Share Your Polish Militaria Highlight of 2012

[Reynard]

Just you guys helping me out. Can't thank you all enough.

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Thanks for your kind words, and you’re certainly most welcome. It was great having you join us to share your family treasures and comments. They have been a valuable contribution to our discussions this past year.

Many thanks again,
Tony

[StefanM]

And speaking of the thrill of discovery, our own Adrzejku did an super bit of research for me that amazes me to this day. This is just a quick post from work, so need to expand on this later.

Still looking forward to hearing about!

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Hi Stefan,

Thanks for the prompt, and sorry for dragging my heels. Truth be told, I need to figure out once and for all how to compose those nifty posts like you do with the pictures inserted between paragraphs of the text! Perhaps a brief tutorial via PM dear sir?

T.

[Reynard]

It's just a real pleasure to be able to share

[dastier]

For myself I would have to say finding some of my father's issued Polish military books and his post war books about the Wojsko Polskie are my highlights. I remember seeing them years ago as a child and thought them lost:

Armia Podziemna by Bor Komorowski, Drogi Cichociemnych, his English-Polish and Polish-English Dictionary (complete with nurses' names inside the back cover ) and Żołnierski Spiewnik Religijny (the last printed in Holland 1944 by the Nakladem 2go Pulku Art. Mot.)

That and the fine camaraderie here in the Forums!

[Reynard]

Yep, the thought of that dictionary made me smile, Dastier. Actually, the item that has given *me* the most laughs was the Polish - French phrase book that I found... I'll run some pages through the scanner when things have quietened down here.

[3mk]

I think the biggest highlight for me is knowing that the Polish sub-forums were created in 2009 and are still going strong!


I would like to thank everyone that posts in these sections, I've learned a lot from you all

[A.J. Zawadzki]

First off, thanks to 4th Scorpion for the explain how to add image into the body of a message.

Back to my earlier mention of an amazing bit of research on the part of Andrzejku. After acquiring this Virtuti Militari Cross award diploma issued to Captain Wladyslaw Klis I set about researching the original owner. The document is dated Dec. 26, 1941 and is personally signed by General Sikorski.



Right off the cuff I hit a snag when the VM list I have records only one Klis, by the name of Bronislaw who served in the Independent Carpathian Rifles Brigade (SBSK). Having gained access to an SBSK soldier’s list published in book form the listing included Captain Klis, also Boleslaw. It also mentions that he was awarded the VM along with the British Military Cross.

I checked all of my references and also the web but came up dry. No evidence of a Wladyslaw Klis. The mystery continues.

Name errors in WW2 era badge / decoration lists are not at all unusual, but a mistake on a VM diploma is less likely. So over to Andrzejku for some assistance. He replied that his records turned up only a Boleslaw Klis. He promised that he would keep an eye out for me.

Shortly afterwards I received another email from Andrejku. While further scouring the internet he found the archived auction results for book listing SBSK soldiers. This was a different publication then the one I mentioned above.

Here’s the amazing part. The auction pictures showed the book’s cover and one picture of the inside. For the latter, the book was randomly opened to page 73 – listing soldiers with surnames starting with “J” and “K”.



Looking closely through the thin paper he could just discern the entries on the following page. And there was Klis . . . Wladyslaw Klis. Bingo!



Here's a close up of the entry that I have digitally converted to a negative mirror image as it makes it easier to discern the name.



Also noted is the VM and the MC – a scarcely awarded combination, so it is quite certain that Capt. Wladyslaw Klis, VM, MC of the SBSK in this list is the same officer as Capt. Bronislaw Klis, VM, MC in the other SBSK list.

The mystery remains as to why Klis is recorded under both names, but for now at least this bit of corroborating evidence has been found, thanks to the efforts of our diligent and generous resident researcher Andrzejku.

Cheers,
Tony

[StefanM]

Remarkable find by Andrzejku

Hopefully 2013 will have many more interesting finds for all of us to get excited about