Ministry of Public Security of Poland
Encyclopedia
The Ministry of Public Security of Poland was a Polish communist secret police
, intelligence
and counter-espionage
service operating from 1945 to 1954 under Jakub Berman
of the Politburo
. Its main goal was the eradication of the anti-communist
structures and socio-political base of the underground Polish Secret State
as well as the persecution of soldiers of the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa)
and Freedom and Independence (WiN) active during World War II. In that capacity, MPB remained known mainly through its own regional offices called Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or UBP (Office of Public Security, official name); and Urząd Bezpieczeństwa or UB (Office, or Department of Security).
In July 1944, behind the Soviet front line, a brand new Polish provisional government
was formed, called the Polish Committee of National Liberation
(Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego) or PKWN. It was established in Chełm on the initiative of Polish communists, in order to assume control over Polish territories re-taken from Nazi Germany
by the advancing Red Army. PKWN was proclaimed "the only legitimate Polish government" by Stalin, with full political control and Soviet sponsorship. Within the PKWN's internal structure, there were thirteen departments called Resorty. One of these was the Department of Public Security (Resort Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego) or RBP, headed by Stanisław Radkiewicz
. It was a precursor of the Polish communist secret police.
On December 31, 1944, the PKWN was joined by several members of the London-based Polish government in exile
, among them Stanisław Mikołajczyk (later chased out of the country). PKWN was then transformed into Provisional Government of Republic of Poland
. All departments were renamed: the Department of Public Security became the Ministry of Public Security (Ministerstwo Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego) or MBP.
. It was responsible for internal and foreign intelligence, counter-intelligence
, monitoring anti-state activity in Poland and abroad, monitoring government and civilian communications (wiretapping), supervision of the local governments, maintaining a militsiya
, maintaining prisons, fire services, rescue services, and border patrol; as well as several concentration camps set up by the NKVD (such as Zgoda labour camp
). In July 1947, the MBP absorbed Section II of General Staff of the Polish People's Army (the Polish Military Intelligence). Military and civilian intelligence merged to become Department VII of Ministry of Public Security.
In 1950s Ministry of Public Security employed around 32,000 people. MBP also had control over 41,000 soldiers and officers of the Internal Security Corps (Korpus Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego), 57,000 officers in the Civil Militia (Milicja Obywatelska
), 32,000 officers and soldiers in the Border guard (Wojska Ochrony Pogranicza), 10,000 prison officers (Straż Więzienna), and 125,000 members of Volunteer Reserves of the Citizens Militia (Ochotnicza Rezerwa Milicji Obywatelskiej ORMO), a paramilitary police used for special actions.
, a hardline Stalinist from the Polish United Workers' Party
. The Ministry of Public Security structure was being changed constantly from January 1945 on, as the Ministry expanded. It was divided into departments and each department was subdivided into sections entrusted with different tasks. In January 1945, the largest and the most important department in MBP was Department One, responsible for counter-espionage and anti-state activities. It was headed by General Roman Romkowski
born Natan Grinszpan-Kikiel in Moscow. Department I was divided into Sections, each responsible for a different but specific function self-described in the following way:
Two new departments were formed in addition to departments and sections created for the Resort Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego (RBP) forming the core of MBP in January 1945. On September 6, 1945, from the existing structure of Department II emerged three additional departments: Department IV commanded by Aleksander Wolski-Dyszko, Department V commanded by Julia Brystygier, and Department VI headed by Teodor Duda. In July 1946, further changes were enacted. MBP was divided into eight (8) departments, five of which dealt with operational cases, including Counter-espionage (Dep 1), Technical operations and technology (Dep 2), Fighting underground resistance (Dep 3), Protection of economy (Dep 4), and Counteraction of hostile penetration and church influences (Dep 5).
In June 1948 the Secret Office was established for Internal counter-intelligence. The Special Office conducted surveillance on members of the MPB itself. On March 2, 1949, the Special Bureau was established, renamed in 1951 simply as Department Ten. Department 10 conducted surveillance of high ranking members of the Polish United Workers' Party
and people associated with them.
Minister
of Public Security – Gen. Stanisław Radkiewicz
1st vice-minister – Gen. Roman Romkowski
2nd vice-minister – Mieczysław Mietkowski
3rd vice-minister – Konrad Świetlik
4th vice-minister – Wacław Lewikowski
, each of them called the Voivode Office of Public Security (Wojewódzki Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego, or WUBP). Each WUBP had 308 full-time MBP officers and employees on staff. Beside WUBP, there were also City Offices of Public Security (Miejski Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or MUBP), with 148 MPB officers and employees; as well as District Offices of Public Security (Powiatowy Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or PUBP), with 51 officers and employees; and finally, the Communal Offices of Public Security (Gminny Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego, or GUBP), which were stationed at the local militia precincts (MO
), with 3 UBP security officers on staff.
In 1953, in the field, there were 17 Voivode Offices of Public Security (WUBP), and 2 Regional Offices of Public Security on the order of WUBP. There were 268 District Offices of Public Security (PUBP) and 5 City Offices of Public Security (MUBP), which operated as District Offices of Public Security (PUBP). Together, they employed 33,200 permanent officers, of which 7,500 were stationed in their Warsaw
headquarters
. According to professor Andrzej Paczkowski
, in 1953, there was one MBP (or UB) officer for every 800 Polish citizens. Never again, in the 45-year-old history of the People's Republic of Poland
, were its special services' formations so large in numbers.
stationed there until 1956. The command and administrative structure of the Polish Armed Forces, Intelligence
, Counter-intelligence
, special services and Internal security organs both civilian (MBP) and military (Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army GZI WP) were infiltrated by the Soviet intelligence and counter-intelligence officers, who served as the main guarantee of the pro-Soviet policy of the new Polish socialist state. The Red Army provided assistance to MPB not only in the form of advisors, but also with their own paramilitary units including NKGB, NKVD
, GRU
, SMERSH
; and, in later years MGB
, MVD and KGB
.
The first Russian chief advisor to the MPB was Major General
Ivan Serov
, a well-trained Stalinist experienced with Soviet security organs. Serov became commander of the NKVD-run militsiya during World War II. He worked as chief of the NKVD Secret Political Department, before becoming People's Commissar of Internal Affairs of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1941–1945, he was the First Deputy People's Commissar of the State Security and later – Deputy People's Commissar of Internal Affairs of the USSR. Once he became main advisor to the MBP in March 1945, Ivan Serov oversaw the kidnapping of 16 Polish top politicians and underground resistance leaders, secretly transported to Moscow
, tortured and thrown into jail after a staged Trial of the Sixteen
. None survived.
, Public execution in Dębica
) and secret assassinations. According to deposition by Józef Światło and other communist sources, in 1945 alone the number of members of the Polish Underground State deported to Siberia and various labor camps in the Soviet Union reached 50,000.
Overall, in the years 1944–1956 around 300,000 Polish citizens had been arrested, of whom many thousands were sentenced to long-term imprisonment. There were 6,000 death sentences pronounced, the majority of them carried out "in the majesty of the law". A special disciplinary legislation had been introduced, which allowed for the sentencing of civil persons before military tribunals including young people and children. The courts were concerned with the alleged crimes, not the age and the maturity of its victims. For many years, the public prosecutors and judges as well as functionaries of the Ministry of Public Security, Służba Bezpieczeństwa and Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego engaged in acts recognized by international law
as crimes against humanity and crimes against peace. The so called "Cursed soldiers
" of the anti-communist resistance, who opposed the new occupiers and attacked the Stalinist strongholds, were eventually hunted down by MBP security services and assassination squads. The underground structures had been destroyed, and most members of the Armia Krajowa and WiN who remained opposed to communism, were executed after kangaroo trials (staged by Wolińska-Brus
and Zarakowski among others), or deported to the Soviet GULAG
system.
In November 1953, First Secretary of the Polish United Workers' Party
, Bolesław Bierut, asked Politburo member Jakub Berman
to send MBP Lieutenant Colonel
Józef Światło on an important mission to East Berlin
. Światło, deputy head of MBP Department 10, together with Colonel Anatol Fejgin
, were asked to consult with the East German
Ministry for State Security's
chief Erich Mielke
about eliminating Wanda Brońska.
The two officials traveled to Berlin and spoke with Mielke. On December 5, 1953, the day after meeting Mielke, Światło defected to the United States through their military mission in West Berlin
. The next day, American military authorities transported Światło to Frankfurt
and by December, Światło had been flown to Washington D.C, where he underwent an extensive debriefing.
Światło's defection was widely publicized in the United States and Europe by the American authorities, as well as in Poland via Radio Free Europe
, embarrassing the authorities in Warsaw. Światło had intimate knowledge of the internal politics of the Polish government, especially the activities of the various secret services. Over the course of the following months, American newspapers and Radio Free Europe reported extensively on political repression in Poland based on Światło revelations, including the torture
of prisoners under interrogation and politically motivated executions. Światło also detailed struggles inside the Polish United Workers' Party
.
Among other activities, Światło had been ordered to falsify evidence that was used to incriminate Władysław Gomułka, who he personally arrested. He had also arrested and falsified evidence against Marian Spychalski
, the future Minister of National Defence, who was at the time a leading politician and high ranking military officer.
and the Council of Ministers
decided to replace the ministry with two separate administrations: the Committee for Public Security (Komitet do Spraw Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or KDSBP), headed by Władysław Dworakowski, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych or MSW), headed by Władysław Wicha. The number of employees of the Committee for Public Security was cut by 30% in central headquarters and by 40–50% in local structures. The huge network of secret informers was also substantially reduced and the most implicated functionaries of the Ministry of Public Security were arrested. Surveillance and repressive activities were reduced; in the majority of factories, special cells of public security, set up to spy on workers, were secretly closed.
The Committee for Public Security took responsibility for intelligence
and counter-espionage, government security and the secret police. From September 3, 1955 to November 28, 1956 it also controlled the Polish Army's Main Directorate of Information (Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska), which ran the Military Police
and counter espionage service. The Ministry of Internal Affairs was responsible for the supervision of local governments, the Milicja Obywatelska
police force, correctional facilities, fire and rescue forces, and the border guard. In 1956 the Committee was dissolved, most of its functions merged into Ministry of Internal Affairs; the secret police was renamed to the 'Security Service' (Służba Bezpieczeństwa).
Soviet chief advisors to the Ministry of Public Security
. The victims' dead bodies – often undressed and placed in empty cement bags – were wheeled out at night and buried in unmarked digs in the vicinity of different Warsaw cemeteries and in open fields.
Secret police
Secret police are a police agency which operates in secrecy and beyond the law to protect the political power of an individual dictator or an authoritarian political regime....
, intelligence
Intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in different ways, including the abilities for abstract thought, understanding, communication, reasoning, learning, planning, emotional intelligence and problem solving....
and counter-espionage
Counter-Espionage
-Cast:* Warren William as Michael Lanyard* Eric Blore as Jamison* Hillary Brooke as Pamela Hart* Thurston Hall as Insp. Crane* Fred Kelsey as Detective Wesley Dickens* Forrest Tucker as Anton Schugg* Matthew Boulton as Inspector J...
service operating from 1945 to 1954 under Jakub Berman
Jakub Berman
Jakub Berman was born into a middle-class Jewish family. Berman first became a prominent communist in prewar Poland. Toward the end of World War II he joined the Politburo of the Soviet-formed Polish United Workers' Party...
of the Politburo
Politburo
Politburo , literally "Political Bureau [of the Central Committee]," is the executive committee for a number of communist political parties.-Marxist-Leninist states:...
. Its main goal was the eradication of the anti-communist
Anti-communism
Anti-communism is opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed in reaction to the rise of communism, especially after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia and the beginning of the Cold War in 1947.-Objections to communist theory:...
structures and socio-political base of the underground Polish Secret State
Polish Secret State
The Polish Underground State is a collective term for the World War II underground resistance organizations in Poland, both military and civilian, that remained loyal to the Polish Government in Exile in London. The first elements of the Underground State were put in place in the final days of the...
as well as the persecution of soldiers of the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa)
Armia Krajowa
The Armia Krajowa , or Home Army, was the dominant Polish resistance movement in World War II German-occupied Poland. It was formed in February 1942 from the Związek Walki Zbrojnej . Over the next two years, it absorbed most other Polish underground forces...
and Freedom and Independence (WiN) active during World War II. In that capacity, MPB remained known mainly through its own regional offices called Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or UBP (Office of Public Security, official name); and Urząd Bezpieczeństwa or UB (Office, or Department of Security).
Formation of the communist state security
Provisional government
A provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a very large government. The early provisional governments were created to prepare for the return of royal rule...
was formed, called the Polish Committee of National Liberation
Polish Committee of National Liberation
The Polish Committee of National Liberation , also known as the Lublin Committee, was a provisional government of Poland, officially proclaimed 21 July 1944 in Chełm under the direction of State National Council in opposition to the Polish government in exile...
(Polski Komitet Wyzwolenia Narodowego) or PKWN. It was established in Chełm on the initiative of Polish communists, in order to assume control over Polish territories re-taken from Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
by the advancing Red Army. PKWN was proclaimed "the only legitimate Polish government" by Stalin, with full political control and Soviet sponsorship. Within the PKWN's internal structure, there were thirteen departments called Resorty. One of these was the Department of Public Security (Resort Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego) or RBP, headed by Stanisław Radkiewicz
Stanisław Radkiewicz
Stanisław Radkiewicz was a Polish communist activist with Soviet citizenship, member of the pre-war Communist Party of Poland and of the post-war Polish United Workers' Party...
. It was a precursor of the Polish communist secret police.
On December 31, 1944, the PKWN was joined by several members of the London-based Polish government in exile
Polish government in Exile
The Polish government-in-exile, formally known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in Exile , was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Poland of September 1939, and the subsequent occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, which...
, among them Stanisław Mikołajczyk (later chased out of the country). PKWN was then transformed into Provisional Government of Republic of Poland
Provisional Government of Republic of Poland
The Provisional Government of the Republic of Poland was created by Krajowa Rada Narodowa on the night of 31 December 1944.-Background:...
. All departments were renamed: the Department of Public Security became the Ministry of Public Security (Ministerstwo Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego) or MBP.
MBP tasks and numbers
From the end of 1940s to 1954, the Ministry of Public Security – operating alongside the Ministry of Defence – was one of the largest and most powerful institutions in post-war People's Republic of PolandPeople's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
. It was responsible for internal and foreign intelligence, counter-intelligence
Counter-intelligence
Counterintelligence or counter-intelligence refers to efforts made by intelligence organizations to prevent hostile or enemy intelligence organizations from successfully gathering and collecting intelligence against them. National intelligence programs, and, by extension, the overall defenses of...
, monitoring anti-state activity in Poland and abroad, monitoring government and civilian communications (wiretapping), supervision of the local governments, maintaining a militsiya
Militsiya
Militsiya or militia is used as an official name of the civilian police in several former communist states, despite its original military connotation...
, maintaining prisons, fire services, rescue services, and border patrol; as well as several concentration camps set up by the NKVD (such as Zgoda labour camp
Zgoda labour camp
The Zgoda labour camp was a concentration camp for Germans, Silesians and Poles, set up in 1945 by the Soviet NKVD in Świętochłowice, Silesia. It was controlled by the communist secret police until its closure by the Stalinist authorities of Poland in November of the same year.Between 1943 and...
). In July 1947, the MBP absorbed Section II of General Staff of the Polish People's Army (the Polish Military Intelligence). Military and civilian intelligence merged to become Department VII of Ministry of Public Security.
In 1950s Ministry of Public Security employed around 32,000 people. MBP also had control over 41,000 soldiers and officers of the Internal Security Corps (Korpus Bezpieczeństwa Wewnętrznego), 57,000 officers in the Civil Militia (Milicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska was a state police institution in the People's Republic of Poland. It was created in 1944 by Soviet-sponsored PKWN, effectively replacing the pre-war police force. In 1990 it was transformed back into Policja....
), 32,000 officers and soldiers in the Border guard (Wojska Ochrony Pogranicza), 10,000 prison officers (Straż Więzienna), and 125,000 members of Volunteer Reserves of the Citizens Militia (Ochotnicza Rezerwa Milicji Obywatelskiej ORMO), a paramilitary police used for special actions.
Organization
The political and administrative matters of the Ministry came under the authority of Jakub BermanJakub Berman
Jakub Berman was born into a middle-class Jewish family. Berman first became a prominent communist in prewar Poland. Toward the end of World War II he joined the Politburo of the Soviet-formed Polish United Workers' Party...
, a hardline Stalinist from the Polish United Workers' Party
Polish United Workers' Party
The Polish United Workers' Party was the Communist party which governed the People's Republic of Poland from 1948 to 1989. Ideologically it was based on the theories of Marxism-Leninism.- The Party's Program and Goals :...
. The Ministry of Public Security structure was being changed constantly from January 1945 on, as the Ministry expanded. It was divided into departments and each department was subdivided into sections entrusted with different tasks. In January 1945, the largest and the most important department in MBP was Department One, responsible for counter-espionage and anti-state activities. It was headed by General Roman Romkowski
Roman Romkowski
General Roman Romkowski born Natan Grünspau [Grinszpan]-Kikiel, was a Polish-Jewish communist, second in command in Berman's Ministry of Public Security during the late 1940s and early 1950's. Along with several other high functionaries including Dir. Anatol Fejgin, Col. Józef Różański, Dir...
born Natan Grinszpan-Kikiel in Moscow. Department I was divided into Sections, each responsible for a different but specific function self-described in the following way:
- Fighting German espionage and Nazi underground remaining in Poland
- Fighting reactionary underground
- Fighting political banditry
- Protection of the national economy
- Protection of legal political parties from outside (underground) penetration.
- Prisons
- Observation
- Investigations
Two new departments were formed in addition to departments and sections created for the Resort Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego (RBP) forming the core of MBP in January 1945. On September 6, 1945, from the existing structure of Department II emerged three additional departments: Department IV commanded by Aleksander Wolski-Dyszko, Department V commanded by Julia Brystygier, and Department VI headed by Teodor Duda. In July 1946, further changes were enacted. MBP was divided into eight (8) departments, five of which dealt with operational cases, including Counter-espionage (Dep 1), Technical operations and technology (Dep 2), Fighting underground resistance (Dep 3), Protection of economy (Dep 4), and Counteraction of hostile penetration and church influences (Dep 5).
In June 1948 the Secret Office was established for Internal counter-intelligence. The Special Office conducted surveillance on members of the MPB itself. On March 2, 1949, the Special Bureau was established, renamed in 1951 simply as Department Ten. Department 10 conducted surveillance of high ranking members of the Polish United Workers' Party
Polish United Workers' Party
The Polish United Workers' Party was the Communist party which governed the People's Republic of Poland from 1948 to 1989. Ideologically it was based on the theories of Marxism-Leninism.- The Party's Program and Goals :...
and people associated with them.
Ministry of Public Security roster (1951 and 1953)
Minister
Minister (government)
A minister is a politician who holds significant public office in a national or regional government. Senior ministers are members of the cabinet....
of Public Security – Gen. Stanisław Radkiewicz
Stanisław Radkiewicz
Stanisław Radkiewicz was a Polish communist activist with Soviet citizenship, member of the pre-war Communist Party of Poland and of the post-war Polish United Workers' Party...
1st vice-minister – Gen. Roman Romkowski
Roman Romkowski
General Roman Romkowski born Natan Grünspau [Grinszpan]-Kikiel, was a Polish-Jewish communist, second in command in Berman's Ministry of Public Security during the late 1940s and early 1950's. Along with several other high functionaries including Dir. Anatol Fejgin, Col. Józef Różański, Dir...
2nd vice-minister – Mieczysław Mietkowski
3rd vice-minister – Konrad Świetlik
4th vice-minister – Wacław Lewikowski
- Department I – Counter-intelligence – headed by col. Stefan Antosiewicz
- Department II – Operative Technology and records – headed by col. Leon Rubinstein
- Department III – Fighting bandits – headed by col. Józef Czaplicki
- Department IV – Protection of economy – headed by col. Józef Kratko
- Department V – Religious political and social organizations – headed by col. Julia BrystigerJulia BrystigerJulia Brystiger was a Polish Communist activist and member of the security apparatus in Stalinist Poland...
- Department VI – Prisons – headed by col. Władysław Pisło
- Department VII – Intelligence – headed by col. Witold Sieniewicz
- Department of Investigations – headed by col. Józef RóżańskiJózef RózanskiJózef Różański was a communist in prewar Second Polish Republic, member of the Soviet NKVD and later, colonel of the Stalinist Ministry of Public Security of Poland. Born into a Jewish family in Warsaw, Różański became active in the Communist Party of Poland before World War II...
(b. Josek Goldberg) - Department for Training – headed by mjr. Zdzisław Szymaczak
- Department of Staff – headed by col. Mikołaj Orechwa
- Department for Government Protection – headed by col. Faustym Grzybowski
- Department of Transport – headed by col. Czesław Radzicki
- Department of Communications – headed by col. Feliks Suczek
- Special Bureau – headed by col. Anatol FejginAnatol FejginAnatol Fejgin was a Polish-Jewish communist before World War II, and after 1949, commander of the Stalinist political police at the Ministry of Public Security of Poland, in charge of its notorious Special Bureau...
- Bureau for control
- Bureau of foreign passports – headed by lt. col. Władyslaw (Spychaj) Sobczyński
- Bureau of Budget and Finances – headed by lt./lt. col. Szymon Ela Tenenbaum
- Bureau A (Observation of suspicious element)
- Bureau B (Central archives) – headed by col. Zygmunt Okręt (b. Izrael Nachemiasz)
MBP in the field
All over Poland Ministry of Public Security had regional offices. There was one, or more MBP office in each voivodeshipVoivodeship
Voivodship is a term denoting the position of, or more commonly the area administered by, a voivod. Voivodeships have existed since medieval times in Poland, Romania, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Russia and Serbia....
, each of them called the Voivode Office of Public Security (Wojewódzki Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego, or WUBP). Each WUBP had 308 full-time MBP officers and employees on staff. Beside WUBP, there were also City Offices of Public Security (Miejski Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or MUBP), with 148 MPB officers and employees; as well as District Offices of Public Security (Powiatowy Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or PUBP), with 51 officers and employees; and finally, the Communal Offices of Public Security (Gminny Urząd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego, or GUBP), which were stationed at the local militia precincts (MO
Milicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska was a state police institution in the People's Republic of Poland. It was created in 1944 by Soviet-sponsored PKWN, effectively replacing the pre-war police force. In 1990 it was transformed back into Policja....
), with 3 UBP security officers on staff.
In 1953, in the field, there were 17 Voivode Offices of Public Security (WUBP), and 2 Regional Offices of Public Security on the order of WUBP. There were 268 District Offices of Public Security (PUBP) and 5 City Offices of Public Security (MUBP), which operated as District Offices of Public Security (PUBP). Together, they employed 33,200 permanent officers, of which 7,500 were stationed in their Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
headquarters
Headquarters
Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...
. According to professor Andrzej Paczkowski
Andrzej Paczkowski
Prof. Andrzej Paczkowski is a Polish historian. Professor of Collegium Civitas, director of Modern History Studies in the Political Institute of Polish Academy of Sciences, member of Collegium of Institute of National Remembrance.In 1960 he finished studies at the history department of the...
, in 1953, there was one MBP (or UB) officer for every 800 Polish citizens. Never again, in the 45-year-old history of the People's Republic of Poland
People's Republic of Poland
The People's Republic of Poland was the official name of Poland from 1952 to 1990. Although the Soviet Union took control of the country immediately after the liberation from Nazi Germany in 1944, the name of the state was not changed until eight years later...
, were its special services' formations so large in numbers.
Soviet control and political penetration
Political penetration and military control over the country by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was easily visible in the People's Republic of Poland. The Soviet Northern Group of ForcesNorthern Group of Forces
The Northern Group of Forces was the military formation of the Soviet Army stationed in Poland from the end of Second World War in 1945 until 1993 when they were withdrawn in the aftermath of the fall of Soviet Union...
stationed there until 1956. The command and administrative structure of the Polish Armed Forces, Intelligence
Intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in different ways, including the abilities for abstract thought, understanding, communication, reasoning, learning, planning, emotional intelligence and problem solving....
, Counter-intelligence
Counter-intelligence
Counterintelligence or counter-intelligence refers to efforts made by intelligence organizations to prevent hostile or enemy intelligence organizations from successfully gathering and collecting intelligence against them. National intelligence programs, and, by extension, the overall defenses of...
, special services and Internal security organs both civilian (MBP) and military (Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army GZI WP) were infiltrated by the Soviet intelligence and counter-intelligence officers, who served as the main guarantee of the pro-Soviet policy of the new Polish socialist state. The Red Army provided assistance to MPB not only in the form of advisors, but also with their own paramilitary units including NKGB, NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
, GRU
GRU
GRU or Glavnoye Razvedyvatel'noye Upravleniye is the foreign military intelligence directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation...
, SMERSH
SMERSH
SMERSH was the counter-intelligence agency in the Red Army formed in late 1942 or even earlier, but officially founded on April 14, 1943. The name SMERSH was coined by Joseph Stalin...
; and, in later years MGB
MGB
The abbreviation MGB may refer to:* Mathematical Gymnasium Belgrade, special school, elementary and high school, for gifted in areas of mathematics, physics, and ICT, under University of Belgrade umbrella...
, MVD and KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
.
The first Russian chief advisor to the MPB was Major General
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
Ivan Serov
Ivan Serov
State Security General Ivan Aleksandrovich Serov was a prominent leader of Soviet security and intelligence agencies, head of the KGB between March 1954 and December 1958, as well as head of the GRU between 1958 and 1963. He was Deputy Commissar of the NKVD under Lavrentiy Beria, and was to play a...
, a well-trained Stalinist experienced with Soviet security organs. Serov became commander of the NKVD-run militsiya during World War II. He worked as chief of the NKVD Secret Political Department, before becoming People's Commissar of Internal Affairs of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1941–1945, he was the First Deputy People's Commissar of the State Security and later – Deputy People's Commissar of Internal Affairs of the USSR. Once he became main advisor to the MBP in March 1945, Ivan Serov oversaw the kidnapping of 16 Polish top politicians and underground resistance leaders, secretly transported to Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, tortured and thrown into jail after a staged Trial of the Sixteen
Trial of the Sixteen
The Trial of the Sixteen was a staged trial of 16 leaders of the Polish Underground State held by the Soviet Union in Moscow in 1945.-History:Some accounts say approaches were made in February with others saying March 1945...
. None survived.
The Stalinist rein of terror
Infiltrated by NKGB and NKVD agents – the Ministry of Public Security was well-known for its criminal nature. From January 1945 (or, July 22nd), the surviving members of the Home Army laid down their arms, granted an official amnesty (lasting till October 15th). Most were arrested by MBP on the spot, tortured and tried for treason. The MBP carried out brutal pacification of civilians, mass arrests (see: Augustów roundup), as well as makeshift executions (see: Mokotów Prison murder1951 Mokotów Prison execution
On March 1, 1951, the Soviet-controlled communist Polish secret police, Urząd Bezpieczeństwa , carried out an execution of seven members of the 4th Headquarters of anti-Communist organization Wolność i Niezawisłość in the Mokotów Prison in Warsaw...
, Public execution in Dębica
Public execution in Debica (1946)
Public execution in Dębica refer to the execution of four Poles from the anti-communist Freedom and Independence organization in Dębica in 1946.-Introduction:...
) and secret assassinations. According to deposition by Józef Światło and other communist sources, in 1945 alone the number of members of the Polish Underground State deported to Siberia and various labor camps in the Soviet Union reached 50,000.
Overall, in the years 1944–1956 around 300,000 Polish citizens had been arrested, of whom many thousands were sentenced to long-term imprisonment. There were 6,000 death sentences pronounced, the majority of them carried out "in the majesty of the law". A special disciplinary legislation had been introduced, which allowed for the sentencing of civil persons before military tribunals including young people and children. The courts were concerned with the alleged crimes, not the age and the maturity of its victims. For many years, the public prosecutors and judges as well as functionaries of the Ministry of Public Security, Służba Bezpieczeństwa and Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego engaged in acts recognized by international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...
as crimes against humanity and crimes against peace. The so called "Cursed soldiers
Cursed soldiers
The cursed soldiers is a name applied to a variety of Polish resistance movements formed in the later stages of World War II and afterwards. Created by some members of the Polish Secret State, these clandestine organizations continued their armed struggle against the Stalinist government of Poland...
" of the anti-communist resistance, who opposed the new occupiers and attacked the Stalinist strongholds, were eventually hunted down by MBP security services and assassination squads. The underground structures had been destroyed, and most members of the Armia Krajowa and WiN who remained opposed to communism, were executed after kangaroo trials (staged by Wolińska-Brus
Helena Wolinska-Brus
Lt. Col. Helena Wolińska-Brus born Fajga Mindla Danielak, was a military prosecutor in Poland with the rank of lieutenant-colonel , involved in Stalinist regime show trials of the 1950s. She has been implicated in the arrest and execution of many Polish anti-Nazi resistance fighters including key...
and Zarakowski among others), or deported to the Soviet GULAG
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
system.
Defection
Polish United Workers' Party
The Polish United Workers' Party was the Communist party which governed the People's Republic of Poland from 1948 to 1989. Ideologically it was based on the theories of Marxism-Leninism.- The Party's Program and Goals :...
, Bolesław Bierut, asked Politburo member Jakub Berman
Jakub Berman
Jakub Berman was born into a middle-class Jewish family. Berman first became a prominent communist in prewar Poland. Toward the end of World War II he joined the Politburo of the Soviet-formed Polish United Workers' Party...
to send MBP Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Józef Światło on an important mission to East Berlin
East Berlin
East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city...
. Światło, deputy head of MBP Department 10, together with Colonel Anatol Fejgin
Anatol Fejgin
Anatol Fejgin was a Polish-Jewish communist before World War II, and after 1949, commander of the Stalinist political police at the Ministry of Public Security of Poland, in charge of its notorious Special Bureau...
, were asked to consult with the East German
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
Ministry for State Security's
Stasi
The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security The Ministry for State Security (German: Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (MfS), commonly known as the Stasi (abbreviation , literally State Security), was the official state security service of East Germany. The MfS was headquartered...
chief Erich Mielke
Erich Mielke
Erich Fritz Emil Mielke was a German communist politician and Minister of State Security—and as such head of the Stasi —of the German Democratic Republic between 1957 and 1989. Mielke spent more than a decade as an operative of the NKVD during the rule of Joseph Stalin...
about eliminating Wanda Brońska.
The two officials traveled to Berlin and spoke with Mielke. On December 5, 1953, the day after meeting Mielke, Światło defected to the United States through their military mission in West Berlin
West Berlin
West Berlin was a political exclave that existed between 1949 and 1990. It comprised the western regions of Berlin, which were bordered by East Berlin and parts of East Germany. West Berlin consisted of the American, British, and French occupation sectors, which had been established in 1945...
. The next day, American military authorities transported Światło to Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
and by December, Światło had been flown to Washington D.C, where he underwent an extensive debriefing.
Światło's defection was widely publicized in the United States and Europe by the American authorities, as well as in Poland via Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is a broadcaster funded by the U.S. Congress that provides news, information, and analysis to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East "where the free flow of information is either banned by government authorities or not fully developed"...
, embarrassing the authorities in Warsaw. Światło had intimate knowledge of the internal politics of the Polish government, especially the activities of the various secret services. Over the course of the following months, American newspapers and Radio Free Europe reported extensively on political repression in Poland based on Światło revelations, including the torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
of prisoners under interrogation and politically motivated executions. Światło also detailed struggles inside the Polish United Workers' Party
Polish United Workers' Party
The Polish United Workers' Party was the Communist party which governed the People's Republic of Poland from 1948 to 1989. Ideologically it was based on the theories of Marxism-Leninism.- The Party's Program and Goals :...
.
Among other activities, Światło had been ordered to falsify evidence that was used to incriminate Władysław Gomułka, who he personally arrested. He had also arrested and falsified evidence against Marian Spychalski
Marian Spychalski
Marian "Marek" Spychalski was a Polish architect, military commander, and communist politician.Born to a working-class family in Łódź, he graduated from the Faculty of Architecture at the Warsaw University of Technology in 1931...
, the future Minister of National Defence, who was at the time a leading politician and high ranking military officer.
1954 reorganization
The highly publicized defection of Colonel Światło, not to mention the general hatred of the Ministry of Public Security among Polish public led to changes in late 1954. In December of that year, the Polish Council of StatePolish Council of State
The Council of State of the Republic of Poland was introduced by the 1947 Small Constitution. It consisted of the President of the Republic of Poland, the Marshal and Vicemarshals of Constituent Sejm, President of the Supreme Chamber of Control and could consist of other members...
and the Council of Ministers
Council of Ministers of Poland
The Cabinet of Poland consists of the Prime Minister and ministers. Deputy Prime Ministers and presidents of committees specified in statutes may also be appointed to the Cabinet...
decided to replace the ministry with two separate administrations: the Committee for Public Security (Komitet do Spraw Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego or KDSBP), headed by Władysław Dworakowski, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Ministerstwo Spraw Wewnętrznych or MSW), headed by Władysław Wicha. The number of employees of the Committee for Public Security was cut by 30% in central headquarters and by 40–50% in local structures. The huge network of secret informers was also substantially reduced and the most implicated functionaries of the Ministry of Public Security were arrested. Surveillance and repressive activities were reduced; in the majority of factories, special cells of public security, set up to spy on workers, were secretly closed.
The Committee for Public Security took responsibility for intelligence
Intelligence (information gathering)
Intelligence assessment is the development of forecasts of behaviour or recommended courses of action to the leadership of an organization, based on a wide range of available information sources both overt and covert. Assessments are developed in response to requirements declared by the leadership...
and counter-espionage, government security and the secret police. From September 3, 1955 to November 28, 1956 it also controlled the Polish Army's Main Directorate of Information (Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska), which ran the Military Police
Military police
Military police are police organisations connected with, or part of, the military of a state. The word can have different meanings in different countries, and may refer to:...
and counter espionage service. The Ministry of Internal Affairs was responsible for the supervision of local governments, the Milicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska
Milicja Obywatelska was a state police institution in the People's Republic of Poland. It was created in 1944 by Soviet-sponsored PKWN, effectively replacing the pre-war police force. In 1990 it was transformed back into Policja....
police force, correctional facilities, fire and rescue forces, and the border guard. In 1956 the Committee was dissolved, most of its functions merged into Ministry of Internal Affairs; the secret police was renamed to the 'Security Service' (Służba Bezpieczeństwa).
Most notable MBP personnel
- Antoni Alster (b. Nachum Alster)
- Jakub BermanJakub BermanJakub Berman was born into a middle-class Jewish family. Berman first became a prominent communist in prewar Poland. Toward the end of World War II he joined the Politburo of the Soviet-formed Polish United Workers' Party...
- Julia BrystigerJulia BrystigerJulia Brystiger was a Polish Communist activist and member of the security apparatus in Stalinist Poland...
(née Prajs) - Józef Czaplicki (b. Izydor Kurc)
- Anatol FejginAnatol FejginAnatol Fejgin was a Polish-Jewish communist before World War II, and after 1949, commander of the Stalinist political police at the Ministry of Public Security of Poland, in charge of its notorious Special Bureau...
- Adam HumerAdam HumerAdam Humer was a high-ranking official of the notorious Ministry of Public Security of Poland . Known for particular brutality and barbarity, Humer tortured political prisoners whom he interrogated during 1940s and 1950s...
(b. Adam Umer) - Julian Kole
- Julian Konar (b. Jakub Kohn)
- Grzegorz Korczyński
- Mieczysław Mietkowski (b. Mojżesz Bobrowicki)
- Salomon MorelSalomon MorelSalomon Morel was a Polish Communist official and an accused war criminal. After the end of World War II, he became the commander of the infamous Zgoda labour camp...
, commander of Zgoda labour campZgoda labour campThe Zgoda labour camp was a concentration camp for Germans, Silesians and Poles, set up in 1945 by the Soviet NKVD in Świętochłowice, Silesia. It was controlled by the communist secret police until its closure by the Stalinist authorities of Poland in November of the same year.Between 1943 and... - Henryk Pałka
- Julian Polan-Haraschin
- Józef RóżańskiJózef RózanskiJózef Różański was a communist in prewar Second Polish Republic, member of the Soviet NKVD and later, colonel of the Stalinist Ministry of Public Security of Poland. Born into a Jewish family in Warsaw, Różański became active in the Communist Party of Poland before World War II...
(b. Józef Goldberg) - Roman RomkowskiRoman RomkowskiGeneral Roman Romkowski born Natan Grünspau [Grinszpan]-Kikiel, was a Polish-Jewish communist, second in command in Berman's Ministry of Public Security during the late 1940s and early 1950's. Along with several other high functionaries including Dir. Anatol Fejgin, Col. Józef Różański, Dir...
(b. Natan Grunspan – Kikiel) - Stanisław RadkiewiczStanisław RadkiewiczStanisław Radkiewicz was a Polish communist activist with Soviet citizenship, member of the pre-war Communist Party of Poland and of the post-war Polish United Workers' Party...
- Leon Rubinstein
- Józef Światło (born Izak Fleischfarb)
- Helena Wolińska-BrusHelena Wolinska-BrusLt. Col. Helena Wolińska-Brus born Fajga Mindla Danielak, was a military prosecutor in Poland with the rank of lieutenant-colonel , involved in Stalinist regime show trials of the 1950s. She has been implicated in the arrest and execution of many Polish anti-Nazi resistance fighters including key...
(b. Fajga Mindla Danielak) - Piotr SmietanskiPiotr ŚmietańskiStaff Sergeant Piotr Śmietański , was one of the main executioners in Stalinist Poland, employed by the communist secret police Urząd Bezpieczeństwa. He was stationed at the Mokotów Prison in the Warsaw borough of Mokotów known also as Rakowiecka Prison located at Rakowiecka 37 street...
Soviet chief advisors to the Ministry of Public Security
- Major General Ivan SerovIvan SerovState Security General Ivan Aleksandrovich Serov was a prominent leader of Soviet security and intelligence agencies, head of the KGB between March 1954 and December 1958, as well as head of the GRU between 1958 and 1963. He was Deputy Commissar of the NKVD under Lavrentiy Beria, and was to play a...
– 1945 - Major General Nikolai Selivanovsky – 1945-1946
- Colonel Semyon Davydov – 1946-1950
- Colonel Mikhail Bezborodov – 1950-1953
- Lieutenant General Nikolai Kovalshuk – 1953
- Serafim Lialin – 1953-1954
Notable people killed by the MBP
In Warsaw, most of the killings were done at the Mokotów PrisonMokotów Prison
Mokotów Prison is a prison in Warsaw's borough of Mokotów, Poland, located at Rakowiecka 37 street. It was built by the Russians in the final years of the foreign Partitions of Poland...
. The victims' dead bodies – often undressed and placed in empty cement bags – were wheeled out at night and buried in unmarked digs in the vicinity of different Warsaw cemeteries and in open fields.
- 1951 Mokotów Prison execution1951 Mokotów Prison executionOn March 1, 1951, the Soviet-controlled communist Polish secret police, Urząd Bezpieczeństwa , carried out an execution of seven members of the 4th Headquarters of anti-Communist organization Wolność i Niezawisłość in the Mokotów Prison in Warsaw...
- MajorMajorMajor is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
Łukasz Ciepliński - ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Karol ChmielKarol ChmielKarol Chmiel was born on April 17, 1911 in the village of Zagorzyce to a peasant family of Antoni and Katarzyna née Charchut. He graduated from high school in Dębica, then joined the prestigious Jagiellonian University in Kraków, where he studied law... - Major Adam LazarowiczAdam LazarowiczMajor Adam Lazarowicz was a Polish military officer who played a prominent role in the Polish resistance movement in the German-occupied Poland in the Second World War.After the war, Lazarowicz remained in hiding and become a member of the anti-Communist organization Wolnosc i Niezawislosc...
- CaptainCaptain (OF-2)The army rank of captain is a commissioned officer rank historically corresponding to command of a company of soldiers. The rank is also used by some air forces and marine forces. Today a captain is typically either the commander or second-in-command of a company or artillery battery...
Józef RzepkaJózef RzepkaCaptain Józef Rzepka was born in 1913 in the village of Bratkowice... - Captain Józef BatoryJózef BatoryCaptain Józef Batory was born in 1914 in Werynia, Poland.He fought in the 1939 Polish September Campaign, then was an active member of the anti-German resistance....
- Comdr. Mieczysław Kawalec
- Captain Franciszek Błażej
- Comdt.CommandantCommandant is a senior title often given to the officer in charge of a large training establishment or academy. This usage is common in anglophone nations...
Hieronim DekutowskiHieronim DekutowskiHieronim Dekutowski was a Polish boyscout and soldier, who fought in Polish September Campaign, was a member of the elite forces Cichociemni, fought in the Home Army and after World War II, fought the communist regime as one of commanders of Wolnosc i Niezawislosc.- Early years :Dekutowski was...
- Brigadier GeneralBrigadier GeneralBrigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...
Emil August FieldorfEmil August FieldorfEmil August Fieldorf was a Polish Brigadier General. He was Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Home Army or AK, after the failure of the Warsaw Uprising... - Bolesław Kontrym (CichociemniCichociemniCichociemni were elite special-operations paratroops of the Polish Home Army of the Polish Army in exile, created in Great Britain during World War II to operate in occupied Poland.-The name:...
) - Cavalry Captain Witold PileckiWitold PileckiWitold Pilecki was a soldier of the Second Polish Republic, the founder of the Secret Polish Army resistance group and a member of the Home Army...
- 1st Lieutenant Jan RodowiczJan RodowiczJan Rodowicz codename: Anoda was a Polish Scoutmaster , First Lieutenant of the AK-Szare Szeregi....
(Szare SzeregiSzare Szeregi"Gray Ranks" was a codename for the underground Polish Scouting Association during World War II.The wartime organisation was created on 27 September 1939, actively resisted and fought German occupation in Warsaw until 18 January 1945, and contributed to the resistance operations of the Polish...
) - Danuta SiedzikównaDanuta SiedzikównaDanuta Siedzikówna was a medical orderly in the 4th Squadron of the 5th Wilno Brigade of the Polish Home Army...
- Feliks Selmanowicz "Zagończyk"
- CommanderCommanderCommander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Zygmunt SzendzielarzZygmunt SzendzielarzZygmunt Szendzielarz was commander of the Polish 5th Wilno Home Army Brigade.-Early life:... - Capt. Stanisław SojczyńskiStanisław SojczyńskiStanisław Sojczyński was a captain in the Polish Army and in the Home Army and later the creator and leader of Underground Polish Army . On September 11, 2009, Stanisław Sojczyński was posthumously promoted to the rank of Brigadier General by President of Poland, Lech Kaczynski....
- CorporalCorporalCorporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
Józef FranczakJózef FranczakJózef Franczak was a soldier of the Polish Army, Armia Krajowa World War II resistance, and last of the cursed soldiers - members of the militant anti-communist resistance in Poland. He used codenames Lalek , Laluś, Laleczka, Guściowa, and fake name Józef Babiński...
shot dead by ZOMOZOMOZmotoryzowane Odwody Milicji Obywatelskiej , were paramilitary-police formations during the Communist Era, in the People's Republic of Poland...
in 1963
See also
- Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego
- History of Polish Intelligence ServicesHistory of Polish Intelligence ServicesThis article covers the history of Polish intelligence services dating back to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.-Commonwealth:Though the first official Polish government service entrusted with espionage, intelligence and counter-intelligence was not formed until 1918, Poland and later the...
- Montelupich prisonMontelupich PrisonMontelupich prison was a prison located in Kraków, which was used by theGestapo throughout World War II. Prisoners in Montelupich included politicalprisoners, members of the SS and Security Service who had been...
- Milicja ObywatelskaMilicja ObywatelskaMilicja Obywatelska was a state police institution in the People's Republic of Poland. It was created in 1944 by Soviet-sponsored PKWN, effectively replacing the pre-war police force. In 1990 it was transformed back into Policja....
- Służba Bezpieczeństwa
- Zarząd II Sztabu Generalnego Wojska Polskiego
- Eastern Bloc politicsEastern Bloc politicsEastern Bloc politics followed the Red Army's occupation of much of eastern Europe at the end of World War II and the Soviet Union's installation of Soviet-controlled communist governments in the Eastern Bloc through a process of bloc politics and repression...