LAB, SERV, COMP, (RAMP, GUARD) Polska Kompania Wartownicza

[StefanM]

The Legitymajca/identity card for the Guards badge of my earlier post:



Legitymajca/identity card for Allied Land Contingent Polish Forces issued by Polish Military Center, Nürnberg (Nuremberg), Germany.




The Polish Military Centre was based at Nürnberg-Langwasser site of the largest Polish POW camp for NCOs and privates in the part of Germany that was occupied after the end of the war by the American 3rd Army. The camp was set up in the spring of 1945 and its population peaked at circa 5,000 Polish servicemen. Initially the Poles hoped that the men gathered there would reinforce the Polish Armed Forces in the West. However, due to Britain's opposition to those plans no more than 800 former POWs made it to the Polish 2nd Corps in Italy. The rest were faced with an alternative—returning to Poland or staying on and finding work in Germany. While only about 20% of the camp residents chose to go back to Poland, the great majority (approx. 3,000) joined the US Labor Service to work as guards at American military installations or German POW camps. After the recruitment phase came to an end, the Americans closed the Nürnberg-Langwasser base and sent off the remaining Polish residents to various civilian DP centres in Germany. A Polish soldier's newspaper was published by the Langwasser camp weekly 'Pismo Zolnierza'.

Reference:
THE POLISH MILITARY CENTER AT LANGWASSER NEAR NUREMBERG (1945-1946) [Polski Osrodek Wojskowy Langwasser pod Norymberga (1945-1946)]
by Brzoza Czeslaw

[dorava]

Rare patch and award document
Suppose worked alongside the Polish guard units in Germany

first one I have ever seen

[StefanM]

Rare patch and award document
Suppose worked alongside the Polish guard units in Germany first one I have ever seen

Very interesting! Also never seen similar or heard of the mission before, thanks for sharing

[robert odulinski]

Hi this thread is close to my heart. My great grand father was in the 4th kompania wartownicza corporal J Jakielaszek. He ws based out in Palestine and Egypt guarding Italian prisoners of war in the Bolshevik war he was a Wywiadowca.

[Hordeum]

Two recently acquired badges for archive.

Labor Service Company 4506 (Nancy Ordnance Depot)

Labor Service Company 4087 (Mannheim)

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Hordeum, thanks for sharing these very scarcely seen badges with us. And congratulations on your new acquisitions

Cheers,
Tony

[ThomasK]

Hello,

I recently found 2 buttons in a box at my father's place (emptying his appartment after his passing away) and want to find out what they mean. A friend of mine did some research and guided me to this forum.
First of all, I'm not sure the 1 buttons are authentic, since there's no engraving on the back. However, they look old and used, so who knows

A bit of family background first (so you understand why I'm curious). My grandfather was deported with his family from Poland (village Szczyty; district of Pajęczno) and finally ended up in the north of France. Unfortunately, he has alzheimer now and I don't see him often. With the Corona virus situation, I can't visit him and find out what he remembers, so I'm hoping that in the meantime I can get some info elsewhere (like this forum).

The first button:
- I understood that this is referring to the 4087th Labor Service Company. Does anyone have more info on this? Was this division assigned to 1 specific location?
- What is the meaning of the date 26/01/1946? Is that the day this division was founded?
- C383: any idea what that is? Perhaps the number of a camp?



2nd button:
- what do the letters stand for?
- who wore such a button?



Thanks in advance for the info.

Regards,
Thomas