Customer Reviews

The Forgotten Few: The Polish Air Force in the Second World War

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This is fascinating history. Polish aces made a significant contribution to the RAF's efforts to fight the Germans. This book gives those significant details. Aviation enthusiast will find out why Polish pilots had one of the highest kill-loss ratios in the ETO. They will find that the Polish Air Forde was not detroyed on the ground in September, 1939 but went on to combat the Germans to the end of the war. The Battle of Britain information is especially informative.

This book recounts the role of Polish pilots in the Allied war effort. It discusses how the Poles accounted for a disproportionate share of German planes downed over England. It also discusses the personal lives of the pilots, including the homesickness felt every Christmas. The all-but-forgotten sufferings of the Poles under both German Nazis and Soviet Communists is recounted in some detail. There is discussion of the heartbreak and outrage experienced by the pilots once they learned that the western Allies betrayed Poland to Soviet control after the war, ruling out a return home for most of the pilots. The postwar lives of some of the pilots are also recounted. The ingratitude of the British shown in politics was duplicated by much of the civilian population soon after the war. The short memory of the British, who forgot that Poles were fighting for the very survival of Britain a few short years earlier, were now clamoring for the Poles to go home. Other details are also provided. There is even mention of a Polish pilot, decades after the war, locating, in Bavaria, the German pilot he had shot down back in September 1939.

This is an excellent book about an ignored group of heroes from the Battle of Briton. It is well written and documented. It gives a gripping and true account of the gallant Polish airmen who helped save England from Nazism. It also sadly shows how they were mistreated after the war. I would highly recommend this book for anybody studying World War II history and / or Polish history. It is rich with details but not boring. I could not put this book down and began reading large segments to my wife. She previously had minimal interest in history and found the book very facinating!

This book beside being interesting and intelligently written is unique in showing the "reverse of the coin". It is the book which shows the reality of the (sometimes mundane) life endured during II world war by people described in it. It was refreshing to read it. After reading many historical books I was almost always left with feeling that something was missing. Of ourse yes, the ordinary every day life was omitted in those books, but not in this one. I am looking forward to the next book of this author !

This book is for you if you want to learn little-known facts about World War II, as well as the under-rated and often minimized contributions of Poland to the Allied war effort. This book is NOT for you if you are content to wallow in false stereotypes of Poles charging German tanks with lances.

This is a documentary covering World War II from the invasion of Poland by Germany on September 1 '39, the "Funny" war in France , the Battle of Britain and the defeat of Germany by the Allies in 1945. Well documented but witty , well written, unusual. Recommended to all interested in history , Poland and World War II

Being born in 1950, though not really aware of it at the time, I was brought up in post-war Britain. That was a time when anyone from Poland attracted a great deal of respect. It was Hitler's invasion of that country which had precipitated WW2 and, the general perception was, any Polish person living in the UK at that time was there because they had made some sort of contribution towards the final victory.

One of the most vital contributions during 1939-1945, was made by Polish pilots who, not only manned a Polish Air Force (PAF), which ran alongside the RAF, but were also integrated into the wider RAF. Before that, however, one of the most remarkable aspects of this compelling story is that the PAF itself had been equipped with a mere 159 A P-11 fighter aircraft (something which resembles an old bi-plane but with the lower wing missing!) with which they attempted to defend Poland from the 2,000 plus German aircraft with pilots fresh from the "training" grounds of the Spanish civil war. It was an impossible task and Poland was quickly overrun. Nevertheless, many trained people managed to escape and were evacuated from France in 1940 after which they continued the fight from the UK.

Fully operational as a separate air force based in the UK by 1941, the PAF had no fewer than 14 operational squadrons through which over 17,000 personnel passed during those war years. As part of Fighter and Bomber Commands they completed 102,486 sorties and over 290,000 flying hours accounting for 745 enemy aircraft shot down and a further 175 unconfirmed. In addition they dropped many thousands of bombs and mines. The cost was 1,973 killed and 1,388 wounded in return for 342 gallantry awards and their country dominated by Communist Russia.

And this is their story. As such it is well researched with the list of sources and bibliography running to 10 pages. A selection of 30 wide-ranging black and white photographs are found between pages 112 and 113. Author Adam Zamoyski has produced a readable account in which the dedication becomes all the more poignant when one considers what became of post-war Poland.

Altogether, this is an excellent product and one which will be regarded as an important addition to the histories of Poland, The Polish Air Force, WW2 and the RAF.

NM

As with all his previous books, Adam Zamoyski's "The Forgotten Few..." is not only a gem of writer's art but also, despite author's own claims to the contrary, a book well researched, full of factual information, and offering insights largely omitted in both the official histories of the Polish Air Force operations in Britain during WW2 and in the "patriotically" slanted eulogies. Zamoyski pays full tribute to the matchless professionalism of Polish pilots and ground crews, their heroism, and the consequent contribution to victory. Yet, he writes with equal directness about problems of discipline and various degrees of demoralization among Polish Air Force units, the resultant and quite frequent frictions with RAF personnel that could have been readily avoided, and even the occasional conflicts with law.

The approach to the British attitudes toward Polish airmen is equally objective and unsparing. The reader learns of the initial reluctance of RAF command to accept combat-experienced and often extraordinarily talented Polish pilots as worthy contributors to the war effort, the subsequent "Polish euphoria" of Britons jubilant at success of Polish fighter squadrons during the Battle of Britain, soon to be followed by "Polophobia" growing among politicians, media, and the rest of the British society, and culminating in the singular insult of eliminating representatives of the Polish Armed Forces from participating in the victory parade in London. The ultimately dishonorable treatment the Poles received from their comrades at arms, where the British attitude converted from the "most heroic few" to the "most unwanted burden" is presented in the context of large-scale political realities of dealing with Stalin, his intense dislike of Poles, and the need to maintain the unity of anti-Nazi coalition. Those unfamiliar with the period receive a lucid explanation, others marvel again at the one of the most dishonorable moments in the Allied past.

While the book centers on the exploits of Polish fighter squadrons, the significant role played by the bomber units is adequately represented as well. The reader unfamiliar with the subject learns about the massive contribution by the Polish bomber squadrons to the overall effort, and also about the fact that the casualty rate of these squadrons was the highest among all RAF bomber units. Largely unsuccessful but extremely costly operations aimed at relieving Warsaw Raising in 1944 are described in sufficient detail to show the indisputable heroism of all USAF, RAF and Polish crews participating in these near-suicidal flights across the entire continent.

The often sobering facts notwithstanding, the book is filled with amusing anecdotes and wry comments on purely personal interactions between Polish aviators, their RAF counterparts, Britons in general, and British women in particular. The judicious mix of personal and official history makes the book delightful to read, yet informative and full of thoughtful comments. For those interested in pursuing the topic further, a wide range of sources is provided in the bibliographic section of the volume.

In summary, this is an important contribution to the subject of Polish Armed Forces role in WW2 operations, and a very important addition to the subject of Polish Air Force in Great Britain. Significantly, the author provides a balanced view of the entire period during which Poles flew alongside RAF (and also the period following disbandment of their squadrons and the subsequent dilemmas of the British Government about the dealing with the suddenly "illegal military"). Thus, while the heady days of the summer of 1940 occupy their well deserved place, the origins of the Polish Air Force that were the source of its subsequent success are analyzed, and the post- Battle of Britain operations , by no means less dangerous or physically and mentally taxing, are studied with equal aplomb.

A highly recommended book for all, not only those interested in Polish affairs or in one of the truly fascinating periods of the history of military aviation, but for all those who like reading a good history book written by an expert author. Worth noting is the fact that the new edition of the book is about to be published by Pen & Sword and will soon be available through Amazon.FORGOTTEN FEW, THE: The Polish Air Force in World War II