Figure 1.--Here Primeminister Churchill signs an autograph for a Polish-British girl in Newtongrange. This was an imprtant coal mining town in Scotland that had a large Polish miners population. We are not sure when the photograph was taken, but it may have been during the post-War General Election (July 1945). .

Only small numbers of Europeans of any nationality entered Britain before the modern era. We are not aware of large numbers of Europeans entering Britain in the 18th or 19th centuries. Europeans primarily wanted to reach America. We notice some Italians, but not in large numbers. The largest European group in Britain is the Poles. This might surprise many because they have been such positive, hard working immigrants and thus do not attracy much attention. The same is true in America. Small numbers reached England as part of Canute's Army during the medieval era. A few reached Polnd as a result of the Poish Partitions (18th century). Larger numbers arrived apparemtly as part of Tsarist oppression and the British coal export trade (19th century). Poles who reached Britain before the end of World War I were Russian subjects. As a result the British sometimes refer to them as 'Russian' Poles. Most thought they were boarding ships to America, but found themselves in England and Scotland. Britain was a major coal exporter to Continental Europe. This caused a problem for the Germans in both world wars, espcially World War II because serious coal shotages developed within the Grossraum. There were also Polish POWs in Britain. Poles were an important support for Britain during the War beginning with the Battle Of Britain. Some Europeans entered England after World War II, the greatest number came from Poland. The Poles that fought with Britain during World War II were afraid to return home after the Communists seized control and for good reason. The Soviets during the War treated many Poles brutally. The best known incident was the Katyn atrocity and after the war Poles who fought in the ant-NAZI Resistance (Home Army) were arrested by the NKVD and executed. After the fall of Communism and Poland ebtering the European Union, large numbers of Poles emigrated to Britain. Before Brixet, there were some 0.8 million Polish born people in Britain and iver 1.0 million people of Polish ancestry. This makes Poles the largest foreign immigrant group in Poland. Most of the Polish population arrived as a result of EU enlargement (2004).

Overview

Only small numbers of Europeans of any nationality entered Britain before the modern era. We are not aware of large numbers of Europeans entering Britain in the 18th or 19th centuries. Europeans primarily wanted to reach America. We notice some Italians, but not in large numbers. The largest European group in Britain is the Poles. This might surprise many because they have been such positive, hard working immigrants and thus do not attract much attention. The same is true in America.

Early History

Only small mumbers of Poles reached Britain before the 19th century. Polabian Slavs (Wends) are known settled in parts of the Danelaw (Danish controlled north-eastern England) as Danish allies. [Shore, pp. 84-1020.] Small numbers reached England as part of Canute's Army during the medieval era. England in the late-medival era exported wool, but imported some of its grain from Eastern Europe. Much of this came from the Balics and Poland (16th century). Along with the grain came merchants and others. An important grain route was the Eastland Company trade route between Gdańsk and London. Shakespeare even mentions the 'sledded polack' in Hamlet. One source reports that the Virginia Company hired a group of Poles to help salvage the Jamestown Colony in America (1608). They apparently formed an early association which might be meric's first trade union. [Holshouser et. al.]` After the Battle of Vienna in which a Christian Polish Army defeated a besieging Ottoman army (1683), a pub in London's Soho was christened the King of Poland and the street on which it was located became known as Poland Street. Poland's more moderate Catholcism sve it from the worst ravages of the European religious wars (17th century), butsome Polish Protestants settled around Poland Street, feeing the counter reformation. A few Poles reached Britaun as a result of the Polish Paritions (late-18th century).

The 19th Century

As a result of the Polish Partitions, mos of Poland became part of the Russian Tsarist Empire. As a result, the British began using the term 'Russian Poles'. The Polish November Uprising failed (1831). The brutal Tsarist repression which fillowed caused many insurgents to flee. Britain at the time was a relative haven for Continental recolutionaries. Later in the century, larger numbers of Poles reached Britain as a result of the British coal trade. After delivering coal to Baltic ports, coal and shipping companies offered transit to Poles attempting to escape Tsarist oppesion and cinscription and trying to reach America. Most thought they were boarding ships to America, but found themselves in England and Scotland. Britain was a major coal exporter to Continental Europe. This caused a problem for the Germans in both world wars, especially World War II because serious coal shotages developed within the Grossraum. This was the origin of most Poles in Britain during the late-19th century. [Duncan] This bgan in the 1890s and cintinued into the early-20th century. The coal companies hired many of the men to work in coal mines. A large new coal mine opened at Newtongrange in Scotland hired many Poles.

World War I

Some of the eatlier emigrees returned to Russia to fight for Poland. Their dependents were vntually retuned to Russia or Polabd. Other's joined or were conscripted into the British Army. A treaty with Russia permitted each county to conscript each other's nationals. [Duncan] After the War many emigrated to America. There were also Polish World War I POWs in Britain, Poles who served in the the German and Austrian Armies fighting against the Russians on the Easrern Front. Quite a number in the London POW camps (Alexandra Palace and Feltham) settled in London after the War.

World War II

World War II began with the German and Soviet invasions of Poland (September 1939). Poland was the first country to confront Hitler and the NAZIs. The Poles were quickly crushed by the two totalitarian giants, even so Poland made an important contribution to the war effort against NAZI Germany. A few Poles managed to escape as Poland fell and reach the West, some 20,000 soldiers and airmen. At first the Poles could only fight with the Allies, first in France and after the fall of France in Britain. The Poles who fought with Britain forned the core of the Polish community in Britain today. Polish officials set up the POlish Government in Exile. Poles were the largest group of non-British personnel in the RAF during the Battle of Britain, and the 303 Polish Squadron was the highest-scoring Polish RAF unit in the Battle of Britain (1940). Polish cryptographers Jerzy Rozycki, Henryk Zygalski and Marian Rejewski played an important role ib cracking the German Enigna Machine. Bletchley Park cryptologist Gordon Welchman after the War wrote, "Ultra would never have got off the ground if we had not learned from the Poles, in the nick of time, the details both of the German military... Enigma machine, and of the operating procedures that were in use." [Welchman, p. 289.] The number of Poles at first were limited, this changed with the NAZI in invasion of the Soviet Union (June 1941). The Polish soldiers captured by the Germans were in horific NAZI POW camps. There were, however, large numbers of Polish soldiers in Soviet hands. They were also treated dreadfully and terribly abused in the Soviet Gulag. [Rawicz] The NKVD on Stalin;s orders execulted tens of thousands. The Katyn Massacre was the tip of the iceberg. This changed dramatically with the NAZI invasion of the Sovuet Union (June 1941). Suddenly Stalin needed the Poles. And as brutally as the Soviets had treated the Poles, the NAZIs ere even more brutal. Some of the Polish POWs were allowed to fight with the Red Army, although many took months to recover from Soviet starvation and mistreatment. The British helped arrange a Polish-Soviet Treaty (July 1941). Stalin allowed Poles in his camps the option of fighting with the British. They had to make their way from Central Asian and Siberian camps to Iran where they could be transprted to the British forces in the Middle East. They formed Anders Army, the II Corps (Poland) as part of the British 8th Army. The Poles, although occupied, thus formed the fourth-largest armed force fighting the NAZIs after the Soviets, the Americans and the combined British Empire forces. The Poles wwre active in the Special Operations Executive, cooprating with the Polish resistance--the Polish Home Army. The Polish Army fighting with the British were notable at the Battle of Monte Cassino, the Battle of the Falaise Gap, the Battle of Arnhem, the Siege of Tobruk and the liberation of many European cities including Bologna and Breda. Over 230,000 Poles fought with the Brtish during the War.

The Cold War

At the end of the War (May 1945), some 228,000 troops of the Polish Armed Forces in the West serving with the British Army. As the Soviet POWs were taken in Eastern Poland, many were from the Kresy region of eastern Poland, cities such as Lwow (now Lviv, Ukraine) and Wilno (now Vilnius, Lithuania). The Kresy and other Poles hoped to return to a liberated, independent, and democratic Poland after the War. But Poland had not been liberated by the Red Army, it simply replace NAZI occupation with Soviet occupation. And at Yalta, America and Britain had no way of altering this. The Doviets not only kept the area of Poland occupied in 1939, bit conducted a massuve population transfer, transprting Poles in the Soviet zone west. When it becane known wgat was happening, 30 Polish officers xand men from the II Corps (Poland) committed suicide. [Olson and Cloud, pp.374-383.] A contntious 3-day Parliamentary debate occurred (February 1945). The Primeminister addressed the possibiliy of British citzenship. Most of the Poles that fought with Britain during World War II were afraid to return home after the Communists seized control and for good reason. The Soviets during the War treated many Poles brutally. The best known incident was the Katyn atrocity and after the war Poles who fought in the ant-NAZI Resistance (Home Army) were arrested by the NKVD and executed. The Trial of the Sixteen in Moscow (1945) what awated the Poles who fought with the Allies (June 1945). Parloament passed the Polish Resettlement Act (1947). This was Britain's first mass immigration law. A very large Poluish community developed around Swindon because many Polish soldiers were stationed there during the war.

European Union

After the fall of Communism and Poland ebtering the European Union, large numbers of Poles emigrated to Britain. Before Brixet, there were some 0.8 million Polish born people in Britain and iver 1.0 million people of Polish ancestry. This makes Poles the largest foreign immigrant group in Poland. Most of the Polish population arrived as a result of EU enlargement (2004).

Sources

Duncan, John. "Down memory lane: Bewtongrnge 'Russian Poles'war effort recalled," Midlothian Advertiser (January 9, 2014), p. 21..

Holshouser, Joshua D., Lucyna Brylinska-Padney, and Katarzyna Kielbasa. The Role and Accomplishments of Polish Pioneers in the Jamestown Colony (Polish American Congress, July 2007).

Olson, Lynne and Stanley Cloud. A Question of Honor: The Kosciuszko Squadron: Forgotten Heroes of World War II (2003).

Rawicz, Slavomir. (Lyons Press: Gilford, Conneticut, 2010). Originall published in 1956.

Shore, Thomas William. (February 2008). Origin of the Anglo-Saxon Race: A Study of the Settlement of England and the Tribal Origin of the Old English People (Read Books: 2008).

Welchman, Gordon. The Hut Six Story

Created: 4:30 PM 9/25/2017
Last updated: 4:30 PM 9/25/2017