Early polish uniform pattern drawing, made in russia !

[Rob truscott]

I bought this hand drawn in ink and wash monochromw plate showing French style early Polish Army Uniforms . I dont know much more about this Legion other than they fought the Red Army during the Civil War ,turning back the red tide !The plate is old . on paper mounted on card ,and is signed by a Russian Artist .
Can anyone say more about this please ?

[A.J. Zawadzki]

Hi Rob,

Thanks for your post. An interesting item, but I wonder if it really was the work of a Russian artist. My hunch is that is was created by a Pole, who marked it with stylized initials. They look very familiar to me, although I can’t quite place them at the moment.

The Legia Rycerska (Knights’ Legion) was formed in late 1917 and consisted of ‘surplus’ reserve officers who served as enlisted men. It was one of several Polish military units that cropped up in Russia during the First World War. The Knights’ Legion was formed of three individual units: Lancers Legion, Infantry Legion and Artillery / Special Arms Legion.

Pictured below is the commemorative badge.

Regards,
Tony

[IvanPutski]

I bought this hand drawn in ink and wash monochromw plate showing French style early Polish Army Uniforms . I dont know much more about this Legion other than they fought the Red Army during the Civil War ,turning back the red tide !The plate is old . on paper mounted on card ,and is signed by a Russian Artist .
Can anyone say more about this please ?

Rob, it appears to be an original drawing intended to be used as part of a uniform folio on the Polish First Corps in Russia. But it looks like it is unfinished, and thus is not the one that was finally used for that publication. (See photo for the one that was ultimately used). The folio was published in Warsaw in 1918 and consists of 39 plates illustrating the uniforms of the 1st Polish Corps.

[sorry but i am not able to attach photos with this new set-up] -- will try again later

[IvanPutski]

Here are some pics from the album.