Polish Legions 1914–19

Osprey Men at Arms #518

by Nigel Thomas

Due to Poland's partitions and dissolution in the late eighteenth century, hundreds of thousands of Polish soldiers enlisted in distinct units in the armies of many countries--primarily those of the Russian and Austro-Hungarian empires, but also those of the German Reich and the French Republic.

All these forces were uniformed and equipped by the parent armies, though often with explicitly Polish features. The collapse of Tsarist Russia in 1917 and of the Central Powers in 1918 allowed these diverse forces to unite in a recreated Polish Army under the newborn Second Polish Republic in November 1918. With full color illustrations of their unique and colorful uniforms as well as contemporary photographs, this is the fascinating story of the Poles who fought on both sides in the trenches in World War I and then united to fight for their freedom in the Russian Civil War.

Genres: World War I, Poland, Military History, History

48 pages, Paperback

Published May 22, 2018

Reviews

[Jereme · Rating 2 out of 5]

Suffers from a lot of the problems other Men at Arms books in that we hear a lot about the existence of such and such a unit and a little about what they did but not very much the character, culture, and organization of said unit. Excellent colour plates however.

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice (but brief) overview of Polish formations (on both sides) in World War I; like other volumes in the Men-at-Arms series, it tends to concentrate on uniforms rather than combat operations.