Jan Mazurkiewicz
| Jan Mazurkiewicz nom de guerre Radosław |
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|---|---|
Mazurkiewicz with Battalion Parasol (Umbrella)
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| Born |
27 August 1896 Lwów, Galicia |
| Died | 4 May 1988 (aged 91) Warsaw, Poland |
| Years of service | 1914-1922, 1927-1945 |
| Rank | Brigadier General |
| Battles/wars |
World War I Polish-Bolshevik War Invasion of Poland Operation Tempest Warsaw Uprising World War II |
| Awards |
Order of Virtuti Militari Cross of Independence with Swords Cross of Valour Warsaw Uprising Cross |
| Other work | veterans' rights activist |
Jan Mazurkiewicz (27 August 1896, Lwów – 4 May 1988, Warsaw), nom de guerre Radosław, was a Polish soldier, veteran of World War I, and a colonel in the Polish anti-Nazi resistance Armia Krajowa (AK) during World War II. He was one of the main commanders of the Warsaw Uprising, where he led the Radosław Group (Polish: Zgrupowanie Radosław), part of Kedyw, which was one of the best armed and trained insurrectionist units in the Uprising.
After the war Mazurkiewicz was persecuted by the Soviet-led communist authorities of the People's Republic of Poland, kept for two years in pre-trial jail, tortured and sentenced to life, despite the fact that he tried to cooperate with the new regime. He was rehabilitated after the end of the Stalinist period in 1956 and became active in the official veterans' organization Society of Fighters for Freedom and Democracy (ZBoWiD). He was eventually promoted to the rank of general of the Armed Forces of the People's Republic of Poland (LWP). He died shortly before the fall of communism in Eastern Europe.
Mazurkiewicz was born in a craftsman's family in Lwów. His father died in a fire in 1905. He spent his childhood in Złoczów and attended a gymnasium in Lwów. He was a member of Strzelec and then of the Polish Legions in World War I. He was a private in Józef Piłsudski's First Brigade and fought in the Battle of Łowczówek on 25 July 1914, where he was wounded and taken into Russian captivity. He soon escaped and rejoined his unit. In 1918, he took part in the Battle of Kaniów as a unit commander, while serving under General Józef Haller.
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