Polacy na Frontach II Wojny Swiatowej 1939 – 1945 [Poles on the Fronts of World War II 1939-1945]

Documenting Poland’s many contributions to Allied victory in World War II.

This striking diagrammatic map of Europe and North Africa was edited by Barbara Filochowska and Janusz Lopatto and published in Warsaw in 1968 by the Polish National Cartographic Publishing Company. The image leverages a clever combination of color schemes, lines, and symbols to highlight the vast efforts by Polish citizens and armed forces during World War II.

As described in a brief wartime chronology printed on the left side, the struggle began with the German invasion on September 1, 1939. While under enemy occupation, the Home Army organized extensive resistance efforts while units of the Polish Army and Air Forces fought in numerous Allied operations, notably on the Eastern Front. Furthermore, disparate partisan forces utilized guerilla tactics with remarkable success.

The legend in the lower left, titled ‘Polish Army Operations’, outlines the various mechanisms used within the map. Red hashes indicate partisan activity and bold arrows show directions of advance. Colors outline political affiliations while long sweeping lines enclose areas of naval and aviation operations. A stylized version of the Polish coat of arms notes countries where Poles participated in the resistance movement (14 total).

Despite the courageous and widespread military efforts depicted within the image, the majority of the six million Polish citizens (1/5 the prewar population) killed during WWII were unarmed civilian victims of war crimes. The map was issued during the late 1960s, when Cold War Soviet perspectives began to dominate the Polish historiography of WWII and the Holocaust. It was part of a broader educational spearheaded by the Council for the Protection of Monuments of Combat and Martyrdom.

The map is uncommon on the open market and listed in about a dozen institutions globally (mostly in Europe) in WorldCat as of February 2025.

Sources: OCLC# 173485628; University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee; Imperial War Museums; Muzeum Wojsk Ladowych;