Antoni Petrykiewicz

Who was Antoni Petrykiewicz?

Antoni Petrykiewicz – was one of the youngest Polish defenders of Lwów, over which in late 1918 a Polish-Ukrainian conflict ensued.

He was a pupil in the second class at Lwów Gymnasium. When he was only thirteen years old, he joined General Roman Abraham's unit, which defended Lwów's district of Persenkowka.

Petrykiewicz was severely wounded and transported to the hospital. He did not recover and died on December 28. Afterwards, Marshall Józef Piłsudski posthumously awarded him the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari, and Petrykiewicz is the youngest person to have received this prestigious order.

The boy was buried on the Cemetery of the Defenders of Lwów.