Archiwa Polskich Sił Zbrojnych na Zachodzie

Abstract

A result of a defeat of the Polish state during the September Campaign in 1939 was an exodus abroad of hundreds of thousands of Polish citizens. During internment in Romania archivists from the evacuated Military Archive put forward a proposal to organize an archival service adapted to the war conditions to preserve materials taken out of Poland, as well as those constantly created in military institutions set up in exile. As a part of the Polish fight against the Reich, regular military formations called the Polish Armed Forces in the West were organized at the Allies’ side. Every formation had a section of an archival/historical/museum character. There were: the Archival Office in the recreated Military Historical Bureau in the Polish Army in France; the Archive of the Bureau of the Commander-in-Chief in London; historical-archival sections in British air force and navy; the Independent Historical Office of the Polish Armed Forces attached to Command of the Armed Forces in the USSR; the Archive of the Polish Army in the Middle East; the Archive of the Polish Army in the East; the Field Archive and Museum No. 1 of the Polish II Corps; the Field Archive and Museum No. 2; the Archive of Information Unit of the Polish II Corps. The quantity of such initiatives did not always translate into quality of work of archives and archivists. There were attempts to centralize management of the Polish Armed Forces archival and museum institutions; the Archive and Museum of the PAF in Scotland was set up in 1942, but it could not fulfill its duties due to lack of interest from the highest military authorities. Similar situation occurred with the Archival-Historical Service of the PAF, set up in January 1945. In May 1945 an initiative of a group of people succeeded, and they created the General Sikorski Historical Institute in London. This initiative managed to collect in one place – as far as it was possible – materials created by the Polish military and civilian institutions in exile.