Poland
JÓZEF PIŁSUDSKI
One of the fathers of Polish independence in 1918, considered by most historians to be the main author of the Victory of 1920.
He was born on December 5, 1867 in Zułów in the Vilnius Region, in a family with strong patriotic and independence traditions. In 1885 he enrolled in medicine at the Kharkiv University, where he joined the revolutionary organization Narodnaya Wola. Two years later he was arrested on suspicion of involvement in a plot to kill the tsar and sentenced to five years’ exile deep into Russia. He returned to Vilnius in 1892, where he joined the Polish Socialist Party. Piłsudski and his associates believed that the revolutionary activity of the workers’ movement would not only lead to socio-economic changes, but also to regaining independence by Poland. In 1900 he was arrested again. In prison, he simulated a mental illness, and therefore he was taken to a psychiatric hospital in St. Petersburg, from which he escaped.
TADEUSZ ROZWADOWSKI
General of the Polish Army, one of the fathers of the Battle of Warsaw plans. Political critics of Józef Piłsudski consider him the main author of the Victory of 1920.
He was born on May 19, 1866 in Babin, in a family with military traditions. In the years 1882-1886 he studied in Vienna at the Military University of Technology, which he graduated from as the best graduate of his year. He continued the well at the Vienna Military School. During World War I, he commanded the 12th Austro-Hungarian Artillery Brigade, and from 1918 he served in the Polish Army – in particular during the Polish-Ukrainian war, he ruled in Lviv and effectively commanded its defense. Józef Piłsudski then made him the Head of the Polish Military Mission in Paris, which, however, did not appeal to Rozwadowski himself, who wanted to participate in the warfare, and not in diplomatic activities.
JÓZEF HALLER
General Józef Haller was born on August 13, 1873 in Jurczyce near Kraków. In 1890 he joined the cadet corps. He was associated with the army until 1910, when he was granted long-term leave, and then retired. He began to cooperate with the cooperative and scout movement, but with the outbreak of World War I, he was mobilized into the army. During the Great War, he fought on the Austrian side in the Polish Legions, then changed the front and, leading the 5th Polish Rifle Division, joined with Polish units fighting on the Russian side. As a result of the battle of Kaniów on May 11, 1918, Haller’s unit was defeated by the Germans, while he himself, under a false name, managed to get to Moscow, where he tried to form Polish formations.
EDWARD RYDZ-ŚMIGŁY
Edward Rydz-Śmigły was born on March 11, 1886 in Brzeżany. He studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow and the Jagiellonian University. He belonged to the Active Fighting Union and the Riflemen’s Association. During World War I, he fought in the Polish Legions.
During the Polish-Bolshevik war, he took part in the liberation of Daugavpils and in the Kiev expedition. During the retreat, he was the commander of the Southeast Front and the Central Front. On August 6, 1920, Marshal Piłsudski entrusted him with the role of the commander of the Central Front, which strikes from the Wieprz River. His actions cut off the retreat of Tukhachevsky’s troops.
FRANCISZEK LATINIK
Born on July 17, 1864 in Tarnów, General Franciszek Latinik was the military governor of the capital during the Battle of Warsaw.
He graduated from the Infantry Cadets School in Łobzów. During World War I, he served in the Austro-Hungarian army, and after the end of the Great War, he joined the Polish Army. In 1919, he took part in the short-lived conflict between Poland and Czechoslovakia over Cieszyn Silesia. In the face of the approaching Bolshevik forces, he was transferred to the Northern Front where he took command of the 1st Army. He also applied for the appointment of the military governor of Warsaw, which was approved. He combined the duties of the military commander and the head of the civil administration.
WŁADYSŁAW SIKORSKI
Born on May 20, 1881 in Tuszów Narodowy. He graduated from the Lviv Polytechnic, and then in the years 1904-1905 he served in the Austro-Hungarian army. Then he joined the Polish Socialist Party and formed the underground Union of Active Struggle and the Rifle Union. During World War I, he served in the Austrian army, but in 1918 his unit moved to the Russian side and joined the formation of Józef Haller. After regaining independence, he organized relief for Lviv, which was defending itself against the Ukrainians.
WINCENTY WITOS
He was born in 1874 in Wierzchosławice. During the partitions, he was one of the founders of the Polish people’s movement. With the end of World War I, he headed the Polish Liquidation Commission, a temporary body of Polish administration in Cieszyn Silesia.
In 1919, he became a member of the Legislative Seym, being one of the most important parliamentarians. Meanwhile, the Polish defeats at the front in 1920 and the Bolsheviks approaching Warsaw meant that there was a need to mobilize Polish peasants to join the Polish Army. For this purpose, the Government of National Defense was established, headed by Wincenty Witos. With his call to defend the Fatherland, he made the Polish village move en masse to defend Warsaw.
Bolshevik Russia
MICHAIŁ TUCHACZEWSKI
He was born in 1874 in Wierzchosławice. During the partitions, he was one of the founders of the Polish people’s movement. With the end of World War I, he headed the Polish Liquidation Commission, a temporary body of Polish administration in Cieszyn Silesia. Born on February 16, 1893, a commander, originally serving in the Army of the Russian Empire, and then in the Red Army. During the Russian Civil War, he won a series of victories over the White Guard troops.
In the Polish-Bolshevik war, he commanded the Western Front. Taking advantage of the mistakes made by the Polish Army in the summer of 1920, he immediately led the Bolshevik troops to the Polish capital. He commanded the forces of the Red Army in the Battle of Warsaw, and then in the Battle of the Nemunas. He accused Stalin of failure, who, contrary to orders, did not transfer his forces to the Polish capital.
SIEMION BUDIONNY
Born on April 25, 1883 near Rostov, he began his military career in 1903 and quickly became famous as an outstanding horseman. From the tsarist army he went to the Red Army, where he created a horse unit under his command, which was called the 1st Cavalry Army. During the Russian Civil War, the soldiers led by Budyonny became famous for their cruelty and brutality. In the Polish-Bolshevik war, it was directed against the Polish Army in Ukraine. Budyonny took part in many famous battles of the war in 1920, but did not reach Warsaw on time and did not help Mikhail Tukhachevski.
FELIKS DZIERŻYŃSKI
Feliks Dzerzhinsky, born on September 11, 1877 in a Polish noble family, became one of the fathers of the Bolshevik terror. Engaged in revolutionary activities after the communists took over the rule in Russia, he organized the Cheka secret political police, which began bloody persecution of opponents of the new governments.
GAJA GAJ
Born on February 18, 1887, a Soviet commander of Armenian origin. Commander of the 3rd Cavalry Corps during the Polish-Bolshevik war.
From his youth, he conducted anti-tsarist activities, for which he was sentenced to 5 years in prison. In 1914 he was mobilized into the tsarist army. In 1917 he commanded a branch of the Bolshevik militia of the Red Guard (on the basis of which the Red Army was created). He took part in the Russian Civil War, including battles against Denikin’s troops.