Prof. Andrzej Nowak: Miracle on the Vistula
date:16 August 2011 Editor: Barbara Chojnacka
The conflict of WarsawMiracle over Vistula. Andrzej Nowak
On the occasion of the anniversary of the Miracle on the Vistula, we callback the following article by Prof. Andrzej Nowak "The Heritage of 1920" published in Our diary dated 13-15.08.2011.
From Solidarni2010: Due to the extraordinary importance of this text and the importance of all word of the author, we let ourselves exceptionally to reprint the full article. We hope for the kindness of prof. Andrzej Nowak, the guest of the mini lecture under the shelter in 28.06.2006 and the friendly editorial of our Journal. [16.08.2011]
Heritage of 1920
The Soviet-Polish War began already in early 1919. Red Army troops headed west. In mid-February, they were stopped by the opposition of Polish military formations in Belarus, under the Kartuska Bereza. The fight was expected to last another 20 months.
What did the Red Army fight for? The triumph of the communist revolution in Europe. The Political Office of the Bolshevik organization (Włodzimierz Lenin, Lew Trocki, Lew Kamieniev, Józef Stalin) saw 1 way to this end: the way to Berlin, the merger of russian communism forces in Russia with the power of German proletariat and industry. This road inevitably led, as Stalin put it already in November 1918, through "Polish laundering". The Red Army was to pierce them with an iron fist to scope Berlin.
What did the Polish Army fight for? The fixation of post-age independency and boundaries. But the limits of what? Or just the borders of Poland? Is there anything more in the result? The frontiers of ideological pride of communism? The borders of the freedoms of the smaller, located between Russia and Germany, nations? Europe's frontiers? What kind of Europe?
Break the imperial prison
The answer to these questions became the most dramatic in the spring and summertime of 1920. The Soviet-Polish War then entered a decisive phase. The Red Army has been preparing a powerful strike since January, which was to break up the Polish Army on the Belarusian Front in May. The politician of the state Józef Piłsudski wanted to inform about this attack and effort to carry out the most ambitious task. He wanted to consolidate Poland's independency by yet breaking the imperial prison of nations east of it. Ukraine's independency was to safe not only Poland, but besides the free improvement of smaller nations - from Caucasus to Baltic.
However, this has not been full achieved. The independency component in Ukraine turned out to be besides weak, and Poland's forces insufficient to fight alone for the future of the full east Europe not only against russian Russia, but besides against the position of the main Western powers (France, the United Kingdom and the United States), which have become accustomed to seeing only 1 origin of force in this area: Russia.
In particular, Britain wanted to communicate with Moscow at the time, even with "red" Moscow as the only 1 to the east of Germany an crucial partner in arranging a fresh European order after the large war. British Prime Minister David Lloyd George sought from April 1920 a direct agreement with Lenin as the real host not only of Russia, but besides the patron of this fresh order in east Europe. Poland's independent policy, taking into account the existence of another smaller countries in this area, as well as drawing attention to the ideological nature of the russian danger to Europe as a full - was besides an obstacle in this perspective.
To the West march
Lenin sent Lwa Kamieniev, a associate of the Politburo, to London to support the illusion of a peaceful agreement between the russian State and the West (for the price of giving the full east Europe under Moscow control). However, as the military initiative was recovered in the war against Poland and the Red Army's advancement towards the west, he was tempted to throw the glove at the full Versailles strategy in Europe. Western front Mikhail Tuchaszewski was to decision "through the white Polish corpse" to Berlin. Poland was not the only 1 to be popularized. The ambition scale of the Bolshevik leadership in the summertime of 1920 is the most complete exchange of messages between Lenin and Stalin (who straight supervised the Red Army's attack on Lviv at the time). On July 23, Lenin wrote to Stalin: "I believe that the revolution in Italy should be stimulated at the moment. I personally believe that Hungary should be secularised for this purpose, and possibly besides the Czech Republic and Romania." Stalin, who promised to take the Lions within a week, replied the next day: "Now that we have Komintern, defeated Poland and more or little decent Red Army... it would be a sin not to incite the revolution in Italy. (...) The issue of the organisation of uprisings in Italy and in countries specified as Hungary, the Czech Republic (Romania will be broken up) must be raised. (...) In short, you gotta rise your anchor and let go until imperialism has been able to repair its smashing car as such."
Stalin, before moving to Lviv, had already developed theoretical and systemic solutions to grow the russian empire. In his earlier letter to Lenin, he pointed out that future russian Germany, russian Poland, Hungary and Finland should not be immediately attached to russian Russia on the same national rule as Bashkiria or Ukraine, but they deserve the introduction of the Confederacy principle, temporarily honoring the traditions of their state distinctness. Trocki, in turn, insisted on July 17 on increased agitation among Polish workers and peasants in order to instill fresh national heroes in their consciousness, which they had not known so far: "the associations of Dzierżyński, Marchlewski, Radek, Unszlichta and others". They were to replace Piłsudski, Dmowski, Witos or Paderewski in the fresh Poland.
Kill Poland
The second legislature of the 3rd Communist global was held in Moscow. The delegates looked enthusiastically at the large map, on which red flags moved to the west all day. Isaac Babel, a large writer, and in the summertime of 1920 a polytrud accompanying the 1st Cavalry Army of Semion Budionny in a large rally on Poland, wrote his impressions of this minute hotly: "Moscow newspapers dated 29 July. The beginning of the Second legislature of Komintern, the unity of the peoples is yet realized, all clear: there are 2 worlds and war is declared. We will fight forever. Russia has challenged. We're going deep into Europe to conquer the world. The Red Army has become a origin of global importance". On 12 August, erstwhile excited by Lenin's beginning prospects, he urged with impatience at the Politburo meeting: "From a political point of view it is crucial to kill Poland".
However, Poland was not able to scope it. Lenin's disappointment was great. The clash with the force established in the vast majority of society of mature patriotism was a fresh phenomenon for the Bolsheviks. The effort to sovietize Poland crashed about what Richard Pipes called European nationalism, and what so favorably distinguished the situation of Poland from the social anomaly on which Bolsheviks built their success in Russia, Ukraine or Belarus. "Cursed, dark Poland" - as Kliment Woroszylov wrote on 4 September, Stalin's companion of the fight at Lviv - showed "szovinism and blunt hatred of 'Russian'". For the next 20 years, the russian Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, remained the peace treaties of the Bolsheviks with the "burly" governments of the tiny Baltic republics. Lenin verified decisively the full of his strategy: "moral" aid and material aid for the origin of revolutions in imperialist states was to be maintained and even intensified, in peculiar in the colony, while direct military engagement of the russian state in the export of the revolution was excluded for many years: in any case, in Europe. The Versailles strategy was saved for 20 years in the conflict of Warsaw and later in Germany. Together with it, the chance of independent improvement of Central and east Europe survived. At least parts of it and at least for a while.
The price wasn't small. Almost 1 100 1000 dead and dead in this war: soldiers, young volunteers, who were symbolized by Warsaw academics fighting under Radzymin under the spiritual leadership of priest Ignacy Skorupka, Lviv academics from Polish Thermopil - Zadwórna, volunteers defending heroically Płock and Włocławek. Polish prisoners who never returned from russian captivity. highly dedicated young members of the POW (Polish Military Organization) who collected intelligence in the back of the russian front.
In the shadow of a red star
The rations in this war were not divided. surely not in July and August 1920. Violent, totalitarian russian imperialism carried physical and civilisational violence. He forced an identity change on his fresh subjects. They were to become followers of communist ideology, based in their core on class hatred, on a constant resentation towards those who prospered better, towards those who believe in something greater than the party. Only those who defended Ossov, defended Poland, defended Europe, defended God were right. Not those who wanted to crush Ossians, Poland, Europe and God with the weight of a red star.
And this right, the Polish ration of August 1920, must not be forgotten. We must not forget if we are to stay Poles, and besides if Europe is to preserve the core of its spiritual identity: the 1 in which freedom and Christianity are at the centre.
In May 1920, erstwhile a Polish soldier struggled with Red Army for the future of east Europe, in Wadowice, in a household of military officials, Karol Wojtyła was born. Imagine that Poland submitted to the dictatorship of Lenin in August 1920. That a fresh one, tailored according to Stalin's project, the Polish russian republic, is emerging. Could young Charles hear of God? Could he become a Pole? These questions concern the full generation - the top most likely in the 20th century generation of Poles: born and raised in the free Homeland.
These questions besides concern us, children and grandchildren of this generation.
These questions, questions about the memory of 1920, turn into even more serious questions today: do we want to proceed to be Poles, or do we want to fight (to fight our work, our courage to bear witness to our identity) for Poland and Europe with their best spiritual traditions? Do we want Poland to be independent, ready to support the freedom of the smaller nations of our part of the continent, or do we accept the function of pawns, set on a geopolitical map by powers ignoring the smaller and weaker and imposing on them absolutely dictates of their ideological preferences?
Andrzej Nowak
Source: http://www.naszdnik.pl/index.php?dat=20110813&typ=my&id=my05.txt
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From the editorial board: As an different postscript to the thought contained in the article's point, we let ourselves to post the received letter.
Madam!
.. . It is not a moher beret ? tin rose unexpectedly among another colored, but monocolor tins on our k/Siekierki plot, making everyone in amazement.
Cinna in Polish colours - grew on Polish land, spontaneously, from Polish thought?. One, one! Like a peculiar sign!
Between the 1944 Warsaw Uprising and the 1920 Warsaw Battle!
Greetings.
Eva O.
Photo: EO
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Editorial 2:
After appearing on the page of the article by Prof. Andrzej Nowak "The Heritage of 1920" we received the image and letter below.
Image by Stanisław Zawadzki "Polish-bolshevik conflict 1920. Miracle over Vistula"
For this painting our grandpa received the 2nd Warsaw Prize in 1928. Unfortunately, the household has only a black and white reproduction and, unfortunately, the destiny of this painting is unknown, despite long-term searches. possibly individual from the net has any cognition of this?
Photo: EO
________________________
Editorial 2:
After appearing on the page of the article by Prof. Andrzej Nowak "The Heritage of 1920" we received the image and letter below.
Image by Stanisław Zawadzki "Polish-bolshevik conflict 1920. Miracle over Vistula"
For this painting our grandpa received the 2nd Warsaw Prize in 1928. Unfortunately, the household has only a black and white reproduction and, unfortunately, the destiny of this painting is unknown, despite long-term searches. possibly individual from the net has any cognition of this?
