Jerzy Rusiło-Wołkowicki (1883–1983) was a General of the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

and officer of the

Imperial Russian Navy The Imperial Russian Navy () operated as the navy of the Russian Tsardom and later the Russian Empire from 1696 to 1917. Formally established in 1696, it lasted until being dissolved in the wake of the February Revolution and the declaration of ...

, awarded one of the highest Russian military orders.

Childhood

Wołkowicki was born on 22 January 1883 in Proszew (a

Mazovia Mazovia or Masovia ( ) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the largest city and Płock being the capital of the region . Throughout the ...

n village north of

Siedlce Siedlce () ( ) is a city in the Masovian Voivodeship in eastern Poland with 77,354 inhabitants (). The city is situated between two small rivers, the Muchawka and the Helenka, and lies along the European route E30, around east of Warsaw. It is ...

, in

Węgrów County __NOTOC__ Węgrów County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Masovian Voivodeship, east-central Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 199 ...

), under

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 ...

occupation lasting since

Partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partition (politics), partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place between 1772 and 1795, toward the end of the 18th century. They ended the existence of the state, resulting in the eli ...

. He belonged to higher nobility of

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

, in 1901 he graduated from a high school in

Grodno Grodno, or Hrodna, is a city in western Belarus. It is one of the oldest cities in Belarus. The city is located on the Neman, Neman River, from Minsk, about from the Belarus–Poland border, border with Poland, and from the Belarus–Lithua ...

, and soon afterwards joined the Marine Corps school in

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

Imperial Russian Army

In 1904 he started service in the

, as a

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

on the steam-sail

battleship A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...

''Imperator Nikolai I'', which belonged to the squadron of Rear Admiral Nikolay Nyebogatov. Together with other ships, ''Imperator Nikolai I'' circumnavigated Africa, to help the besieged Port Arthur, during the

Russo-Japanese War The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...

(see:

Battle of Port Arthur The of 8–9 February 1904 marked the commencement of the Russo-Japanese War. It began with a surprise night attack by a squadron of Imperial Japanese Navy, Japanese destroyers on the neutral country, neutral Imperial Russian Navy, Russian fl ...

). After the Russian defeat in the

Battle of Tsushima The Battle of Tsushima (, ''Tsusimskoye srazheniye''), also known in Japan as the , was the final naval battle of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on 27–28 May 1905 in the Tsushima Strait. A devastating defeat for the Imperial Russian Navy, the ...

, Wołkowicki, together with a group of younger officers disagreed with Admiral Nebogatov, who wanted to capitulate. During a meeting, he claimed that they should fight to the end, then blow up the ship and escape. These words spread across the nation, Wołkowicki was later awarded with

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George () is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. It was originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commiss ...

, and he became a national hero of Russia. His attitude was described by Alexey Novikov-Priboy, a Russian marine writer. Some historians, such as George Sanford speculate that Wołkowicki's fame saved him in 1940, during the

Katyn massacre The Katyn massacre was a series of mass killings under Communist regimes, mass executions of nearly 22,000 Polish people, Polish military officer, military and police officers, border guards, and intelligentsia prisoners of war carried out by t ...

. Captured by the Japanese on 27 May 1905, he was moved to a

POW POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict. POW or pow may also refer to: Music * P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...

camp in

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

, where he stayed until January 1906. After release, Wołkowicki attended Marine School of Artillery in

Kronstadt Kronstadt (, ) is a Russian administrative divisions of Saint Petersburg, port city in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal cities of Russia, federal city of Saint Petersburg, located on Kotlin Island, west of Saint Petersburg, near the head ...

(1907–1908) and Marine School of Engineering in Saint Petersburg (1909–1912). During World War I, he served in the Russian Flotilla on the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

river as well as in the Black Sea Fleet.

Polish Army in the interbellum

In 1917 after the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

, Wołkowicki left the Russian Navy and, travelling across

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

and Far East, he reached France. In April 1918 he joined the Polish Army in France (also known as Blue Army), becoming commander of a battalion of the 3rd Regiment of Polish Rifles. In the spring of 1919 Wołkowicki returned to Poland, together with the army. As his skills and experience were highly appreciated, General (since 1 January 1927) Wołkowicki held several posts in the

in the interbellum. Among others, he was the commander of the Riverine Flotilla of the Polish Navy, commander of the

Wilno Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

Rifles Regiment, director of the Organizational Office of Marine Department of Ministry of Military Affairs, commander of the 27th Infantry Division and General for special cases with Minister of Military Affairs (1932–1938).

Polish September Campaign

In 1938 Wołkowicki retired, but in August 1939, as the international situation deteriorated, he was recalled up to active service, becoming a member of the headquarters of the

Prusy Army The Prusy Army () was one of the Polish armies to fight during the Invasion of Poland in 1939. Created in the summer of 1939 as the main reserve of the Commander in Chief, it was commanded by Gen. Stefan Dąb-Biernacki. The word ''Prusy'' in the ...

. On 10 September 1939, General Stefan Dąb-Biernacki named Wołkowicki commandant of the

Chełm Chełm (; ; ) is a city in eastern Poland in the Lublin Voivodeship with 60,231 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is located to the south-east of Lublin, north of Zamość and south of Biała Podlaska, some from the border with Ukraine. The ...

garrison. His task was to organise the defence of the area with a number of Polish units, which were retreating east. Wołkowicki created an Infantry Division out of the remains of two Polish divisions – the

13th In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the Musical note, note thirteen scale degrees from the root (chord), root of a chord (music), chord and also the interval (music), interval between the root and the thirteenth. The thirteenth is m ...

and

19th 19 (nineteen) is the natural number following 18 and preceding 20. It is a prime number. Mathematics Nineteen is the eighth prime number. Number theory 19 forms a twin prime with 17, a cousin prime with 23, and a sexy prime with 13. ...

– and became its commander. On 17 September Wołkowicki's division became part of Lublin Army and it moved from Chełm to the area of

Hrubieszów Hrubieszów (; ; , or ) is a town in southeastern Poland, with a population of around 18,212 (2016). It is the capital of Hrubieszów County within the Lublin Voivodeship. Throughout history, the town's culture and architecture was strongly shaped ...

. Soon afterwards, the unit took part in the

Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski The Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski took place from 18 September to 20 September 1939 near the town of Tomaszów Lubelski. It was the second largest battle

, fighting the

German 28th Jäger Division German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ger ...

and

2nd Panzer Division The 2nd Panzer Division (English: 2nd Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army, the Heer, during World War II. Created as one of the original three German tank divisions in 1935, it was stationed in Austria after the Anschluss ...

. After the defeat, Wołkowicki, together with some 300 soldiers, tried to escape to the east, but on 28 September was caught by

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 ...

troops that had

invaded Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak Republic, and the Soviet ...

on 17 September.

Soviet captivity

Although

Soviet Union 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 ...

and

Republic of 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 ...

were not in a state of war, General Wołkowicki and other Polish officers were imprisoned in a

camp in

Putyvl Putyvl (, ; , ) is a city in Sumy Oblast, in north-east Ukraine. The city served as the administrative center of Putyvl Raion until the administrative reform in 2018; now it is under the jurisdiction of Konotop Raion. Population: History One ...

. In November 1939 he was moved to a camp in

Kozelsk Kozelsk () is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Kozelsky District in Kaluga Oblast, Russia, located on the Zhizdra (river), Zhizdra River (a tributary of the Oka (river), Oka), southwest of Kaluga ...

. He was known for his generosity, as he would share his meals with younger officers. Between April and June 1940 he was kept in a camp at Pavlischev Bor, then in Griazowiec. For unknown reasons, he was not executed in the

; it is however probable that the Russians spared him because of his past. In August 1941, after signing of the Sikorski-Mayski Agreement, the General was released. On 27 August 1941, he was named deputy commander of the 6th Infantry Division of Polish Armed Forces in the USSR (see:

Anders Army Anders' Army was the informal yet common name of the Polish Armed Forces in the East in the 1941–42 period, in recognition of its commander Władysław Anders. The army was created in the Soviet Union but, in March 1942, based on an understand ...

) and together with the Army, he left the Soviet Union in the summer of 1942. Because of his age, he did not take part in any hostilities. He was however the mentor of antisemitic junior officers and defended their extremely antisemitic criminal acts. After the war he chose not to return to

communist Poland The Polish People's Republic (1952–1989), formerly the Republic of Poland (1947–1952), and also often simply known as Poland, was a country in Central Europe that existed as the predecessor of the modern-day democratic Republic of Poland. ...

and settled in a house of Polish officers in

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, later moving to

Chislehurst Chislehurst () is a suburban district of south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Bromley. It lies east of Bromley, south-west of Sidcup and north-west of Orpington, south-east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater ...

(in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

), where he died on 7 January 1983. General Jerzy Wolkowicki was buried on Elmer's End Cemetery in

Elmers End Elmers End is an area of south-east London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley, Greater London and formerly part of the historic county of Kent. It is located south of Beckenham, west of Eden Park, north of Monks Orchard and east of ...

, south east London.

Legacy and awards

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 ...

Commander's Cross (3rd Class) * Cross of Valour, four times * Medal of Independence * Krzyż Zasługi Wojsk Litwy Środkowej []

References

generals.dk

Sources

*Henryk P. Kosk, Generalicja polska, t. 2, Egros, Pruszków 2001, , *Tadeusz Kryska-Karski i Stanislaw Zurakowski, Generalowie Polski Niepodleglej, Warszawa 1991, s. 184, *Piotr Stawecki, Slownik biograficzny generalow Wojska Polskiego 1918–1939, Warszawa 1994, , ss. 353–354, *Zdzislaw Nicman, Generalowie II Rzeczypospolitej, Jerzy Wolowicki, Polska Zbrojna, *Wladyslaw Bartosz, Gen. bryg. Jerzy Wolkowicki 1883–1983 w 10 rocznice Smierci, Polska Zbrojna 1993, *Waldemar Strzalkowski, Zyciorysy dowódców jednostek polskich w wojnie obronnej 1939 r., Wolkowicki Jerzy (1883–1983) w: Jurga Tadeusz, Obrona Polski 1939, Instytut Wydawniczy PAX, Warszawa 1990, wyd. I, , ss. 835–836. {{DEFAULTSORT:Wolkowicki, Jerzy 1883 births 1983 deaths People from Węgrów County Polish generals Imperial Russian Navy officers Blue Army (Poland) personnel Recipients of the Order of St. George Katyn massacre Polish Army officers Polish military personnel of World War II Polish prisoners and detainees Polish exiles Polish emigrants to the United Kingdom Polish prisoners of war World War II prisoners of war held by the Soviet Union