pre-WW2/WW2 Unique Polish Memorabilia Set of 14th Jazłowiecki Lancers Regiment – General Grudziński Collection.

An exceptional collection of memorabilia related to the 14th Jazłowiec Lancer Regiment from the collection of General Antoni Grudziński, one of the unit commanders. This set was likely exhibited at the Jazłowiec House in London. On the reverse, there is General Grudziński’s stamp and on the front, a card with the inscription “Collection of Colonel A. Grudziński. The display was probably assembled around 1950-64. The set includes:

• pre-WW2 Polish Officer’s Badge of the 14th Jazłowiec Uhlan Regiment from the First Award (Number 31) – Jan Knedler
• pre-WW2 Polish Honorary Pennant Badge with Virtuti Militari for Officers of the 14th Jazłowiec Uhlan Regiment – Jan Knedler
• pre-WW2 Polish Commemorative Gorget of the 14th Jazłowiec Uhlan Regiment for Colonel Godlewski (Buszek Lwów)
• WW2 Polish Soldier’s Badge of the 14th Jazłowiec Uhlan Regiment – Spink & Son
• WW2 Polish Soldier’s Badge of the 14th Armored Cavalry Regiment – Mackay & Chisholm Edinburgh
• WW2 Polish Pair of Enamel Pennants of the 14th Jazłowiec Uhlan Regiment

The pre-WW2 Polish Officer’s Badge of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment badge is in the form of a white enameled Maltese cross (one arm damaged). In the center, there is a shield in the colors of Virtuti Militari (blue-black enamel) with a miniature Virtuti Militari cross. In the background is the “Podolia Sun” with the initials “UJ” for Uhlans of Jazłowiec and the date “1918”, the regiment’s founding year. It is a three-part construction. The reverse has a threaded post and engraved number “31”. This badge is from the first award in 1922. It is very delicate and prone to damage, making it very hard to find on the market. The badge has a manufacturer’s nut – Jan Knedler.

The Pre-WW2 Polish Honorary Pennant Badge with Virtuti Militari for Officers of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment is in the form of an enameled pennant in yellow and white colors, with a miniature Virtuti Militari cross at the top. The reverse is smooth with a Warsaw silver hallmark (1931-39) and the initials of Jan Knedler. The pennant was awarded to officers who received the Virtuti Militari cross during the Polish-Soviet War, usually engraved on the reverse with the officer’s details.

WW2 Polish Other Rank Badge of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment of – Spink & Son. The 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment was part of the 1st Armored Division of General Maczek and later transferred to the 16th Armored Brigade. The badge is in the shape of a Maltese cross, mounted on a rosette (Podolia sun). In the center of the cross is a miniature Virtuti Militari order. The rosette has the initials (UJ) for Uhlans of Jazłowiec and the date (1918). The reverse is smooth with a central mounting post. The nut is round and signed by the manufacturer (Spink & Son London). The badge is made of silver, tested with a spectrometer (Ag 95.7%). This version of the badge is mentioned by Tony Leszczuk and Krzysztof Barbarski in the book “The Polish Army in the West 1939-47, Commemorative and Specialist Badges, 2020” item 33b, page 25.

WW2 Polish Other Ranks Badge of the 14th Armored Cavalry Regiment – Mackay & Chisholm Edinburgh. The 14th Armored Cavalry Regiment continued the tradition of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment and was part of General Maczek’s 1st Armored Division, later transferred to the 16th Armored Brigade. The badge is in the shape of a Maltese cross, with tanks between the arms from the top. In the center of the cross is an octagon with black enamel and the letters UJ “Uhlans of Jazłowiec”. The reverse is smooth with a central mounting post. The nut is round and smooth. This version of the badge is mentioned by Tony Leszczuk and Krzysztof Barbarski in the book “The Polish Army in the West 1939-47, Commemorative and Specialist Badges, 2020” item 32b, page 24.

Pair of Enamelled Pennants of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment of the Polish Armed Forces in the West, Germany 1945. The pennants are in yellow with a white stripe. Made of brass, gilded. The reverse is smooth with a soldered post. The nuts are smooth with the inscription “Made in Germany”. The pennants were made in occupied Germany. Rare enamelled examples in impeccable condition without any defects, which is very rare.

A pre-WW2 Commemorative Gorget of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment for Colonel Godlewski made by Buszek of Lwów . A unique commemorative gorget made by the most outstanding Lwów engraver, Władysław Buszek, presented by the Jazłowiec Lancers in 1935 to their new commander, Colonel Edward Godlewski. As one of the commanders of the Home Army, he contributed to saving Kraków by preventing the uprising in the AK Kraków area.

The gorget is in the shape of a slightly convex shield made of silver sheet. In the upper central part, there is a plaque with the image of the Virgin Mary of Jazłowiec, the patroness of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment. Below the Virgin Mary, on the central axis, there is a miniature badge of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancers Regiment Badge in the form of a white enamelled Maltese cross. In the center of the Maltese cross is a round shield enamelled in the blue-black colors of the Virtuti Militari ribbon, on which a miniature Virtuti Militari cross is mounted. In the background of the Maltese cross is a round rosette called the “Podolia sun” with the letters UJ (Uhlans of Jazłowiec) and the founding date of the regiment – 1918.

The reverse is smooth with five rivets visible for mounting the plaque with the Virgin Mary and the miniature badge. In the upper part, there is an engraved inscription“1918 – 1935, DROGIEMU PÓL JAZŁOWIECKICH BOJOWNIKOWI, NA PAMIĄTKĘ KOLEDZY”,  “1918 – 1935, TO OUR DEAR COMRADE OF JAZŁOWIECKI FIELDS, IN MEMORY, COMRADES”. At the edge of the lower part of the plaque, there are three hallmarks – the Lwów assay office silver hallmark, the silversmith’s initials “W.B”, and the full hallmark of the workshop “W. BUSZEK LWÓW”.

One of the few known original commemorative gorgets of the 14th Jazłowiec Lancer Regiment, awarded on special occasions to the most outstanding individuals of pre-war Poland. According to our research, at least seven plaques were awarded, including to Marshal Józef Piłsudski, General Tadeusz Komorowski, and General Kleeberg. The offered plaque is one of two awarded in 1935. The first plaque was given as a memento to Colonel Andrzej Kunachowicz when he left the command of the 14th Lancers, and the second to his successor, who returned to his native unit after many years, Colonel Edward Godlewski. The gorget of Colonel Andrzej Kunachowicz is almost identical to the presented example and probably formed a pair; it can also be assumed that both were awarded at the same time.

The plaque comes from the former collection of General Antoni Grudziński and was part of the commemorative display, which likely hung in the Jazłowiecki Uhlans’ House in London.

An outstanding memento in fantastic condition from one of the most distinguished Polish heroes of the twentieth century.

“Edward Józef Godlewski was born on July 10, 1895. In the year of the outbreak of the First World War (1914), he passed his matriculation exam at a gymnasium in St. Petersburg and was conscripted into the tsarist army. He fought on the western front. After completing the cavalry officer school in August 1917, he received the rank of second lieutenant. In the same year, he began service in the I Polish Corps in the East. In June 1918, he joined the Polish squadron at the Paszowska Station on the Don. This unit became the core of the 14th Jazłowiec Uhlan Regiment. In July 1919, he took part in battles with Ukrainians near Jazłowiec. The brilliant Polish triumph became one of the symbols on which the myth of the invincible Polish cavalry was built in the Second Republic, and the victorious unit was named the 14th Jazłowiec Uhlan Regiment.

For his heroism during the Polish-Bolshevik War in the battle of Niestanica on August 14, 1920, he was awarded the Silver Cross of the Virtuti Militari Military Order. In the interwar period, he underwent further education and rose through the ranks. In September 1939, he was the commander of the cavalry brigade from the cavalry operational group of General Anders. At the head of the unit, he fought, among others, in the battle of Kock. After Poland’s defeat, he became one of the commanders of the Home Army. As commander of the Home Army’s Kraków Area, he prevented the outbreak of the uprising in Kraków in 1944. This fact contributed to saving Kraków from destruction. Godlewski retired from the army in July 1945.

He particularly distinguished himself with a charge at Wólka Węglowa on September 19. After the battles in the Kampinos Forest, he broke through to the capital with his decimated regiment and fought in its defense. After the capitulation of Warsaw, he did not go into captivity. For his bravery in the defensive war, he was awarded the Gold Cross of the Virtuti Militari War Order.

From the beginning, he was actively involved in the underground resistance. Initially with the Service for Poland’s Victory, later with the Union of Armed Struggle, and ultimately with the Home Army. In 1942, he was a regional inspector for the Main Command in the Białystok District. From the autumn of 1942, he held the position of commander of the Białystok Area of the Home Army. In May 1944, he was appointed commander of the Kraków District of the Home Army. At the end of July, he was promoted to brigadier general. Despite earlier plans and the declaration of full combat readiness, he did not give the order to start an uprising in Kraków. On September 1, 1944, he ordered the “Skała” Partisan Battalion to move to aid Warsaw.

On October 19, 1944, he was arrested near Kielce. In December, he was sent to the German concentration camp Groß-Rosen. From February 1945, he was a prisoner in the Mauthausen concentration camp. He died of hunger and exhaustion a few days before liberation, in May 1945.

Antoni Grudziński (born November 17, 1897, in Wilno, died December 1, 1981, in London) was a colonel of the Polish Army and the Polish Armed Forces, promoted to brigadier general by Władysław Anders in 1964. He studied at the Polytechnic in St. Petersburg. He began his military service in July 1918 in the Uhlan squadron in Kuban, later renamed the Uhlan regiment of General Żeligowski’s 4th Rifle Division. He returned to the country with the division. He was a cadet at the officer cadet school from November 1919 to April 1920. During the Polish-Soviet War, he commanded a platoon in the 14th Lancers Regiment, and until November 1926, he served as an adjutant in the same regiment.

On November 2, 1926, he was assigned to the Higher War School in Warsaw as a student of the Normal Course 1926-1928. On October 31, 1928, after completing the course and receiving a diploma as a General Staff officer, he was assigned to the headquarters of the 2nd Cavalry Division in Warsaw as a staff officer. On April 24, 1930, he was appointed acting chief of staff of the 2nd Cavalry Division in Warsaw. On November 1, 1930, he was assigned to the army inspectorate in Lwów. In November 1934, he returned as the squadron commander in the 14th Jazłowiecki Lancers Regiment in Lwów, and in January 1935, he was assigned to the 3rd Section of the General Staff. In July 1939, he was appointed deputy commander of the 14th Lancers Regiment in Lwów.

During the September Campaign, he served in the Operational Section of the Chief of Staff in Poland and then in France, where he was assigned to the Operational Section of the XX French Corps Staff. He was the deputy chief of the 3rd Section of the Chief of Staff in London from June 1940. On June 30, 1941, he took command of the reconnaissance squadron of the I Corps, which was reorganized into the 1st Reconnaissance Regiment on June 30, 1942. On July 13, 1942, he handed over command of the regiment and became deputy commander of the 16th Armored Brigade. He was an aide-de-camp to the chief of the Chief of Staff in London from 1943-1944, and from March to September 1944, he served as a liaison officer of the Chief of Staff to the British 21st Army Group Command. In September 1944, he was appointed deputy commander of the 10th Armored Cavalry Brigade. From June 1945 to June 1947, he commanded this brigade. In June 1947, he joined the Polish Resettlement Corps and took command of the 54th PKPR Brigade Group.

After demobilization, he settled in London. On May 27, 1978, he was appointed deputy chairman of the Military Adjudication Commission. He collaborated with the Sikorski Institute in London. He died in a road accident on December 1, 1981.