This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages) This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (March 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources.Find sources: "Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2023) .mw-parser-output .hidden-begin{box-sizing:border-box;width:100%;padding:5px;border:none;font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .hidden-title{font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .hidden-content{text-align:left}@media all and (max-width:500px){.mw-parser-output .hidden-begin{width:auto!important;clear:none!important;float:none!important))You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in Polish. (January 2023) Click [show] for important translation instructions. View a machine-translated version of the Polish article. Machine translation, like DeepL or Google Translate, is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into the English Wikipedia. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. You must provide copyright attribution in the edit summary accompanying your translation by providing an interlanguage link to the source of your translation. A model attribution edit summary is Content in this edit is translated from the existing Polish Wikipedia article at [[:pl:Glowny Zarzad Informacji]]; see its history for attribution. You may also add the template ((Translated|pl|Glowny Zarzad Informacji)) to the talk page. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation. (Learn how and when to remove this message)
Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army
Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego
Common nameInformacja Wojskowa
AbbreviationGZI WP
Agency overview
Formed1944
Dissolved1957
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdictionPoland
General nature
Operational structure
HeadquartersWarsaw
Elected officer responsible
Parent agencyPolish People's Army

Główny Zarząd Informacji Wojska Polskiego (English: Main Directorate of Information of the Polish Army) was an early military Police and counter-espionage organ of the Polish People's Army in communist Poland during and after World War II. It is also known by its acronym GZI WP (sometimes shortened to GZI) or simply as Informacja Wojskowa (lit.'Military Information') .

History

[edit]

The GZI was established in 1944 as part of the Polish Military in the USSR. When it was founded, its officers were predominantly Russian, having been sourced from the Soviet secret services like the NKGB, the NKVD, and SMERSH. In December 1945, the number of Poles in the GZI did not surpass 43%, but by 1946–1947, it had grown to 77%. At the GZI's headquarters in Warsaw, the commendatory staff was initially entirely Russian and the first polish officer was not installed until the end of 1945. By September 1947, almost all important positions at the headquarters were occupied by Polish army officers. In June 1950 headquarters again had been placed under the management of a Russian officer when Dmitrij Wozniesieński (a former SMERSH officer) become the head of GZI. With him came 150 new Russian officers who retook over all executive posts.

In 1945, the number of staff surpassed 1,000 officers. In the next year, because of the demobilization of the armed forces, the number of staff fell to 992. Increasing repression on Army, Navy and Air Force officers, and the very fast development of the new Polish People's Army, again forced GZI to increase its manpower and the number of new posts. Whilst in January 1951, the number of permanent employees in GZI was 2,740 (1,002 officers, 302 non-commissioned officers, 1,198 privates and 238 civil employees), by January 1953 the number of permanent employees had reached 4,130 people (1,502 officers, 453 non-commissioned officers, 1,795 privates and 380 civilian employees). New informers and secret agents were recruited from regular army, navy and air force units. The biggest number of informers and secret agents was in 1952, when for a total of 356,481 Polish army soldiers there were 24,025 informers and secret agents, working inside military structure. At that time, every seventh soldier in the Polish military was in contact with a GZI officer. It was the approved norm that at least one agent from the GZI should be in each platoon.

Changes and reform

[edit]

In September 1955 Główny Zarząd Informacji Ministerstwa Obrony Narodowej became part of the Committee for Public Security (Polish: Komitet do spraw Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego; which directly translates from the Russian Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti), which was the well known successor to Ministerstwo Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego. The Committee for Public Security then became known as the Main Directorate of Information of Committee for Public Security (GZI KdsBP). It was responsible for the political police, counter-intelligence operations, intelligence operations, and government protection. In November 1956, the GZI KdsBP separated from Committee for Public Security, and returned to its previous role, becoming again the Main Directorate of Information of Ministry of National Defense.

After the reform instituted by Władysław Gomułka in 1956, and the role GZI played in repressions and executions, one year later in 1957 the Main Directorate of Information of Ministry of National Defense was dismantled and replaced by Wojskowa Służba Wewnętrzna (WSW; English: Military Internal Service).

In 1990 the WSW was merged with the Second Department of Polish General Staff, so that Intelligence and counter-intelligence agents were working under one structure. The agency created by the merger became known as Zarząd II Wywiadu i Kontrwywiadu (English: 2nd Directorate for Intelligence and Counter-intelligence). The organization structure was accepted by minister of national defence General Flolrian Siwicki, but at the same time, the Polish military and political establishment wasn't happy about the huge size of 2nd Directorate. Eventually, a decision was made to separate the law enforcement part responsible for law and order in military and create a new organization called Zandarmeria Wojskowa. The remaining post-communist services KI, and military intelligence were transformed in to the Wojskowe Służby Informacyjne (WSI; English: Military Information Services).

Structure and organization

[edit]

When the agency was founded it was responsible for the:

The GZI was originally organised into eight Oddział (English: Branches), which were supported and overseen by the "Office of Strategic Supplies" and the commendatory. By the end of 1945, GZI was made of nine sections and eight lower rank independent sections and detachments. The eight Oddział were:

List of chiefs

[edit]

The person in command of GZI was its "chief". The chief was responsible for GZI actions, and reported directly to first the vice-minister or minister of National Defense.

Repression

[edit]

From 1944 to 1957 GZI WP played a role in cleansing the army of officers and soldiers from the pre-war Polish army who were admitted into the new, Polish People's Army, and was responsible for repressions and executions on Home Army soldiers.

Main cases

[edit]
[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ ""Proces komandorów": temida z sierpem i młotem". Polskie Radio (in Polish).

Bibliography

[edit]