Northern Group of Forces

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Review of the 6th Soviet Guards Vitebsk-Novgorod Mechanised Division, Northern Group of Forces, in Borne Sulinowo, Poland.

The Northern Group of Forces (

better source needed
]

History

Former Soviet nuclear weapons warehouse Granit 2 near Szprotawa, Poland

Early years

Soviet forces entered

Vistula-Oder Offensive in early 1945, all of Poland was liberated from Nazi occupation by Soviet forces. While formal Polish sovereignty was almost immediately restored, the territory of Poland fell under de facto Soviet control as the Soviet military and security forces acted to ensure that Poland would be ruled by the Soviet-installed communist puppet government of Poland
.

As the war ended, the structure of the Soviet military was reorganized from a war-time to a peace-time mode. Directive No. 11097 of 10 June 1945 created several new formations, known as Groups of Forces, equivalent to

Western Group of Forces
, the Northern Group of Forces was located entirely within the territory of Poland.

The

1947 Polish legislative election),[1]
signed several agreements with the Soviet Union regulating the status and purpose of the Soviet troops.

In the early years, the Soviet forces aided the Polish communists in establishing their government and combating anti-communist resistance, such as the Polish cursed soldiers or the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (see Operation Vistula).[1][4] Another major task of the Northern Group was to organize and transport war reparations from the former eastern territories of Germany attached to Poland after World War II (the so-called Recovered Territories) to the Soviet Union.[1][5][6][7] These actions, often involving the complete stripping down of industrial facilities, sometimes also took place in traditionally Polish territories. This caused tensions between the Soviets and the Polish government, which intended to use the resources of those territories to rebuild Poland.[1][5]

Cold War

By 1949 the Soviet Union had concluded twenty-year bilateral treaties of friendship, cooperation, and mutual assistance with Poland and several other countries, which usually granted the Soviet Union rights to a continued military presence on their territory.

dedicated treaty that would finally fully regulate the Soviet military presence in Poland, the "Agreement on Legal Status of Soviet Troops Temporarily Stationed in Poland".[4][9][2][10][1][11] According to the 1956 treaty (which was further developed by later, more specific amendments), the Soviet military in Poland was limited to 66,000 troops, although the Soviets never fully disclosed the actual number of personnel of the Northern Group to the Polish government, and the Polish government had no right to inspect the Soviet bases.[1][4] The treaty also limited the number of Soviet bases in Poland to 39, while the actual number of bases reached 79.[2][11] The Soviets also installed nuclear weapons in Poland, without informing the Polish government of that fact.[4] The treaty's name declared the Soviet military presence to be temporary, while in fact the treaty did not contain any limitations to the duration of their stay, nor any provisions on their withdrawal.[2][11][12] Until the 1956 agreement, the Soviet troops stationed in Poland were seen by some Poles as occupying Polish territory;[1] even afterwards they were de facto exempt from any Polish oversight[2][5][11] and their role of an 'allied force' stationed in the territory was viewed by many as a mere propaganda claim.[1][5] The issue of Polish-Soviet military cooperation was further regulated the next year, and in the 1965 Polish-Soviet friendship treaty that reflected the Soviet domination of Polish military policy.[13]

The Northern Group of Forces had several objectives. With the beginning of the

German Democratic Republic and to a lesser extent with the two Groups with a shorter history: the Central Group of Forces in Czechoslovakia (from 1968 on) and the Southern Group of Forces in Hungary and (only until 1958) Romania
.

The presence of Soviet forces on Polish territory caused several problems, in addition to the war reparations issue. Although not supported by the Soviet High Command, excesses by individual soldiers of the Red Army led to mounting tensions between Soviet forces and the Polish population.

Polish Council of State, Aleksander Zawadzki, worried that "raping and looting of the Soviet army would provoke a civil war".[17] In the early years, the Red Army appropriated any resources it needed from the Polish government with no thought of compensation, or treating Poles as their allies. For example, when the Northern Group commander, Konstantin Rokossovsky, decided that it should be headquartered in Legnica, he ordered all Poles, including communist officials who were organizing the city and provincial government, to vacate one third of the city within 24 hours, later requisitioning any of their private belongings (like furniture) left behind. This incident was perceived by contemporaries as a particularly brutal action, and rumors circulated exaggerating its severity.[18] Later, Polish settlements in which Soviet garrisons were placed were inconvenienced in other ways, for example by being removed from all official maps[11] or by the low flying Soviet jets, training at night.[4] Approximately 600 Polish citizens died over the years 1945–1993 in crimes or accidents for which the Soviet soldiers were responsible.[4] The Soviet army, which was subject to many financial privileges (reduced taxation, import tariffs, etc.),[4] often refused to pay for municipal resources it consumed, particularly water, gas or electricity.[1][5] On the other hand, Soviet units did also aid the locals with infrastructure projects, harvests, or during environmental disasters.[4]

After the

Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939.[2]

Structure

Post War

The Group was headquartered in

extraterritorial enclave (although for six years[when?] the operational headquarters was in Świdnica).[2] Other major Soviet military bases were located in Bagicz, Białogard, Brzeg, Borne Sulinowo (one of the two largest), Burzykowo, Chojna, Dębice, Kęszyca Leśna, Kluczewo, Kłomino, Nowa Sól, Oława, Przemków-Trzebień (may refer to the same base as Strachów/Pstrąże), Strachów (now - deserted town shown as Pstrąże on maps), Świdnica, Świętoszów, Świnoujście (military harbor), Szprotawa, Wschowa, Żagań.[4][19] Those bases included 15 airfields, 1 large and 11 smaller ports,[4]

In the late 1940s the NGF included:

Altogether the Northern Group of Forces had three ground and one air army, four tank corps (from July 1945 reorganized into tank divisions), 30 rifle divisions, 12 air divisions, one cavalry corps and 10 artillery divisions. The formation had a strength of around 300,000-400,000 soldiers stationed in Poland.

This large number of formations was quickly reduced as the post war demobilisation took place.

Mid 1950s

By 1955 the force had been reduced to the

20th Tank Division, and the 26th Mechanised Division
- probably numbering no more than 100,000 troops.

1980s and Early 1990s

Northern Group of Forces is located in Poland
Group HQ
Group HQ
6th Rifle
6th Rifle
20th Tank
20th Tank
83rd Air A.
83rd Air A.
114th Missile
114th Missile
140th Anti-Air.
140th Anti-Air.
132nd Bomber
132nd Bomber
149th Bomber
149th Bomber
239th Fighter
239th Fighter
class=notpageimage|
Northern Group of Forces locations 1989
Northern Group of Forces as of 1988

The

83rd Separate Air Assault Brigade was formed at Białogard
in 1986.

The

4th Air Army.[21]

In the 1990s, when the Group was preparing to leave Poland, it had the strength of approximately 56,000 soldiers, with 600 tanks, 400 artillery pieces and 200 planes.[4]

The Northern Group had its own newspaper, the Znamia Pobiedy (Flag of Victory).

The Northern Group had

nuclear weapons deployed in at least three bases[2][4]
in Poland with some 178 nuclear assets, growing to 250 in the late 1980s.

Personnel

Soviet

Commanders of Northern Group of Forces

Polish

Representative of Polish Council of Ministers
Delegates of Economical Committee of Council of Ministers
  • December 1946 - July 1947: colonel Julian Tokarski
  • July 1947 - May 1949: colonel Wojciech Wilkoński
  • May 1949 - 1952: colonel Teodor Kusznierek
  • 1952 - 1957: colonel Jan Kogut
Representatives of the Polish People's Army in the matter of stay of Soviet forces in Poland

Aftermath

The Soviet Army was stationed in Poland for 48 years; it is estimated that its stay cost the Polish state 62.6

US dollars, not counting items removed from Polish territory after World War II); however, the Polish government decided to waive any claims to ensure a quicker evacuation of Soviet troops.[4][5][22] The Soviets also claimed that any costs Poland incurred were balanced by the various aid (ex. infrastructure construction) provided over the years by the Soviet troops, as well as by the liberation from the Nazi occupation and later security.[4]

In 1994 the Polish government passed legislation covering the use of the territories formerly used by the Soviet forces.[19] Most of those territories have been put on sale by the Polish government.[19] Some of the Soviet administered areas were subject to ecological contamination and pollution (by oil products, heavy metals, unexploded ordnance).[4][19][23] They were also damaged by years of disrepair and poor maintenance.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^
    Polskie Towarzystwo Historyczne
    . Last accessed on 30 May 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i (in Polish) Wyjście Sowietów[permanent dead link], Polityka, 'Rok 1993', 27 stycznia 2007
  3. ^ Craig Crofoot, in a manuscript available at www.microarmormayhem.com, says that the NGF was established by Order No. 11096 dated 29 May 1945 issued by the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command (Stavka VGK), and took effect on 10 June 1945
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Jerzy Domagała, Bratnia straż, Rzeczpospolita, 28.04.04 Nr 100. Retrieved on 15 June 2008
  5. ^ a b c d e f g (in Polish)Drodzy towarzysze. Koszty pobytu Armii Radzieckiej w PRL Polityka. Pomocnik historyczny. Nr 1(6) - nr 4 (2589) z dnia 27-01-2007; s. 15
  6. ^ "MIĘDZY MODERNIZACJĄ A MARNOTRAWSTWEM" (in Polish). Institute of National Remembrance. Archived from the original on 2005-03-21.
  7. ^ "ARMIA CZERWONA NA DOLNYM ŚLĄSKU" (in Polish). Institute of National Remembrance. Archived from the original on 2001-07-25.
  8. ^ a b APPENDIX C: THE WARSAW PACT -- Soviet Union. US Library of Congress study.
  9. ^ "The Polish-Soviet Treaty of December 17, 1956 formalized for the first time a situation which had existed in fact since World War II.".
    Nish Jamgotch,Soviet-East European Dialogue: International Relations of a New Type?, Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, Stanford University, Google Print, p.64
  10. ISBN 90-247-5126-8, Google Print, p.144
  11. ^ a b c d e f (in Polish) Borne Sulinowo - historia Archived 2011-12-27 at the Wayback Machine (history). Official municipal website of the town.
  12. ISBN 963-9116-15-7, Google Print, p.533
  13. ^ a b c Group of Soviet Forces in Poland Northern Group of Forces (NGF) at globalsecurity.org
  14. ISBN 0-231-12819-3, Google Print, p.359
  15. ISBN 0-8047-2415-6, Google Print, p.90
  16. ISBN 0-8014-3287-1, Google Print, p.155
  17. ISBN 0-231-05352-5, Google Print, p.558
  18. Polish Secret Police notes that "in certain aspects" the resettlement brought about the associations with the Nazis' forced resettlement of Jews into ghettos; and for a time a rumour spread through Poland that the Soviets were massacring Polish population around Legnica; though no evidence of anyone being killed in the course of it has come to light. See cited article
    .
  19. ^ a b c d THE CATALOGUE OF ESTATES LEFT BY THE ARMY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION - The investment offer Archived 2009-11-24 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on 15 June 2008
  20. ^ Holm, Michael. "18th Rifle Corps". www.ww2.dk. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
  21. ^ Holm, Michael. "4th Red Banner Air Army VGK ON". ww2.dk. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
  22. ^ Komunikat po Radzie Ministrow - 24.01.1995 Archived 2004-10-16 at the Wayback Machine (official Polish government estimate from 1995)
  23. ^ International Experience and Expertise in Registration Investigation, Assessment, and Clean-Up of Contaminated Military Sites: Poland by Karl Wolfram Schäfer a.o. Retrieved on 15 June 2008

External links

Further reading

  • Północna Grupa Wojsk Armii Radzieckiej w Polsce w latach 1945-1956. Okupant w roli sojusznika, Czasy Nowożytne, t. VI, Wyd. Fundacja "Pomerania" i Fundacja Uniwersytecka KUL, Toruń 1999, p. 37-115
  • Mariusz Lesław Krogulski, Okupacja w imię sojuszu, VON BOROWIECKY, 2001,
    ISBN 83-87689-40-8
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