Ludomił Rayski
| Ludomił Rayski | |
|---|---|
Rayski in 1930s
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| Nickname(s) | Effendi, Turek |
| Born |
29 December 1892 Czasław near Wieliczka, Galicia |
| Died | 11 April 1977 (aged 84) London, United Kingdom |
| Years of service | 1914-1949 |
| Rank | Generał brygady |
| Battles/wars | World War I, Polish-Bolshevik War, Polish-Ukrainian War, Polish Defensive War, World War II |
| Other work | plotter |
Ludomił Antoni Rayski (December 29, 1892 – April 11, 1977) was a Polish engineer, pilot, military officer and aviator. He served as the commander of the Polish Air Force between 1926 and 1939, being responsible for modernization of Polish military aviation. Throughout his life he also served in the Austro-Hungarian Army, Polish Legions, Turkish Army,Turkish Air Force,French Air Force, French Foreign Legion and Royal Air Force. He was also known as one of the most colourful personalities of inter-war Poland - and one of its least submissive officers.
Ludomił Rayski was born 29 December 1892 in Czasław near Wieliczka, to Artur Teodor Rayski of Korab Coat of Arms, an impoverished Polish noble who spent most of his life as an officer in the Ottoman Army. Artur Teodor was born a Russian citizen, but was forced into exile following the January Uprising and was accepted as an Ottoman citizen soon afterwards. Hence Ludomił retained his father's citizenship, a fact that proved vital for his later career.
In 1902 Ludomił joined a local gymnasium in Kraków and in 1909 passed his matura exams in a college in Krosno. Soon afterwards he started his studies at the Lwów University of Technology. In 1912 he also joined the Strzelec organization. After the outbreak of the Great War he volunteered for Piłsudski's Polish Legions, where he fought under command of Gen. Józef Kordian-Zamorski. Rayski was wounded in the battle of Łowczówek. After the Ottoman Empire joined the war on the side of Austria-Hungary, he was mobilized into the Ottoman Army. Rayski initially wanted to stay in the Legions, which were commonly seen as a school of cadre of future armed forces of Poland, but was convinced by Gen. Kordian-Zamorski to go to Constantinople and try to obtain experience in air warfare.
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