This is an amazing story of a cousin from the older branch of the family - maybe not someone my grandfather would know which is sad.
Pretty amazing story
The military dossier of Major Władysław Jan Olszowski (also known as Władysław Prus-Olszowski, pseudonym "Sokół") paints the picture of a highly experienced, tactical veteran whose quick actions saved a critical sector of downtown Warsaw. [1, 2, 3]
The verified combat records from the [Warsaw Uprising Museum (Muzeum Powstania Warszawskiego)](https://www.1944.pl/powstancze-biogramy/wladyslaw-olszowski,32319.html) and military archives reveal deep structural details about his service. [4, 5]
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1. Pre-Uprising Background & Profile
Major Olszowski was not a young, untrained insurgent; he was an elite pre-war cavalry officer (rotmistrz). Born on March 9, 1891, he had already fought in World War I, the Russian Civil War (with the legendary 5th Siberian Rifle Division), and the Polish-Soviet War of 1920. [1, 2, 5]
* Pre-Uprising Address: Records list his home immediately before the outbreak at ul. Nowogrodzka 3 m. 11 in central Warsaw.
* Double Affiliation: In the underground, he held ranks both in the Home Army (Armia Krajowa - AK) and the Security Corps (Korpus Bezpieczeństwa - KB), a closely allied military resistance organization. [3, 4, 5]
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2. Hour "W" and the Creation of Batalion "Sokół"
On August 1, 1944, at 5:00 PM (Hour "W"), the uprising officially exploded. In the specific sector around Bracka and Nowogrodzka streets, planned insurgent units failed to arrive or deploy properly due to intense German firepower. [6, 7]
* The Ad-Hoc Mobilization: Realizing the tactical vacuum, Major Olszowski took immediate personal command of the sector. He began manually assembling scattered fighters on the spot. [7]
* Birth of the Battalion: By 9:00 PM on August 1st, his makeshift group numbered a dozen men. Over the next few days, isolated soldiers who could not reach their original units flocked to him. This unit grew rapidly into a feared assault force officially named Batalion Szturmowy KB "Sokół" (The "Falcon" Assault Battalion), named explicitly after his combat handle. [4, 7]
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3. Order of Battle and Combat Path
Major Olszowski’s battalion operated in one of the most heavily shelled, heavily contested zones of the city. [4]
| Military Metric [4, 7] | Service Record Details |
|---|---|
| Command Structure | I Obwód "Radwan" (Warsaw District AK) → 2. Rejon "Litwin" (later renamed Sector "Sarna"). |
| Primary Combat Zone | Śródmieście Południe (Downtown South). |
| Headquarters & Stronghold | Secured and defended the tenement courtyards around ul. Bracka. |
| Tactical Role | Urban assault, setting up barricades to isolate German strongholds, and counter-attacks against heavy armored units pushing through central Warsaw. |
Under his direct command, the battalion successfully held their sector for the entire 63 days of the uprising, despite being utterly outgunned by German artillery, tanks, and air support.
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4. Capitulation, Captivity, and Escape
When the Uprising was forced to capitulate in early October 1944, Major Olszowski did not abandon his men.
* The Prisoner Log: He entered German captivity alongside his surviving troops. He was processed under POW Number 101451. [4, 5]
* Post-War Escape: When the camps were liberated in early 1945, he returned to Poland briefly, securing a job as a river shipping captain (kapitan żeglugi) under the newly formed Communist union. [5]
* The Final Exile: Realizing that the Soviet secret police (NKVD) and Polish communist authorities were systematically arresting and executing high-ranking AK officers, he fled Poland via a clandestine route in 1946. He spent his final decades in London, where he passed away on March 28, 1967. [1, 4, 5]
* Are you interested in his pre-WWII creative life (he was actually a documentary filmmaker and [theater actor before the war](https://encyklopediateatru.pl/osoby/61078/wladyslaw-prus-olszowski))? [5, 8]
[1] [https://pl.wikipedia.org](https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C5%82adys%C5%82aw_Jan_Olszowski)
[2] [https://pl.wikipedia.org](https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C5%82adys%C5%82aw_Jan_Olszowski)
[3] [https://www.1944.pl](https://www.1944.pl/powstancze-biogramy/wladyslaw-olszowski,32319.html)
[4] [https://www.1944.pl](https://www.1944.pl/powstancze-biogramy/wladyslaw-olszowski,32319.html)
[5] [https://pl.wikipedia.org](https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/W%C5%82adys%C5%82aw_Jan_Olszowski)
[6] [https://ipn.gov.pl](https://ipn.gov.pl/pl/aktualnosci/41192,Powstanie-Warszawskie-boj-o-wolna-Polske.html)
[7] [https://dzieje.pl](https://dzieje.pl/aktualnosci/warszawa-upamietniono-zolnierzy-batalionu-sokol)
[8] [https://encyklopediateatru.pl](https://encyklopediateatru.pl/osoby/61078/wladyslaw-prus-olszowski)
