Józef Ludwik Zając (pron. Za-YANTz) (1891–1963) was a Polish general and pilot.

Biography

Born on 14 March 1891 in Rzeszów, Józef Zając studied at the

Jagiellonian University The Jagiellonian University (Polish: ''Uniwersytet Jagielloński'', UJ) is a public research university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1364 by King Casimir III the Great, it is the oldest university in Poland and the 13th oldest university in ...

in Kraków, graduating with a

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

in 1915. He joined the Polish pro-independence organization of that time; in 1912 he joined the Riflemen's Association where he took the course to gain the qualifications of a

military officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent context ...

. In 1914 he joined the

Polish Legions in First World War The Polish Legions ( pl, Legiony Polskie) was a name of the Polish military force (the first active Polish army in generations) established in August 1914 in Galicia (Central Europe), Galicia soon after World War I erupted between the opposing all ...

; he commanded the 3rd, 6th, 5th and again 3rd regiments (''pułk''s). In 1918 he joined the Blue Army of general Józef Haller; until mid-1920 he spent most of his time in France (among other things, he attended the École Supérieure de Guerre). He took part in the last phase of the Polish-Soviet War: on 17 August 1920 he became the

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of an Operational Group 'Wisła' of the Polish 5th Army, later, Operational Group 'North' of the 2nd Army, and finally, of the 3rd Army. In the

interwar In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relativel ...

period he continued his military career. In 1922 he became the chief of staff of the First Department of General Staff; in 1924 he was promoted to

brigade general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed to ...

; in 1925 he became the First Deputy of the Chief of General Staff; in 1926 he became the commander of the

Polish 26th Infantry Division {{Infobox military unit , unit_name = 26th Infantry Division , native_name =26 Dywizja Piechoty , image = , alt = , caption = , dates = April 1919 - September 1939 , country = Poland , countries = , allegiance = , branch = Polish Army , ...

. In 1936 he became the commander of the

Kraków Military District Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

and Inspector of the

Polish Air Force The Polish Air Force ( pl, Siły Powietrzne, , Air Forces) is the aerial warfare branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 16,425 mil ...

. In 1937 he began aircraft pilot training and became the Commander of Air Defence. In 1939 he was the Deputy Chairman of the Polish Scouting and Guiding Association. In February 1939 he succeeded General Ludomił Rayski as the Commander of

. Józef Zając was a strong supporter of the

air superiority Aerial supremacy (also air superiority) is the degree to which a side in a conflict holds control of air power over opposing forces. There are levels of control of the air in aerial warfare. Control of the air is the aerial equivalent of c ...

doctrine which emphasized strong fighter forces at the expense of a bomber force; however he had little time to implement his plans. After the German and Soviet conquest of Poland, he escaped to France, where he again became the commander of the recreated Polish Air Force as well as resuming his duties in the Polish Scouting and Guiding Association (ZHP). After the

fall of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

he evacuated to Great Britain. In September 1940 he became the deputy commander of Polish I Corps. Next year he became the commander of the Polish Air Force in the Middle Eastern theatre and was promoted to

division general Divisional general is a general officer rank who commands an army division. The rank originates from the French (Revolutionary) System, and is used by a number of countries. The rank is above a brigade general, and normally below an army corp ...

. After Anders Army passed to Western command, he became the deputy commander of the Polish Army in the Middle Eastern theatre until March 1943. Later, until 1946 he was the Inspector of Training of the Polish Armed Forces in the West. After the end of the Second World War, he elected not to return to

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

Poland. He settled in Edinburgh, where he received another PhD in philosophy and worked in academia. During his life, he published several works - academic works in the areas of psychology and military science as well as his own memoirs from the war. Zając died in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

on 12 December 1963. His name was taken by the 21 Brygada Strzelców Podhalańskich (21 Brigade of Podhale Riflemen).

Honours and awards

* Silver Cross of the Order of Virtuti Militari * Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta, previously awarded the Officer's Cross *

Cross of Independence Cross of Independence ( pl, Krzyż Niepodległości) was second highest Polish military decorations between World Wars I and II. It was awarded to individuals who had fought actively for the independence of Poland, and was released in three cla ...

* Cross of Valour (four times), * Gold Cross of Merit with Swords * Merit of the Forces in Central Lithuania * Military Merit Cross, Austro-Hungary * Military Merit Medal "Signum Laudis", Austro-Hungary * Companion of the Order of the Bath, (United Kingdom) * Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, (France) * Iron Cross, Second Class (Germany)

External links

*
Short bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zajac, Jozef 1891 births 1963 deaths People from Rzeszów Polish Austro-Hungarians Polish generals Polish legionnaires (World War I) Polish Auxiliary Corps personnel Blue Army (Poland) personnel Polish aviators Polish male writers Jagiellonian University alumni Recipients of the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Independence Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Cross of Merit with Swords (Poland) Honorary Companions of the Order of the Bath Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class