Battalion commander who fought the delaying action before Komarów; the Polish armoured commander who closed the Falaise pocket
Born near Lwów in Austrian Galicia, he studied Polish philology at Lwów University and fought on the Italian front in the Austro-Hungarian army in the First World War. Joining the Polish Army in 1918, he led a 'flying' company, and in the Polish-Soviet War of 1920 formed a flying rifle battalion that was attached to Rómmel's 1st Cavalry Division and took part in the attack at Waręż just before Komarów. He led the 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade in 1939 and, in exile, the 1st Polish Armoured Division, which closed the Falaise pocket in 1944. Stripped of citizenship by the communist government, he worked as a hotel barman in Edinburgh.
Also known as: Stanislaw Maczek · Stanisław Władysław Maczek
Activities and affiliations
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1918–1947
Military command
Career Timeline
- 1914–1918Austro-Hungarian army officer, Italian front
- 1918.11Joined the Polish Army; commander of a Krosno battalion
- 1920Commander of a flying rifle battalion — attached to the 1st Cavalry Division, attack at Waręż
- 1938.10–1939.09Commander, 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade
- 1942.02–1945Commander, 1st Polish Armoured Division — closed the Falaise pocket in 1944
- 1945–1947Commander, Polish I Corps and all Polish forces in the United Kingdom
Related historical events
- 1919–1921The Soviet-Polish WarCommander of the special battalion; the delaying action at WarężAs a major he formed a flying rifle battalion attached to Rómmel's 1st Cavalry Division, and on 29 August near the village of Waręż outside Zamość he delayed the First Cavalry Army's advance, opening the way to the battle of Komarów.
- 1941–1944The Second Front and the Normandy LandingsCommander of the Polish 1st Armoured Division; the Falaise pocket and Hill 262Led the Polish 1st Armoured Division, attached to the First Canadian Army, into Operation Totalize on 8 August. On 19 August his division met the Americans at Chambois to close the pocket and seized Hill 262 (the Maczuga), blocking the German 7th Army's escape route until noon on the 21st.