Polish Armed Forces in the West

E30432

Polish military unit armed forces military formation

The Polish Armed Forces in the West were the Polish military formations that fought alongside the Western Allies during World War II, composed of exiled soldiers and units formed outside occupied Poland.

Aliases (4)

Statements (63)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	Polish military unit → armed forces → military formation →
airComponent	No. 302 Polish Fighter Squadron → No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron → Polish bomber squadrons in RAF →
alliance	Allies of World War II →
conflict	World War II →
country	Poland →
demobilization	post-World War II demobilization in the United Kingdom and other Allied countries →
endTime	1947 →
formedBy	Polish government-in-exile →
hasPart	Polish Air Forces in France and Great Britain → Polish I Armoured Division → Polish I Corps → Polish II Corps → Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade → Polish Independent Parachute Brigade → Polish Merchant Navy under Allied command → Polish Navy in exile →
headquartersLocation	London →
historicalSignificance	major contribution to Allied victory disproportionate to size of Poland → symbol of continued Polish resistance after occupation of Poland →
legalStatus	recognized by Western Allies as armed forces of sovereign Poland →
navalComponent	ORP Błyskawica → ORP Grom → ORP Orzeł → Polish destroyer flotilla under Royal Navy operational control →
notableCommander	Stanisław Maczek → Stanisław Sosabowski → Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski → Władysław Anders → Władysław Sikorski → Zygmunt Bohusz-Szyszko →
notableEngagement	Battle of Britain → Battle of Falaise → Battle of Monte Cassino → Battle of Narvik → Italian Campaign (Gustav Line and Gothic Line) → Operation Market Garden → Operation Overlord → Siege of Tobruk → liberation of parts of Belgium and the Netherlands → liberation of parts of northern France →
opponent	Fascist Italy → Nazi Germany → Vichy France (collaborationist forces in some theaters) →
partOf	Polish Armed Forces →
politicalLeadership	Polish government-in-exile in London →
recruitmentBase	Polish diaspora in France → Polish diaspora in North and South America → Polish diaspora in the United Kingdom → Polish exiles → Polish prisoners released from the USSR →
startTime	1939 →
statusInCommunistPoland	largely censored or downplayed in official historiography after 1945 →
strength	over 200000 soldiers at peak →
successor	Polish Resettlement Corps in the United Kingdom →
theaterOfOperations	Battle of the Atlantic → Italian Campaign → North African Campaign → Western Front → air war over Western Europe →

Referenced by (25)

Subject (surface form when different)	Predicate
No. 302 Polish Fighter Squadron ("Polish Air Forces in Great Britain") → Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade → Polish II Corps → Polish Independent Highland Brigade → Polish forces ("Polish Armed Forces in exile") → Zofia Leśniowska →	partOf
Cross of Valour (Poland) → Handley Page Halifax ("Polish Air Forces in exile") → M4 Sherman tank → Vickers Wellington ("Polish Air Forces in exile") →	usedBy
Allied operations in Western Europe → Liberation of Belgium → Operation Veritable →	participant
Polish government-in-exile → Polish government-in-exile ("Polish Air Forces in exile") →	militaryBranch
No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron ("Polish Air Forces in the West") →	associatedWith
Eighth Army →	engagedForce
President of the Republic of Poland in exile →	hasJurisdictionOver
Polish forces ("Polish Air Forces in Great Britain") →	hasPart
Retreat from Normandy →	hasParticipant
Władysław Anders →	memberOf
Avro Lancaster ("Polish Air Forces in exile") →	operator
Operation Weserübung →	opponent
Polish People’s Army →	precededBy
Polish POWs →	someReleasedTo