91st anniversary of the May bombing. Memories of Colonel Antoni Szacki.

narodowaostroleka.blogspot.com 8 years ago

In the photograph : May coup - government troops attack on rebel troops. In the background the church on the Savior's Square.

It's the 91st anniversary of a coup called the May bombing.
The May bombing has been under preparation for months. It is evident that the planning of the assassination was already known in Moscow in January 1926. 1 of the Major's conspirators. Kieszkowski reached the representatives of the KPP, and these in turn contacted their authorities in Moscow. Moscow which hesitated until April with the decision yet supported Piłsudski's assassination, seeing in it a kind of Kiereński.

Political forces that supported the assassination:

Polish Socialist Party
Farm Party
PSL Liberation
Communist organization of Poland
certain parties to national minorities
Masonry and the large National Lodge of Poland Political forces supporting the legitimate government – groups in the Chjeno-Piasta cabinet:
People's-National Union
Christian - National Party
Polish organization of Christian Democracy
PSL “Piast”.

During the 3 days of fighting, 379 people (215 soldiers and 164 civilians) were killed and about 1,000 people were injured. Among the wounded there were min. then under the Officers' School of Infantry Antoni Szacki (known later as the commander of the BŚ NSZ), who fought on the side of government troops. Years later, he described these tragic events in his memoirs: "...we were told to go 50 steps into the fresh World. and close the street there without letting anyone through.
We've become cordon. Before us the crowd was raging, throwing stones and bottles at us and calling us in the most rude way. We've kept our weapons still. After a short time, the order came to withdraw. During the retreat, we encountered a company of sailors in the area of St. Alexander's Church. Captain Rzepecki ordered us to disarm this unit. (...) With a branch consisting of colleagues I went through Park Łazienkowski towards the barracks. I reached the parkan, had a fewer boards broken, and got into the barracks yard. I decided to talk my tongue first, so I set up a guardhouse and went inside. The surprise seamstress immediately surrendered and declared the barracks empty. I had 3 tiny patrols examine the truthfulness of the words of the sentry, and I returned to school with a patrol and reported. After an hour, I was summoned again and received a fresh assignment to admit the officer's casino in Szucha Avenue. After searching the casino, I received orders to decision with the patrol towards the Ministry of Military Affairs building and analyse what is happening there. As we entered the gate of the right wing, an armored car arrived from the street, which was intended to support our departure into the mediate of the MSWojsk building.
After breaking the doors and windows, we entered the interior of the vestibule. Soldiers from the defender company fled to the level and started throwing grenades. Lieutenant Piątkowski has arrived and announced that here we will be replaced by a platoon of junior year olds, and with my platoon I am to win the wing of the MSWojsk building, going to Savior Square. I gathered my platoon and moved on to do a fresh task, moving along the building by the wall itself. The doors and windows of the another wing were closed. We broke the windows in 2 windows on the ground level and got through the toilet on the stairwell. A couple of my colleagues and I jumped to the stairs to the floor. At this point, I noticed an officer with a revolver in his hand moving into a window out in the yard. I picked up the rifle, pointed and shouted, "Hands up!" "Put down your weapons!". This officer completely amazed turned towards me and immediately withdrew. I didn't want to shoot due to the fact that I knew who we were fighting. Then we jumped upstairs. We've set up hand device guns. Wing of the MSWojsk Building. The Savior's Square was overrun by us.

In the photo: rebel troops attack.

We've started a fight for enlargement. dense device guns and grenade launchers came from inside. The fight continued inside the building. After a fewer hours off the street, we were fired on by infantry and artillery and cecaem. We defended ourselves for a long time, although our heads were covered with bricks and plaster. At 4 a.m., under Ensign Ciuniowski arrived with an order to retreat immediately to school. To my inquiry, what is the best way, he answered that the only way he led through the courtyard to officer's cottages, i.e. through a square about 400 metres long, without cover, covered with grass and equal as a table. I've gathered my team, I've spotted people in position and given the order. I told them to jump through 2 windows on the ground level and jump on officers' cabins. At first, no 1 wanted to jump. Then me and my deputy jumped first, and the others followed us. We hit a terrible device weapon fire. The full field was boiler with bullets. I was 40 meters away, I picked up to make a short jump, and at that point I felt a hit like an axe. any force knocked me on my back and I was inactive for a while. I crawled up to the cabins where the orderly took care of me. I saw Kuśnierczyk, he had 3 wounds in his chest, he was dead. We're about 10 wounded. Then I found out that all 16 of my squad had come along.
On May 14, at 8:00 a.m., he ran into our area with respective of the captain's lieutenants from the squadron and requested the staff to remove the injured, as he intends to set a coil in the hospital's windows towards the defending airport in Mokotów. At the time, we, the subjects, outraged by this decision reminded him of the Geneva Convention, according to which hospitals could not be utilized for combat activities. He heard a fewer bad words from us, so dissatisfied said on the estranged, that he would put a cekama here after all. We told him that although we were injured, we wouldn't let that happen. He left and we didn't see him again. He didn't do his part. " - Antoni Szacki " I was Commander of the Świętokrzyska Brigade - the Commander's Diary" pp. 37-39.

The May bombing lasted 3 days. It may be assumed that this civilian war could have been successful, but the officers' proposal to proceed the fight was expressed by president Wojciechowski and Prime Minister Witos, who feared that the fight, the bloodshed and the usage of the situation by neighbouring countries would be prolonged. president Wojciechowski resigned an hr before receiving information about the readiness of the Wielkopolska regiments to invade.
The scandal deserves that many soldiers faithful to the president were buried in Warsaw Powaska in congregation graves in unmarked graves. After the coup, there are many cleanups in the officers' staff. Right after the bombing, a number of soldiers as well as commanders fighting side by side the government was jailed or held in Investigative detention. any of them died a fewer years after the bombing in the circumstances which are referred to as at least unclear. This group included: Gen.Włodzimierz Zagórski Gen. Tadeusz Jordan Rozwadowski, Gen. Jan Hempel, Gen. Oswald Frank, Rear Admiral Jerzy Zwierkowski,
Gen. Jan Thullie, Gen.Boleslaw Jaźwiński. Today, after 91 years, these events are slow disappearing from our national memory.