Presentation of archives left by commander of Home Army’s “Żaglowiec” Group
10.09.2021
“Captain Marian Kamiński’s papers are coming home at a symbolic time. Late summer 77 years ago, the Warsaw Uprising was still going on and he himself was fighting against the German occupiers to defend Poland’s capital. The unit’s commander could not possibly know how this patriotic armed struggle of Warsaw residents was about to end,” said Deputy Minister Szynkowski vel Sęk speaking at a ceremony to present the archives left by the commander of the Home Army’s “Żaglowiec” Group.
The event took place at the Central Archives of Modern Records in Warsaw on 10 September. Apart from the deputy head of the Polish MFA and representatives of the Central Directorate of State Archives and Archives of Modern Records, the ceremony was also attended by Captain Kamiński’s family.
Documents and memorabilia left by one of Warsaw Uprising commanders were kept in Los Angeles until August 2021, when the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at the request from the Central Archives of Modern Records, undertook to bring them to Poland. The Polish Consulate General in Los Angeles received the archives from Capt. Kamiński’s grandson and arranged their transport to Poland. Documents collected by Capt. Kamiński and donated by his family relate to his pre-war service in the Polish Army, the Warsaw Uprising, and the period of his activity as a veteran and member of the Polish diaspora in the US. They include original photos showing the garrison life of the 21st Infantry Regiment and Officer Cadet School in Różan and Ostrów Mazowiecka-Komorowo as well as the fighting in the Żoliborz district by the “Żaglowiec” Group. The collection also contains the papers of the Home Army Club in Los Angeles and of other émigré and Polish diaspora organisations based in California.
In his address, Deputy Minister Szymon Szynkowski vel Sęk emphasised the professionalism and efficiency of the Polish MFA’s consular services.
“I am convinced that also in the future the MFA and its staff abroad will offer help and support in all activities to recover national memorabilia that were transferred abroad as a result of fate and Poland’s difficult past,” he said.
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Capt. Marian Kamiński (1912-1994) – graduate of the Infantry Officer Cadet School in Ostrów Mazowiecka; officer of the 21st Infantry Regiment before WWII; during Poland’s defensive war of 1939 he fought in Modlin and Warsaw. In the underground Home Army (AK), the commandant of the 1st Region of District 2 Żoliborz ZWZ-AK. During the Warsaw Uprising, he was the legendary commander of the “Żaglowiec” Group. Marian Kamiński was awarded the Order of Virtuti Militari and the Cross of Valour. After the war, he was an active member of the Polish community in the U.S.
MFA Press Office
Photo: Gabriel Piętka / MFA
