Armband worn by members of the Polish Home Army.
Also known as the Armia Krajowa (AK), the Polish Home Army was formed in February 1942. It was the largest underground resistance movement in Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II. The AK conducted sabotage, intelligence gathering, and other forms of resistance, and it remained in existence until the end of the war in 1945. Armbands such as the one above were locally made by hand with white and red cloth. Some of these bands were printed with the letters WP which stands for “Wojsko Polskie” (Polish Army) along side the Polish eagle, but some bands, such as this one, were marked with the letters “AK.”
Shaped in the style of a Greek cross, the Warsaw Uprising Cross was established as a military decoration by the government of Poland in 1981. The “I.VII” and “1944” indicate that it honors those who participated in the Warsaw Uprising, which began on August 1, 1944. This cross includes the anchor or Kotwica, which combines the “P” and the “W.” In 1942, this was established as the symbol of resistance of the Polish Home Army (Armia Krajowa) in Warsaw.
This undated shield badge commemorates the Warsaw Uprising of 1944. The front includes the letters “AK” for Armia Krajowa and that body’s symbol, the anchor or Kotwica. The date on which the Uprising began–August 1, 1944–is inscribed on the back of the badge. The Polish Home Army’s goal was to drive out the occupying Germans from Warsaw and to reclaim Polish independence. The Warsaw Uprising was the single largest military effort that challenged the German occupation in Poland during World War II. By October 2, the Germans had stopped the Uprising which resulted in thousands of soldiers and civilians being deported to concentration camps as well as the destruction of the majority of Warsaw.
Author: Brendan Rivest, History major, Elms College.