Tadeusz Franciszek Semik was a Polish lieutenant colonel of the Polish Armed Forces who was most notable during his service in World War II.
Tadeusz Franciszek Semik | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | August 26, 1889 Sucha Beskidzka, Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, Austria-Hungary |
| Died | November 27, 1978 (aged 89) Sucha Beskidzka, Bielsko-Biała Voivodeship, Poland |
| Allegiance |  Republic of Poland Polish People's Republic |
| Branch | Polish Armed Forces Polish People's Army |
| Years of service | 1918–1948 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Battles / wars | Polish-Soviet War World War II |
Biography
editHaving completed the middle and a high school diploma, Semik volunteered for the Polish Army on November 3, 1918,[1] where was assigned to 12th Infantry Regiment in Wadowicach. Together with this unit, he fought in the Polish-Soviet War.
After the end of the war, he entered the Infantry Cadet School in Warsaw, which he graduated on July 1, 1921,[1] and as a second lieutenant, he was assigned to the 2nd Legions' Infantry Regiment, in which he served in the years 1921-1927 as a platoon commander, and then a company commander.[1]
Then, in the years 1927–1931, he served in the maneuvering battalion of the Infantry Training Center in Rembertów, 17th Infantry Regiment in Rzeszów, from 1931 to November 12, 1935.[1] On February 22, 1934, he was appointed to the rank of captain with the seniority of January 1, 1934 and the 71st position in the corps of infantry officers.[2] Later, he served in the KOP "Czortków" battalion as the commander of the 1st machine gun company[3][4] until August 1939.[1] He completed the battalion commanders' course on August 25, 1939, and was assigned to the 1st Mountain Brigade, whose task was to cover the Kraków Army eastern wing.
On August 28, 1939, he formed and took command of 151 "Węgierska Górka" fortress company. At its head, during the Invasion of Poland, he fought at Węgierska Górka. He then received incredible courage and the ability to use his shooting talent. Due to inability to resist further, deprived of communication and outside help, he surrendered the position to the overwhelming German forces. Semik was heavily wounded on September 3,[1] he was captured, where he spent the rest of the war. He stayed in the XA Itzehoe, XC Lubeck and the Oflag II-C camps.[1]
After his release, January 25, 1945, by the Red Army, Semik returned to Polish on May 1, 1945, and volunteered for the Polish People's Army, where he was assigned to the 46 Infantry Regiment 13 Infantry Division in Katowice, the commander of the battalion.[1] On November 15, 1945, he became the commander of the 48th Section Headquarters in Prudnik,[1] and then for several years as a major he performed many functions in the Katowice Department of WOP No. 10. In 1948 he was transferred to the reserve. In 1964, in recognition of his merits, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He died on November 27, 1978, in Sucha Beskidzka and was buried there.
Awards
edit- Virtuti Militari, Silver Cross
- Cross of Merit, Gold Cross
- Cross of Merit, Silver Cross — 1938 "for merits in the service of border protection"[2]
- Medal of Victory and Freedom 1945
- Medal of the Decade of Regained Independence
- Commemorative Medal for the War of 1918-1921
- Wound Decoration
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i Jurga, Tadeusz; Strzałkowski, Waldemar (1990). "Biographies of the commanders of Polish units in the defense war of 1939". Defense of Poland 1939. Warsaw: PAX Publishing Institute. ISBN 8321110967.
- ^ a b "Personnel Journal of the Ministry of Military Affairs". Retrieved 2020-03-31.
- ^ Rybka, Richard; Stepan, Kamil (2006). Officer's yearbook 1939. Status on March 23, 1939. Krakow: CDCN Foundation. ISBN 9788371888991.
- ^ Jabłonowski, Marek; Jankowski, Włodzimierz; Pole, Bogusław; Prochwicz, Jerzy (2001). O Niepodległą i granice. [T. 4], Korpus Ochrony Pogranicza 1924-1939 : wybór dokumentów [O independent and borders . Border Protection Corps 1924-1939. Selection of documents] (in Polish). Warszawa-Pułkusk: University of Humanities in Pułtusk. Faculty of Journalism and Political Science, University of Warsaw. ISBN 83-88067-47-8.