Polish Air Aces

Morning all

I quite realize that during the Great War Poland was partitioned and did not actually exist as a sovereign country, but there must have been some outstanding bouts of heroic madness on the part of Polish-born pilots attached to the Austro-Hungarian fighter squadrons or the Imperial Russian Air Service. Think of the sensational antics of the Polish Spitfire squadron during the Battle of Britain. For example was the great Austro-Hungarian Ace Godwin Brumowski born in Galicia, formerly a part of Poland? Despite appearances not all 'owskis' are Polish!

The great anthropologist Bronislaw Malinowski was treated as an Austrian alien in Australia at the outbreak of the Great War and chose to do research in the Trobriand Islands of Papua New Guinea over internment. No-one could have been more Polish and less Austrian in temperament however than Bronio.

I am an author and shall shortly be relocating to Warsaw and would like to do some research there. A start might be helpful. Any books in English on this subject a great bonus.

Na Zdrowie!

Michael ???

Like their Polish brothers the Spitfire pilots, "The Forgotten Few" indeed........

No replies to this thread

Michael :'(

[GrzeM]

Dear Michael!
I can help you, but please contact me on my e-mail addy
Grzegorz_Mazurowski@poczta.onet.pl
and do that soon, as I'm leaving on Friday for 3 weeks.

I love this forum, but now I'm connecting with the very slow modem, so reading the Forum is a real trouble. But downloading daily portion of e-mails takes only a minute.
I'm a Polish journalist living in Warsaw.
Grzegorz Mazurowski

[leo]

How about Adolf Heyrowsky? What was his background?

[Tomasz]

Michael,

surprisingly the question is not so easy to answer. Poland had been partitioned since 1795. There had been many foreigners living in Poland before and after partitions. During world war I there was no Polish citizenship, and the only way to tell Pole from non-Pole was to ask him/her what did he/she feel. Even the language spoken was not enough to classify them. It is considered now that the definite way to claim someone being Pole is to chceck if he/she declared to be a Pole after Poland had regained independence. Of course it doesn't help if someone died during the war.

But getting is straight, following pilots are considered now as Polish wwi aces:

• Donat Makijonek, who scored 8 victories while flying Nieuport XXIs and XXVIIs with Russian 7 KAO. Later he commanded Polish Breguet XIV squadron no. 3 during the Polish-Soviet War
• Mieczyslaw Sylwester Garsztka, who scored 6 kills with German Jasta 31 while flying Fokker D.VIIs. After the war had ended he was killed in accident in Poland while performing maiden flight of the refurbished ex-Russian Spad VII.
• Franciszek Peter, who scored 6 victories while flying Albatros D.IIIs(Oef) with Austro Hungarian Flik 3J
• Stefan Stec, who scored 3 victories with Flik 3J and added 2 victories with Polish Air Service during the war against Ukraina

Another Pole Antoni Mroczkowski stated that he had claimed 9 victoried with IRAS, but it is hard to find any confirmation for that.

Except of them many wwi aces can be associated with Poland. Willi Gabriel, Godwin Brumowski, Franciszek Linke Crawford. Gabriel and Brumowski lived in Poland for some years after the war had ended. However they did not claim ever they were Poles

Best wishes

Tomasz

[Tomasz]

Forgot to mention the greatest Polish ace Manfred von Richtchofen. He was born near Wroclaw/Breslau in the region which now belongs to Poland. *;D

Ducking and running for cover

Tomasz

Forgot to mention the greatest Polish ace Manfred von Richtchofen. He was born near Wroclaw/Breslau in the region which now belongs to Poland. *;D

Ducking and running for cover

Tomasz

Yes, not surprised you are ducking for cover.......Richthofen certainly had a Polish temperament......wonderful and crazy heroism in the face of impossible odds. Just like Napoleon's Polish bodyguard, the madly courageous Chevaux Legeres at Samosierra defile. Poland was moved a few centimetres to the left after WW II as you know. The area of Silesia was populated with enforced emigration from Ukraine if I remember. Hitler converted part of the Silesian castle, Zamek Kiasz or Schloss Fuerstenburg as a refuge at one stage. Magnificent place that castle - quite Wagnerian. Poland remains the great secrtet of tourism in Europe.

Thanks for this information - I suspected as much. Will soon be living in Warsaw - maybe we could meet.

Michael