The Polish Victory at Monte Cassino

The town of Cassino and its abbey stood in the way of allied forces in their objective to liberate Rome. The German troops surrounded the abbey. From this vantage point, they controlled air and ground fire against the Allies. American and British forces were unable to take Monte Cassino from the Germans and withdrew from the battlefield. The Polish 2nd Corps took their place and were victorious. It succeeded in taking Monte Cassino after three weeks of fierce fighting in mountain terrain which left the troops exposed to enemy snipers on the slopes. Upon taking the abbey, the Poles raised the white and red flag of Poland on top of the ruins of the monastery.

The Battle of Monte Cassino is an eternal monument to the gallantry of the Polish soldiers.

It surpasses Polish military heroism at Samo Sierra and the Charge at Rokitna.

At the conclusion of Polish military operations in and near Monte Cassino, the Polish government in Exile, (London) established a campaign cross to commemorate the battle. A total of 48,498 crosses were awarded with accompanying award documents issued in the field to each soldier who took part in the battle.

Today, original Monte Cassino crosses with award documents are scarce. Unfortunately, the High Command of the Polish 2nd Corps did not keep a master roll record of names of soldiers who received the crosses, either by cross number or by the name of the recipient. It is therefore impossible to determine to whom a specific cross was issued without the award document.

In recent years, a large number of original numbered Monte Cassino crosses have surfaced. These crosses have high numbers in the upper 48,500 to 49,999 range. After the conclusion of hostilities near Monte Cassino, the Polish 2nd Corps ordered 50,000 crosses from a manufacturer in Tel Aviv. Of this total, 48,498 were awarded and the rest remained at the headquarters of the Polish Government in London until 1989. The government decided to release the remaining 1,502 crosses, since no further awards were being made.

The crosses were sold to several dealers and auction houses, resulting in a flood of unawarded Monte Cassino crosses. Today, even these original unawarded crosses are scarce.

Official documentation to include a list of recipients will never be known. Records have been located which indicate blocks of crosses by serial number distributed to specific units. The statistical analysis shown on the next page identifies these groups. In closing, I must mention that at the foot of the Polish cemetery at Monte Cassino is an inscription in Polish which is worth mentioning for those who read the language.

In translation it lessens its true meaning:

PRZECHODNIU, POWIEDZ POLSCE, ZESMY POLEGLI WIERNI W JEJ SLUZBIE, ZA WOLNOSC NASZA I WASZA, MY ZOLNIERZE POLSCY ODDALISMY – BOGU DUCHA, ZIEMI WLOSKIEJ CIALO, A SERCA, POLSCE

On May 18th 1994, Poland commemorated one of its greatest victories against Nazi Germany during World War II . Ceremonies were conducted at the Polish Cemetery at Monte Cassino to honor the 1,100 Poles who died while storming the abbey (11-25 May 1944.)

The ceremony also honored the living veterans of that historical battle.

President Lech Walesa and other dignitaries placed wreaths at the cemetery at Monte Cassino and for the first time, the Armed Forces of a free and independent Poland served as honor guards during the ceremony.

Five thousand Polish veterans and their families visited Monte Cassino from Poland and from around the world. Military representatives of allied nations also participated in the ceremony. The author had the honor of representing the South Carolina State Guard and the U.S. Armed Forces at this ceremony, at the direction of the Pentagon.

UNIT	FROM	TO	AWARDED
Commanders	1	13	13
Headquarters Group	14	744	731
Various Units	745	750	6
3rd DSK	751	14672	13922
Various Units	14673	14750	78
5th KDP	14751	28691	13941
Various units	28692	28750	59
2nd Armored Brigade	28751	32269	3519
Various Units	32270	32300	31
2nd Artillery Group	32301	34945	2645
Various units	34946	34960	15
2nd Corp Artillery	34961	38083	3123
Karpathian Lancers	38084	38760	677
Regiment 2nd Corp	38761	40420	1660
2nd Corp Signals	40421	41446	1026
Medical Corps	41447	42159	713
Signal Corps	42160	42171	12
2nd Medical Corps	42172	42328	157
1st Medical Hospital	42329	42736	408
2nd Medical Hospital	42737	43169	433
2nd Medical Corps	43170	43520	351
Supply and Transport	43521	45973	2453
Various Units	45974	46012	39
Materials and Supply	46013	46515	503
Maintenance	46516	47394	879
Geographic Group	47395	47475	81
Military Police	47476	47676	201
Palestine Command	47677	48006	330
Various Units	48007	48407	401
Commando Company	48408	48498	91

About the Author

Dr. Zdzislaw P. Wesolowski is a former officer of the United States Air Force, retiring at the rank of Captain. He is currently a Colonel in the South Carolina State Guard, attached to the reserves. He is a Professor of Aviation Management at Florida Memorial College in Miami and President of the Polish American Chamber of Commerce of Florida and the Americas.

He is the author of four books and twenty-five scholarly articles in business and economics.

An amateur Polish military historian and collector of Polish militaria, he credits these interests to his father’s military service in the Polish Army and Navy. His father, Stefan P. Wesolowski, also served in the U.S Army Transportation Corps as the commander (Captain) of the USAT Ganandoc, an auxiliary aircraft carrier during the Invasion of Normandy in World War II. It is interesting to note that during his service with the U. S Army, his father was a Polish citizen. Few persons in American history ever commanded a naval ship during a war while being non-US citizens.

Dr Wesolowski invites your comments or questions. You can contact him via e-mail at:

[email protected]

You can also visit his web site and learn more about Polish medals and decorations at:

http://www.wwdir.com/polishbk.html

Personal collection of Polish militaria : http://www.tmcx.com/polish1.htm

Dr. Zdzislaw P. Wesolowski
P. O. Box 291465
Davie, FL 33329
USA
Voice: 954-472-0063
Fax: 954-472-0063