Carpathian Brigade

The Oxford Companion to World War II | 2001 | 700+ words | Copyright

Carpathian Brigade, Polish unit, some 5,800 strong, full title the 1st Independent Carpathian Fusilier Brigade. It was formed in Syria in May 1940 within General Weygand's French forces there. Its personnel, all high-quality volunteers, came from Polish troops who had escaped through the Balkans after the Polish campaign. After the fall of France in June 1940, the brigade moved to Palestine to avoid falling under Vichy control, and then to Tobruk where its commander, Maj-General Stanisław Kopański, commanded the Allied garrison after the Australian garrison had been replaced. In November 1941 it took part in the CRUSADER offensive in the Western Desert campaigns before being withdrawn to Palestine in March 1942 having suffered 200 killed and 424 wounded. It was then reorganized as the 3rd Carpathian Division which subsequently took part in the Italian campaign as part of the 2nd Polish Corps (see Anders' army). The brigade's name reflected the soldiers' hopes that they would be able to liberate their homeland by crossing Southern Europe and traversing the Carpathian mountains.

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I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Carpathian Brigade." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Carpathian Brigade." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-CarpathianBrigade.html

I. C. B. DEAR and M. R. D. FOOT. "Carpathian Brigade." The Oxford Companion to World War II. 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O129-CarpathianBrigade.html

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