Generał Tadeusz Komorowski (1 June 1895 – 24 August 1966), better known by the name Bór-Komorowski (after one of his wartime code names: ''Bór'' – "The Forest") was a Polish military leader. He was appointed commander-in-chief a day before the capitulation of the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...

and following World War II, 32nd

Prime Minister of Poland A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only wa ...

, 3rd

Polish government-in-exile The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile (), was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Poland of September 1939, and the subsequent Occupation ...

in London.

Life

Komorowski was born in Khorobriv, in the

Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, also known as Austrian Galicia or colloquially Austrian Poland, was a constituent possession of the Habsburg monarchy in the historical region of Galicia (Eastern Europe), Galicia in Eastern Europe. The Cr ...

(the Austrian partition of Poland). In the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he served as an officer in the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army, also known as the Imperial and Royal Army,; was the principal ground force of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. It consisted of three organisations: the Common Army (, recruited from all parts of Austria-Hungary), ...

, and after the war became an officer in 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 ...

, rising to command the

Grudziądz Grudziądz (, ) is a city in northern Poland, with 92,552 inhabitants (2021). Located on the Vistula River, it lies within the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship and is the fourth-largest city in its province. Grudziądz is one of the oldest citie ...

Cavalry School. He was a member of the Polish equestrian team that went to the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad () and officially branded as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The opening ceremony was held on 5 July, but some competitions had al ...

. After taking part in the fighting against the

German 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 Ge ...

invasion of Poland at the beginning of World War II in 1939, Komorowski, with the code-name ''Bór'', helped organise the Polish underground in the

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

area. In July 1941 he became deputy commander of the

Home Army The Home Army (, ; abbreviated AK) was the dominant resistance movement in German-occupied Poland during World War II. The Home Army was formed in February 1942 from the earlier Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Armed Resistance) established in the ...

(''Armia Krajowa'' or "AK"), and in March 1943 gained appointment as its commander, with the rank of Brigadier-General. He was sympathetic to the right-wing, antisemitic National Party. As commander of the Home Army, Komorowski reversed the pro-Jewish policies of his predecessor, Stefan Rowecki. Komorowski opposed aid to Jews seeking to mount ghetto uprisings and favoured the exclusion of Jews from the organisation. American historian Joshua D. Zimmerman accuses Komorowski of characterising Jewish partisans as "communist, pro-Soviet elements" and having "chilling indifference" to the ongoing Holocaust.

The Uprising

In mid 1944, as Soviet forces advanced into central Poland, the

in London instructed Bór-Komorowski to prepare for an armed uprising in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. The government-in-exile wished to return to a capital city liberated by Poles, not seized by the Soviets, and prevent the Communist take-over of Poland which

Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

had planned. The

Warsaw uprising The Warsaw Uprising (; ), sometimes referred to as the August Uprising (), or the Battle of Warsaw, was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance movement in World War II, Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from ...

began on Komorowski's order on 1 August 1944 and the insurgents of the AK seized control of most of central Warsaw. On 29 September 1944, Bór-Komorowski was promoted to General Inspector of the Armed Forces (Polish Commander-in-Chief). On 4 October, after two months of fierce fighting, Bór-Komorowski surrendered to SS-''

Obergruppenführer (, ) was a paramilitary rank in Nazi Germany that was first created in 1932 as a rank of the ''Sturmabteilung'' (SA) and adopted by the ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) one year later. Until April 1942, it was the highest commissioned SS rank after ...

Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-N ...

after

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

agreed to treat the Home Army fighters as

prisoners-of-war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

. General Bór-Komorowski went into internment in Germany (at

Oflag IV-C Oflag IV-C, generally known as Colditz Castle, was a prominent German Army prisoner-of-war camp for captured Allied officers during World War II. Located in Colditz, Saxony, the camp operated within the medieval Colditz Castle, which overlooks th ...

). Despite repeated demands, he refused to order the remaining Home Army units in

Occupied Poland ' (Norwegian language, Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV 2 (Norway), TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. ...

to surrender.Piotr M. Majewski
63 Dni walki o Warszawę (63 days of fight for Warsaw)
Mowiawieki.pl (

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)

Life in exile

After the war Bór-Komorowski moved to London, where he played an active role in Polish ''émigré'' circles. From 1947 to 1949 he served as Prime Minister of the

, which no longer had diplomatic recognition from most Western European countries. He wrote the story of his experiences in ''The Secret Army'' (1950). After the war he was an upholsterer.

Death

He died in London on 24 August 1966, aged 71, and was buried in Gunnersbury Cemetery (also known as (New) Kensington Cemetery). On 30 July 1994, Gen. Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski's ashes were buried in Powązki Military Cemetery in Warsaw.

Honours and awards

* Order of the White Eagle (

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

, 1995) * Commander's Cross of the Order of Virtuti Militari (previously awarded the Knight's Cross, the Gold Cross and the Silver Cross) * Grand 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 ...

(previously awarded the Officer's Cross) * Cross of Valour – three times * Gold Cross of Merit with Swords * Gold Cross of Merit * Silver Cross of Merit * Honorary citizen of Glowno (posthumously, 2004)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bor-Komorowski, Tadeusz 1895 births 1966 deaths Antisemitism in Poland Military personnel from Ternopil Oblast Military personnel of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria Counts of Poland Prime ministers of Poland Polish generals Home Army officers Rada Trzech Polish Austro-Hungarians Polish people of World War I Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Warsaw Uprising insurgents Polish people of the Polish–Soviet War Olympic equestrians for Poland Polish male equestrians Equestrians at the 1924 Summer Olympics Polish emigrants to the United Kingdom Commanders of the Virtuti Militari Grand Crosses of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Cross of Merit with Swords (Poland) Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Silver Cross of Merit (Poland) Komorowski family Lviv Polytechnic alumni Polish anti-communists Prisoners of war held at Colditz Castle Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland) 20th-century Polish sportsmen