II in Europe. It was fought on the extreme southern flank of the Battle of the Oder–Neisse#Sp ...

. According to some sources, he was captured and tortured before his death.

Early life

Born 24 August 1901 in

Białowieża Białowieża is a village in Poland's Podlaskie Voivodeship, in the middle of the Białowieża Forest, to which it gave its name. The village is some east of Hajnówka and southeast of the province capital, Białystok. Location Białowieża i ...

, then in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, Waszkiewicz received only basic education before joining the

in 1919. Maciej Szczurowski, Dowódcy Wojska Polskiego na froncie wschodnim 1943-1945. Słownik biograficzny, Oficyna Wydawnicza "Ajaks", Pruszków 1996, 2nd edition,

Military career

Serving with the

27th Rifle Division The 27th Rifle Division () was a tactical unit in the Red Army of Soviet Russia and then the Soviet Union, active between 1918 and 1945. First formed during the Russian Civil War on November 3, 1918, as part of 5th Red Army. Commanded by Vitov ...

, between October 1919 and April 1920 he graduated from a

heavy machine gun A heavy machine gun (HMG) is significantly larger than light, medium or general-purpose machine guns. HMGs are typically too heavy to be man-portable (carried by one person) and require mounting onto a weapons platform to be operably stable or ...

course. During the Polish-Soviet War he managed to evade captivity following his division's destruction at

Kobryn Kobryn or Kobrin is a town in Brest Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Kobryn District. It is located in the southwestern corner of Belarus, where the Mukhavets river and Dnieper–Bug Canal meet. The town lies about east ...

. Between 1922 and 1924 he studied at the Smolensk Military Academy and was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant. He spent the remainder of the 1920s as an infantry platoon commanding officer in various Red Army regiments. Gradually rising through the ranks, in 1934 he was promoted to the rank of regimental chief of staff. Considered to be a promising officer, in 1938 Waszkiewicz was sent to the Moscow-based M. V. Frunze Military Academy where he served as both a student and the head of a teaching department. He graduated in 1942.

World War II

On 15 August 1942 Waszkiewicz became the commanding officer of the front-line 793rd Rifle Regiment of the 213th Rifle Division (Reformed). Between 2 and 15 February 1943 he commanded the 182nd Mountain Rifle Regiment of the 68th Mountain Rifle Division and on 22 June 1943 he became the commanding officer of the 797 Rifle Regiment of the 232nd Rifle Division (Reformed). He served in that capacity until 23 July 1944, when Waszkiewicz was promoted to the rank of Colonel and became the deputy commander of the 116th Rifle Division (Reformed). In September 1944 Waszkiewicz, a Soviet officer of Polish descent, was attached to the Soviet-controlled

People's Army of Poland The Polish People's Army (, ; LWP) was the second formation of the Polish Armed Forces in the East during the latter stages of the World War II, Second World War (1943–1945), and subsequently the armed forces of the History of Poland (1945 ...

as the first commanding officer of the newly formed 5th Infantry Division. On 3 November 1944 he was promoted to the rank of ''

generał brygady Brigadier general ( Polish: ''generał brygady'' , abbreviated ''gen. bryg.'') is the lowest grade for generals in the Polish Army (both in the land forces and in the Polish Air Force). Depending on the context, it is equivalent to both the moder ...

'' ("brigadier general") by the communist

State National Council Krajowa Rada Narodowa in Polish language, Polish (translated as State National Council or Homeland National Council, abbreviated to KRN) was a parliament-like political body created during the later stages of World War II in Nazi Germany, German- ...

. With his 5th Division, Waszkiewicz took part in the ill-fated Lusatian Offensive and the Battle of Bautzen in April 1945. In the course of the battle the division suffered severe casualties and on 21 April 1945 its headquarters was surrounded by a German counter-attack in the village of Tauer. His corpse was discovered in a forest near Stiftswiese near

Hohendubrau Hohendubrau (German) or (Upper Sorbian, ) is a municipality in the district of Görlitz in eastern Saxony, Germany. The larger part of the municipality belongs to the recognized Sorbian settlement area in Saxony. Upper Sorbian has an official s ...

only on 4 May 1945. He was buried with military honours at Warsaw's

Powązki Military Cemetery Powązki Military Cemetery (; ) is an old military cemetery located in the Żoliborz district, western part of Warsaw, Poland. The cemetery is often confused with the older Powązki Cemetery, known colloquially as "Old Powązki". The Old Pową ...

and promoted posthumously to the rank of Major General of the USSR. He received the status of the

Hero of the Soviet Union The title Hero of the Soviet Union () was the highest distinction in the Soviet Union, awarded together with the Order of Lenin personally or collectively for heroic feats in service to the Soviet state and society. The title was awarded both ...

on 28 October 1943 for his actions during the crossing of the

Dneper The Dnieper or Dnepr ( ), also called Dnipro ( ), is one of the major Transboundary river, transboundary list of rivers of Europe, rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine ...

earlier that year. He also received the

Virtuti Militari The War Order of Virtuti Militari (Latin: ''"For Military Virtue"'', ) is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war. It was established in 1792 by the last King of Poland Stanislaus II of Poland, ...

(posthumously).

Personal life

Waszkiewicz and his wife Aniela had one daughter.

Awards and honors

*: ** Golden Cross of the

(posthumous) ** POL Polonia Restituta Komandorski BAR

Commander's Cross of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta (, ) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on alien (law), foreigners for outstanding achievements in ...

(3 January 1945) *: ** Hero_of_the_USSR_Gold_Star

(28 October 1943) ** Order of Lenin ribbon bar

Order of Lenin The Order of Lenin (, ) was an award named after Vladimir Lenin, the leader of the October Revolution. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on 6 April 1930. The order was the highest civilian decoration bestowed by the Soviet ...

(28 October 1943) ** SU_Order_of_the_Red_Banner_ribbon

Order of the Red Banner The Order of the Red Banner () was the first Soviet military decoration. The Order was established on 16 September 1918, during the Russian Civil War by decree of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. It was the highest award of S ...

, twice (26 July 1943, 3 November 1944) ** SU_Order_of_the_Patriotic_War_1st_class_ribbon

Order of the Patriotic War The Order of the Patriotic War () is a Soviet Union, Soviet military Order (decoration), decoration that was awarded to all soldiers in the Soviet armed forces, security troops, and to Partisan (military), partisans for heroic deeds in the Easte ...

, 1st class (9 June 1945, posthumous) ** Ribbon_bar_for_the_medal_for_the_Defense_of_Moscow

Medal "For the Defence of Moscow" The Medal "For the Defence of Moscow" () was a World War II campaign medal of the Soviet Union awarded to military and civilians who had participated in the Battle of Moscow. History The Medal "For the Defence of Moscow" was established on May ...

(1944) **

Jubilee Medal "XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army" The Jubilee Medal "XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army" () was a state military commemorative medal of the Soviet Union established on January 24, 1938 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR to denote the twentie ...

(1938)

Other honors

Primary and secondary schools Gubin, Nowa Sól,

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

Łuków Łuków is a city in eastern Poland with 30,727 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2005). Since 1999, it has been situated in the Lublin Voivodeship, previously it had belonged to the Siedlce Voivodeship (between 1975–1998). It is the capital of Ł ...

and

Głowno Głowno is a town and community in Poland, in Łódź Voivodeship, in Zgierz County, about 25 km northeast of Łódź. The town administratively belonged to the Łódź Voivodeship from 1975 to 1998. According to data from 2020, the city had ...

were named after him. Streets in

Zielona Góra Zielona Góra (; ''Green Mountain''; ) is the largest city in Lubusz Voivodeship, located in western Poland, with 140,403 inhabitants (). The region is closely associated with vineyards and holds an annual Zielona Góra Wine Fest, Wine Fest. Zie ...

Międzyrzecz Międzyrzecz (; , , ) is a town in western Poland, on the Obra (river), Obra and Paklica river, with 17,667 inhabitants (2020). The capital of Gmina Międzyrzecz and Międzyrzecz County. Since the Local Government Reorganization Act of 1998, it ha ...

and Białowieża were also named after him until 2017 when they were reverted back to their original names.Uchwała nr XXXII/171/17 Rady Gminy Białowieża z dnia 8 sierpnia 2017 r. w sprawie zmiany nazwy ulicy Generała Aleksandra Waszkiewicza w miejscowości Białowieża, Dz. Urz. Woj. Podl. poz. 3137.
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Waszkiewicz, Aleksander 1901 births 1945 deaths People from Hajnówka County People from Pruzhansky Uyezd Soviet major generals Polish generals Heroes of the Soviet Union Recipients of the Virtuti Militari (1943–1989) Recipients of the Gold Cross of the Virtuti Militari People of the Polish–Soviet War Polish military personnel killed in World War II Soviet people of Polish descent Soviet officers in Polish Army 1943-1968 Recipients of the Order of Lenin Frunze Military Academy alumni Recipients of the Order of the Red Banner Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Soviet military personnel killed in World War II