General Brochwicz-Lewiński Antoni collection Generał Brochwicz-Lewiński Antoni (Kol. 330)

Copyright Holder: Instytut Polski i Muzeum im. Gen. Sikorskiego w Londynie Contains selected records relating to Jewish matters, cases of desertion of Jews from the Polish Army in Palestine, on the Middle East, the Jewish soldiers in the Polish Army in USSR, statistics, political background of the desertion phenomenon, its technical organization, protocols of investigation of deserters, the study in English relating to the atmosphere in the Polish Army in the UK towards Jews and the orthodox soldiers. Rząd Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej na uchodźstwie (Government of the Republic of Poland in Exile) was established after Germany and the Soviet Union occupied Poland in September 1939. The Polish government-in-exile was first based in Paris, but moved to London after the French army surrendered to the Germans in the mid-1940s. The Allied powers accepted the government-in-exile as the legitimate representative of the Polish people soon after it was created. The Polish government allied itself with the Allied powers, as its members believed that only a total military victory over Germany would restore Poland's independence and freedom. The government-in-exile led the Polish war effort throughout World War II, and amassed its own land, air, and naval forces. In addition, it commanded the largest underground army of the war, the Armia Krajowa (the Polish Home Army). In 1942, reports about the mass murder of Jews in Poland reached London. At that point, the Polish government-in-exile made several public declarations on the subject, and officially demanded that the Allied powers stop the Germans from continuing their campaign to murder Jews, and other individuals they deemed undesirable. From December 1942 onward, the government-in-exile backed the rescue work of Zegota, which offered aid to Jews throughout occupied Poland.