Leonard Skierski
| Leonard Skierski | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
26 April 1866 Stopnica |
| Died | 1940 (aged 73–74) Katyn, Soviet Union |
| Allegiance |
 Russian Empire (1887–1917) Second Polish Republic (1917–1939)
|
| Service/branch |
Imperial Russian Army Polish Army |
| Years of service | 1887–1939 |
| Rank | General of Division |
| Battles/wars |
First World War Polish–Ukrainian War Polish–Soviet War Second World War |
| Awards |
 Order of Virtuti Militari Cross of Valour (4 times)
|
Leonard Wilhelm Skierski (26 April 1866 – 1940) was a Polish military officer and a general of the Imperial Russian Army and then the Polish Army. A veteran of World War I and the Polish-Bolshevik War, he was one of fourteen Polish generals and one of the oldest military commanders to be murdered by the NKVD in the Katyn massacre of 1940.
Leonard Wilhelm Skierski was born in Stopnica near Kielce in the Russian-held part of Poland, into an old Polish aristocratic Calvinist family of Puchała coat of arms. His parents were Henryk Skierski and Helena née Hassman. His younger brother Stefan Skierski became the superintendent (bishop) of the Polish Reformed Church.
Early in his youth Skierski graduated from a philological school in Kielce and joined the Cadet Corps in Voronezh. As a Protestant, Skierski was not a subject to severe laws concerning Polish Catholics serving in the Russian Army. Because of that he could advance through the ranks of the Russian Army and decided to become an officer. On September 1, 1884 he joined the Mikhailov's College of Artillery in Saint Petersburg. In 1887 he graduated in the rank of Second Lieutenant (leytenant) and started his service in the 3rd Guards Artillery Brigade. He quickly rose through the ranks and ended up as a commander of an artillery command in the rank of Colonel (since 1906).
With his unit he took part in the opening stages of World War I. Already in February 1915 he was promoted to the rank of Major General and at that time he became the highest-ranking Pole in Russian armed forces. He continued his service at various posts. Since May 1917 he served as the inspector of artillery of the Russian 5th Corps. Following the outbreak of the Russian Revolution, Skierski created the Society of Polish Soldiers of the 5th Corps. His organization helped to create and fund the Polish Army in the East, a three-division strong force fighting on the side of the Entente alongside Russia and France.
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