Genealogy Chat

Hi everyone, I am trying to research my Polish roots, and I wondered if any one could give me advice on obtaining military records. I am not sure whether the records would be classed as British or Polish, as in WW2 they were Polish fighters but were stationed in Scotland and as far as I can tell classed as part of the British army. If anyone has any ideas I'd be really grateful to know what they are. Thanks, Rebecca

Hi That's a very big question to answer. As I understand it the Polish Army (ie those who escaped to the UK via France and elsewhere) fought under British overall control but still retained their status as a national force. There were air force squadrons and naval units as well. Just to complicate things there were Polish forces in the east as well whose status at various times was influenced by what was going on in the Soviet Union. As you suggest, there were many Polish troops guarding the north and east Scottish coastline and some of the defences they built can still be seen today. Many Polish war dead are buried in Perth Wellshill cemetery and their graves are marked by standard headstone similar in some ways to the CWGC headstone. When my daughter was a brownie she and her fellow brownies laid wreaths on Polish war graves at a ceremony in Inverness. Her older sister's boyfriend was the son of one of the Polish veterans! There are registers of the burials. After the war Poland was under Soviet control and these soldiers were given a choice of going back to a communist regime or joining the Polish Resettlement Corps in the UK. I gather perhaps as many as 250,000 joined the Corps, which I think was part of the British Army. The National Archives at Kew has files on all this. Take a look at their website. Perhaps the best way to start is to get your local library to get you a book through the inter-library loans system. There are some excellent books on the subject, though out of print. Just google and you should find them. Denis. Denis.

We have obtained military records of a Polish chap who came over in the 1940s and was also in Scotland.There was even a photo. I will ask OH.who he wrote to, when he comes in. Give me a nudge by PM if I forget to post here. Gwyn

Denis, Thankyou for your reply. My GGrandfather is indeed buried at the Cemetery you mentioned. As you say the troops retained their Polish national status as far as I can tell, and the Polish government functioned in exile from London. My GGrandfather died before the end of the War, but my Grandfather actually ran the resettlement programme in the East Midlands. I will look at the Kew national archives - thank you for that pointer. Thank you again for all your help, Rebecca