1943 Pinsk Prison Raid

The 1943 Pinsk Prison raid was one of the most spectacular raids in the history of the Home Army and the Polish Underground State. It took place on January 18, 1943 in Pinsk, the town in Eastern Poland (now in Belarus), which at that time was under German occupation as part of Reichskommissariat Ukraine. The purpose of the raid was to release a Cichociemni agent and his comrades, who had been captured by the Germans while trying to blow up the Horyn river bridge.

The raid was a success, as 40 Polish soldiers, divided into six groups and commanded by Jan Piwnik, managed to enter the heavily guarded prison, and release Alfred Paczkowski (Wania), Marian Czarnecki (Rys), and Piotr Downar (Azorek). A fourth prisoner, Mieczyslaw Eckardt (Bocian) had been killed by the SS during the interrogation. The raid lasted only 15 minutes. Several of the participants later received military awards for their actions.

Captain Alfred Paczkowski (nom de guerre Wania) was trained in Great Britain and as a member of the elite Cichociemni, was parachuted over Poland in 1942. Named one of commandants of the Wachlarz sabotage organization, he was engaged in diversionary activities in the rear of German forces, operating on Eastern Front. Sent to Belarus, he liquidated Gestapo agents and blew up German transports between Brzesc nad Bugiem and Minsk. Captured by the enemy, together with three other agents, Czarnecki, Downar and Eckardt, he was taken to the Pinsk prison.

Colonel Adam Remigiusz Grocholski, who was Commander in Chief of Wachlarz, came to the conclusion that all four agents were lost. General Stefan Rowecki, however, decided to try and release them, after consulting the matter with Generals Tadeusz Pełczyński and Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski. Furthermore, Marian Przysiecki, a resident of Pinsk and former chief of local Wachlarz, who had managed to escape from the prison, pledged his support. His assistance was crucial, as he knew the prison well.

...
Wikipedia