Jan Mazurkiewicz

Who was Jan Mazurkiewicz?

Jan Mazurkiewicz, codename Radosław, was a Polish soldier, a veteran of World War I, and a colonel in the Polish anti-Nazi resistance Armia Krajowa during World War II. He was one of the main commanders of the Warsaw Uprising, where he led the Radosław Group, which was one of the best armed and trained insurrectionist units in the Uprising.

After the war Mazurkiewicz was persecuted by the communist authorities of the People's Republic of Poland despite the fact that he tried to cooperate with the new regime. He was rehabilitated after the end of the Stalinist period and was active in the official veterans' organization Society of Fighters for Freedom and Democracy. He was eventually promoted to the rank of general of the Armed Forces of the People's Republic of Poland. He died shortly before the fall of communism in Eastern Europe.