Jan Piwnik
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Jan Piwnik | |
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Nickname(s) | Ponury |
Born | Janowice, Poland | 31 August 1912
Died | 16 June 1944 Yewlashy, Poland, today Belarus | (aged 31)
Years of service | 1939 |
Rank | Colonel |
Awards |
Part of a series on the |
Polish Underground State |
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Jan Piwnik (31 August 1912 – 16 June 1944) was a Polish
Biography
Jan Piwnik was born on 31 August 1912 in the village of
In 1933, he graduated from a reserve
Mobilized in 1939, during the
After evacuation to
Piwnik was informed of creation of the
For his action, he was promoted to ensign and in March was assigned to the Radom-Kielce Home Army Area as the commanding officer of all Kedyw forces there. As the hilly and densely forested terrain was ideal for partisan warfare, Piwnik started to organise a large partisan unit out of many smaller, pre-existing groups. His unit, based in the forests around Wykus, was named the Home Army Partisan Group "Ponury".
One of the most successful units in the area, it disrupted German transport and harassed German garrisons. However, a German counter-attack caused heavy losses to his unit and it was forced to move eastwards, towards the forests near Jeleniów.
In December 1943, Piwnik was dismissed from command of the partisan units and in February of the following year, he was assigned to the
Posthumous
Piwnik was posthumously promoted to the rank of major and next to colonel (by a Polish Minister of Defense, in year 2012). After the war, his life became part of the popular culture of the Świętokrzyskie area. In July 1988, his body was exhumed and transferred to a crypt in the Cistercian monastery in Wąchock.[citation needed]
Family
In November 1943, Piwnik married Emilia Malessa.[citation needed]
Honours and awards
- Gold Cross of the Virtuti Militari, previously awarded the Silver Cross
- Grand Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta (posthumously, 2010)
- Cross of Valour (twice)
Family
Barbara Piwnik, a Polish judge and former minister of justice, is Jan Piwnik's niece.
See also
- Armia Krajowa
References
- ^ "Jan Piwnik "Ponury"". Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2015-12-02.