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| Grey Ranks | |
|---|---|
| Szare Szeregi | |
 | |
| Leader | Florian Marciniak |
| Dates of operation | September 27, 1939 (1939-09-27)–January 18, 1945 (1945-01-18) |
| Country | General government |
| Allegiance | Polish Underground State |
| Motives | Anti-fascism |
| Battles and wars | |
Preceded by ZHP Succeeded by ZMP-OH | |
"Grey Ranks" (Polish:Szare Szeregi) was acodename for the underground paramilitaryPolish Scouting Association (Związek Harcerstwa Polskiego) duringWorld War II.
The wartime organisation was created on 27 September 1939, actively resisted and fought German occupation inWarsaw until 18 January 1945, and contributed to theresistance operations of thePolish Underground State. Some of its members (Grupy Szturmowe – Assault Groups) were among theHome Army's best-trained troops.[citation needed]
Though formally independent, the Grey Ranks worked closely with theGovernment Delegation for Poland and Home Army Headquarters. The Grey Ranks hadtheir own headquarters [pl] known under the cryptonymPasieka ("bee yard") staffed by theChief Scout of Grey Ranks plus three to five deputies in the rank ofHarcmistrz (Scoutmaster).
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Since its organization in 1916, scouts from thePolish Scouting and Guiding Association (Związek Harcerstwa Polskiego, ZHP) had taken an active part in all the conflicts Poland was engaged in around this time:Great Poland Uprising,Polish-Bolshevik War,Silesian Uprisings, and thePolish–Ukrainian War. After the GermanInvasion of Poland in 1939, the Nazis recognized the ZHP as a threat. Polish Scouts and Guides were branded as criminals and banned.[1]
Under the leadership ofFlorian Marciniak, the ZHP carried on as a clandestine organization. The wartime Scouts evolved into the paramilitarySzare Szeregi (Grey Ranks), reporting up through thePolish underground state and theArmia Krajowaresistance organization.[citation needed]
The codenameSzare Szeregi was adopted in 1940. It was first used by underground scouting inPoznań. The name was coined after an early action of the Polish Scouting Association, in which boy scouts distributedpropagandaleaflets among Germans fromLithuania,Latvia andEstonia who had settled in the homes of Poles expelled to theGeneral Government. To create confusion, the leaflets had been signedSS—later expanded toSzare Szeregi, a name that came to be adopted by the entire organization.[citation needed]
Older Scouts carried out sabotage, armed resistance, and assassinations. The Girl Guides formed auxiliary units working as nurses, liaisons and munition carriers. Younger Scouts were involved in so-calledminor sabotage under the auspice of theWawer organization, which included droppingleaflets or painting thekotwica sign on the walls. DuringOperation Tempest, and especially during theWarsaw Uprising, the Scouts participated in the fighting, and severalSzare Szeregi units were some of the most effective in combat. The Grey Ranks also included theWhite Couriers, who between late fall 1939 and mid-1940 helped smuggle many persons out of Soviet-occupied southeastern Poland intoHungary.[citation needed]
In 1940, theSoviet Union executed most of the Boy Scouts held atOstashkov prison.[citation needed]
In 1945 the ZHP restored its former name and returned to public existence. However, the communist authorities of Poland pressured the organization to become a member of thePioneer Movement and eventually it was banned in 1949. The only existing part of pre-war ZHP during the years of the Communist regime was theZHP pgK ('ZHP abroad', consisting of Polish Scouts from USA, UK, Canada, Australia, Argentina, France and Sweden).[citation needed]
The Grey Ranks followed the prewar principles of the Polish Scouting Association: service to the people and country, and education and improvement of their skills. In addition to the prewar oath, the following line was added:[citation needed]
In addition to theScouting moral code, the Grey Ranks also followed a basic three-step path of action. The program was nicknamed "Dziś - jutro - pojutrze" ("Today - tomorrow - the day after"):[citation needed]
The Grey Ranks' structure was based on the prewar structure of the Polish Scouting Association, modified to suit the new circumstances of occupation and repression. The basic unit was the troop (drużyna), comprising some 20 boys or girls. Each troop was composed of several squads (zastępy), eachzastęp comprising 7 persons. Several troops from a specified area (city district, village or town) formed a district (hufiec), which in turn formed part of a region (chorągiew — literally, a banner or standard). During World War II, the several units were referred to by their own code-names:
Theheadquarters of the Gray Ranks [pl] were code-named "Bee Yard" (Pasieka), headed by the commander (Naczelnik). The Grey Ranks' successive commanders were:[citation needed]
At the apogee of the Grey Ranks' strength, Headquarters commanded 20 banners. To control the movement, the area of prewar Poland was divided into departments, each supervising several banners:[citation needed]
An additional banner was formed in theGeneral Government and commanded all the scouts fromGreater Poland expelled from their homes by the Germans (ul "Chrobry" - beehiveChrobry).
An additional banner was formed for scouts expelled from their homes to theGeneral Government (ul Złoty – "Gold beehive").[citation needed][citation needed]
Coordination among the departments and beehives was directed by inspectors subordinate to the Headquarters:Eugeniusz Stasiecki,Edward Zurn andKazimierz Grenda.[citation needed]
As of 1 May 1944, the Grey Ranks numbered 8,359 members. Initially, only older scouts (Senior Scouts, Senior Guides, Rovers and Rangers), aged 17 and up, were admitted. Soon, however, younger children were admitted, and in 1942 a new structure was adopted, based largely on the prewar structure of thePolish Scouting Association.[citation needed]
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Zawisza (pluralZawiszacy) was a group of the youngestScouts of theSzare Szeregi.[citation needed]
Troops organised for children between 12 and 14 years of age were code-namedZawisza, afterZawisza Czarny, amedieval Polish knight and diplomat. The troops did not take part in active resistance. Instead, the children were prepared for auxiliary service for the upcomingall-national uprising and taught insecret schools for their future duties in liberated Poland. Among the best-known auxiliary troops formed by theZawiszacy was theScouting Postal Service organised during theWarsaw Uprising.[citation needed]
The Combat Schools (Bojowe Szkoły) comprised youngsters aged 15 to 17. They took part in "small-sabotage" operations. These included propaganda operations directed at the Poles, German civilians and German military units. The best-known operations were:[citation needed]
Other famous operations included marking street lamps as "Nur für Deutsche" ("Only for Germans"), implying that those who hanged people would themselves be hanged (from street lamps). Other operations occurred after the Germans began destroyingmonuments to Polish national heroes and historical personalities. These included a monument toJan Kiliński, leader of an 18th-century Warsaw uprising against the Russians during theKościuszko Uprising. The Germans dismantled the monument and placed it in the cellars of the former National Museum, for delivery to a German steel mill. The scouts were notified of where the monument was hidden and overnight marked the walls of the former museum, "People of Warsaw! I am here. Kiliński".[citation needed]
As part of their secret training, the Combat Schools boys and girls prepared for service with the Home Army as members of commanders' troops, communication units, and reconnaissance units. During theWarsaw Uprising, Combat Schools units in Warsaw'sDowntown District formed acompany; in other districts, they formedplatoons.[citation needed]
The Assault Groups (Grupy Szturmowe), comprising youngsters aged 17 and up, were directly subordinate to theHome Army'sKeDyw (Directorate of Diversion). The groups trained at secretNCO schools and officer schools for commanders of motorised and engineering units. Most members also studied atunderground universities, to gain the knowledge necessary to reconstruct Poland after the war. The best-known NCO schools included Warsaw'sAgricola.[citation needed]
The assault groups took part in "major sabotage", including armed struggle against the occupiers. The assault groups formed the backbone of the Home Army's special troops. They liberated prisoners from German prisons and transports, blew up railroad bridges, carried out executions ordered byspecial courts, and fought pitched battles against German forces.
The assault groups in Warsaw were organised into several battalions, including the famous "Baszta", "Zośka", "Parasol" and "Wigry", which later took part in theWarsaw Uprising and were among the most notable and successful units on the Polish side. Other units, mainly in theRadom-Kielce area, joined thepartisan units operating in the forests of theŚwiętokrzyskie Mountains.[citation needed]
Notable assault-group operations included:[citation needed]
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