September 1939
The Myth of "The Bloody Sunday of Bydgoszcz” Dispelled
For over sixty years Polish and German historians have recounted what happened in Bydgoszcz on 3 September 1939 – dubbed „Bloody Sunday” by the Third Reich propaganda – in a totally dissimilar ways. Both sides’ accounts vary so much that one might get the impression that they refer to completely different events. There is disagreement about basic facts, such as whether the Germans shot at the retreating Polish troops and civilians – thus engaging in diversionary acts – or about the number of peo
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The 20th Land of Kraków Infantry Regiment in September 1939
In the spring of 1939, General Bernard Mond ordered that instead of completing their training at the shooting range in the region of Czarny Dunajec as usual, the Division Infantry Reserve Cadets of the 6th Infantry Division, together with one of the battalions of the 20th Land of Kraków Infantry Regiment, with anti-tank guns and special platoons, be moved to the region of Pszczyna.
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The Kraków Army goes to war
In spring 1939, the “West” Defence Plan was approved by the General Inspector of the Armed Forces, Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły. It envisaged the defence of the entire border with the Third Reich, but the defence of Silesia and southern Lesser Poland was to be of particular importance.
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The Third Reich invasion of Poland and the crimes of German operational groups in the autumn of 1939
The Second World War claimed the lives of about 6 million Polish citizens. Most of them were victims of the Third German Reich, which on 1 September 1939 attacked Poland without declaring war.
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September 1939 - related Exhumations of the Office for Commemorating the Struggle and Martydom
Its is one of the Office’s major projects. So far we have managed to inspect several of such locations.
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Monument to a legendary tank commander in Kraków.
"Fire and movement are what counts on the battlefield. A soldier should not go into battle tired from marching. He must be brought as close as possible to the enemy," wrote General Stanisław Maczek, commander of the Polish First Armoured Division, in his memoirs published in 1961, entitled Od podwody do czołga.
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The Mirror Cracked from Side to Side. Poland from the perspective of Soviet authorities and citizens in the wake of and during Soviet aggression on Poland in September 1939.
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The “Black” Brigade
While monitoring potential opponents in terms of organisation and armament in 1937, the General Staff of the Polish Army decided to upgrade a part of the cavalry and “seat” the soldiers onto Polish-made motorcycles and vehicles as well as provide them with light tanks.
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INSTITUTE OF NATIONAL REMEMBRANCE
Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation
1 Janusza Kurtyki Str
02-676 Warsaw

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