Tadeusz Adam Kasprzycki (16 January 1891 – 4 December 1978) was a member of the Polish Legions in First World War, major general of the

Polish Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland (, ; abbreviated SZ RP), also called the Polish Armed Forces and popularly called in Poland (, roughly "the Polish Military"—abbreviated ''WP''), are the national Military, armed forces of the Poland, ...

from 1929 and Minister of Military Affairs of Poland from 1935 to 1939. He commanded the 12th Infantry Division from 1927 to 1931. In 1939 he signed the Franco-Polish Military Alliance. Later, he was interned in

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

after the evacuation of the Polish government following

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 ...

invasion of 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 Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

and was only released in 1945. After the end of the

Second World War 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 ...

, he emigrated to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Biography

Kasprzycki graduated from General Paweł Chrzanowski High School in Warsaw, after which he studied social studies and law at the Sorbonne and

Geneva University The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by French theologian John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology unti ...

. In the early 1910s, he joined the Union of Active Struggle and the Riflemen's Association. Before the outbreak of

World War I 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 graduated from Riflemen's Officer Academy in Stróże near

Limanowa Limanowa is a town in southern Poland, in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship. It is the capital of Limanowa County and had a population of 15,132 in 2012. History Mentions of the town date back to 1496, when it was documented as Ilmanowa, a rural es ...

. In August 1914, Kasprzycki was named commander of the First Cadre Company. Later on, he was transferred to the headquarters of the 1st Brigade, Polish Legions. In the autumn of 1914, he joined Polish Military Organisation, helping to create its structures in the areas of

Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...

and

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 ...

. In 1917, Kasprzycki created the Association of Polish Military Organizations (''Związek Polskich Organizacji Wojskowych''). On 3 December 1918 Kasprzycki became a member of Józef Piłsudski's office. In 1919, he went to Paris, to study at

École Militaire École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * Éco ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. After returning to Poland (1921) he took several posts in the Polish Armed Forces headquarters. In March 1927, he was appointed the commander of the 19th Infantry Division (Poland), stationed in

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 ...

. At the same time, he was Polish delegate to the Military Commission of the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

. On 1 January 1929 Kasprzycki was promoted to the rank of Brigadier general, and in July 1931, he became Deputy Minister of Military Affairs. On 12 May 1935, after the death of

Józef Piłsudski Józef Klemens Piłsudski (; 5 December 1867 – 12 May 1935) was a Polish statesman who served as the Chief of State (Poland), Chief of State (1918–1922) and first Marshal of Poland (from 1920). In the aftermath of World War I, he beca ...

, Kasprzycki was named Minister of Military Affairs by the President of Poland and remained in this post until 30 September 1939. On 19 March 1936 he was promoted to

Divisional 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 corps ...

. Apart from military activities, Kasprzycki was a member of several civilian organizations. In 1936, he was appointed the chairman of Main Committee of Mountain Congress, which took place in August of that year in

Sanok Sanok (in full the Royal Free City of Sanok — , , ''Sanok'', , ''Sianok'' or ''Sianik'', , , ''Sūnik'' or ''Sonik'') is a town in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship of southeastern Poland with 38,397 inhabitants, as of June 2016. Located on the San ...

. In December 1937, he was named chairman of Polish Association of Research Expeditions, and due to his efforts, a road along the ridge of Gubałówka was built. Furthermore, he was a member of the Association of Development of Eastern Provinces. In the spring of 1939, Kasprzycki's wife Maria née Strychalska committed suicide, and his son, who at that time was a high school student, broke all relations with the father. The probable cause of these events was Kasprzycki's affair with actress

Zofia Kajzerówna Zofia is a Slavic given name of Old Greek origin, meaning wisdom. It is a variant of Sofia. Famous people with the name Zofia: * Anna Zofia Sapieha (1799–1864) * Maria Zofia Sieniawska * Zofia Albinowska-Minkiewiczowa (1886–1971) * Zofia Balt ...

. During the Polish September Campaign, Kasprzycki, together with the government of Poland, was evacuated to

, where he was interned. In 1944 he arrived in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

via

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. He wanted to join

Polish Armed Forces in the West The Polish Armed Forces in the West () refers to the Polish Armed Forces, Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Allies of World War II, Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its Axis powers, allies during World War II. Poli ...

, but his application was rejected by

Władysław Sikorski Władysław Eugeniusz Sikorski (; 20 May 18814 July 1943) was a Polish military and political leader. Before World War I, Sikorski established and participated in several underground organizations that promoted the cause of Polish independenc ...

, who claimed that Kasprzycki was one of the people directly responsible for Polish defeat in September 1939. In 1954 he moved to

Honours and awards

* Silver Cross of the Order of Virtuti Militari *

Cross of Independence Cross of Independence () was the second highest Polish military decoration 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 classes. History The Cr ...

* 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 ...

* Cross of Valour - three times * Gold Cross of Merit * Mark officers "Parasol" * Order of the Cross of the Eagle, Class I (Estonia, 1938) * Order of Saint Sava

External links

Generals.dk

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kasprzycki, Tadeusz 1891 births 1978 deaths Military personnel from Warsaw People from Warsaw Governorate Polish generals of the Second Polish Republic Polish Military Organisation members Polish legionnaires (World War I) Polish emigrants to Canada Military operations involving Poland Invasion of Poland Recipients of the Order of St. Sava Recipients of the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari Recipients of the Cross of Independence Commanders of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Cross of Valour (Poland) Recipients of the Gold Cross of Merit (Poland) Recipients of the Military Order of the Cross of the Eagle, Class I

Biography

Honours and awards

Further reading

External links

References