Warsaw Uprising 1944: October 2 POLISH HOME ARMY SURRENDERS

SIGNING OF CAPITULATION

From left seated: Col.. Dipl. Kazimierz Iranek-Osmecki "Macarius", General Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski, Lt.-Col. Dipl. Zygmunt Dobrowolski, "Zyndram."

For a second day the truce was in force from 5:00 a.m. By 7:00 p.m  About 16 thousand civilians have evacuated Warsaw. But even after two days of evacuation, still over 80% of civilians still remain in the district of Srodmiescie. Sources indicate that many Varsavians, civilians as well as insurgents, remain hidden in bunkers throughout the city, fearful of arrest and imprisonment in German camps, or execution.

Polish-German negotiations at the headquarters of General von dem Bach in Ozarow have gone on all day.  The plenipotentiary of the Germans was represented by  SS Obergruppenführer and Police General von dem Bach, Commander of the Warsaw area, and plenipotentiaries representing the Home Army were Col. Kazimierz Iranek Osmecki (Jarecki), and Lt.-Col. Zygmunt Dobrowolski (Zyndram),  the latter who were authorized such powers by Lieutenant-General Komorowski (Bor), Commander-in-Chief of the Home Army. 

The most important provisions of the agreement concern the situation of the Insurgents, as well as those those taken captive since August 1st, 1944. They have been granted the rights as those guaranteed by the Geneva Convention of August 27, 1939 concerning the treatment of prisoners of war.  The insurgents will not bear responsibility for their military and political activities before the rising; Home Army troops must lay down their weapons on the 4th and 5th of October; civilians evacuated from Warsaw will not suffer any consequences for their work in civilian authorities and administration.  The terms of the capitulation were drafted in a document and signed by Kazimierz, Bach and Dobrowolski.

Capitulation Document

1. On October 2nd, 1944, at 20:00 hours German time (21:00 hours Polish time) armed hostilities between the Polish forces fighting in the area of the city of Warsaw and the German forces shall cease.

The term Polish Fighting Forces to cover all Polish formations subject tactically to the Commander of the Home Army during the period of struggle from 1.8.44 [Aug. 1, 1944] down to the day of the signature of this agreement. Throughout the rest of this agreement these forces will be called "Forces of the Home Army."

2. The soldiers of the above specified Polish forces shall lay down their arms within the time determined in section two of this present agreement and shall proceed in compact formations with their Commanders to the assembly points. The places where arms are to be laid down and the assembly points will be established in detail in supplementary notices. The officers shall be entitled to retain side-arms.

3. At the same time the Home Army shall hand over to the German authorities all German soldiers taken prisoner and all persons of German nationality interned by the Polish authorities.

4. To assure order and security in the area of the city of Warsaw special units shall be appointed by the Commander of the Home Army. These units will be free from the immediate obligation to lay down their arms, and will remain in the city until the fulfillment of their charge. The German Command has the right to check the numerical size of these units.

5. From the moment of laying down their arms the soldiers of the Home Army are entitled to the rights of the Geneva Convention dated 27.8.29 [August 27, 1929], concerning the treatment of prisoners of war. Soldiers of the Home Army taken prisoner in the area of the city of Warsaw in the course of the struggle which began on August 1st, 1944, shall enjoy the same rights.

6. Those non-combatant persons accompanying the. Home Army, within the meaning of article 81 of the Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners of war without distinction of sex, are entitled to the rights of prisoners of war. This affects in particular women workers an the staff and liaison, those giving help to soldiers, personnel of the information and press services, war correspondents, etc.

7. In applying the terms of the Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners of war; officers' ranks recognized by the Command of the Home Army shall be accepted. Papers operative under a pseudonym shall be sufficient evidence of membership of the Home Army. The true surnames will be supplied for the information of the German military authorities.

Members of the Home Army who have lost their papers will be identified by a Commission of the Home Army, which will be appointed. Such commissions will be set up as required by the Home Army Command.

The terms of this present article also apply to persons indicated in article 6.

8. Persons being prisoners of war in the sense of the aforesaid articles shall not be persecuted for their military or political activities either during the period of struggle in Warsaw or in the preceding period, even if they had been discharged from prisoner of war camps. Any violations of German legal regulations as, in particular, failure to register as officers, previous escape from prisoner-of-war camps, illegal sojourn in Poland, etc., shall not entail punishment.

9. In regard to the civilian population who were in the city of Warsaw during the period of struggle, collective responsibility shall not be applied.

No person who was in Warsaw during the period of struggle shall be persecuted for functioning in time of war in the organization of administrative or judiciary authorities, in the security and public welfare services and in social and charitable institutions, or for co­operating in the battles and in military propaganda.     

Members of the above specified authorities and organizations shall not be persecuted even for political activities prior to the rising.

10. The evacuation of the civilian population from the city of Warsaw which the German Command has demanded shall be carried out at such a time and in such a manner as shall save the population superfluous suffering. The evacuation of objects of artistic, cultural or sacred value shall be facilitated. The German Command will take steps to protect such public and private property as remains in the city.

The details of the evacuation will be regulated by a separate agreement.

II

1. The Home Army Command binds itself to remove the barricades, first and foremost those situated nearest to the German lines, on October 3rd, 1944, beginning at 7:00 hours German time (8:00 hours Polish time).

2. The Home Army Command will deliver to the German lines all German prisoners of war, and also, so far as is possible, all German civilian internees to representatives of the German armed forces on this same day of October 2nd, 1944, by 24:00 hours German time (1:00 a.m. on October 3rd, Polish time) at the latest.

3. If the removal of the barricades is not begun at the time appointed, the German Command reserves the right to denounce this present agreement on October 3rd, 1944, beginning at 12:00 hours German time (13:00 hours Polish time), and the denunciation shall come into effect in two hours from the moment of handing the letter denouncing the agreement to the Polish lines.

4. The Home Army Command binds itself to lead one regiment, or three battalions from different regiments, out of Warsaw to lay down arms on October 4th, 1944. The crossing of the German lines by the head of these forces must follow on October 4th at 9:00 hours German time (10:00 hours Polish time).

5. The remaining forces of the Home Army, with the exception of the units specified in section one, clause 4 of this present agreement, shall leave Warsaw to lay down arms on October 5th, 1944.

6. Forces of the Home Army shall march out of the Polish line with weapons, but without ammunition, by the following routes:

(a) From City Centre South: the 2nd infantry regiment, via Śniadecki, August 6th, Sucha, and Filtrowa Streets.

(b) From City Centre North: (1) the 37th infantry regiment via Napoleon Square, Sikorski Avenue (Reichstrasse) and Grójecka Street (Radomstrasse); (2) the 15th infantry regiment via Grzybowska Street, Chłodna Street (Eisgrubenstrasse) and Wolska Street (Litzmannstädterstrasse).

7. The following forces of the Home Army shall remain in the city:

(a) For duties connected with the preservation of order, three infantry companies armed with pistols, automatic pistols and rifles;

(b) For guarding and handing over three regimental magazines with ammunition and equipment, thirty armed persons, as above;

(c) Medical units for care and transport of the wounded and the evacuation of the hospital to be unarmed.

8. The evacuation of the wounded and sick soldiers of the Home Army, as also of medical material, will be determined by the Medical Head of the German forces in consultation with the Medical Head of the Home Army. Regulations of the same nature for the evacuation of medical personnel's families will follow.

9. Soldiers of the Home Army shall be recognized by a white and red arm-band or pennons; or a Polish eagle, irrespective of whether they wear any kind of uniform or civilian clothing.

10. The agreeing parties confirm that transport, accommodation, guard and care of the prisoners of war shall remain solely within the control of the German armed forces (Deutsche Wehrmacht).

The German party guarantees that these tasks in regard to soldiers of the Home Army will not be entrusted to formations of foreign nationalities.

11. Women who are prisoners of war within the terms of section one, clause 6, will be accommodated in prisoner of war camps corresponding to officers' camps (Oflag) or other ranks' camps (Stalag) respectively.

The ranks of junior commander, commander, senior commander and inspector are regarded as women's officer ranks.

At their own desire women prisoners-of-war may be treated like the remaining population of Warsaw.

12. The German military authorities will immediately inform the Kriegsgefangenenhilfe der Y.M.C.A. in the town of Sagan of the location and number of the Home Army soldiers and accompanying persons accommodated in prisoners-of-war camps.

13. For technical help in carrying out this present agreement S.S. Obergruppenführer and General of Police von dem Bach shall have three Polish officers at his disposition.

III

In the event of the terms of this present agreement being violated, those who are found guilty will be held responsible.

Signed:
General von dem Bach
Col. Iranek Kazimierz
Col. Dobrowolski


The agreement on cessation of hostilities in Warsaw was signed at 9:00 pm tonight marking an end to all military operations in Warsaw. After 63 days of the most brutal, bloody fighting, all hostilities ceased at 8:00 pm. today. Sources indicate that up until 7:30 pm General Bor's radio station had been broadcasting messages to the allies asking for "immediate assistance".  The broadcast was monitored by Polish receiving stations in London and was barely audible. It said, "Hello, Warsaw speaking...We are still fighting, Warsaw....Warsaw is not yet defeated...This town of one million people is being wiped out....We have given more than we could....Give us immediate assistance!! This assistance is due to us!!....We are today the conscience of the world...We....have confidence and are still waiting for your help. We were called "the inspiration of the fighting nations and the inspiration of the world....We, as a nation, have a right to live. We demand that right!!........"


General Tadeusz Komorowski "Bor" surrendered to General von dem Bach, while the Home Army prepares to lay down its weapons. Throughout the ordeal, Polish insurgents fought courageously despite overwhelming odds. Polish men, women and even children joined the underground by the thousands. They supplied vital intelligence information to the allies, and succeeded in conducting thousands of sabotage missions on German supply routes, as well as plots to assassinate many top-level SS and Gestapo officials, including that of Franz Kutschera, SS Police Chief of Warsaw who ambushed and gunned down by Polish fighters in February this year. Despite their horrendous suffering and hardship, and their tremendous courage in battles, surrender to the Germans is a bitter and cruel defeat to Poles who had hoped to regain Polish sovereignty and independence after five years of the most brutal oppression by the Nazi occupiers.

Anthony Eden, British Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs announced today that General Sosnkowski was removed from his post as Commander in Chief of the Polish Armed Forces, and confirmed that the Polish Government appointed General Komorowski "Bor" to fill the position.

Sosnowski has been widely criticized by British authorities (and the Soviet government)  for an announcement published in a Polish weekly newspaper called Dziennik Polski (Polish Daily) on September 1st, 1944. The story has been picked up by British newspapers and has spread around the world.

Kazimierz Sosnkowski

Warsaw is not waiting for empty words of praise, for expressions of recognition, not for assurances of sympathy. Warsaw is waiting … Warsaw is waiting … for weapons and ammunition."

To add insult to injury Eden remarked that the appointment of General "Bor" was "unfortunate" because the Polish Communist Committee of National Liberation considers General Tadeusz Komorowski Bor "a criminal".  Meanwhile the British Minister of Information has been invited to speak with the Governors of the BBC. At issue is the implementation of British policy that will give less emphasis in future news bulletins concerning Polish political difficulties.

Warsaw Uprising 1944: September 30 ZOLIBORZ SURRENDERS!

At dawn today, without preliminary artillery fire, German troops made a surprise attack on Polish positions located in Zoliborz, and have seized the "Zgoda", a large housing cooperative situated on Slowackiego Street. The attacks were followed by another barrage of strong artillery fire against Gdanska Street and Wilsona Square. Amid the maelstorm insurgents managed to establish contact with members of the 1st Army of the Polish Armed Forces.  By midday fierce battles ensued for control of individual houses along the lower part of Mickiewicza and Krasinskiego Streets.

Meanwhile several Polish troops were scheduled to evacuate to the right bank of the Vistula in the afternoon and had begun their retreat upon the orders of their commander, Lt. Col. Mieczyslaw Niedzielski "Zywiciel". However bad weather has made it impossible for them to make the crossing. Some Polish troops attempted to force their way through but were stopped.

Col. "Wachnowski"

Amid the fighting negotations have been underway since early this morning for a cease-fire and the evacuation of civilians. Upon the orders of General Komorowski "Bor",  Col. Karol Ziemski “Wachnowski” and Lt. Jerzy Kaminski “Scibor” have been appointed to negotiate with General Erich von dem Bach, and General Kaellner, the commander of the 19th armored division regarding the cessation of operations in Zoliborz.

At 5:00 p.m. Col. “Wachnowski” relayed the terms of capitulation to Lt. Col. “Zywiciel” and at around 6 p.m. the district of Zoliborz surrendered. For the next five hours members of the Armia Krajowa (Home Army) troops have laid down their weapons, and marched to Pionier Park in Powazki under German escort.


Polish emissaries have been negotiating with General Bach in his headquarters in Ozarow for the past couple of days concerning the terms of capitulation and the issue of evacuation of civilians from Srodmiescie. The Polish delegation was able to obtain consent for a cease-fire between 5:00 am and 7:00 pm on October 1st and 2nd during which over 200,000 Polish civilians will be evacuated. The Germans have established five specific points as the evacuation routes - at the western entries of Grzybowska, Panska, Piusa and Sniadeckich Streets at the Institute of Technology, and also in Aleje Jerozolimskie Street.

Since the Uprising began, General von dem Bach Zelewski had approached the Poles on three occasions with surrender proposals, terms which included guarantees and assurances of formal status of combattant rights to the insurgents. Despite the agreement, about 150 insurgents were shot today when they emerged from the sewers. They had been travelling underneath Warsaw and as fate would have it mistakenly merged in the district of Mokotow Sector, which is now in German hands.

Eric von dem Bach

Throughout the Uprising, hundreds of thousands of Poles have been killed, many of them civilians. Upon Himmlers orders, General Geibel had carried out mass murder of countless men, women and children. German soldiers of the Kampfgruppe Reinefarth would routinely surround houses, blocks and streets with the objective of killing as many people as possible. They shot through windows, entrances to houses, and threw grenades. Nobody was spared, all the young, the old, the sick and wounded were massacred on the spot. Houses were set on fire and people were burned alive in their own homes. Gasoline was poured on piles of corpses in the streets and set on fire. In one area, 18 women, all of whom were nurses, were taken and shot. One woman who had just given birth to her child was raped by 8 SS men. She died from the brutal trauma.

Polish Intelligentsia Rounded Up and  Blindfolded by Nazis before Execution 1940
Photo taken secretly by Polish Underground (in Palmiry)

Insurgents Executed - Warsaw Uprising

German soldiers conducted mass execution of Polish hostages in Palmiry in retaliation for an attack on a Nazi police station by the underground organization "White Eagle"

Today, SS Senior Colonel Dirlewanger was awarded the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross for his action against Warsaw, in particular for horrendous massacre of Poles in the districts of Wola and Ochota on August 4th. In the span of a few days the infamous SS Dirlewanger troops and SS RONA brigade slaughtered from 40,000 to 100,000 civilians and POWs, many of them women and children. Although German Command publicly disapproved of the barbaric methods used by Dirlewanger and his troops, he was nevertheless awarded with the highest of honours.  German Command also bestowed honours  to SS Heinz Reinefarth who received oak leaves to his Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Reinfarth participated in the Wola Massacres and has been responsible for many other atrocities recently committed in the districts of Powisle and Czerniakow including the murder of POWs and wounded insurgents in hospital.

General "Bor"

At the end of September General Bor sent this message simultaneously to the Polish Prime Minister and the Commander in Chief in London,  “The food situation for the army and civilian population is catastrophic. For some time we have not been eating enough, and within a few days the rest of the stock will be exhausted. We are facing famine, complete exhaustion, and epidemic. Mortality among the children is still on the upswing, case of death from starvation are occurring among adults. The Uprising will collapse for lack of food...”

Despite appeals for assistance, and the frequency of urgent radio message, there was no action taken by Britain or United States.  Throughout the Uprising, there have been over 6,600 messages either received or transmitted. It amounts to 104 messages per day. Most of the demands have been for allied air assistance. However, sources indicate that a second relief flight coded Operation Frantic 8 is being planned by the Americans. Clearance was received just today from the Russian authorities, and cargo is in its last stages of preparation. The flight is scheduled for October.

General Bor, as the commander of the Armia Krajowa has fought tirelessly to defend Warsaw and Poland from the German onslaught, but with the battle now having been lost, the next most grave concern is the future of Poland's independence and sovereignty. It will be a fight to the very last hour.  Bor also stated his message that  “The fighting insurgents and the community expect concrete decisions; not only assistance for Warsaw, but also a clear statement on ways of recovering Poland’s independent existence and sovereignty threatened by the aggressive policy of the Soviet Union...” There has been no comment by either American or British officials.

The BBC in London has reported that Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski has resigned, and that the Polish President Wladyslaw Raczkiewicz has appointed General Tadeusz Komorowski “Bor” Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Armed Forces.

Warsaw Uprising 1944: September 13 Soviet Troops Smash Praga District

German troops have systematically blown up several bridges in Warsaw: at noon it was the Poniatowski Bridge - by evening, the railway bridges near the Citadel and just before midnight the Kierbedz Bridge was completely demolished.  Throughout the day German troops launched continuous attacks on Czerniakow while German air raids and artillery went about destroying all the larger buildings. One by one the Germans have eliminated points of Polish resistance in the area of Czerniakowski Port and on Lazienkowska Street. Enemy fire was so overwhelming that insurgent troops were forced to leave the port.  Polish units also had to retreat from the even-numbered side of Lazienkowska Street. Meanwhile enemy units have taken over the gasworks premises in Ludna Street and have seized the ZUS building on Czerniakowska Street. After a fierce 24-hour battle, the Germans seized the buildings of St. Lazarus Hospital on Ksiazeca Street.  The insurgents attempted to launch a counterattack to recapture the entry of Ksiazeca Street in Trzech Krzyzy Square and restore communication between Srodmiescie and Czerniakow but failed.

Wyzwolenie Warszawskiej Pragi (00:10:30m) 

Armia Krajowa Headquarters dispatched a messenger to cross the Vistula during the night and attempt to establish contact with Berling's army staff.  The Soviet offensive resumed today and Russian troops have smashed their way through to Praga, a suburb of Warsaw. During the night the Soviet airforce has made its first supply drops over Warsaw for the Polish fighters.  Rokossovsky later remarked that "This is when the Uprising in the Polish capital should have started.  A joint strike by the Soviet Army from the east and the insurgents from Warsaw, taking the bridges, could have succeeded in liberating and holding Warsaw, though, even in the most favourable circumstances that would have been just about all the Front's troops could do."  

 

Soviet troops advance in Warsaw's districts 1944

Concerned about the arrival of Russian troops into Warsaw, General Bor sent detailed instructions to General Monter on the recommended behaviour by the Polish units.  Monter has been ordered to hold the regions in Polish hands, but to clear the main routes through Warsaw so that the Red Army could pursue the Germans, In addition, there has been an order for all AK partisans currently outside Warsaw, to come to the city.  Territories that are still held by the insurgents have been clearly identified by Polish flags.  Attached to Bors' instructions was a note entitled, "How to Parley with the Red Army".  General Monter has immediately issued Special Order number 83, calling for the seizure of as much of Warsaw as possible. Lt. John Ward is a British soldier and member of Armia Krajowa has been reporting on the Uprising through regular secret messages dispatched to London.  Ward has been giving a rare glimpse into the daily struggles and horrors experienced by Polish civilians and insurgents.  Today's report, albeit brief, tells of the sort of brutality waged by German forces against Polish insurgents. Polish Home Army men who had captured a house from the Germans on Zulinski Street found some food supplies left behind by the enemy. Five of the men were so famished that they at once ate part of the food. It was poisoned with strychnine and three of them have died; the other two are in a serious state.  


 

Warsaw Uprising 1944: September 11 POLISH GENERAL BREAKS NEGOTIATIONS

At 1:30 pm today General Tadeusz Komorowski “Bor” broke off negotiations with the Germans. Bor has been able to persuade the Polish Council of Ministers with arguments supporting his decision.
He strongly believes that the Allies and the Russians are now collaborating in defense of Warsaw and indicated that US flights will soon make their way to Warsaw with supplies. It is apparent that the Soviet army is fighting the Germans for access to the Vistula as sounds of artillery fire can be heard north and east of Warsaw. 


Morale of the insurgents has greatly improved and the Poles are ecstatic that the Soviets and their allies are finally coming to the defence of Warsaw. Surrender now is out of the question. Over 50 percent of the insurgents would be against the option of surrender. General Monter, General Pelczynski and Colonel Szostak are all in agreement with the decision to keep on fighting. Capitulation should not take place. To do so now would be, as Monter said, "the depths of tragedy."

Polish Insurgents battling German forces Warsaw Uprising

Developments on the right bank of the Vistula prompt the Germans to cut the insurgents off from the river. They have attacked Czerniakow from a pumping station on Czerniakowska Street and from Sobieski Park. Polish troops have retreated from a section of Rozbrat Street between Lazienkowska and Przemysłowa Streets. Przemysłowa Street, the corner of Czerniakowska and Lazienkowska Streets, as well as the Czerniakowski Port remain in insurgent hands. The Poles have succeeded in fighting off an attack from an escarpment that covers a passage from Czerniakow to Srodmiescie. German planes have bombed the Heavenly Mother of Czestochowa Church on Lazienkowska Street. Damage is extensive and several dozen civilians are buried under the ruins. AK units have been forced to abandon their most advanced outposts. Attacks halted on Ksiazeca Street – the only connection between Czerniakow and City Centre. German offensive in the remaining districts are declining.

warsaw uprising czerniakow 2007 powstanie 2/2 (00:09:55m) 

Konstatin Rokossovsky

Gen. Tadeusz Komorowski “Bor” has sent an urgent cable to Soviet Marshal Konstanty Rokossovsky asking him to establish direct radio communication, but no reply has yet been received.  Rokossovsky is praised by the Soviet government as being a "true Pole",  "great Pole", and "speaker of two nations'. Despite the political rhetoric, Rokossovsky is widely hated by the Polish people. Though his origins are of Polish nobility, Poles mock him for being "a Russian dressed in Polish uniform" and for "acting Pole".  Enemy forces are making determined efforts to cut off communication between the northern and southern parts of the city, as divided by Sikorski Avenue. Despite overwhelming German fire power, Polish insurgents have inflicted severe losses on the enemy. During the past 24 hours, the Germans have suffered a loss of nine tanks, seven of which were destroyed by the Poles in Sikorski Avenue. The battle has gone on unabated day and night. Huge fires are burning everywhere and none can be extinguished. There is little water available to put them out. Over 50 per cent of civilians from the northern part of the city have been evacuated to the southern zone and now the southern part of the city. The southern part is much smaller in area and is overcrowded. More than 300,000 refugees are under constant and heavy bombardment and artillery fire. Casualties are very high.


Lt. John Ward is a British soldier, and member of the Armia Krajowa. Since the early days of the Uprising he has been sending secret radio messages to London authorities reporting on the daily events in Warsaw. Apparently allied airplanes have made an air drop of supplies for the Polish insurgents, unfortunately most containers have ended up in enemy hands. In few words, Ward's message stated: Addressed to Colonel P… Sir, last night a small number of containers were dropped on Warsaw at widely scattered points. As far as I have been able to check, five were found of which three contained surgical supplies. Have not found out contents of other two.


 

Warsaw Uprising 1944: September 9 Unsung Heroes of Warsaw

"When will the help,

Which is so badly needed – weapons, ammunition

Come down from the sky?

All that remains is a circle of blood

And a ring of fire

Around Warsaw. “

This poem was written by a child and printed in today's edition of Dzieci Mokotowa, a Warsaw underground newspaper especially for the youth. The children of Warsaw have suffered the most during the Uprising. They have witnessed the horrors and experienced the hardships on a daily basis, many of them homeless and orphaned. Many are members of the Polish Scouting group which has been dubbed Gray Ranks.


Vast numbers of these children wearing the red and white armband of the AK have become active participants in the Uprising serving as couriers or messengers, distributing the underground press, trying to put out fires, and on occasion when necessary they would even participate in an attack.  Pre-adolescent boys can be seen patrolling the streets carrying pistols or hand grenades though they were not recruited by the AK to serve as combatants. Reports indicate that some homeless Jewish children have joined the Uprising.

More than 4,000 women are also fighting in the ranks of the AK, serving as combatants, nurses, and couriers. Female casualties are disproportionately high. Due to the shortage of weapons, women soldiers of the AK are the last the receive any weapons, if there are any to distribute. Tragically many of these women have been killed in the line of duty but they were every bit a soldier for their courage and self-sacrifice.

A large contingent of AK units were comprised of the women of Warsaw. Between 35,000 and 40,000 women took the Polish Soldier’s Oath to protect the Constitution. On 27 Oct 1943 the President of Poland issued a special decree proclaiming that women soldiers had the same rights and obligations as the men. The decree was amended on September 23, 1944 allocating to women military ranks including those of both non-commissioned and commissioned officers. Even before the decree was formalized Polish women were already participating in underground activities.

The Chief of Liaison and Communications of the HQ of Armia Krajowa is a Polish woman and there are numerous other women holding positions of deputy commander. They are reorganizing liaison and communications in the eastern and western territories of Poland, and are responsible for coding and decoding of messages, contacts with Polish POW camps, and medical department. Polish women have also arranged contacts with concentration camps, intelligence parties and units and plans for diversion and sabotage, for example the Women`s Sabotage Officers School, where there are over 120 women instructors. They are also watching areas that could be endangered by German surveillance, as well as guarding the clandestine meetings and radio stations, transport of money, weapons and printed material. The supervisor of the couriers exchange points is a woman, as well as chief of all insurgents magazines and storage points .

Within the AK, 35,000 women underwent military training, 5,000 in para medical training, 700 in liaison and communications, 550 in military administration, and 500 in military escort and guard.

Women messengers are in constant danger. They are constantly carrying incriminating documents, and to be caught by the Gestapo means being subjected to torture of unimaginable bestial cruelty. Many of the women carry poison and are under orders to use it without hesitation if the need arises. The AK cannot risk that any of the women, if caught, might confuse under torture, and it is impossible to free them if they are imprisoned.

Hopkins and Churchill

In an urgent radio message to Harry Hopkins, Ambassador Harriman expressed his perceptions about the Soviet government’s “indifference to world opinion” its “unbending policy towards Poland”, and its “ruthless attitude toward the uprising in Warsaw”. Harriman said, “Time has come when we must make clear what we expect of them as the price of our good will. Unless we take issue with the present policy there is every indication the Soviet Union will become world bully wherever their interests are involved.”Harrison wanted to meet with Roosevelt but Hopkins was instrumental in preventing it.

Harry Hopkins is the closest and most influential advisor to US President Franklin Roosevelt - and unknown to his contemporaries, he is also a secret Soviet agent. He has been acting as Roosevelts unofficial emissary to Churchill. Hopkins has often met with Stalin and other top key Soviet officials and divulged many of Roosevelts' secret plans concerning the war. Hopkins was one of the major architects of the Lend Lease agreement, first with Great Britain, and then with the Soviet Union and has strongly advocated sending as much war materiel to the Soviet Union as possible, with the aim of ending the war as soon as possible. Roosevelt brought Hopkins along with him in the capacity of advisor during the Conferences at Cairo, Teheran and Casablanca.It is interesting to note that Iskhak Akhmerov, an undercover spymaster who controls the vast KGB network of Soviet agents in the United States has described Hopkins as "the most important of all Soviet wartime agents in the Unites States".

AK command believes that Red Army units which have been standing at the outskirts of Warsaw are intentionally stalling for political reasons. But according to Soviet intelligence sources, the reason is that German units of the 5th Viking SS Panzer Division, the 3rd Totenkopf SS Panzer Division, the 19th Division, and about two infantry divisions are blocking access to Warsaw. Soviet command has deployed the 47th and 70th armies, and units of the First Polish Army supported by the 16th Air Army, to combat enemy forces.

General Heinz Guderian

Even the enemy is cognizant of Soviet intentions towards Poland. General Heinz Guderian commented on the situation. Here is what he had to say, “....It may be assumed that the Soviet Union had no interest in seeing these elements owing allegiance to the Polish Government in exile strengthened by a successful uprising and by liberating their capital. Doubtless the Soviets wanted the credit for such actions to go to their dependent Poles in the Lublin camp.....All that concerned us was that the Russians did not then advance beyond the Vistula and we are consequently granted a short breathing spell.”  Hitlers' commanders had been observing Soviet maneuvers for the past six weeks and concluded that the Red Army had halted any advance. Apparently, they had no plans to attack German units in Warsaw for now.

General "Bor"

General Monter dispatched an urgent message to General Bor to suggest that contact should be made with the First Polish Army, and the Polish Committee of National Liberation in Lublin with a view to extending a promise of loyal cooperation to the Commander in chief of the Polish Communist forces. The hope is that such collaboration might provide some assistance to the beleagured Polish Home Army. General Bor responded emphatically that appealing to the Commander in chief of the Polish communist forces (General Michal Rola-Zymierski) “ is in my opinion, betrayal.” A few days later General Bor delivered a speech to his soldiers ending with the statement,,”We all want good, neighbourly relations with the USSR but under...the condition that the Soviet government recognizes our right to a completely independent existence as a nation and as a state....”
German command has called for the surrender of Polish units but there has been no response from General Bor. Acting cautiously Bor has sent two of his AK officers through the Polish Red Cross to meet with General Rohr. In a meeting for Rohr, the Polish officers sole intention was to ascertain the conditions attached to such surrender. Later on this afternoon, Bor has sent a message to Rohr giving no information other than that he will issue a reply within twenty-four hours.

Meanwhile fighting continues in the northern part of Srodmiescie. German troops in the southern part and Czerniakow are escalating their attacks using artillery,heavy mortars, mine throwers and grenade launchers. The Sielce area is also under heavy attack.

Polish Insurgents fight off German attack

Envoys of the Home Army Command Lt. Col. Franciszek Herman “Boguslawski” and Captain Alfred Korczynski “Sas”have started negotiations with Gen. Heinz Rohr, who is acting on behalf of Gen. Erich von dem Bach. The Poles raise the issue of continued evacuation of civilians from Warsaw, and evacuation of heavily wounded Polish soldiers. Also mentioned is the possibility of handing over wounded German soldiers taken captive by the insurgents.


Lt. John Ward is a British soldier and a member of the AK in Warsaw. He has been dispatching reguar reports to London authorities concerning the daily events in the battle for Warsaw. The following is today's report:

Many women, children and old men, taking the enemy at his word that they would be well treated and that any private property which they brought would not be taken from them, left the city yesterday and today. Already the staff of the Home Army has received reports that all valuables were taken from them. Afterwards women, children and old men, all weakened by hunger, were forced to march nearly 20 miles in the pelting rain. They were then driven into an open compound like so many sheep and left under a guard of S.S. men.

In the Old Town the enemy had made no attempt to give any relief to the suffering civil population. About half of these people are more or less badly wounded. All food that they had is buried under the ruins of their houses. There are between 80 and 100 thousand people still in the old town. An unconfirmed report says that all the heavily wounded soldiers of the Home Army who were left behind when the Army evacuated this quarter were shot by the Germans when they entered.

Mały Jaś z AK (00:03:07m)

Mały Jaś z AK

Było nas siedmiu chłopców z Woli,

Ania - łączniczka i jej brat,

Taki klajnieczek, przyjemniaczek,

Co miał najwyżej dziewięć lat.

Biało-czerwoną miał opaskę,

Niemiecki hełm spadł mu na nos,

Benzyny flaszkę za swym paskiem,

Nosił Warszawski nasz gawrosz.

Mały Jaś, mały Jaś,

Cała Wola Jasia zna,

Wciąż w uśmiechu zęby szczerzył,

Mały Jaś z AK, z AK.

Mały Jaś, mały Jaś,

Cała Wola Jasia zna,

Wciąż w uśmiechu zęby szczerzył,

Mały Jaś z AK, z AK.

Zawsze go wszędzie było pełno,

Zawsze był pierwszy Bóg wie gdzie,

Przed tą postacią tak mizerną,

Nie jeden Tygrys kłaniał się.

A kiedy śmierć nadeszła blada,

I wyciągnęła po nas dłoń,

Ze śmiercią także się dogadał,

I znowu pierwszy poszedł on.

Mały Jaś, mały Jaś,

Cała Wola Jasia zna,

Choć nikt nie wie gdzie dziś leży,

Mały Jaś z AK, z AK.

Mały Jaś, mały Jaś,

Cała Wola Jasia zna,

Choć nikt nie wie gdzie dziś leży,

Mały Jaś z AK, z AK.