Zygmunt Berling

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Zygmunt Henryk Berling (1896–1980) was a Polish general and later a politician. He was born in Limanowa, then part of Austria-Hungary. He joined the Polish Legions in 1914 to fight for Poland’s independence. During the oath crisis in 1917–1918 he served in the Austro-Hungarian Army. After World War I he joined the Polish Army and led an infantry company.

In the Polish-Soviet War he distinguished himself at the Battle of Lwów and received the Virtuti Militari, Poland’s highest military decoration. He rose through the ranks and by 1930 was a lieutenant colonel in charge of infantry regiments. He retired briefly in 1939 because of personal and political disagreements and did not take part in Poland’s defense during the 1939 invasion.

After Vilnius was occupied by the Soviets, Berling was arrested by the NKVD and spent time in prison. He later agreed to cooperate with the Soviets. Following the Sikorski–Mayski agreement in 1941, he helped form a new Polish army in the Soviet Union. In 1943 he became the commander of the first unit of this army, the 1st Tadeusz Kościuszko Infantry Division, and was promoted to general by Stalin. He served as deputy commander of the Polish Army on the Eastern Front from July 1944.

During the Warsaw Uprising in 1944, Berling led a rescue operation to cross the Vistula River and support Warsaw; the mission failed and many soldiers died. After this he was moved to Moscow to study, and returned to Poland in 1947, where he helped run a military academy. He retired from the military in 1953.

In later years Berling held government jobs in agriculture and forestry. He joined the ruling party in 1963. He died in 1980 and is buried at Powązki Military Cemetery in Warsaw.