Michał Tokarzewski-Karaszewicz

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Michał Karaszewicz-Tokarzewski
Lieutenant General
Commands held19th Infantry Division
25th Infantry Division
6th Infantry Division
AwardsVirtuti Militari Commander's Cross Virtuti Militari Silver Medal Polonia Restituta Commander's Cross Polonia Restituta Knight's Cross
Krzyz Niepodleglosci with Swords Krzyz Zaslugi
Michał Tokarzewski-Karaszewicz after arrest by NKVD 1940

General Michał Tadeusz Tokarzewski-Karaszewicz,

Polish Victory Service
".

Early life

He was born on January 5, 1893, in

Polish-Ukrainian War, which fought in Lwów.[3]

During the November–December 1918

pogroms
in Poland, Tokarzewski was removed from his post by the Polish Government as District Commander of Przemysl for posting a notice in which he fined the Jewish population 3,000,000 crowns as punishment for allegedly fighting against the Polish army, despite their assertion of neutrality. This charge was never proven.

The poster read: "An appeal to the population of Przemysl of Mosaic Confession. (ie, the Jewish population) "In view of a well-known fact that in the course of the struggle of recapturing Przemysl, the Jews, notwithstanding their repeated assertion of neutrality, took part in the fight with the Ukrainian forces and fired on the attacking police detachment.

"I order the Jewish community to deposit at the district headquarters of the Polish troops of Przemysl a sum of 3,000,000 crowns."[4]

After Poland regained independence in 1918, Tokarzewski served in the

Wilno was seized by Poland. From 1924 until 1926 he was commanding the 19th Infantry Division in Wilno, from 1928 until 1932 a commanding officer of the 25th Infantry Division in Kalisz and from 1932 until 1939 a commanding officer of the Corps area (okreg korpusu) in Grodno, Lwów and Toruń
.

World War II

Michał Tokarzewski as the second in command of the Anders Army while in Jerusalem during World War II.

During the

Armia Warszawa" (Army Warsaw) which was commanded by general Juliusz Rómmel, during the defence of Warsaw
.

In occupied Poland, on 27 September 1939 he founded the

ZWZ)"[6] under Soviet occupation. Crossing the new German–Soviet border, in March 1940 he was arrested and imprisoned by the NKVD.[7]

After being released from prison, Tokarzewski was appointed a commanding officer of the "6th Infantry Division" of the Polish Army in the Soviet Union (Anders Army) in August 1941. From March 1943 until 1944 he served as the second-in-command of the Polish Army in the East. In 1944 he became a commander of the 3rd Polish Corps which was formed in Egypt.

After World War II

Michał Tokarzewski gravestone in Brompton Cemetery, London.

After the war he stayed in exile in

Casablanca, Morocco. In September 1992 the urn with his ashes was transferred from Brompton Cemetery in London to Poland and buried at the Powązki Cemetery in Warsaw
.

In 2006, General Tokarzewski's medals and battledress came up for public auction. Two Canadians, who were aware of the unfortunate history of Poland during World War II, were successful in their bid and brought the items to Canada. The two then donated the entire collection to "Poland and the Polish people" during a ceremony at the Polish Combatants' Association, Branch#20, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The collection was displayed at the Branch #20 museum until March, 2007, when it was shipped to Warsaw to be displayed in the Warsaw Military Museum in that city.

Awards

  • Commander of the Virtuti Militari Order
  • Commander of the Order of Polonia Restituta
  • Krzyż Niepodległości
    (Cross of Independence), with Swords
  • Krzyż Walecznych
    (Cross of Valour), 4 times
  • Złoty Krzyż Zasługi z Mieczami
    (Gold Cross of Merit with Swords), twice
  • Order of the White Eagle (posthumously in 1964 by the Polish authorities in exile)
Traby Coat of Arms
Military offices
Preceded by
Polish Resistance movement established
 Commander of the Service for Poland's Victory
1939–1940 		Succeeded by
Armia Krajowa
)
Preceded by General Inspector of the Armed Forces
1954–1964 		Succeeded by

See also

  • Armia Krajowa
  • 2nd Polish Corps

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 0-333-39258-2
    Page 40
  2. ^ "Wielka Genealogia Minakowskiego - M.J. Minakowski". Sejm-Wielki.pl. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  3. ^ Rosa Bailly A city fights for freedom Leopolis 1956 Pages 276-310
  4. ^ "A Record of Pogroms in Poland," page 1, section 4, The New York Times, June 1, 1919.
  5. ISBN 0-19-821944-X
    Page 464
  6. ISBN 0-333-39258-2
    Page 50
  7. ISBN 0-333-39258-2
    Page 51
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Michał_Tokarzewski-Karaszewicz&oldid=1193899115"