The treatment of General Maczek was deeply shameful. As an Edinburgh resident I’m very pleased we now have a proper memorial to him in the city, one of a couple of prominent memorials to the Polish contribution to the Allied cause installed in our city in recent years.
What a messed up crime of justice. You want to talk about betrayal, though? How about the homosexuals that were left to rot in prison for another twenty (20) years after the War ended just for being who they were, with war criminals released before they were? o_O Not to mention Alan Turing.
Can't wait for your young leftists to rip it to pieces. Literally had democrats in America where I lived in 2020 break apart WW2 vets gravestones and memorial plaques. Sad day.
....of course it does. That's what "betrayal" means. Your enemies can't "betray" you if you didn't trust them in the first place. "The saddest thing about crapping your pants is that it never happens when you're already sitting on the toilet."
Thanks Mark- you have done these two gentlemen proud. Poland was sold out badly by the Allies after 1945....and the exclusion of Polish soldiers from free, and not Communist , Poland, from the 1945 London Victory parade was a terrible insult and remembered to this day. I have been to Driel and the street named after Sosabowski. The Dutch have not forgotten.
The only way to make sure the Poles would not be under Soviet control and occupation much less the rest of Eastern Europe was to fight another war. Something the public in the UK, US and Western Europe had no desire for. Poland unfortunately has long been a victim of its geography.
@@mpetersen6 LOL since when did public opinion matter? The US population didn't want to enter either world war, but suddenly it's convenient to use them as a scapegoat over Poland
@@rommel17pl i am fairly sure he is reffering to Russian propaganda which mentions something similar to this. It portrays Poland as weak and Poles as stupid. It is completly untrue and ridiculous
Not a Pole, but, a mountain boy in WNC, US A. The Polish forces in WW2 are rendered magnificent and heroic survive during WW2 including getting out of Poland once occupied by the Germans; the Best and Most successful fighter pilots in the Battle of Britain; heroic action during the battle of the Falaise gap when Montgomery failed to appear; and at Monte Casino when they suffered over 11, 000 casualties. Only to be removed from Britain and returned to Soviet occupied Poland after the war was over. I deeply admire our WW2 heroes, especially the Poles. No Polish jokes or criticizing Poles for me. Not to mention their magnificent contribution in brining down the Soviet Union. This is an important video honoring those that should be honored. Thanks for posting it.
Thank you for your comments. I was born in Poland and fled Poland in 1972 from the oppressive system. My father as a Freedom Fighter (AK) fought Germans during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944. He told me about the bertrayal of Poland by the West ( especially mentioning Winston Churchill).
@@franktuminski8460 "betrayal" ...that's the thanks the families of the 450,000 British dead get for trying to save your country from the Germans. Show a bit of respect
@@tigerland4328 When visiting Monte Casino Cemetary in the summer season ( where the Polish soldiers were laid to rest) you will be stunned by the view of the beautiful red poppies. This reminds us of their sacrifice
My father told me of when he was an apprentice bus mechanic in Manchester in the late 50s. He struggled a little with his maths but was helped with his homework by one of the bus depot’s cleaners, a former WW2 Polish soldier known to all as “General Joe”. He’d studied Maths at Warsaw University before the war and had been in the Polish Army. My father asked him how he got his nickname “General Joe”. He explained that he had actually been a Brigadier General in the Polish Cavalry and brought in to work a photograph of himself with his regiment. I never found out his full name but the fact that a Brigadier General was reduced to sweeping the floor in a Manchester bus depot for a living was always a source of profound amazement to me.
I met General Maczek. He was my fathers commander. My father took me to meet him when I was about 10 years old. He was working as a barman. I couldn't understand why he didn't have a better job.
This story is very close to my wife’s family’s history. Her grandfather was a Polish solider during the war, but unlike many of his contemporaries, he chose to return to Poland to find the woman he loved. After the invasion of Poland, he left staff college to fight, was captured and escaped. He too found himself part of the Polish army being assisted by the British. He fought in Africa and Italy and ended the war as a General. On his return to Poland he was considered a traitor by the communist regime. His animals were killed and his house and land taken. Forced to move to Gdansk and given a menial role as a clerk in the shipyards there, he constantly faced intimidation. However, he found his fiancée and lived a good life. He once told me that the Germans he had fought were the bravest and well trained soldiers he’d ever faced. His attitude to Russians however, was rather different. I remember how happy he was when communism finally ended and he finally received the pension he so deserved. He was never as important as the men in this video, but he’s the only hero I’ve ever met.
Great post. My Dad was with a Canadian Armoured Regiment in Europe and talked about a Polish Armoured Regiment that was attached to their unit from the D Day landings to Germany. Perhaps he knew your grandfather. I'm now 90 years old. Everyone dead and gone.
Don't be so quick to label him as not as important as these men in the video. He did reach general, after all. I'm sure these heroes would consider anyone fighting under them as important for the fight for European freedom, and heroes themselves. I personally thank him.
Your grandfather was a badass. A badass that surpasses most people alive today. The one thing I have a hard time understanding as an American Marine Corps veteran is I just can't fathom ever stopping the fight if my country was under occupation, even for a significant other. It's just a completely alien idea, if you're alive and you have the ability to resist, you resist, until the occupation is over, or you no longer have the capability to resist (death). I must be a product of 1980s culture + 2000s Marine Corps training + a mature adult who sees what happens when you decide to let evil win.
My grandpa had similar experience. He escaped transport to Syberia, with help of Lithuanian nurse. Came back to grandma, she barely recognized him. Before war he was at some point one of Piłsudski's bodyguards.
You have no idea, Mark, How much respect you have earned from us, Polish People, for pointing out in your videos all the Polish contribution to the war efforts of the Allies, and A Great and Special THANK YOU for this video in particular, we truly appreciate and owe You a lot for your outstanding historical productions 🥇♥️🇵🇱
As a kid in the 1970's I was fascinated by the film Battle of Britain. So much so that later in life I decided to learn more about the real battle and the vitally important role played by the Polish and Czech squadrons. I, for one, know that it wasn't a battle we won entirely by ourselves. Without those brave Polish and Czech pilots we would most surely have lost.
Dziękuję bardzo. Mój dziadek służył pod Monte Cassino i wiele razy opowiadał mi, kiedy byłem chłopcem, o męstwie polskich żołnierzy, którzy w końcu je zdobyli. Pamiętam jego słowa. Pamiętam też jako dziecko, że polscy weterani w średnim wieku nadal pracowali na budowach w Wielkiej Brytanii, nie mogąc wrócić do domu. Staram się zrobić wszystko, co w mojej mocy, aby uhonorować dług, jaki mój kraj ma wobec was podczas II wojny światowej.
Thank you for this Mark a lot of Poles felt like they had no country to go back to after the war . A lot of Poles had difficulty settling into the west. Many of the Polish pilots had similar experiences.
"Hello RUclips, how's everyone doing, it's Professional here." 😂😂 But seriously though, welcome! Never thought I'd see you here but I'm nonetheless glad!
I'm a Brit in 1975 I married and relocated from London to Peterborough Cambs when I arrived it had three large ethnic groups Asian Polish Italian The Asian were from Uganda(Thanks to Idi Amin)the Polish I had assumed a RAF bomber station because the East coast was the floating Airfield that Britain was in WW2 And the Italians because their was a POW camp close to the city
We had lots of poles after the war and now in my home town, and lot's of Ukrainians from ww2, they worked at a local asbestos factory TBA, my grandparents worked there, my grandad told me that there guys who had been in the Ukrainian SS, and escaped the wrath of the soviets
The Polish soldiers in my hometown of Cardiff during WW2 were highly regarded by folk. Thank you Poland for your brave men. They deserved the best from us.
As a citizen of the city of Breda and as a Dutchmen I feel the highest honor for the Polish liberators. I also would like to thank you Mark for highlighting this forgotton history. Visiting the Maczek Memorial in Breda is recommended to anyone! Dziekujemy wam Polacy!
Ik zal altijd respect hebben voor Nederland en Nederlanders. We maken alleemaal domme fouten, maar jullie leunen ietsjes meer aan de kant "gezond verstand". Helaas ben ik niet Pools om dankbaarheid te kunnen uiten. I will always have respect for the Netherlands and the Dutch people. We all make stupid mistakes, but you lean a little more on the "common sense" side. Unfortunately I am not Polish to express gratitude.
Hearing that the Polish soldiers going for a pint would salute General Maczek brings tears to my eyes. I'm glad he lived over 100 years and chose to be buried among the men he once commanded. I've said on another video it is a great honor to be buried among your brothers in arms. He didn't deserve the treatment from the governments that had forsaken him.
Poland, from its own gold reserves that were saved in 1939, paid for planes and military equipment used by Polish soldiers in the air battle for Britain... And after the war they could not take part in the Victory Parade in London. Strange because even Czechoslovak soldiers took part in it. The sad truth.
@@r2d2aa A sad testament to the folly of appeasement. Giving in to the demands of Stalinist USSR only brought us to the day where the West is once again threatened by a RuZZian dictator. I hope this generation has learned from the mistakes of the past.
Thank you Mark. Gen. Sosabowski is my favourite WWII hero. I also respect Gen. Maczek not less. It was because of Gen. Sosabowski and Polish paratroopers I decided to jump with a parachute. To be like they. I had a pleasure to exchange a short mail years ago with James Anthony Hibbert who wrote that it was a shame on British Army to treat Gen. Sosabowski the way Gen. Urquhart did. It was very painful. The fact that you brought the history of Gen. Sosabowski to a big audience fulfil me with a hope. Thank you.
"The Polish soldier fights for the freedom of all nations, But he dies only for Poland.” General Stanisław Maczek. Thank you very much for this material, as a Pole, it is worth remembering about hundreds of thousands of Polish soldiers who, like these two famous generals, had no chance to return to free, independent Poland.
@@cliveengel5744 yes stanislaw maczek received proposal to return to the poland but he refused because as he said he dont have nowhere to go back to because lviv is not polish anymore[ lviv is his birthplace]
@@bartoszwalkowiak6590 Thank you - Stanislaw Wladyslaw Maczek, the famous Polish Tank Commander that helped liberate France in the Great Patriotic war, was born on 31 March 1892 in the Lwów suburb of Szczerzec (now Ukrainian: Shchyrets) then in Austro-Hungarian Galicia. He could never return to Poland because the Soviet Ukrainians annexed Lwow and made it part of Ukraine and called it Lviv! Stanisław Sosabowski, the famous Polish General from the Great Patriotic War that took part in Operation Market Garden in Holland was born on 8 May 1892 in Stanislau (Polish: Stanisławów), in what was then Austria-Hungary and is now Ivano-Frankivsk in western Ukraine. They could never return to Poland as the Cities and hometowns they came from were annexed by The Ukrainian SSR and became part of Western Ukraine. So now the Righteous Ukrainians are now up in arms complaining that the Russians are doing the same thing to them. However, as “Anna from Ukraine “ always points out that the Soviets made them do it - but who were the Soviets but the Ukrainian themselves. She loves to point out that the “ills of Ukraine fall on the shoulders of Russia” All these guys as we say in the US are just “Revisionist Historians” and apply “Wokeness” to their entire Historical being! They all flock to to the very cities they annexed themselves from the Poles and Hungarians to hide out from the Russians.
As a Ph.D historian and a longtime fan of MF Productions YT channel, I`d like to thank You very much for this film. Although the biographies of gen. Maczek and gen. Sosabowski are very sad and embarrassing for the British and Dutch it was a real pleasure to watch a non-polish-made film about them, especially on such a recognized channel. Please accept my sincere appreciation and thanks for the work you have done.
Might be a slight relief to know that gen. Maczek did receive a general's pension from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1951 onwards. Though for a long time this had to be kept secret due to how sensitive this was diplomatically.
I get that they were treated poorly in comparison to other men of similar rank- but it seems a little overblown- I'm sure that most Europeans behind the iron curtain had an even more dismal post war experience- and there is something romantic about returning to a modest civilian life- like a roman general retiring to be farmer- I think there is a quiet and humble dignity about it and it makes me respect these men even more
Thank you so much from bringing this up. Britain (meaning: the British politics, not the people) has been a major embarrassment for the treatment of their own allies, Polish brothers and sisters that fought in the Battle of Britain, in North Africa, in Italy, in Normandy, in the Benelux states and North Germany. What an utter and shameful disgrace.......
Rest assured if it wasn't for the British and French declaration of war on 3rd Sept 1939, then Poland would only exist today in modern histroy books. P.S Those declarations were made by the respective govts of Britain and France and NOT by a referenda of their populations.
@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 don't kid yourself. The Brits and French knew that they would eventually become the next target. It was purely a self-preservation move...
@@mikekowalewski7692 Regardless of what you say, if it wasn't for the declaration of war on nazi Germany by Britain and France, modern day Poland wouldn't exist. Utterly NO-ONE else in the ENTIRE world cared in Sept 1939 whether Poland existed or not. It's about time that modern day Poles realised that.
@@barbararice6650 I fail to see how the deposed Kaiser and the Archduke of Austro-Hungary have anything to do with how Poland and the United Kingdom treated these two men after the Second World War as one died in early June 1941 and the other in late June 1914!
As a Dutchman, with a hudge respect and gratitude for these men and the Polish soldiers, I loved this episode. Thank you for shinning the spotlight on the Poles, the often forgotten heroes.
@@fredjansen2659 What if Idid not and it is the other party who won? And my point is, that the common people and politicians are often quite difderent in opinions about many things.
I worked in childcare back in the 1990's - one of the parents of the nursery was called Sosabowski. Dr Hal Sosabowski was a senior lecturer of Chemistry at the University. He was the Grandson of the General and so, in my nursery, was the great Grandson of Stanisław Sosabowski. But I never made the connection until Hal mentioned it, having come to know of my interest in military history. I think I was thrown by the appalling prounciation of the name by Gene Hackman! Hal presented me with a book all about the General as a gift for caring for his son. I still have it and always remember grandson and great grandson when I see it on the shelf.
Was the title of that book by any chance "Freely I Served"? FYI It was one of the 1st books in English I read -- w/ the aid of a dictionary -- after immigrating to Canada. Well done, Dr. FELTON.
As a fellow Pole who grew up in the UK from a very young age this means a lot. I feel many from my youth group wouldn’t know about the war and especially the Polish sacrifices throughout the length of the conflict, especially from abroad living in another country. General Maczek holds a very special place in my heart, for not only his courage but his personality, there is a reason why his soldiers nicknamed him the “father of the troops,” and i personally couldn’t agree more.
The story of those two generals is a summary of the difficult path of the Polish nation during and after WWII. I'm glad that a British historian has raised such a subject. Those and many other Polish veterans should not be forgotten.
I’m appalled that our government did not support this man with something as little as a pension when he gave the blood to save our country im genuinely ashamed at this
Thanks for this Professor. As the son of a Polish RAF pilot that flew 300 combat missions in WWII, I only wish that I knew more about this before my dad died. He never said much at the best of times, never anything about his feelings. His mum and dad were deported by the Soviets to the gulags in 1939/40 and his brothers murdered at Katyn and 'somewhere in eastern Poland' also by the Soviets. He never spoke about this. I only found out from my mum whom he had told at some point. I obtained his RAF records and one of the last entries (thankfully in English) was when he tried to stay on in the RAF as a mechanic. He was turned down. Luckily he was one of the 19 ex-RAF pilots that went to Pakistan after Partition to start up the Pakistani Air Force (before that all pilots were either British or Indian apparently) -- on half pre-war pay of course. It would be wonderful if you could manage to produce an episode on this subject if you have the opportunity. Thank you.
On the subject of those RAF records (since you said you were grateful an entry was in English - If I've misinterpreted that and you can read Polish just fine then my apologies!) the Google translate app will let you point your phone camera at a document (or analyse a photo you've taken of it) and do it's best to translate what's written.
@@fishsmiddy1048 Look at felton winding up the half educated against Britian, well I say thank god for the civil service looking into these foreign bozos service record and deciding not to pay out high command pensions ✌️😑
When I was a kid in the 1970s there was a Polish chap who lived along our road. I was too young to understand the significance or know what his story was. He married an English girl and settled and had a family. My parents were of the WW2 generation and had nothing but respect for the Polish people in my part of the UK. It is something that I have carried over into my life, The UK has much to thank Polish people for their WW2 service in helping defend the UK and fighting as part of the Allied war effort.
As a person that grown up in Driel (close to arnhem), thank you for making this video, General Sosabowski luckily gets now his recognition. many of the people of driel made it there life project to get the general his recognition.
Dr. Felton, as a Englishman, I’m sure it pains you in the shoddy treatment of these two generals. Yet, as a historian, you honestly do not shrink from uncovering such dishonor! Bravo sir! A major reason your channel is far superior to other RUclips history channels!
Witold Pilecki, was a Polish officer who allowed himself to be taken prisoner, under an assumed name, and was taken to Auschwitz. There he started a resistance movement and smuggled out detailed reports about the camp's true nature. In April 1943, he and two other men broke out of the prison. They escaped. Pilecki made it to Warsaw and took part in the 1944 Uprising, hiding his rank for some time before the loss of other leaders prompted him to reveal himself. The Uprising failed. As part of the conditions of surrender, the Poles were considered prisoners-of-war and not taken to concentration camps. After the war, Pilecki continued as an intelligence officer in the now Communist-occupied Poland. He was accused of treason and arrested. In a show trial, the then-Polish prime minister, Józef Cyrankiewicz presented evidence against Pilecki. This was cruelly ironic as Cyrankiewicz himself was a survivor of Auschwitz, a person Pilecki tried to free. Despite all efforts, Pilecki was executed. Pilecki was a man who assumed many identities for his duty. One of the names he hid behind was Auschwitz prisoner #4859.
@@jankubiak3218 Another victim. He was charged and convicted by the new, Communist-backed, Polish government. Instead of being declared 'stateless' he was simply executed because of his dealings with the West.
I know this story. This man is the biggest hero ever lived. It saddens me that society takes to lightly on these few good men that have lived to do so imaginable much good.
@@je-freenorman7787 Yeah well I've been learning about the death camps, genocide, betrayals and general inhumanity of one group of people to another. That is throughout human history, not just WW2. As far as handling the truth. I just accept it and go on.
I went to school in the 50's and 60's with the lads of three Polish families. who's fathers stayed after the war and married English girls. They were our best mates and of course we called them by our English version of their name because we couldn't pronounce the real version. Their fathers were scary in a nice way, hard, tough men who taught us lots of woodland skills from their homeland, like how to make whistles with willow and how to scavenge for wild mushrooms etc etc. 60 years later I still visit one of them on a regular basis. Salt of the earth people.
I am another one of them, with a Polish ( ex- free forces ) mother, hence my English name. Moved to NZ, still scavenging at age 69, and corrupted my Hong Kong Chinese wife to do the same, be self sufficient, and not paying all the time, for everything. Hate going back to plastic HK. We learned about WW2 from the Polish side, first hand, and it's different from what the 'English' kids were taught.
Polish heroes are not forgotten in Poland and never will be. Your video is one of many contributions to memory and commemoration of them and Polish history. As a Pole and a grandson of Warsaw Uprising fighter and AK fighter I just want to say thank you. And of course big thank you the lovely Dutch people who also remembered and still remember our heroes.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 They're war heroes for sure and glory to them, however can't see how their deaths benefitted Poland in particular. Said enslavement did not end up in 1945 which is the reason why those two generals couldn't return to fatherland.
@@arturgrodzicki1209 Look at the international situation in 1939, Artur. The 3 "major world powers" at the time were the USA, USSR & the British Empire. USSR - Stabbed Poland in the back to steal half of the country, whilst also supplying nazi Germany with millions of tons of raw materials and fuel which enabled her to conquer the rest of continental Europe. USA - Happily sat on the "sidelines" profitting from BOTH sides of the conflict at the same time as the nazis were setting about the destruction and murder of the Polish nation. British Empire (& France) - declared war on nazi Germany to symbolically support Poland, and to oppose (and reverse) nazi military expansion in Europe, (Then likely set about the "soviet problem" after that had been achieved). NO ONE else in the "international community" had lifted a finger to oppose the nazi/soviet occupation of Poland at the time. No one can deny that the British and French as it turned out were caught with their pants down, and were FAR from being fully mobilised militarily, therefore unable to actually assist the Poles in their 6 week struggle.... except indirectly by the blockade of the North sea by the RN thereby putting economic pressure in Germany while they readied their armies. BUT the flame had been lit by the British and French. IF they had not declared war in Sept 1939, or IF they had "stood down" after the conquest of Poland, or IF Britain had sued for peace with the nazis after the fall of France, instead of seeing the conflict through til the end, then its almost certain that nazi death camps which as events happened had been put of action by 1944 / 45, would have instead been operating on Polish (and ultimately European and Soviet soil until the 1950s & 60s or even beyond. The British Empire and France collectively sacrificed over 1 million of their citizens and completely bankrupted themselves to see that it did NOT turn out like that. Unfortunately after the apocalyptic bloodshed of WW2 NO-ONE could liberate eastern & central Europe from the terrible yoke of communism after WW2, without further millions of deaths. Its very easy to look at the course of history as it happened and pick fault with the decisions that were made, and the outcomes that came to pass, but its a lot harder to see how events would have turned out if different decisions had been taken. All the best, Artur.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 I'm not sure why you're presenting Britain and France declaring war on Third Reich as some selfless gesture. They were fulfilling their own pledge given to Poland earlier same year. Hitler's decision to attack Poland instead of France only came after British guarantees were given. British diplomacy had worked hard to deter Polish from the alliance with Germany and they succeeded but at the cost of making Poland Germany's next target. In fact in 30s Poland had good relations with Germany and some form of alliance wasn't off the table. Hitler was great admirer of Piłsudski. Ultimately it's only Polish who are too blame for choosing "honor" as minister Beck said over practicalities. Taking British guarantees was likely a mistake. If Poland had joined in with Germany we would have been way better off. As for Germany and their alliance that would be extra 1-2 million soldiers, 500 tanks and few hundred aircrafts with added ability to produce more. So as you see, we can do those IFs both ways. Had Polish politicians listened to Piłsudski, then even after his death they would keep the Germans happy
@@arturgrodzicki1209 So you would have preferred an "alliance" with nazi Germany, Artur? You do realise the geopolitical situation at that time don't you? Germany's number 1 national priority was the establishment of an empire of COLONIES (and not power sharing allies) in the east as was outlined in the traditional German policy of "Drang nach osten" or as Hitler described it "lebensraum" which had existed since the 19th century. Do you honestly think it was Germany's intention to treat Poland "as an equal"? See how the nazis operated after the "Sudetenland Crisis" in 1938? After Britain and France had signed an agreement to not declare war on Germany after international scrutiny had shown that the Sudetenland openly wanted to join Germany... What happened next? After Czechoslovakia had been left without her "shield" of defensive border fortifications, months later Germany after having diplomatically "coerced" the weakened rump Slovak govt, simply drove in and occupied the rest of the "Czechoslovak protectorate", and then ruled Bohemia-Moravia as a nazi "puppet" with murderous intent.... THAT was the sort of trustworthy regime that you're suggesting Poland should have allied with. Britain and France declared war with the wishful intention of preventing that happening to Poland and to attempt to maintain (or restore) a balance of independent nations across Europe and not allow an all powerful German empire to hold sway over the rest of Europe.
If you ever find yourself in the Breda area, I can highly recommend you visit the Polish Cemetery and the Maczek Memorial. Alongside the cemetery, you'll find a small yet beautiful museum dedicated to Maczek and the men who fought along with him. It tells their incredible story of how most of them had to travel throughout all of Europe in order to continue the fight, as well as the hardships they had to face after the war. The museum itself is entirely run by volunteers, a majority of whom are descendants of Polish soldiers who stayed here after the war. A fact which makes the place and experience even more beautiful and humbling than it already is.
Does it say anything about his service in the tyrolean jaegers during the first world war 👈😑 Edelweiss, Edelweiss how lovely it is to shoot you 😕 Pure and nice Edelweiss blah blah I've forgotten the rest if indeed I ever knew it, 👀
I was born in 1987. When I visited Belgium and Netherlands. I couldnt hold my tears when I realised how they are still remembering general Maczek. Im greatfull for that as well as for your video.
I knew of these Polish generals but not their post-war fates. It is indeed a stain on not just Britain but all the allied nations. Thanks for bringing this to light, Dr. Felton.
Fucking hell the poles had to work for a living, My God the humanity 😕 My grandfather lost scores of fingers taking supplies to ungrateful eastern europeans, his merchant navy pension didn't cover his bus ticket into work, horrible world isn't it 👈😑
As an American, the more I read about how FDR threw Eastern Europe under the bus, I become absolutely sick to my stomach. I actually dread to think what might have happened to western European nations if he hadn't died and Truman taken over before war's end.
A fellow workmate of mine, a Polish gentleman fought with the British 8th Army. He told me of some of his exploits. He fought in North Africa. When he passed away and at the funeral home he had on his chest the Tobruk Medal. RIP Walter Tyzecki.
Thank you for bringing both the tragic story of these two Poles and the gallantry of Polish warriors of that era to the public. A professor of mine in the late 1980's at Boston College was a lieutenant in the Polish Army in 1939. He fought and then escaped to Spain on his journey to England when captured and put in a concentration camp by the Spanish. He got out after a year or so and made his way to England to fight on. Eventually going to the University of London and taking his Ph.D. in psychology. He emigrated to the USA when repatriation to Poland was impossible, and raised a family and had a long career. He wrote a biography as an old man and I'm proud to have a signed copy with the message "To my dear friend..." He was a kind and gentle soul despite all he had been put through. They should be remembered.
I worked at University with a Pole who had been dropped into Poland several times during the War. He was the janitor, and the kindest, gentlest man you could ever hope to meet, and a very great Pole. When he retired, there were so many there to say Goodbye... many more than when the Professor retired.
Thank you Mark Felton. My Father (Yorkshireman) battled the Germans at Monte Casino and he never had a bad word against the Polish Soldiers who finished the buggars at the top of that Mountain.
We, here in East Fife Scotland remember 1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade that had its main training base at the now derelict Largo House in Upper Largo, Fife. We have a memorial in Leven Fife remembering them. Some of us also know how Major General Stanisław Sosabowski was treated during and after the war. I personally leave comments mentioning this on some WW2 videos. Than you for posting this video. Jim 🏴
As a Polish I thank You Mark for this video. You just did more for Polish WW2 heros than any British did before. Hope one day You will get reward for this. We, Polish will never forget about Polish heros and about You Mark. Thank You again.
When I was 19 years old I had a job repairing wheelchairs. I meet an old man ( to me at the time) in a old people's home. Turned out he was from Poland and flew in the battle of Britain. I asked why he was still in London and not back in Poland. He told me that as he fought for the UK he wasn't allowed to go home. He seemed bitter and upset telling an ignorant younge man who should have know this. I didn't. To this day I feel ashamed. Not just for my ignorance as we were never told about this in school but for the actions of my country after the war.
So You can add killing gen Sikorski at Gibraltar. His plane was sabotage because he wanted to release information about Katyń massacre by Soviets but during that time Britain had alliance with CCCP so it was very unpleasant that those information could be review to public and they simply just sabotage plane. So yeah "alliance" but for who? We are been rape in the ass. Even Britain confiscated Polish National gold for "using British tank and plane to protect British sky and Europe's lands". Even Orwell would be confused.
United States and British Empire betrayed Poland. They gave Poland to Stalin. Stalin murdered several MILLIONS polish patriots. Also Poland LOST part of main lands as a country which was fighting against 3rd reich from the beginning to the end, and was in victorous alliance. Some of those lands were polish core lands from one thousand year and they were taken from Poland and they were given to soviet.
And me, but unfortunately, I already knew how we s**t on all the Poles and gave Poland to the communists, and it's a chapter in our history that is truly shameful.
I remember visiting Arnhem and Nijmegen in the late 1980s, and noticing many hotel bars were festooned with regimental emblems, from the numerous veterans who came over to visit. Our Dutch friends told us these veterans were still held in the highest regard by the locals, who had not forgotten their fight to liberate the Netherlands. I found this extremely touching that they remembered and honoured those men from decades before.
The Dutch people still honour the countries that fought to liberate them. The schoolchildren are taught, in great detail, what happened between 1939 and 1945. Their museums and memorials are well kept. In general, the Dutch people know more about the liberation effort than the people in the countries that liberated them do. The Dutch government, sadly, not so much. Politicians are unfamiliar with the concept of honour.
Yes, I was there 3 years ago. In the Airborne museum at Hartenstein, Oosterbeek. Almost every single house in the city has a blue Pegasus amblem flag, along with Union Jack. Amazing, very nice and touchy...
Thank You dr Felton so much! ♥️ My great grandfather's brother, Czesław Pawłowicz (OBE) was chief of medical staff under general Maczek's command. Fortunately his fate was a little bit better as he managed to open medical practice in London after the war ( though he was barely able to hear anything, due to shell barotrauma). However I can not give any further details, as the contact was him was broken by the Iron Curtain.
Thanks for sharing this story. I live in a little village near Arnhem called Driel. It was de village where general stanislaw sosabowski was dropt during market garden. To this day, Sosabowski and his men are honderd by the citizens of Driel for what they did. The bust of him, as you talked about at the end of the video, there are only two of those in existence. One in Warsaw (as you mentioned) and one in the village of Driel.
I have to say, Mark Felton's continual, blatant and shocking adherence to facts, careful research, professionalism and sensitivity in presenting these forgotten, almost vanished, aspects of one of the most supposedly well researched wars in history makes him something of an anomaly on the internet. I already knew of Montgomery's darker, less heroic side due to his time in Ireland during our War of Independence, but it's very refreshing to see a clear eyed and balanced assessment by a British historian. Fair play to you, sir! Always a pleasure watching your videos.
Did you know that Jewish refugees who applied for asylum to the Irish free state ligation in Berlin we're not only refused that but their names were passed on to the Gestapo, and that's the official Irish channels, fuck knows what the IRA were up to even going so far as to set assurances of transportation of the final solution initiative 👈👀
Thank you for your work Mr. Felton. There are lots of sad stories of Polish officers who wasn't able to come back to Poland. My great-grandfather was also exiled Captain of Polish Armed Forces, he stayed in London, and never came back to communist Poland, because he was afraid of jail and execution after tortures by nkvd. He was noble and very well educated, so his life in UK wasn't bad, but it's always sad for me when i'm reading letters from him, there is so much nostalgia, sadness and anger when he describes things after 1945
@@wielmoznymaciej1678 a lokalizacyjnie skad oba sie wywodza? Bo moja rodzina od strony ojca z okolic Bartatowa kolo Lwowa pochodzi i stamtad byla wypedzona przez Ukraincow.
Thank you for making this video. My grandfather was a Polish Navy officer during the 30s and served on Polish destroyer Grom. In September 1939 he was responsible for organizing defense of Hel peninsula. During German occupation he was part of AK, Polish underground army under command of Polish government in London. I was told that he was part of the unit which managed to steal technical details of German U-boat torpedoes and sent it to England. He was arrested by communists after the war, I think it was 1946 or 1947, and since AK soldiers were not demobilized at that time by Polish government in London (I'm not sure about that. Maybe there was hope for war between west and Soviet Union) he still had his side arm pistol when he was arrested. He was interrogated for months and it was a miracle that he was eventually released. As a result, he was stripped of his rank and could never serve in military. He had to get a job as a cook. Overall, I think he was one of the lucky ones to survive in Poland when the war ended.
Your Grandfather was serving during the months that he was being interrogated, bravely, loyally, he remained a member of the military, no one could ever strip him of his status
Iam Polish, my grandfather fight under Gen Maczek, was wounded three times. Liberate with General Maczek Belgium, Holand(Breda), and they end war, as mention, in Wilhelmshaven. My grandfather die in 2000. Iam very graetful for this material. Was great, and thanks for restore a true about polish soldiers, and theirs sad history after wotld war II. My grandfather told me, that he was in many capital citys, during wwII, but never Was in Warsaw...
Thanks Mark. My late grandfather was an officer and tank commander under General Maczek. He was seriously wounded in the Falais pocket. After the war my grandfather talked at great enthusiasm about General Maczek. Thank you for highlighting the sad ending to his life after the war
Such a nice man it seems. Stationed in Lvov(Lwow , Lviv) and Grodno during the interwar years. You do wonder what he was doing there. Surely he did not help with anything bad.
@@ivanmonahhov2314 both Lviv and Grodno were parts of Poland at the time, before the USSR took those lands from Poland after WW2, so it's no wonder he was stationed there, they were just cities in Poland.
@@johnnyenglish583 You are missing a few details here. These regions were populated in majority by Belorussians and Ukranians. Poland initially promised be respectful towards them. But very soon broke those treaties and began ethnic cleansing ( in modern terms integration or genocide depending what part of the world you are talking about ). They banned education in Ukranian and Belorussian languages , started to forcing conversions to catholicism and in the end speaking Ukranian or Belorussian in public was a finable offense. This sparked backlash , like forming of Organization of Ukranian Nationalists which for example assinated the Polish internal affairs minister. Glory to Ukraine , Glory to Heroes , Glory to the nation , Death to enemies. aka Slava Ukraine Gerojam slava Slava nacii Smert vorogam. So deployment to those regions want just a deployment , it was supporting ethnic cleasing.
@@ivanmonahhov2314 I think you're using the wrong term. "Ethnic cleansing" means physically liquidating people of a different ethnicity (for example what the Ukrainians did to the Polish population in Volyhnia in 1943-44 in collusion with the Nazis, or what the Russians planned to do in Ukraine in 2022). Polonisation/russification/ukrainisation in terms of education, culture and language is not ethnic cleansing. It's a pretty common thing. When parts of Poland were under German and Russian partition, German and Polish were the official languages taught at school. When Ireland was under British rule, English was taught at school. Now, in 21st century in Eastern Ukraine, you want the ethnically Russian people to use Ukrainian. So do you claim that it was not fair for Poles to expect that Ukrainians living in Poland speak the official language, but it's perfectly OK for Ukrainians to expect Russians living in Ukraine to speak the official language? And if you insist on claiming there was ethnic cleansing in pre-war Poland, please provide any RELIABLE source of information on the pre-war Polish Armed Forces carrying out ethnic cleansing in Lviv. "Reliable" means that UPA pamphlets don't count ;-) Also, please explain why they would need ethnic cleansing in a city like Lviv, which was mostly Polish and Jewish, with just a small percentage of Ukrainians.
@@johnnyenglish583 physically liquidating is genocide, but yeah definition is rather fluid. Destruction of language and culture to replace national identity is one of them. Ban on education and use of language in public spaces is not normal
MARK! AS A POLE MYSELF, I DO NOT KNOW HOW TO THANK YOU FOR THIS EPISODE AND REMINDING THE WORLD ABOUT BETRAYAL THAT HAS CHANGED THE POST-WAR POLAND FOR DECADES! Your amazing summary is showing massive unfairness against the polish people - and the Poland itself that took place during - and just after the war. Polish people tryully appreciating you for this fantastic episode!!!
My father was RAF & was Honoured to fight along with The Polish 303 Squadron They put him in Hospital after one evenings drinking after Hours!😂😂 He said to me that they never regarded the Training Manual & closed up to Shoot The Germans down nearly Point Blank I do believe they hold The biggest Shoot Down Record of The RAF Maybe until this Day Proud Folk I'm happy to have met several Old Men Who were bloody Lethal in a war bird I don't condone War & Violence to my Fellow Humans ..I did it as a Teenager It's not Glory It's Nasty & Brutal You can wash off the blood But that experience stains your Soul forever
First, you need to learn how to type in proper case: i) All CAPS is rude ii) polish -> Polish I'm sure it's the same in Polish so don't use English is not your Native language as an excuse, because it's neither mine.
@@obiwan88 First of all you need to learn how to spell: 1), 2) instead of i) and ii). Dont be so shure about polish luangage because apparently you know noting about it, its rules and how complex it is.....
yes, quite often i will think decisions are contextual to the time may it be the way of thinking, the situation, yet in these cases it is hard to find reason to such injustice
Nothing surprising about it. The British upper class is the most racist group of people in world. The British upper classes don't think much of 'continentals' in general, although western Europeans may get some grudging respect. Eastern Europeans are considered to be sub-human...especially Slavs. Go have a look at some of the declassified British intelligence reports from before WWII regarding the USSR. The Russians were described as a 'Mongoloid race' incapable for building or maintaining an advanced civilization. British intelligence predicted that the USSR would collapse within weeks if attacked by a proper European army like the Wehrmacht. Funny, the British and US press are saying pretty much the same thing about the Russians now. The Ukrainians should take note. If Ukraine is successful at pushing the Russians out...and that remains to be seen...their US and British 'allies' will abandon them promptly.
My father served in the army during WW2. Not an easy man to give compliments but his respect for the Polish army was unswerving and he never ceased praising them. Respect to Poland. The land of strong fighting forces.
Hi Mark: One fact you left out about Sosabowski was that his fellow coworkers at CAV Electrics were unaware of his World War II accomplishment and exploits his rank and decorations till his funeral when they discovered this from his former subordinates and family and what medals he got when his eulogy was read despite the fact he was active in the polish community in Britain after the war . I bet when they found out needless to say they were dumbfounded their coworker was a recipient of a CBE and a former general in the polish army. Must have been one surreal experience.
As a Pole I can't express my gratitude enough for making videos such as this, spreading historical knowledge to people all around the world. So many don't realize how dirty Poland was dealt not just due to WW2 itself but afterwards as well.
The Poles get away with the fact they invaded and annexed parts of Czechoslovakia in 1938 right after the Germans, when it was at its weakest. So when they complain the Brits and French didn't do enough to help them then I bring this up, they love to act so innocently. The Czechoslovaks were the real victims of the war.
@@Gecko.... Ah yes, tiny Zaolzie, historically polish land which was also ethnically polish. Maybe 10 people died, truly comparable scale of an invasion. Regardless being just for people living there then it was diplomatic blunder that gets brought up here and there like you do.
Well obviously they were behind the Iron Curtain and were turned communist...... But are you referring to losses of territory to Belarus and the Ukraine
Hats off to Mr Felton for reminding this important part of history. Those heroes deserved proper recognition and a lots has been done over the last two decades to keep their memory alive. Recently visited battle of Britain memorial at Capel-le-Ferne near Folkestone and spend an hour finding ALL names on memorial war. Both squadrons 302 and 303 had also their dedicated plates at pilot statue.
As the grandson of a Polish veteran, thank you so much for this. My grandfather fled communism to the UK and faced poor treatment there. He died and is buried on US soil still a proud Pole. Thank you for the recognition of the sacrifices and dedication our people showed to try and win freedom for our country.
Large numbers of Polish troops settled in England. In reality, they were treated the same as British and other demobbed troops, my father and his brothers included! Do not forget, Britain was bankrupt!
Gloria victis. My grandfather fought in a defensive campaign against German and Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939. He was awarded a medal for this bravery in one of the biggest battle of the defensive campaign - Battle of Bzura. My grandfather was a very modest man and never talked to us grandkids as being a very brave soldier. We found out about it after his death after seeing his belongings.
@@nickjung7394 The post-war Polish Resettlement Act allowed British citizenship to all Poles and their families in the UK.150,000 of them chose to take it and those who wanted to keep their Polish citizenship were given the right of domicile in Britain. They enjoyed the same rights to housing, pensions, benefits, healthcare and education as British-born citizens, and were given preferential access to employment, through the Polish Resettlement Corps. Given the huge economic and human price Britain and France paid in guaranteeing Polish neutrality, albeit without the means to back it up, one wonders what more could be expected. Certainly, the USA and Commonwealth countries were not queueing up to take them. Poland's tragic history was not created by Britain, but by Germany and the Soviet Union, including traitorous Polish communists, and their soldiers were betrayed by them. Even Montgomery was impoverished after the war, to the extent that he petitioned the King for somewhere to live, but was refused. My father was a decorated tank commander and returned to Britain in 1946 to work as a coal-delivery driver. Bar-tending doesn't seem so bad by comparison. I worked for a Polish lawyer, a pre-war regular army officer, and his partner, a Polish BoB fighter pilot, both of whom qualified in law in Britain. They made a great success of their practice and were grateful for the help they received.
@@nickyl8980 i think you mean falkirk, falkland is way further south more souther than the equator in fact..but i could be wrong as never been up Scotland...and sorry to pull you up on another one, no catholic chapel can be royal!, its impossible and would be deemed blasphemous in the popes eyes, but there is many Catholic chapels spread far and wide across the UK, just not royal...
Thank you Dr Felton. Thoses great men shouldn't be forgotten. My own grand father served under Gnl Anders and take the great risk to comeback to Poland where wife and son were waiting. In communist Poland he was a stranger on his forefathers soil. Lot of injustice met a lot of brave men backthen. Thanks again for honouring them. Best wishes from Warsaw Poland.
Pat Marek: Despite the actions of our Governments. In the hearts of many British people, the Polish people are held in great esteem. Governments, not so much. The Lion in Winter, may be old and grey but our heart is still stirred by courageous actions and courageous people. God bless the Polish people, each and every one of them. I hope that we can redeem some of that lost honour by standing by our Ukrainian brothers. Who seek only peace and freedom, until they too, win their war against the forces of evil, that seek to subjugate them.
I like this channel for Mark Felton's unbiased quest to reveal interesting stories of gallantry and bravery and also displaying injustice. He really is an exemplary historian and watching his episodes is never a waste of time.
Unbiased? Hmmm why has Mark failed to research or include VERY relevant information regarding the "1947 UK Polish resttlement act" that gave full UK citizenship and residency rights to nearly 300,000 Polish ex-service personnel and their families?
Thank you Dr. Felton for the courage to tell the stories of these two brave men. Many nations have similar histories of dishonoring the soldiers who served them.😇
In addition to what Mark said in his typically brilliant video, to their great credit the Scottish people also recently honoured Gen. Maczek by naming a walkway, that is located close to where he lived in Edinburgh, ‘General Maczek Walk’. Incidentally, My parents who themselveswere post WW2 Polish exiles living in UK met General Maczek several times in the UK, and I’m pretty sure I met him once in Cardiff in 1964, when the General was the guest of honour at a Polish veterans 20th anniversary of the D-Day landings, an event which my parents were actively involved in. Unfortunately, being only six at the time, and as my parents have both passed away, I can’t be certain of that. However, I do have a copy of the programme for the event which includes the names of both the General and my mother. At the risk of ‘going on’, personally, I think it’s very important to say that ordinary people in England, Scotland and Wales were incredibly supportive of my Polish parents and other family members as they adjusted to life in the UK as post WW2 ‘displaced’ Polish persons.
Thank You Dr Felton for keeping the memories of these seemingly 'forgotten' Generals alive. I will visit the memorial in Edinburgh the next time i am there, to pay my respect to a brave man who deserved our thanks and gratitude .
I served alongside Polish troops in Paktika Province, Afghanistan in 2007. I gained a great respect for their professionalism, bravery and combat proficiency! The Polish Soldiers and Airmen were treated very badly indeed after WWII!
@@Przem112207you are wrong they accused them of hidding terrorist but they didn't offer any proof of that and and when the afghans asked for proof of bin Laden being responsible the usa just attacked
Thank you for shedding light on these figures and through them on the fate of Polish ex-soldiers once the war was over. Many became mercenaries to get by, fighting in Biafra and other locations in Africa etc. So sad to see how the allies paid back for their support.
My grandfather did as well! He fought alongside the Poles in Italy & then Canadians under Montgomery. He hated Montgomery with a passion until the day he died bc he had a habit of attacking territories then retreating to resupply then re-attacking the same place costing a lot of lives. He also hated him for delaying attacks for the same reasons (usually supply issues). He believed a lot of the conspiracy theories around why Eisenhower continued to indulge Montgomery’s incompetence. Also according to my grandfather the senior British generals & admirals hated Montgomery more than anyone else including Patton & that it was Eisenhower who always backed him (supposedly at the request of Roosevelt & Churchill).
The Polish army in the west is maybe the biggest act of heroism of the whole war. Only embarking on this journey makes them first rate heros. What they pulled-of at the end is nothing short of a miracle, to be betrayed by post war politicians. Thanks for remembering us. We should NEVER forget these men.
Thank You Dr Felton for doing this video! A deeply touching story that is not known outside of Poland but we as Poles learned about it even under the communist boot. As a grandson of a Polish 2 Corps officer that fought at Monte Cassino and fell during the Ancona battle, I greatly appreciate every bit of information that you are able to share with your audience - about Polish effort in the WWII.
Nice to see a comment from an honourable Pole, not for once shitting over the sacrifices made by the UK both in people and gold to see nazism wiped from the face of Europe. Thank you.
@@barbararice6650 wow, you have your facts sooooooo wrong! In WW1 he was drafted into the Austrian-Hungarian army…. Not the German. You may have read, Poland wasn’t a country back then…. Then during WW2 when Poland existed, he fought for the allies against the filthy Nazis.
@@fishsmiddy1048 You're American aren't you, the Tyrolean Jaegers were an elite part of the Austrian army during the first world war, however the collective military alliance is known as the central powers, they were all the same thing from day one of the war when Austrian heavy howitzers were brought up by the Germans to smash the lovely Belgian town of Liege 😁 I'm not getting a fee for this too 😕 btw officers aren't drafted, it's like a career choice, like I've said I'm not here to impune the guy's honour, only to point out Britian didn't owe him a bloody war pension 😑
@@pie7463 Officers aren't drafted common soilders are, so what's this telling us other than maczek was a conscientious proactive productive creature of the central powers during the first world war 🙄
Incredibly sad outcome for for both generals it is hard to believe ! Thank you for researching and presenting this it is a testament to the two men that you inform people of their struggles after the war
Thanks again for such a fantastic video Mark, I am glad you made such a video to highlight the plight of such brave men after the war keeping their memory alive. I am also glad members of the free Polish 300 bomber squadron RAF were so well received and celebrated in Pakistan then. People like General Władysław Turowicz became national heroes there and are celebrated for their work both inside and outside the Pakistani Air Force. See for yourself may even be a subject for another video? Thanks
As a Pole in some part - thank you Mark for mentioning the tragic fate of the Polish generals-heroes of WW2 that happened to them after the end of the war. It is also worth mentioning general Władysław Anders, commander of the entire 2nd Polish Corps that fought alongside the British 8th Army in Italy, famous for the capture of Monte Cassino, Ancona, Loreto and Bologna. His fate was similar to that of both generals mentioned in the movie. Also my great-grandfather fought in 1939 in the September Campaign as a pilot in the 2nd Aviation Regiment in Krakow, continued to fight in France in 1940, in the Battle of Britain and until the end of WW2 in Europe as a pilot in the RAF and PSP (Polish Air Force) in 300 and 301 Squadron. In 1947 he repartied to Poland occupied by the communist Soviets because his wife, my great-grandmother and her 3 sons, including my grandfather live there and miraculously survived the German occupation in their homeland, thanks to the incredible bravery of my great-grandmother, despite her poverty (refusal of receiving any food rations by the Germans, because she could not for fear of persecution, reveal the fate of her husband, who was fighting from England against Germany), she miraculously kept her 3 sons alive on the verge of starvation, making a living as a seamstress. Unfortunately, after returning to communist Poland my great-grandfather was arrested, interrogated, beaten and humiliated many times by the communist occupiers for his participation in the fight alongside the Western Allies as an "unwanted Western element", his merits in the war for the liberation of Europe under German occupation were not recognized and he was refused proper pensions, so he was forced to work hard physically in the printing house to keep the family. Many of his Polish airmen colleagues returning to Poland after the war met a similar or even worse fate - many years of imprisonment, torture and being sentenced to death as an "enemy of the communist regime"... just to mention the fate of General Stanisław Skalski the highest scoring and the most experienced ace of the Polish Air Force during WW2. The fate of Poland or Czechoslovakia after WW2 is a tragic page of history, heroes fighting for freedom against the greatest evil of the twentieth century - was then recognized as "traitors and enemies" by the communist forces that occupied their country for nearly 50 years... May such history never be repeated! And I would like to thank all the British, French, Belgians, Italians and the Dutch for their kindness and the memory of Polish soldiers who fought bravely and gave their lives in the fight for the freedom of their countries. Politicians are treacherous opportunists, but ordinary people remember in their hearts. This selflessness no matter where you are from makes us all brothers. :)
Thank you for your valuable information. The history from 'ordinary people' is very important and must be told, written down and passed on to generations following. This history is the truest information, told with heart 💜
This is to often forgotten....I as a German are very sure about ONE Thing: Poland RESCUED Europe already 2 Times, first against the Turks in Vienna and then against our imported Austrian jobless Painter. And as I see it, in the Political Situation today, POLAND is a LEADING Government again in the Fight against Putin. The most Volunteers inside the Ukraine Army Foreign Legion from Europe are POLES!!! So, they do it again, even again under a different Government Leader Situation. In WW2 it was UK, now it´s Ukraine. So they do it a THIRD Time. And you know what is most SHAMEFUL at all??? No One realizing it!!! Especially not my " Wanne Be Government" in Berlin which is a HUGE FARCE in Comparison to Warsaw!!! THANK YOU POLAND!! LONG LIVE THE WHOLY POLAND!!!! (And SHAME to my WOKE German Wannebee Government which still refuses to send the "correct Aid" to Kiev!!!)
I know. My dad fought in Cyrenaica with the 8th too. Don't forget to mention the South Africans, Rhodesians and Ghurkas also who accompanied the Poles.
Hi Mark, Dutch viewer here, born in 1980. This reminds me of the 2004 Dutch documentary 'God Bless Montgomery' about the same topic. The husband of our Queen Wilhelmina, and Dutch wartime commander, Prince Bernhard had always lobbied, up until then unsuccessfully, for rehabilitation and honor for the Poles that liberated Holland (and did so, unlike the Americans, with minimal use of firepower to protect the cities.) Because royals are supposed to be politically inert, his lobbying had come to nothing. The prince called the Poles 'The best soldiers he had ever witnessed'. In 2006, his wishes were finally honored, and the Poles were cemented as heroes in Dutch WW2 history, with the highly prestigious Military William Order (only 3 living recipients) awarded to the the Polish 1st Parachute brigade. Only one of two such awards to a foreign unit. (The other being the 82nd Airborne Division). I personally feel Western Europe owes the Poles a debt of honor: their partacipiation in WW2, AFTER the destruction of their country, is a an heroic tale of truly epic proportions.
Funny old world when you consider the Dutch were sending SS divisions to oppress and suppress the poles 👈😑 Did you know that mediaeval people believed otters would bite off their testicles to confuse their pursuers 😕
From Warsaw to Norway to Monte Cassino through Market Garden and to VE Day the Poles never quit. They may have lost their homeland but that didn't stop them liberating the homelands of their allies.
@@davidcox3076 👉Brigade I of the Polish Legions (Polish: I Brygada Legionów Polskich, Austrian German: Brigade I der Polnischen Legion, Hungarian: A Lengyel Légió I. Dandárja) was a unit of Austro-Hungarian Army, manned by Poles under Austrian occupation, part of the Polish Legions in World War I, existing from 1914 to 1917 👈😕 You wanna pay this lot their war pension feel free 😕
As a Pole, many thanks for the material. Most of us here have heard about how they were treated but you're the voice for English speaking viewers around the world.
Beautiful video Mark. As a grandson of a solider in the British 1st Airborne Division I can personally say I owe Sosabowski and the brave men of the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade much more than can be expressed in words. Their memory will live on in the descendants of all those men who were sent a bridge too far.
I flew to Krakow the day after watching this video coincidentally. I had written my dissertation on Operation Market Garden 12 years ago and touched on Sosabowskis input. However, i wasn't aware this was how things ended for him. While in Krakow I told as many people as would listen about his story, and then went to visit his statue in Jordan Park in tribute to the man.
When you return home to the UK Chris, you can visit the HUNDREDS of memorials and grave stones dedicated to the Polish war service personnel who served and died in the west after 1939. I wonder how many memorials to the >1.1 million British and French citizens who gave their lives to see the evils of nazism (that had previously conquered, enslaved and murdered Poland) destroyed. My guess is less than 10, if ANY at all.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 all those were put, after people realised how badly was their memory treated. Poland wasn't even invited to the victory parade. That's just a cover up for this grave injustice. Poland didn't even receive war reparations due to soviet occupation after the war.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 I don't really get it what's your point? That British and French don't have enough grave stones and somehow this is Polish fault or what?
@@ypabloworld he is a shill looking for attention as I have seen some of his other comments. I think the point he is trying to make (which makes no sense actually) is that there are many memorials to honor Polish troops in France and the UK while in Poland there are no memorials honoring British, Commonwealth nor French troops. I do not know if this is factual or not but it would make sense as no British, Commonwealth or French forces fought on Polish soil during WW2 while the Poles fought heavily on French and British soil. Likewise there are many memorials to U.S. soldiers in France as many Americans fought in France and probably none in the U.S. honoring French soldiers from WW2 as no French soldiers fought on U.S. soil (obviously). So really his point makes very little logic. After all thats why his screenname is Kronkite's left shoe. Perhaps if his knick was Kronkite's right shoe he would make slightly better arguments.
"They fill his chest with medals while he's across the foam And they spread the crimson carpet when he comes marching home The next day someone hollers when he comes into view "Here comes the general" and they all say "General who?" They're delighted that he came But they can't recall his name"
"Nihil Novi" for us Poles. We learned a hard way that treaties are worth less then a paper it's write on. Thank you for reminding the English speaking World that our heroes were heroes to the end. They fought with courage and live with dignity after the war against the odds.
Lets be fair, there have always been people in the English speaking world who know (and knew) how bravely the Poles fought throughout world war 2, its disgusting how they were treated after the war and betrayed by the Western Allies both during and after the war.
Incredible to think some of these Polish warriors had fought in the Battles of Poland (1939), France (1940), Normandy (1944), and Netherlands (1944-45). Amazing heroes!
Dr. Felton, you have honored these great men and their comrades by telling their story and educating all of us about them. A wonderful channel you have created here indeed.
I am not sure drawing repeated attention to it (and thus the repeated flaming of comment sections with hateful remarks from both sides) is ideal really though. Yes Britain should have looked after these men better, and Monty shouldn't have blamed him for Market Garden when it was clearly the fault of different ground commanders (not saying which as its not the point) but I find the pendulum repeatedly swings the other way, and videos like this just sort of...increase the division instead of healing it. The Poles are aggressively salty and insecure, and the other Allies resent being called out on things like this, so all it ever does is cause issues.
@@AtheAetheling your comment works in favour of division especially labeling someone as aggressive, also reading the vast majority of comments your argument about bringing division simply falls flat on its face
The treatment of General Maczek was deeply shameful. As an Edinburgh resident I’m very pleased we now have a proper memorial to him in the city, one of a couple of prominent memorials to the Polish contribution to the Allied cause installed in our city in recent years.
What a messed up crime of justice. You want to talk about betrayal, though? How about the homosexuals that were left to rot in prison for another twenty (20) years after the War ended just for being who they were, with war criminals released before they were? o_O Not to mention Alan Turing.
Can't wait for your young leftists to rip it to pieces. Literally had democrats in America where I lived in 2020 break apart WW2 vets gravestones and memorial plaques. Sad day.
@@williamyoung9401 then perhaps let's talk about all Polish freedom fighters killed after war by comminists
Too little and WAY too late.
Poles were simply useful idiots for the West, cannon fodder. Interestingly enough, they are in the same position now, again too blind to see.
"The saddest thing about betrayal is that it never comes from your enemies, it comes from those you trust the most"
Well technically you can only be betrayed by someone you trust.
You expect your enemies to treat you badly.
However I know what you mean.
....of course it does. That's what "betrayal" means. Your enemies can't "betray" you if you didn't trust them in the first place.
"The saddest thing about crapping your pants is that it never happens when you're already sitting on the toilet."
Isn't it disgusting when your enemies betray you 😕
That was said in the 1972 film "The ,Godfather."
So very trud.
Thanks Mark- you have done these two gentlemen proud. Poland was sold out badly by the Allies after 1945....and the exclusion of Polish soldiers from free, and not Communist , Poland, from the 1945 London Victory parade was a terrible insult and remembered to this day. I have been to Driel and the street named after Sosabowski. The Dutch have not forgotten.
The only way to make sure the Poles would not be under Soviet control and occupation much less the rest of Eastern Europe was to fight another war. Something the public in the UK, US and Western Europe had no desire for. Poland unfortunately has long been a victim of its geography.
@@memememeson3994 WTF you talking about.
@@mpetersen6 LOL since when did public opinion matter? The US population didn't want to enter either world war, but suddenly it's convenient to use them as a scapegoat over Poland
@@rommel17pl I presume due to his avatar a made up fantasy due to exposure to lots of vodka and propagandistic made up Russian history.
@@rommel17pl i am fairly sure he is reffering to Russian propaganda which mentions something similar to this. It portrays Poland as weak and Poles as stupid. It is completly untrue and ridiculous
Not a Pole, but, a mountain boy in WNC, US A.
The Polish forces in WW2 are rendered magnificent and heroic survive during WW2 including getting out of Poland once occupied by the Germans; the Best and Most successful fighter pilots in the Battle of Britain; heroic action during the battle of the Falaise gap when Montgomery failed to appear; and at Monte Casino when they suffered over 11, 000
casualties. Only to be removed from Britain and returned to Soviet occupied Poland after the war was over. I deeply admire our WW2 heroes, especially the Poles.
No Polish jokes or criticizing Poles for me. Not to mention their magnificent contribution in brining down the Soviet Union.
This is an important video honoring those that should be honored. Thanks for posting it.
Polish casualties at monte casino were 4,000 (1,000 KIA 3,000 WIA)
Thank you for your comments. I was born in Poland and fled Poland in 1972 from the oppressive system. My father as a Freedom Fighter (AK) fought Germans during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944. He told me about the bertrayal of Poland by the West ( especially mentioning Winston Churchill).
@@franktuminski8460 "betrayal" ...that's the thanks the families of the 450,000 British dead get for trying to save your country from the Germans. Show a bit of respect
Thank you for kind words, sir. Greetings from Poland!
@@tigerland4328 When visiting Monte Casino Cemetary in the summer season ( where the Polish soldiers were laid to rest) you will be stunned by the view of the beautiful red poppies. This reminds us of their sacrifice
My father told me of when he was an apprentice bus mechanic in Manchester in the late 50s. He struggled a little with his maths but was helped with his homework by one of the bus depot’s cleaners, a former WW2 Polish soldier known to all as “General Joe”. He’d studied Maths at Warsaw University before the war and had been in the Polish Army. My father asked him how he got his nickname “General Joe”. He explained that he had actually been a Brigadier General in the Polish Cavalry and brought in to work a photograph of himself with his regiment. I never found out his full name but the fact that a Brigadier General was reduced to sweeping the floor in a Manchester bus depot for a living was always a source of profound amazement to me.
Perhaps the polish military over promoted him and maybe why poland only lasted three weeks in ww2👈😑
@@barbararice6650 tell me you know nothing about the start of WW2 without telling me you know nothing about the start of WW2 xD
@@Homer-fc5fm The barbara rice is a troll -empty anonymous account on YT , created two days ago
@@wojtekwesolowski1950 well,i got baited
WE LOST THE WAR, POLAND WAS GIVEN TO RUSSIA.
I met General Maczek. He was my fathers commander. My father took me to meet him when I was about 10 years old. He was working as a barman. I couldn't understand why he didn't have a better job.
I don't think it's easier to understand when you're older. That kind of stuff should just never happen.
WOW could you elaborate on your story how the general behave what he was like?
great, he lived 100 years, as far as I remember
Britain was already strapped for cash in 1945.
He lived until 102.
This story is very close to my wife’s family’s history. Her grandfather was a Polish solider during the war, but unlike many of his contemporaries, he chose to return to Poland to find the woman he loved. After the invasion of Poland, he left staff college to fight, was captured and escaped. He too found himself part of the Polish army being assisted by the British. He fought in Africa and Italy and ended the war as a General. On his return to Poland he was considered a traitor by the communist regime. His animals were killed and his house and land taken. Forced to move to Gdansk and given a menial role as a clerk in the shipyards there, he constantly faced intimidation. However, he found his fiancée and lived a good life. He once told me that the Germans he had fought were the bravest and well trained soldiers he’d ever faced. His attitude to Russians however, was rather different. I remember how happy he was when communism finally ended and he finally received the pension he so deserved. He was never as important as the men in this video, but he’s the only hero I’ve ever met.
so...the commies sent all the westernized poles to the Shipyards in Gdansk...the one where Lech Walensa organized his rebellion ?!?!
Great post. My Dad was with a Canadian Armoured Regiment in Europe and talked about a Polish Armoured Regiment that was attached to their unit from the D Day landings to Germany. Perhaps he knew your grandfather. I'm now 90 years old. Everyone dead and gone.
Don't be so quick to label him as not as important as these men in the video. He did reach general, after all. I'm sure these heroes would consider anyone fighting under them as important for the fight for European freedom, and heroes themselves. I personally thank him.
Your grandfather was a badass. A badass that surpasses most people alive today.
The one thing I have a hard time understanding as an American Marine Corps veteran is I just can't fathom ever stopping the fight if my country was under occupation, even for a significant other.
It's just a completely alien idea, if you're alive and you have the ability to resist, you resist, until the occupation is over, or you no longer have the capability to resist (death).
I must be a product of 1980s culture + 2000s Marine Corps training + a mature adult who sees what happens when you decide to let evil win.
My grandpa had similar experience. He escaped transport to Syberia, with help of Lithuanian nurse. Came back to grandma, she barely recognized him. Before war he was at some point one of Piłsudski's bodyguards.
Greetings from Poland! God bless you for reminding the World this sad stories.... Stay safe.
You have no idea, Mark, How much respect you have earned from us, Polish People, for pointing out in your videos all the Polish contribution to the war efforts of the Allies, and A Great and Special THANK YOU for this video in particular, we truly appreciate and owe You a lot for your outstanding historical productions 🥇♥️🇵🇱
❤
Thanks, man 🙂🇵🇱👍
As a kid in the 1970's I was fascinated by the film Battle of Britain. So much so that later in life I decided to learn more about the real battle and the vitally important role played by the Polish and Czech squadrons. I, for one, know that it wasn't a battle we won entirely by ourselves. Without those brave Polish and Czech pilots we would most surely have lost.
Dziękuję bardzo. Mój dziadek służył pod Monte Cassino i wiele razy opowiadał mi, kiedy byłem chłopcem, o męstwie polskich żołnierzy, którzy w końcu je zdobyli. Pamiętam jego słowa. Pamiętam też jako dziecko, że polscy weterani w średnim wieku nadal pracowali na budowach w Wielkiej Brytanii, nie mogąc wrócić do domu. Staram się zrobić wszystko, co w mojej mocy, aby uhonorować dług, jaki mój kraj ma wobec was podczas II wojny światowej.
Hi, as a Brit ill always be thankful to Poland and its gallant soldiers for what they did during WWII. I'll always be thankful and never forget xx
Thank you for this Mark a lot of Poles felt like they had no country to go back to after the war . A lot of Poles had difficulty settling into the west. Many of the Polish pilots had similar experiences.
You are the last person I expected to see here but fair enough have a good day
"Hello RUclips, how's everyone doing, it's Professional here." 😂😂 But seriously though, welcome! Never thought I'd see you here but I'm nonetheless glad!
I'm a Brit in 1975 I married and relocated from London to Peterborough Cambs when I arrived it had three large ethnic groups Asian Polish Italian The Asian were from Uganda(Thanks to Idi Amin)the Polish I had assumed a RAF bomber station because the East coast was the floating Airfield that Britain was in WW2 And the Italians because their was a POW camp close to the city
my newsagent married a polish airman after her first husband had died
We had lots of poles after the war and now in my home town, and lot's of Ukrainians from ww2, they worked at a local asbestos factory TBA, my grandparents worked there, my grandad told me that there guys who had been in the Ukrainian SS, and escaped the wrath of the soviets
The Polish soldiers in my hometown of Cardiff during WW2 were highly regarded by folk. Thank you Poland for your brave men. They deserved the best from us.
And indeed they got the best we could afford to give them.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 you mean betrayal by UK?
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684yeah keep telling yourself that
@@MrPeteeer I mean what else could your average citizen do?
As a citizen of the city of Breda and as a Dutchmen I feel the highest honor for the Polish liberators. I also would like to thank you Mark for highlighting this forgotton history. Visiting the Maczek Memorial in Breda is recommended to anyone! Dziekujemy wam Polacy!
Bohaterowie!!
Ik zal altijd respect hebben voor Nederland en Nederlanders.
We maken alleemaal domme fouten, maar jullie leunen ietsjes meer aan de kant "gezond verstand".
Helaas ben ik niet Pools om dankbaarheid te kunnen uiten.
I will always have respect for the Netherlands and the Dutch people.
We all make stupid mistakes, but you lean a little more on the "common sense" side.
Unfortunately I am not Polish to express gratitude.
You wanna watch out or they'll ask you for money 👈😑
He is Hero of not only of poles but all those who fought against Nazies in the defence of democracies of the world. EVEN the Reds.
@@barbararice6650 Poles never asked any money for their liberating effort in WW2. Are you insane???
As a Pole, thank you very much Mark for bringing this to light.
Hey pay your military generals their pensions and don't expect other people to cheapskates 👈😕
@@barbararice6650 our allies unfortunately failed and we had no country to pay them.
Chwała bohaterom!
Hearing that the Polish soldiers going for a pint would salute General Maczek brings tears to my eyes. I'm glad he lived over 100 years and chose to be buried among the men he once commanded. I've said on another video it is a great honor to be buried among your brothers in arms. He didn't deserve the treatment from the governments that had forsaken him.
Poland, from its own gold reserves that were saved in 1939, paid for planes and military equipment used by Polish soldiers in the air battle for Britain... And after the war they could not take part in the Victory Parade in London. Strange because even Czechoslovak soldiers took part in it. The sad truth.
Disgusting.
@@r2d2aa A sad testament to the folly of appeasement. Giving in to the demands of Stalinist USSR only brought us to the day where the West is once again threatened by a RuZZian dictator. I hope this generation has learned from the mistakes of the past.
such good men treated so poorly a shameful thing
@@r2d2aa nope - the ‚debt’ was cancelled later on and Poland didn’t have to pay…
Thank you Mark.
Gen. Sosabowski is my favourite WWII hero. I also respect Gen. Maczek not less. It was because of Gen. Sosabowski and Polish paratroopers I decided to jump with a parachute. To be like they.
I had a pleasure to exchange a short mail years ago with James Anthony Hibbert who wrote that it was a shame on British Army to treat Gen. Sosabowski the way Gen. Urquhart did. It was very painful.
The fact that you brought the history of Gen. Sosabowski to a big audience fulfil me with a hope. Thank you.
"The Polish soldier fights for the freedom of all nations,
But he dies only for Poland.” General Stanisław Maczek. Thank you very much for this material, as a Pole, it is worth remembering about hundreds of thousands of Polish soldiers who, like these two famous generals, had no chance to return to free, independent Poland.
Actually, the soldiers kill people
thats not freedom sorry
The Army does not offer freedom
they force you to convert or parish
Yes and the Soviet Ukrainians pushed the Poles out of Polish Galicia in 1945 i.e. Lvov, Stanislav, Lutsk and yet you are supporting them
@@cliveengel5744 Ukraine is part of Russia
Poland, Ukraine and Russia are all part of the
HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE
so YOU are cOnFuSeD
@@cliveengel5744 yes stanislaw maczek received proposal to return to the poland but he refused because as he said he dont have nowhere to go back to because lviv is not polish anymore[ lviv is his birthplace]
@@bartoszwalkowiak6590 Thank you - Stanislaw Wladyslaw Maczek, the famous Polish Tank Commander that helped liberate France in the Great Patriotic war, was born on 31 March 1892 in the Lwów suburb of Szczerzec (now Ukrainian: Shchyrets) then in Austro-Hungarian Galicia.
He could never return to Poland because the Soviet Ukrainians annexed Lwow and made it part of Ukraine and called it Lviv!
Stanisław Sosabowski, the famous Polish General from the Great Patriotic War that took part in Operation Market Garden in Holland was born on 8 May 1892 in Stanislau (Polish: Stanisławów), in what was then Austria-Hungary and is now Ivano-Frankivsk in western Ukraine.
They could never return to Poland as the Cities and hometowns they came from were annexed by The Ukrainian SSR and became part of Western Ukraine.
So now the Righteous Ukrainians are now up in arms complaining that the Russians are doing the same thing to them.
However, as “Anna from Ukraine “ always points out that the Soviets made them do it - but who were the Soviets but the Ukrainian themselves.
She loves to point out that the “ills of Ukraine fall on the shoulders of Russia”
All these guys as we say in the US are just “Revisionist Historians” and apply “Wokeness” to their entire Historical being!
They all flock to to the very cities they annexed themselves from the Poles and Hungarians to hide out from the Russians.
As a Ph.D historian and a longtime fan of MF Productions YT channel, I`d like to thank You very much for this film. Although the biographies of gen. Maczek and gen. Sosabowski are very sad and embarrassing for the British and Dutch it was a real pleasure to watch a non-polish-made film about them, especially on such a recognized channel. Please accept my sincere appreciation and thanks for the work you have done.
from my grand parents and other people heard they fought brave against the germans sometimes against all odds
Might be a slight relief to know that gen. Maczek did receive a general's pension from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1951 onwards. Though for a long time this had to be kept secret due to how sensitive this was diplomatically.
@@MrDagren Seems that Dr Felton wasn't aware of this at the time of his video or perhaps is still unaware.
It should also be noted it is embarrassing for us, the Poles, that our own government, puppet or not, treated them and others so badly.
I get that they were treated poorly in comparison to other men of similar rank- but it seems a little overblown- I'm sure that most Europeans behind the iron curtain had an even more dismal post war experience- and there is something romantic about returning to a modest civilian life- like a roman general retiring to be farmer- I think there is a quiet and humble dignity about it and it makes me respect these men even more
Thank you so much from bringing this up. Britain (meaning: the British politics, not the people) has been a major embarrassment for the treatment of their own allies, Polish brothers and sisters that fought in the Battle of Britain, in North Africa, in Italy, in Normandy, in the Benelux states and North Germany. What an utter and shameful disgrace.......
Rest assured if it wasn't for the British and French declaration of war on 3rd Sept 1939, then Poland would only exist today in modern histroy books.
P.S Those declarations were made by the respective govts of Britain and France and NOT by a referenda of their populations.
@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 don't kid yourself. The Brits and French knew that they would eventually become the next target. It was purely a self-preservation move...
@@mikekowalewski7692 Regardless of what you say, if it wasn't for the declaration of war on nazi Germany by Britain and France, modern day Poland wouldn't exist. Utterly NO-ONE else in the ENTIRE world cared in Sept 1939 whether Poland existed or not.
It's about time that modern day Poles realised that.
Deep respect for these men. Disgrace how governments treated them. Thanks Dr. Felton.
i agree
Yeah well the kaiser and the ArchDuke were shysters 👈😕
@@barbararice6650 I fail to see how the deposed Kaiser and the Archduke of Austro-Hungary have anything to do with how Poland and the United Kingdom treated these two men after the Second World War as one died in early June 1941 and the other in late June 1914!
@@eoincaomhanach1983 i fail to see how you think we misstreated these people?
@@DarkShroom of course you do, the darker side of your countries history has always escaped you Brits.
As a Dutchman, with a hudge respect and gratitude for these men and the Polish soldiers, I loved this episode. Thank you for shinning the spotlight on the Poles, the often forgotten heroes.
British f....rs
@@baryka2015 No, not the Britisch, the Britisch government. As always, it are the gevernments, not the people itself.
@@HG_NL you put them in power, so it is the people..
And as always the Dutch lead the world in properly remembering those who helped them in their hour of need. Lovely people
@@fredjansen2659 What if Idid not and it is the other party who won? And my point is, that the common people and politicians are often quite difderent in opinions about many things.
Not giving these brave officers a pension is a disgrace to the allies!
Many such Cases!
Yep.
Thankfully the dutch supported general Maczek.
Not just a disgrace to allies but to all mankind, they gave everything to save the world
And a discrace on the soviets for denying them citizenship
I worked in childcare back in the 1990's - one of the parents of the nursery was called Sosabowski. Dr Hal Sosabowski was a senior lecturer of Chemistry at the University. He was the Grandson of the General and so, in my nursery, was the great Grandson of Stanisław Sosabowski. But I never made the connection until Hal mentioned it, having come to know of my interest in military history. I think I was thrown by the appalling prounciation of the name by Gene Hackman! Hal presented me with a book all about the General as a gift for caring for his son. I still have it and always remember grandson and great grandson when I see it on the shelf.
Great story
Great personal story, thank you for sharing it.
Was the title of that book by any chance "Freely I Served"?
FYI It was one of the 1st books in English I read -- w/ the aid of a dictionary -- after immigrating to Canada.
Well done, Dr. FELTON.
It is really something special, when we have an opportunity to meet the people involved in history.
What a lovely comment Ian. I remember youwell. Oliver is 22 now.
As a fellow Pole who grew up in the UK from a very young age this means a lot. I feel many from my youth group wouldn’t know about the war and especially the Polish sacrifices throughout the length of the conflict, especially from abroad living in another country. General Maczek holds a very special place in my heart, for not only his courage but his personality, there is a reason why his soldiers nicknamed him the “father of the troops,” and i personally couldn’t agree more.
What is " A Pole"?
I don't know why the descendents of the poles have not looked into their history and betrayal and seek the truth instead of helping with cover up
@@je-freenorman7787 Polak to narodowość tak jak twoja brytyjczyk
Glory to polski
Dziękujemy za pamięć Dr. Felton.
Przynajmniej tyle mogę zrobić.
@@MarkFeltonProductions Mark, oglądem Cię od dawna, dziękuję za dobrą robote!!!
@@MarkFeltonProductions Your audience in Poland appreciates it, Mark. Thank you.
Thank you dr Felton!
@@MarkFeltonProductions I didn't know any of that... Thank you!
The story of those two generals is a summary of the difficult path of the Polish nation during and after WWII.
I'm glad that a British historian has raised such a subject. Those and many other Polish veterans should not be forgotten.
I’m appalled that our government did not support this man with something as little as a pension when he gave the blood to save our country im genuinely ashamed at this
Thank you Dr. Felton for remembering our heroes.
Thanks for this Professor. As the son of a Polish RAF pilot that flew 300 combat missions in WWII, I only wish that I knew more about this before my dad died. He never said much at the best of times, never anything about his feelings. His mum and dad were deported by the Soviets to the gulags in 1939/40 and his brothers murdered at Katyn and 'somewhere in eastern Poland' also by the Soviets. He never spoke about this. I only found out from my mum whom he had told at some point. I obtained his RAF records and one of the last entries (thankfully in English) was when he tried to stay on in the RAF as a mechanic. He was turned down. Luckily he was one of the 19 ex-RAF pilots that went to Pakistan after Partition to start up the Pakistani Air Force (before that all pilots were either British or Indian apparently) -- on half pre-war pay of course. It would be wonderful if you could manage to produce an episode on this subject if you have the opportunity. Thank you.
On the subject of those RAF records (since you said you were grateful an entry was in English - If I've misinterpreted that and you can read Polish just fine then my apologies!) the Google translate app will let you point your phone camera at a document (or analyse a photo you've taken of it) and do it's best to translate what's written.
I guess, your father originated from Kresy - nowadays territories belonging to Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine.
General Sosabowski is a tragic example of how heroes are treated by "grateful allies" when it's over
Yes. I found lots of examples of Chinese generals (both PRC and ROC) being repressed by their own leaders after WWII out of paranoia.
the dutch government secretely granted him a general's pension since 1951.
Why should we pay some guy who fought with the Huns a war pension exactly 👈😑
@@barbararice6650 you really need to get your facts straight… he fought AGANST the Germans…
@@fishsmiddy1048
Look at felton winding up the half educated against Britian, well I say thank god for the civil service looking into these foreign bozos service record and deciding not to pay out high command pensions ✌️😑
When I was a kid in the 1970s there was a Polish chap who lived along our road. I was too young to understand the significance or know what his story was. He married an English girl and settled and had a family. My parents were of the WW2 generation and had nothing but respect for the Polish people in my part of the UK. It is something that I have carried over into my life, The UK has much to thank Polish people for their WW2 service in helping defend the UK and fighting as part of the Allied war effort.
As a person that grown up in Driel (close to arnhem), thank you for making this video, General Sosabowski luckily gets now his recognition. many of the people of driel made it there life project to get the general his recognition.
Such a sad story. It’s amazing what you see when you actually care to look. Thanks for making this known.
Dr. Felton, as a Englishman, I’m sure it pains you in the shoddy treatment of these two generals. Yet, as a historian, you honestly do not shrink from uncovering such dishonor! Bravo sir! A major reason your channel is far superior to other RUclips history channels!
Witold Pilecki, was a Polish officer who allowed himself to be taken prisoner, under an assumed name, and was taken to Auschwitz. There he started a resistance movement and smuggled out detailed reports about the camp's true nature. In April 1943, he and two other men broke out of the prison. They escaped. Pilecki made it to Warsaw and took part in the 1944 Uprising, hiding his rank for some time before the loss of other leaders prompted him to reveal himself.
The Uprising failed.
As part of the conditions of surrender, the Poles were considered prisoners-of-war and not taken to concentration camps. After the war, Pilecki continued as an intelligence officer in the now Communist-occupied Poland. He was accused of treason and arrested.
In a show trial, the then-Polish prime minister, Józef Cyrankiewicz presented evidence against Pilecki. This was cruelly ironic as Cyrankiewicz himself was a survivor of Auschwitz, a person Pilecki tried to free. Despite all efforts, Pilecki was executed. Pilecki was a man who assumed many identities for his duty. One of the names he hid behind was Auschwitz prisoner #4859.
A co to ma do rzeczy?
@@jankubiak3218 Another victim. He was charged and convicted by the new, Communist-backed, Polish government. Instead of being declared 'stateless' he was simply executed because of his dealings with the West.
I know this story. This man is the biggest hero ever lived. It saddens me that society takes to lightly on these few good men that have lived to do so imaginable much good.
@@jankubiak3218 Fakt. Prawactwo zrobiło z Pileckiego czarnosecińca.
This is an amazing story I didn’t know. Thank you!
I was almost in tears by the end of this video. Thanks Mark for another fascinating, though heartbreaking, lesson.
The fate of MILLIONS of ordinary service men and women was no less tragic.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 Sadly all to true.
You would probably never handle the truth then? Its really gross
@@je-freenorman7787 Yeah well I've been learning about the death camps, genocide, betrayals and general inhumanity of one group of people to another. That is throughout human history, not just WW2. As far as handling the truth. I just accept it and go on.
@@jerryrenn346 World War 2 was a phony war. Set up by the Royal families for their own wealth tne rule.
I went to school in the 50's and 60's with the lads of three Polish families. who's fathers stayed after the war and married English girls. They were our best mates and of course we called them by our English version of their name because we couldn't pronounce the real version. Their fathers were scary in a nice way, hard, tough men who taught us lots of woodland skills from their homeland, like how to make whistles with willow and how to scavenge for wild mushrooms etc etc. 60 years later I still visit one of them on a regular basis. Salt of the earth people.
keep visiting them!
I am another one of them, with a Polish ( ex- free forces ) mother, hence my English name. Moved to NZ, still scavenging at age 69, and corrupted my Hong Kong Chinese wife to do the same, be self sufficient, and not paying all the time, for everything. Hate going back to plastic HK. We learned about WW2 from the Polish side, first hand, and it's different from what the 'English' kids were taught.
@@peterrhodes5663 bless all of you! Greetings from (almost) free Poland!
@@ipodman1910 Dzięki.
Catholic churches were always full of Poles, in Portswood they even had their own social club. Most I knew were air force.
My Grandfather served under Major General Stanislaw Sosabowski as a member of the 1st. Independent Polish Parachute Brigade. 🇵🇱🇬🇧
❤
He probably served with my Dziadek.
My grandfather was at Arnhem aswell. He was in 1 para, British 1st parachute brigade.
Polish heroes are not forgotten in Poland and never will be. Your video is one of many contributions to memory and commemoration of them and Polish history. As a Pole and a grandson of Warsaw Uprising fighter and AK fighter I just want to say thank you. And of course big thank you the lovely Dutch people who also remembered and still remember our heroes.
What about the 450,000 UK citizens who died opposing the militarism that enslaved Poland?
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 They're war heroes for sure and glory to them, however can't see how their deaths benefitted Poland in particular. Said enslavement did not end up in 1945 which is the reason why those two generals couldn't return to fatherland.
@@arturgrodzicki1209 Look at the international situation in 1939, Artur. The 3 "major world powers" at the time were the USA, USSR & the British Empire.
USSR - Stabbed Poland in the back to steal half of the country, whilst also supplying nazi Germany with millions of tons of raw materials and fuel which enabled her to conquer the rest of continental Europe.
USA - Happily sat on the "sidelines" profitting from BOTH sides of the conflict at the same time as the nazis were setting about the destruction and murder of the Polish nation.
British Empire (& France) - declared war on nazi Germany to symbolically support Poland, and to oppose (and reverse) nazi military expansion in Europe, (Then likely set about the "soviet problem" after that had been achieved).
NO ONE else in the "international community" had lifted a finger to oppose the nazi/soviet occupation of Poland at the time.
No one can deny that the British and French as it turned out were caught with their pants down, and were FAR from being fully mobilised militarily, therefore unable to actually assist the Poles in their 6 week struggle.... except indirectly by the blockade of the North sea by the RN thereby putting economic pressure in Germany while they readied their armies.
BUT the flame had been lit by the British and French. IF they had not declared war in Sept 1939, or IF they had "stood down" after the conquest of Poland, or IF Britain had sued for peace with the nazis after the fall of France, instead of seeing the conflict through til the end, then its almost certain that nazi death camps which as events happened had been put of action by 1944 / 45, would have instead been operating on Polish (and ultimately European and Soviet soil until the 1950s & 60s or even beyond.
The British Empire and France collectively sacrificed over 1 million of their citizens and completely bankrupted themselves to see that it did NOT turn out like that. Unfortunately after the apocalyptic bloodshed of WW2 NO-ONE could liberate eastern & central Europe from the terrible yoke of communism after WW2, without further millions of deaths.
Its very easy to look at the course of history as it happened and pick fault with the decisions that were made, and the outcomes that came to pass, but its a lot harder to see how events would have turned out if different decisions had been taken.
All the best, Artur.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 I'm not sure why you're presenting Britain and France declaring war on Third Reich as some selfless gesture. They were fulfilling their own pledge given to Poland earlier same year.
Hitler's decision to attack Poland instead of France only came after British guarantees were given. British diplomacy had worked hard to deter Polish from the alliance with Germany and they succeeded but at the cost of making Poland Germany's next target.
In fact in 30s Poland had good relations with Germany and some form of alliance wasn't off the table. Hitler was great admirer of Piłsudski. Ultimately it's only Polish who are too blame for choosing "honor" as minister Beck said over practicalities. Taking British guarantees was likely a mistake. If Poland had joined in with Germany we would have been way better off.
As for Germany and their alliance that would be extra 1-2 million soldiers, 500 tanks and few hundred aircrafts with added ability to produce more.
So as you see, we can do those IFs both ways. Had Polish politicians listened to Piłsudski, then even after his death they would keep the Germans happy
@@arturgrodzicki1209 So you would have preferred an "alliance" with nazi Germany, Artur? You do realise the geopolitical situation at that time don't you? Germany's number 1 national priority was the establishment of an empire of COLONIES (and not power sharing allies) in the east as was outlined in the traditional German policy of "Drang nach osten" or as Hitler described it "lebensraum" which had existed since the 19th century. Do you honestly think it was Germany's intention to treat Poland "as an equal"?
See how the nazis operated after the "Sudetenland Crisis" in 1938? After Britain and France had signed an agreement to not declare war on Germany after international scrutiny had shown that the Sudetenland openly wanted to join Germany... What happened next? After Czechoslovakia had been left without her "shield" of defensive border fortifications, months later Germany after having diplomatically "coerced" the weakened rump Slovak govt, simply drove in and occupied the rest of the "Czechoslovak protectorate", and then ruled Bohemia-Moravia as a nazi "puppet" with murderous intent.... THAT was the sort of trustworthy regime that you're suggesting Poland should have allied with.
Britain and France declared war with the wishful intention of preventing that happening to Poland and to attempt to maintain (or restore) a balance of independent nations across Europe and not allow an all powerful German empire to hold sway over the rest of Europe.
If you ever find yourself in the Breda area, I can highly recommend you visit the Polish Cemetery and the Maczek Memorial. Alongside the cemetery, you'll find a small yet beautiful museum dedicated to Maczek and the men who fought along with him. It tells their incredible story of how most of them had to travel throughout all of Europe in order to continue the fight, as well as the hardships they had to face after the war.
The museum itself is entirely run by volunteers, a majority of whom are descendants of Polish soldiers who stayed here after the war. A fact which makes the place and experience even more beautiful and humbling than it already is.
Does it say anything about his service in the tyrolean jaegers during the first world war 👈😑
Edelweiss, Edelweiss how lovely it is to shoot you 😕
Pure and nice Edelweiss blah blah I've forgotten the rest if indeed I ever knew it, 👀
I was born in 1987. When I visited Belgium and Netherlands. I couldnt hold my tears when I realised how they are still remembering general Maczek. Im greatfull for that as well as for your video.
I knew of these Polish generals but not their post-war fates. It is indeed a stain on not just Britain but all the allied nations. Thanks for bringing this to light, Dr. Felton.
Fucking hell the poles had to work for a living, My God the humanity 😕
My grandfather lost scores of fingers taking supplies to ungrateful eastern europeans, his merchant navy pension didn't cover his bus ticket into work, horrible world isn't it 👈😑
As an American, the more I read about how FDR threw Eastern Europe under the bus, I become absolutely sick to my stomach. I actually dread to think what might have happened to western European nations if he hadn't died and Truman taken over before war's end.
No England to be precise is to blame all to protect montys inadequecies
@@thunderbird1921 FDR is one of the worst.
Poland isnt only one with impoverished generals...czechoslovakia and many others too...viz= Gen. Jan Syrový, only Air marshall Karel Janoušek......
A fellow workmate of mine, a Polish gentleman fought with the British 8th Army. He told me of some of his exploits. He fought in North Africa. When he passed away and at the funeral home he had on his chest the Tobruk Medal. RIP Walter Tyzecki.
Thank you
Thanks for sharing your story.
Thank you for bringing both the tragic story of these two Poles and the gallantry of Polish warriors of that era to the public. A professor of mine in the late 1980's at Boston College was a lieutenant in the Polish Army in 1939. He fought and then escaped to Spain on his journey to England when captured and put in a concentration camp by the Spanish. He got out after a year or so and made his way to England to fight on. Eventually going to the University of London and taking his Ph.D. in psychology. He emigrated to the USA when repatriation to Poland was impossible, and raised a family and had a long career. He wrote a biography as an old man and I'm proud to have a signed copy with the message "To my dear friend..." He was a kind and gentle soul despite all he had been put through. They should be remembered.
Could you please share the name of this guy (and the title of his biography if you remember)?
I worked at University with a Pole who had been dropped into Poland several times during the War. He was the janitor, and the kindest, gentlest man you could ever hope to meet, and a very great Pole.
When he retired, there were so many there to say Goodbye... many more than when the Professor retired.
Thank you Mark Felton. My Father (Yorkshireman) battled the Germans at Monte Casino and he never had a bad word against the Polish Soldiers who finished the buggars at the top of that Mountain.
In the end, Maczek outlived both the "thousand years reich" and the Soviet Union, seeing Poland restored.
Bittersweet victory.
and never made it back to "free" PL
@@walterweiss7124 YES, HE NO LONGER HAD THE STRENGTH FOR THE TRIPS, HE WAS ALREADY AN OLD MAN.
Yes, and this 'restored Poland' gave him middle finger, when it was proposed he'd be provided state pension at last.
At last ,thank
We, here in East Fife Scotland remember
1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade
that had its main training base at the now derelict Largo House in Upper Largo, Fife. We have a memorial in Leven Fife remembering them.
Some of us also know how Major General Stanisław Sosabowski was treated during and after the war. I personally leave comments mentioning this on some WW2 videos.
Than you for posting this video.
Jim 🏴
You're doing a great job, Jim. Any time you are in Warsaw, let me know - the first round is on me. Cheers to all good people in Scotland. 🇵🇱🏴
@@grzegorzkowalski5100 Thank you my friend.
As a Polish I thank You Mark for this video. You just did more for Polish WW2 heros than any British did before. Hope one day You will get reward for this. We, Polish will never forget about Polish heros and about You Mark. Thank You again.
When I was 19 years old I had a job repairing wheelchairs. I meet an old man ( to me at the time) in a old people's home. Turned out he was from Poland and flew in the battle of Britain. I asked why he was still in London and not back in Poland. He told me that as he fought for the UK he wasn't allowed to go home. He seemed bitter and upset telling an ignorant younge man who should have know this. I didn't. To this day I feel ashamed. Not just for my ignorance as we were never told about this in school but for the actions of my country after the war.
So You can add killing gen Sikorski at Gibraltar. His plane was sabotage because he wanted to release information about Katyń massacre by Soviets but during that time Britain had alliance with CCCP so it was very unpleasant that those information could be review to public and they simply just sabotage plane. So yeah "alliance" but for who? We are been rape in the ass. Even Britain confiscated Polish National gold for "using British tank and plane to protect British sky and Europe's lands". Even Orwell would be confused.
United States and British Empire betrayed Poland. They gave Poland to Stalin. Stalin murdered several MILLIONS polish patriots. Also Poland LOST part of main lands as a country which was fighting against 3rd reich from the beginning to the end, and was in victorous alliance.
Some of those lands were polish core lands from one thousand year and they were taken from Poland and they were given to soviet.
And me, but unfortunately, I already knew how we s**t on all the Poles and gave Poland to the communists, and it's a chapter in our history that is truly shameful.
I remember visiting Arnhem and Nijmegen in the late 1980s, and noticing many hotel bars were festooned with regimental emblems, from the numerous veterans who came over to visit. Our Dutch friends told us these veterans were still held in the highest regard by the locals, who had not forgotten their fight to liberate the Netherlands. I found this extremely touching that they remembered and honoured those men from decades before.
My uncle is buried in Nijmegen. He was a member of the 1st Canadian Parachute Regiment and was killed during the drop at Arnhem.
Talk to a Vietnam veteran and ask how they were treated in Australia on liberty. Most never bought more than their first drink
Yes, now visit France ...
The Dutch people still honour the countries that fought to liberate them. The schoolchildren are taught, in great detail, what happened between 1939 and 1945. Their museums and memorials are well kept. In general, the Dutch people know more about the liberation effort than the people in the countries that liberated them do. The Dutch government, sadly, not so much. Politicians are unfamiliar with the concept of honour.
Yes, I was there 3 years ago. In the Airborne museum at Hartenstein, Oosterbeek. Almost every single house in the city has a blue Pegasus amblem flag, along with Union Jack. Amazing, very nice and touchy...
Thank You dr Felton so much! ♥️
My great grandfather's brother, Czesław Pawłowicz (OBE) was chief of medical staff under general Maczek's command. Fortunately his fate was a little bit better as he managed to open medical practice in London after the war ( though he was barely able to hear anything, due to shell barotrauma). However I can not give any further details, as the contact was him was broken by the Iron Curtain.
Thanks for sharing this story.
I live in a little village near Arnhem called Driel. It was de village where general stanislaw sosabowski was dropt during market garden.
To this day, Sosabowski and his men are honderd by the citizens of Driel for what they did.
The bust of him, as you talked about at the end of the video, there are only two of those in existence. One in Warsaw (as you mentioned) and one in the village of Driel.
That is very honourable of the people of Driel! Big thanks
THANKS to You and to all Dutch people who remember!!
I have to say, Mark Felton's continual, blatant and shocking adherence to facts, careful research, professionalism and sensitivity in presenting these forgotten, almost vanished, aspects of one of the most supposedly well researched wars in history makes him something of an anomaly on the internet. I already knew of Montgomery's darker, less heroic side due to his time in Ireland during our War of Independence, but it's very refreshing to see a clear eyed and balanced assessment by a British historian. Fair play to you, sir! Always a pleasure watching your videos.
Yeah he's really bad in that way:- watch out Mr Felton, you might yet suffer the fate of prof Norman Davies!
>blatant and shocking adherence to facts,
You must be kidding. There is a blatant political bias on this channel.
Did you know that Jewish refugees who applied for asylum to the Irish free state ligation in Berlin we're not only refused that but their names were passed on to the Gestapo, and that's the official Irish channels, fuck knows what the IRA were up to even going so far as to set assurances of transportation of the final solution initiative 👈👀
in Breda (the Netherlands) many descendants of the Polish soldiers who liberated the city still live. We are forever grateful to them. 🇵🇱🇳🇱
Thank you for your work Mr. Felton. There are lots of sad stories of Polish officers who wasn't able to come back to Poland. My great-grandfather was also exiled Captain of Polish Armed Forces, he stayed in London, and never came back to communist Poland, because he was afraid of jail and execution after tortures by nkvd. He was noble and very well educated, so his life in UK wasn't bad, but it's always sad for me when i'm reading letters from him, there is so much nostalgia, sadness and anger when he describes things after 1945
Ciekawy herb masz
@@Cthulhu1PL ten herb to Lubicz
@@wielmoznymaciej1678 moj to Bozawola
@@Cthulhu1PL bardzo się różnią od siebie :) Okolski i częściowo Paprocki twierdzą, że Bożawola wywodzi się od Lubicza
@@wielmoznymaciej1678 a lokalizacyjnie skad oba sie wywodza? Bo moja rodzina od strony ojca z okolic Bartatowa kolo Lwowa pochodzi i stamtad byla wypedzona przez Ukraincow.
“Must remain a stain on the honour of Britain.”
I think this is Mark’s way of saving, “This is a disgrace, Britain should be ashamed.”
A general didn't get a pension 😁
@ Barbara Rice
You share that shame now. Congratulations.
@@barbararice6650 that is a disgraceful comment
More so for the treatment they gave to Alan Turing.
@@trappenweisseguy27 damn right. I love reminding homophobes about him.
“You owe your computer and your freedom to a gay guy and his team.”
Dziękuje Panu za pamięć o naszych bohaterach
Przynajmniej tyle mogę zrobić.
@@MarkFeltonProductions dziękuje jeszcze raz
The sacrifice of your people will *never* be forgotten.
Deplorable!!!
@@MarkFeltonProductions Dziękujemy Panu !
Thank you for making this video. My grandfather was a Polish Navy officer during the 30s and served on Polish destroyer Grom. In September 1939 he was responsible for organizing defense of Hel peninsula. During German occupation he was part of AK, Polish underground army under command of Polish government in London. I was told that he was part of the unit which managed to steal technical details of German U-boat torpedoes and sent it to England. He was arrested by communists after the war, I think it was 1946 or 1947, and since AK soldiers were not demobilized at that time by Polish government in London (I'm not sure about that. Maybe there was hope for war between west and Soviet Union) he still had his side arm pistol when he was arrested. He was interrogated for months and it was a miracle that he was eventually released. As a result, he was stripped of his rank and could never serve in military. He had to get a job as a cook. Overall, I think he was one of the lucky ones to survive in Poland when the war ended.
Your Grandfather was serving during the months that he was being interrogated, bravely, loyally, he remained a member of the military, no one could ever strip him of his status
just wow ... these lessons should never be forgotten
Iam Polish, my grandfather fight under Gen Maczek, was wounded three times. Liberate with General Maczek Belgium, Holand(Breda), and they end war, as mention, in Wilhelmshaven. My grandfather die in 2000. Iam very graetful for this material. Was great, and thanks for restore a true about polish soldiers, and theirs sad history after wotld war II. My grandfather told me, that he was in many capital citys, during wwII, but never Was in Warsaw...
❤
Thanks Mark. My late grandfather was an officer and tank commander under General Maczek. He was seriously wounded in the Falais pocket. After the war my grandfather talked at great enthusiasm about General Maczek. Thank you for highlighting the sad ending to his life after the war
Such a nice man it seems. Stationed in Lvov(Lwow , Lviv) and Grodno during the interwar years. You do wonder what he was doing there. Surely he did not help with anything bad.
@@ivanmonahhov2314 both Lviv and Grodno were parts of Poland at the time, before the USSR took those lands from Poland after WW2, so it's no wonder he was stationed there, they were just cities in Poland.
@@johnnyenglish583 You are missing a few details here. These regions were populated in majority by Belorussians and Ukranians. Poland initially promised be respectful towards them. But very soon broke those treaties and began ethnic cleansing ( in modern terms integration or genocide depending what part of the world you are talking about ). They banned education in Ukranian and Belorussian languages , started to forcing conversions to catholicism and in the end speaking Ukranian or Belorussian in public was a finable offense. This sparked backlash , like forming of Organization of Ukranian Nationalists which for example assinated the Polish internal affairs minister. Glory to Ukraine , Glory to Heroes , Glory to the nation , Death to enemies. aka Slava Ukraine Gerojam slava Slava nacii Smert vorogam. So deployment to those regions want just a deployment , it was supporting ethnic cleasing.
@@ivanmonahhov2314 I think you're using the wrong term. "Ethnic cleansing" means physically liquidating people of a different ethnicity (for example what the Ukrainians did to the Polish population in Volyhnia in 1943-44 in collusion with the Nazis, or what the Russians planned to do in Ukraine in 2022). Polonisation/russification/ukrainisation in terms of education, culture and language is not ethnic cleansing. It's a pretty common thing. When parts of Poland were under German and Russian partition, German and Polish were the official languages taught at school. When Ireland was under British rule, English was taught at school. Now, in 21st century in Eastern Ukraine, you want the ethnically Russian people to use Ukrainian.
So do you claim that it was not fair for Poles to expect that Ukrainians living in Poland speak the official language, but it's perfectly OK for Ukrainians to expect Russians living in Ukraine to speak the official language?
And if you insist on claiming there was ethnic cleansing in pre-war Poland, please provide any RELIABLE source of information on the pre-war Polish Armed Forces carrying out ethnic cleansing in Lviv. "Reliable" means that UPA pamphlets don't count ;-) Also, please explain why they would need ethnic cleansing in a city like Lviv, which was mostly Polish and Jewish, with just a small percentage of Ukrainians.
@@johnnyenglish583 physically liquidating is genocide, but yeah definition is rather fluid. Destruction of language and culture to replace national identity is one of them. Ban on education and use of language in public spaces is not normal
MARK! AS A POLE MYSELF, I DO NOT KNOW HOW TO THANK YOU FOR THIS EPISODE AND REMINDING THE WORLD ABOUT BETRAYAL THAT HAS CHANGED THE POST-WAR POLAND FOR DECADES! Your amazing summary is showing massive unfairness against the polish people - and the Poland itself that took place during - and just after the war. Polish people tryully appreciating you for this fantastic episode!!!
My father was RAF & was Honoured to fight along with The Polish 303 Squadron
They put him in Hospital after one evenings drinking after Hours!😂😂
He said to me that they never regarded the Training Manual & closed up to Shoot The Germans down nearly Point Blank
I do believe they hold The biggest Shoot Down Record of The RAF
Maybe until this Day
Proud Folk
I'm happy to have met several Old Men
Who were bloody Lethal in a war bird
I don't condone War & Violence to my Fellow Humans ..I did it as a Teenager
It's not Glory
It's Nasty & Brutal
You can wash off the blood
But that experience stains your Soul forever
First, you need to learn how to type in proper case:
i) All CAPS is rude
ii) polish -> Polish
I'm sure it's the same in Polish so don't use English is not your Native language as an excuse, because it's neither mine.
@@obiwan88 First of all you need to learn how to spell: 1), 2) instead of i) and ii). Dont be so shure about polish luangage because apparently you know noting about it, its rules and how complex it is.....
@@obiwan88 Chill out, jesus
@@obiwan88 Relax pal. Also, your grammar is atrocious.
I am appalled, but not surprised. Thank you for highlighting this dreadful treatment of true patriots and heroes.
yes, quite often i will think decisions are contextual to the time may it be the way of thinking, the situation, yet in these cases it is hard to find reason to such injustice
All the fucking marxists on this thing saying how awful to leave Poland to it's stalinist fate 😁
a stain...upon many other stains...
Nothing surprising about it. The British upper class is the most racist group of people in world. The British upper classes don't think much of 'continentals' in general, although western Europeans may get some grudging respect. Eastern Europeans are considered to be sub-human...especially Slavs. Go have a look at some of the declassified British intelligence reports from before WWII regarding the USSR. The Russians were described as a 'Mongoloid race' incapable for building or maintaining an advanced civilization. British intelligence predicted that the USSR would collapse within weeks if attacked by a proper European army like the Wehrmacht. Funny, the British and US press are saying pretty much the same thing about the Russians now. The Ukrainians should take note. If Ukraine is successful at pushing the Russians out...and that remains to be seen...their US and British 'allies' will abandon them promptly.
Thank you Mark for picking this story. Very well done!
My father served in the army during WW2. Not an easy man to give compliments but his respect for the Polish army was unswerving and he never ceased praising them. Respect to Poland. The land of strong fighting forces.
Poland has strong forces?
Their airforce has hair under the wings lol
@@je-freenorman7787 The Point is that the Poles fought Valiantly with the little that they had. Their sacrifice will Never be forgotten.
@@hungusthefungus3461 what ever. The Polish nobility were all nazis
they set their own people up
Its all part of the Holy Roman Empire
@@je-freenorman7787 The Poles were Stabbed in the Back by the Russians. They had divided Poland with the Nazis.
Hi Mark:
One fact you left out about Sosabowski was that his fellow coworkers at CAV Electrics were unaware of his World War II accomplishment and exploits his rank and decorations till his funeral when they discovered this from his former subordinates and family and what medals he got when his eulogy was read despite the fact he was active in the polish community in Britain after the war . I bet when they found out needless to say they were dumbfounded their coworker was a recipient of a CBE and a former general in the polish army. Must have been one surreal experience.
As a Pole I can't express my gratitude enough for making videos such as this, spreading historical knowledge to people all around the world. So many don't realize how dirty Poland was dealt not just due to WW2 itself but afterwards as well.
The Poles get away with the fact they invaded and annexed parts of Czechoslovakia in 1938 right after the Germans, when it was at its weakest. So when they complain the Brits and French didn't do enough to help them then I bring this up, they love to act so innocently. The Czechoslovaks were the real victims of the war.
@@Gecko.... Ah yes, tiny Zaolzie, historically polish land which was also ethnically polish. Maybe 10 people died, truly comparable scale of an invasion.
Regardless being just for people living there then it was diplomatic blunder that gets brought up here and there like you do.
Well obviously they were behind the Iron Curtain and were turned communist......
But are you referring to losses of territory to Belarus and the Ukraine
☹
@@Gecko.... do you have any sense of gradation? It's like comparing red light traffic ticket to murder.
Hats off to Mr Felton for reminding this important part of history. Those heroes deserved proper recognition and a lots has been done over the last two decades to keep their memory alive. Recently visited battle of Britain memorial at Capel-le-Ferne near Folkestone and spend an hour finding ALL names on memorial war. Both squadrons 302 and 303 had also their dedicated plates at pilot statue.
As the grandson of a Polish veteran, thank you so much for this. My grandfather fled communism to the UK and faced poor treatment there. He died and is buried on US soil still a proud Pole. Thank you for the recognition of the sacrifices and dedication our people showed to try and win freedom for our country.
Large numbers of Polish troops settled in England. In reality, they were treated the same as British and other demobbed troops, my father and his brothers included! Do not forget, Britain was bankrupt!
@Nicky L there are many people of Polish extraction in Kent, where I live.
Gloria victis. My grandfather fought in a defensive campaign against German and Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939. He was awarded a medal for this bravery in one of the biggest battle of the defensive campaign - Battle of Bzura. My grandfather was a very modest man and never talked to us grandkids as being a very brave soldier. We found out about it after his death after seeing his belongings.
@@nickjung7394 The post-war Polish Resettlement Act allowed British citizenship to all Poles and their families in the UK.150,000 of them chose to take it and those who wanted to keep their Polish citizenship were given the right of domicile in Britain. They enjoyed the same rights to housing, pensions, benefits, healthcare and education as British-born citizens, and were given preferential access to employment, through the Polish Resettlement Corps. Given the huge economic and human price Britain and France paid in guaranteeing Polish neutrality, albeit without the means to back it up, one wonders what more could be expected. Certainly, the USA and Commonwealth countries were not queueing up to take them. Poland's tragic history was not created by Britain, but by Germany and the Soviet Union, including traitorous Polish communists, and their soldiers were betrayed by them. Even Montgomery was impoverished after the war, to the extent that he petitioned the King for somewhere to live, but was refused. My father was a decorated tank commander and returned to Britain in 1946 to work as a coal-delivery driver. Bar-tending doesn't seem so bad by comparison. I worked for a Polish lawyer, a pre-war regular army officer, and his partner, a Polish BoB fighter pilot, both of whom qualified in law in Britain. They made a great success of their practice and were grateful for the help they received.
@@nickyl8980 i think you mean falkirk, falkland is way further south more souther than the equator in fact..but i could be wrong as never been up Scotland...and sorry to pull you up on another one, no catholic chapel can be royal!, its impossible and would be deemed blasphemous in the popes eyes, but there is many Catholic chapels spread far and wide across the UK, just not royal...
Thank you Dr Felton. Thoses great men shouldn't be forgotten. My own grand father served under Gnl Anders and take the great risk to comeback to Poland where wife and son were waiting. In communist Poland he was a stranger on his forefathers soil. Lot of injustice met a lot of brave men backthen. Thanks again for honouring them. Best wishes from Warsaw Poland.
I can’t wait to share this with my family. We always talk Polish history and I know they’ll appreciate this. Thank you!
Pat Marek: Despite the actions of our Governments. In the hearts of many British people, the Polish people are held in great esteem. Governments, not so much.
The Lion in Winter, may be old and grey but our heart is still stirred by courageous actions and courageous people.
God bless the Polish people, each and every one of them.
I hope that we can redeem some of that lost honour by standing by our Ukrainian brothers. Who seek only peace and freedom, until they too, win their war against the forces of evil, that seek to subjugate them.
I like this channel for Mark Felton's unbiased quest to reveal interesting stories of gallantry and bravery and also displaying injustice. He really is an exemplary historian and watching his episodes is never a waste of time.
Unbiased? Hmmm why has Mark failed to research or include VERY relevant information regarding the "1947 UK Polish resttlement act" that gave full UK citizenship and residency rights to nearly 300,000 Polish ex-service personnel and their families?
Thank you Dr. Felton for the courage to tell the stories of these two brave men. Many nations have similar histories of dishonoring the soldiers who served them.😇
In addition to what Mark said in his typically brilliant video, to their great credit the Scottish people also recently honoured Gen. Maczek by naming a walkway, that is located close to where he lived in Edinburgh, ‘General Maczek Walk’.
Incidentally, My parents who themselveswere post WW2 Polish exiles living in UK met General Maczek several times in the UK, and I’m pretty sure I met him once in Cardiff in 1964, when the General was the guest of honour at a Polish veterans 20th anniversary of the D-Day landings, an event which my parents were actively involved in. Unfortunately, being only six at the time, and as my parents have both passed away, I can’t be certain of that. However, I do have a copy of the programme for the event which includes the names of both the General and my mother.
At the risk of ‘going on’, personally, I think it’s very important to say that ordinary people in England, Scotland and Wales were incredibly supportive of my Polish parents and other family members as they adjusted to life in the UK as post WW2 ‘displaced’ Polish persons.
Thank You Dr Felton for keeping the memories of these seemingly 'forgotten' Generals alive. I will visit the memorial in Edinburgh the next time i am there, to pay my respect to a brave man who deserved our thanks and gratitude .
These two stories brought tears to my eyes. Thank you for sharing their stories.
I served alongside Polish troops in Paktika Province, Afghanistan in 2007. I gained a great respect for their professionalism, bravery and combat proficiency! The Polish Soldiers and Airmen were treated very badly indeed after WWII!
mercenaries of USA defending their country 10000 miles far from home
@@bartomiejzakrzewski7220 11 września 2001 pamiętasz kto zaczął? każdy ma prawo do obrony. Ale Irak to był błąd
@@Przem112207 Bin Laden started it who fleed to Afghanistan but usa didn't try diplomacy with the Afghans and attacked
@@doge7906 They give Taliban ultimatum 'give us Bin Laden to wednesday', Taliban rejected it
@@Przem112207you are wrong they accused them of hidding terrorist but they didn't offer any proof of that and and when the afghans asked for proof of bin Laden being responsible the usa just attacked
Thank you for shedding light on these figures and through them on the fate of Polish ex-soldiers once the war was over. Many became mercenaries to get by, fighting in Biafra and other locations in Africa etc. So sad to see how the allies paid back for their support.
My step father fought in Monte Casino with Polish units and was always impressed with their courage and bravery.
My grandfather did as well! He fought alongside the Poles in Italy & then Canadians under Montgomery. He hated Montgomery with a passion until the day he died bc he had a habit of attacking territories then retreating to resupply then re-attacking the same place costing a lot of lives. He also hated him for delaying attacks for the same reasons (usually supply issues). He believed a lot of the conspiracy theories around why Eisenhower continued to indulge Montgomery’s incompetence. Also according to my grandfather the senior British generals & admirals hated Montgomery more than anyone else including Patton & that it was Eisenhower who always backed him (supposedly at the request of Roosevelt & Churchill).
Thank you for this material. Britain had its issues after the war, but it is really hard to justify, how these two gentlemen were treated.
No it's not. Really it isn't.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684explain your thoughts pls
Thank you Mark for this video. I never knew of any of these Polish generals in the history classes I took in college in the U. S.
Did you hear about any Canadian Generals? Maybe Arthur Currie?
Buhahahahahaha....History lessons in england? its like learning from a pathological lair!!!
Powerful stuff.
I had no idea. How shameful to just let these great soldiers just ‘fade away.’ Knowingly.
The Polish army in the west is maybe the biggest act of heroism of the whole war. Only embarking on this journey makes them first rate heros. What they pulled-of at the end is nothing short of a miracle, to be betrayed by post war politicians.
Thanks for remembering us. We should NEVER forget these men.
Thank You Dr Felton for doing this video! A deeply touching story that is not known outside of Poland but we as Poles learned about it even under the communist boot. As a grandson of a Polish 2 Corps officer that fought at Monte Cassino and fell during the Ancona battle, I greatly appreciate every bit of information that you are able to share with your audience - about Polish effort in the WWII.
Nice to see a comment from an honourable Pole, not for once shitting over the sacrifices made by the UK both in people and gold to see nazism wiped from the face of Europe. Thank you.
General Maczeks story is deeply touching, brought tears to my eyes. Humble, heroic, the part where polish soldiers would salute him…
Do you know he was a Tyrolean jager officer, they're the kraut elite mountain infantry with the edelweiss and that crap 😁
@@barbararice6650 wow, you have your facts sooooooo wrong! In WW1 he was drafted into the Austrian-Hungarian army…. Not the German. You may have read, Poland wasn’t a country back then…. Then during WW2 when Poland existed, he fought for the allies against the filthy Nazis.
@@fishsmiddy1048
You're American aren't you, the Tyrolean Jaegers were an elite part of the Austrian army during the first world war, however the collective military alliance is known as the central powers, they were all the same thing from day one of the war when Austrian heavy howitzers were brought up by the Germans to smash the lovely Belgian town of Liege 😁
I'm not getting a fee for this too 😕
btw officers aren't drafted, it's like a career choice, like I've said I'm not here to impune the guy's honour, only to point out Britian didn't owe him a bloody war pension 😑
@@barbararice6650 And btw Maczek was actually drafted, he later became K.u.K. officer.
@@pie7463
Officers aren't drafted common soilders are, so what's this telling us other than maczek was a conscientious proactive productive creature of the central powers during the first world war 🙄
Thank you to honor these two great soldiers . Eternal shame to all people who left them behind. Greetings from Brazil.
Incredibly sad outcome for for both generals it is hard to believe ! Thank you for researching and presenting this it is a testament to the two men that you inform people of their struggles after the war
Best bartender ever! Some good stories must have been told in there during happy hour! Rest in prestige dear generals…and thanks again Mark.
Thanks again for such a fantastic video Mark, I am glad you made such a video to highlight the plight of such brave men after the war keeping their memory alive. I am also glad members of the free Polish 300 bomber squadron RAF were so well received and celebrated in Pakistan then. People like General Władysław Turowicz became national heroes there and are celebrated for their work both inside and outside the Pakistani Air Force. See for yourself may even be a subject for another video? Thanks
As a Pole in some part - thank you Mark for mentioning the tragic fate of the Polish generals-heroes of WW2 that happened to them after the end of the war. It is also worth mentioning general Władysław Anders, commander of the entire 2nd Polish Corps that fought alongside the British 8th Army in Italy, famous for the capture of Monte Cassino, Ancona, Loreto and Bologna. His fate was similar to that of both generals mentioned in the movie. Also my great-grandfather fought in 1939 in the September Campaign as a pilot in the 2nd Aviation Regiment in Krakow, continued to fight in France in 1940, in the Battle of Britain and until the end of WW2 in Europe as a pilot in the RAF and PSP (Polish Air Force) in 300 and 301 Squadron. In 1947 he repartied to Poland occupied by the communist Soviets because his wife, my great-grandmother and her 3 sons, including my grandfather live there and miraculously survived the German occupation in their homeland, thanks to the incredible bravery of my great-grandmother, despite her poverty (refusal of receiving any food rations by the Germans, because she could not for fear of persecution, reveal the fate of her husband, who was fighting from England against Germany), she miraculously kept her 3 sons alive on the verge of starvation, making a living as a seamstress.
Unfortunately, after returning to communist Poland my great-grandfather was arrested, interrogated, beaten and humiliated many times by the communist occupiers for his participation in the fight alongside the Western Allies as an "unwanted Western element", his merits in the war for the liberation of Europe under German occupation were not recognized and he was refused proper pensions, so he was forced to work hard physically in the printing house to keep the family. Many of his Polish airmen colleagues returning to Poland after the war met a similar or even worse fate - many years of imprisonment, torture and being sentenced to death as an "enemy of the communist regime"... just to mention the fate of General Stanisław Skalski the highest scoring and the most experienced ace of the Polish Air Force during WW2.
The fate of Poland or Czechoslovakia after WW2 is a tragic page of history, heroes fighting for freedom against the greatest evil of the twentieth century - was then recognized as "traitors and enemies" by the communist forces that occupied their country for nearly 50 years...
May such history never be repeated!
And I would like to thank all the British, French, Belgians, Italians and the Dutch for their kindness and the memory of Polish soldiers who fought bravely and gave their lives in the fight for the freedom of their countries. Politicians are treacherous opportunists, but ordinary people remember in their hearts. This selflessness no matter where you are from makes us all brothers. :)
Thank you for your valuable information. The history from 'ordinary people' is very important and must be told, written down and passed on to generations following. This history is the truest information, told with heart 💜
This is to often forgotten....I as a German are very sure about ONE Thing: Poland RESCUED Europe already 2 Times, first against the Turks in Vienna and then against our imported Austrian jobless Painter. And as I see it, in the Political Situation today, POLAND is a LEADING Government again in the Fight against Putin. The most Volunteers inside the Ukraine Army Foreign Legion from Europe are POLES!!! So, they do it again, even again under a different Government Leader Situation. In WW2 it was UK, now it´s Ukraine. So they do it a THIRD Time. And you know what is most SHAMEFUL at all??? No One realizing it!!! Especially not my " Wanne Be Government" in Berlin which is a HUGE FARCE in Comparison to Warsaw!!! THANK YOU POLAND!! LONG LIVE THE WHOLY POLAND!!!! (And SHAME to my WOKE German Wannebee Government which still refuses to send the "correct Aid" to Kiev!!!)
I know. My dad fought in Cyrenaica with the 8th too. Don't forget to mention the South Africans, Rhodesians and Ghurkas also who accompanied the Poles.
Hi Mark, Dutch viewer here, born in 1980. This reminds me of the 2004 Dutch documentary 'God Bless Montgomery' about the same topic. The husband of our Queen Wilhelmina, and Dutch wartime commander, Prince Bernhard had always lobbied, up until then unsuccessfully, for rehabilitation and honor for the Poles that liberated Holland (and did so, unlike the Americans, with minimal use of firepower to protect the cities.) Because royals are supposed to be politically inert, his lobbying had come to nothing. The prince called the Poles 'The best soldiers he had ever witnessed'.
In 2006, his wishes were finally honored, and the Poles were cemented as heroes in Dutch WW2 history, with the highly prestigious Military William Order (only 3 living recipients) awarded to the the Polish 1st Parachute brigade. Only one of two such awards to a foreign unit. (The other being the 82nd Airborne Division).
I personally feel Western Europe owes the Poles a debt of honor: their partacipiation in WW2, AFTER the destruction of their country, is a an heroic tale of truly epic proportions.
Funny old world when you consider the Dutch were sending SS divisions to oppress and suppress the poles 👈😑
Did you know that mediaeval people believed otters would bite off their testicles to confuse their pursuers 😕
thank you for your opinion. BR from Poland
From Warsaw to Norway to Monte Cassino through Market Garden and to VE Day the Poles never quit. They may have lost their homeland but that didn't stop them liberating the homelands of their allies.
It is wild to be both Polish and Irish, the Dutch have both betrayed us and been our sole friends.
@@davidcox3076
👉Brigade I of the Polish Legions (Polish: I Brygada Legionów Polskich, Austrian German: Brigade I der Polnischen Legion, Hungarian: A Lengyel Légió I. Dandárja) was a unit of Austro-Hungarian Army, manned by Poles under Austrian occupation, part of the Polish Legions in World War I, existing from 1914 to 1917 👈😕
You wanna pay this lot their war pension feel free 😕
Thank you for this video. For me as a history enthusiast from Poland it means a lot
As a Pole, many thanks for the material. Most of us here have heard about how they were treated but you're the voice for English speaking viewers around the world.
what is " A pole"?
what are you?
@@je-freenorman7787 Polish person
Beautiful video Mark. As a grandson of a solider in the British 1st Airborne Division I can personally say I owe Sosabowski and the brave men of the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade much more than can be expressed in words. Their memory will live on in the descendants of all those men who were sent a bridge too far.
I flew to Krakow the day after watching this video coincidentally. I had written my dissertation on Operation Market Garden 12 years ago and touched on Sosabowskis input. However, i wasn't aware this was how things ended for him. While in Krakow I told as many people as would listen about his story, and then went to visit his statue in Jordan Park in tribute to the man.
When you return home to the UK Chris, you can visit the HUNDREDS of memorials and grave stones dedicated to the Polish war service personnel who served and died in the west after 1939. I wonder how many memorials to the >1.1 million British and French citizens who gave their lives to see the evils of nazism (that had previously conquered, enslaved and murdered Poland) destroyed. My guess is less than 10, if ANY at all.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 all those were put, after people realised how badly was their memory treated. Poland wasn't even invited to the victory parade. That's just a cover up for this grave injustice. Poland didn't even receive war reparations due to soviet occupation after the war.
@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 I don't really get it what's your point? That British and French don't have enough grave stones and somehow this is Polish fault or what?
@@ypabloworld he is a shill looking for attention as I have seen some of his other comments. I think the point he is trying to make (which makes no sense actually) is that there are many memorials to honor Polish troops in France and the UK while in Poland there are no memorials honoring British, Commonwealth nor French troops. I do not know if this is factual or not but it would make sense as no British, Commonwealth or French forces fought on Polish soil during WW2 while the Poles fought heavily on French and British soil. Likewise there are many memorials to U.S. soldiers in France as many Americans fought in France and probably none in the U.S. honoring French soldiers from WW2 as no French soldiers fought on U.S. soil (obviously). So really his point makes very little logic. After all thats why his screenname is Kronkite's left shoe. Perhaps if his knick was Kronkite's right shoe he would make slightly better arguments.
"They fill his chest with medals while he's across the foam
And they spread the crimson carpet when he comes marching home
The next day someone hollers when he comes into view
"Here comes the general" and they all say "General who?"
They're delighted that he came
But they can't recall his name"
'It's Tommy this, and Tommy that,
And Tommy bye and bye,
But it's good old Tommy Atkins,
When the bullets start to fly.'
Wow! How very true.
What Can You Do With a General, Irving Berlin, Bing Crosby
Perhaps less eloquent, Kipling's "Tommy".
@@peterh7594 See above.
"Nihil Novi" for us Poles. We learned a hard way that treaties are worth less then a paper it's write on. Thank you for reminding the English speaking World that our heroes were heroes to the end. They fought with courage and live with dignity after the war against the odds.
Lets be fair, there have always been people in the English speaking world who know (and knew) how bravely the Poles fought throughout world war 2, its disgusting how they were treated after the war and betrayed by the Western Allies both during and after the war.
Incredible to think some of these Polish warriors had fought in the Battles of Poland (1939), France (1940), Normandy (1944), and Netherlands (1944-45). Amazing heroes!
Plus defence of norway, Atlantic, Arctic and mediterrean convoys, african and Italian campaigns, also eastern front.
and before that they held Bolsheviks in 1920
Dr. Felton, you have honored these great men and their comrades by telling their story and educating all of us about them. A wonderful channel you have created here indeed.
Once again, Outstanding Documentry by Mark Felton 👏
Thank you Mark for highlighting this poignant story which is very important particularly for the Polish diaspora here in the UK
If you ever wondered why Poles are still salty about WW2, this one of the many reasons why.
I am not sure drawing repeated attention to it (and thus the repeated flaming of comment sections with hateful remarks from both sides) is ideal really though. Yes Britain should have looked after these men better, and Monty shouldn't have blamed him for Market Garden when it was clearly the fault of different ground commanders (not saying which as its not the point) but I find the pendulum repeatedly swings the other way, and videos like this just sort of...increase the division instead of healing it. The Poles are aggressively salty and insecure, and the other Allies resent being called out on things like this, so all it ever does is cause issues.
Yes . Some would rather "move on to get along" .
@@AtheAetheling" I am not sure " you understand . Stick with toy soldiers.....
We’re not salty, we’re just don’t believe it allies..
@@AtheAetheling your comment works in favour of division especially labeling someone as aggressive, also reading the vast majority of comments your argument about bringing division simply falls flat on its face