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Second Department of Polish General Staff
The Polish General Staff's Section II (Polish: Oddział II Sztabu Generalnego Wojska Polskiego, also called Dwójka ["Two"]) was a section of the Polish General Staff in the Second Polish Republic.
Section II was responsible for military intelligence, counterintelligence, cryptography, analysis of foreign military forces, and foreign affairs of the Polish Armed Forces. It existed 1918–1939.
In the second Polish Republic, the first intelligence units were formed soon after the creation of the General Staff of the Polish Army under General Tadeusz Rozwadowski. In mid-October 1918, the Information Department of the General Staff, was formed under Major Mieczysław Mackiewicz. It handled both offensive and defensive intelligence services, evidence, and military ciphers. Until c. 1921, the Polish military used the word "defensive", while describing intelligence. Due to various political events, changes in the organizational structure of the General Staff in the early 1920s were frequent.
During the Polish-Soviet War and in the immediate postwar period, the Information Department had a well-developed network of informants and local units, reaching as far as China, Persia, Siberia and Japan. Following the Polish victory in the war, in which Polish intelligence played a significant role, the Information Department was expanded and renamed into the Second Department of the Polish General Staff. It also was restructured, and divided into the following departments: Organizational, Offensive A, Offensive B, Defensive, Foreign Propaganda, and Home.
The Second Department cooperated with a number of both civilian and military institutions of the Second Polish Republic. Among them were Police, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Straż Graniczna, Border Protection Corps and others. Since 1932, it also concentrated some of its efforts on industrial espionage, after the formation of Polish Agency of Trade Information.
Following Polish–Soviet War, the Second Department formed its outposts in main cities of the Soviet Union: Moscow, Leningrad, Kharkov, Kiev and Tiflis. Furthermore, with support from the Border Protection Corps, it carried out several raids along the Polish–Soviet border, established in 1921. The purpose of these raids was to find information about Soviet military installations, also to enroll agents or informants. In the early 1920s, Polish services managed to convince an ethnic Pole, Bolesław Kontrym, who commanded Red Army's 28th Rifle Brigade, to change sides. Kontrym crossed the border, and was soon employed by the Polish Police.
Beginning in 1919, the department actively operated against Germany, with 30 outposts located there. The most important was the outpost in Berlin, called In.3. It was headed by Jerzy Sosnowski, who came there in the spring of 1926. In 1924 – 27, Bydgoszcz office of the department, commanded by Major Marian Steifer, successfully carried out Operation Cart (Operacja Wozek), during which German correspondence between Berlin and East Prussia was controlled. In April 1939, the Independent Situational Office Germany (Samodzielny Referat Sytuacyjny Niemcy) was formed. This office gathered all kinds of information regarding Nazi Germany, presenting daily and weekly reports to the Polish General Staff and the government. Since mid-June 1939, daily meetings took place at the office, with reports sent to Polish Commander-in-chief.
Before WWI, radio intelligence was an important source of information. Polish cryptologists managed to break the codes of German Enigma machine. On July 25, 1939, in a forest near Pyry, Polish experts handed a copy of Enigma to French and British specialists in Pyry (see also Biuro Szyfrów).
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Second Department of Polish General Staff
The Polish General Staff's Section II (Polish: Oddział II Sztabu Generalnego Wojska Polskiego, also called Dwójka ["Two"]) was a section of the Polish General Staff in the Second Polish Republic.
Section II was responsible for military intelligence, counterintelligence, cryptography, analysis of foreign military forces, and foreign affairs of the Polish Armed Forces. It existed 1918–1939.
In the second Polish Republic, the first intelligence units were formed soon after the creation of the General Staff of the Polish Army under General Tadeusz Rozwadowski. In mid-October 1918, the Information Department of the General Staff, was formed under Major Mieczysław Mackiewicz. It handled both offensive and defensive intelligence services, evidence, and military ciphers. Until c. 1921, the Polish military used the word "defensive", while describing intelligence. Due to various political events, changes in the organizational structure of the General Staff in the early 1920s were frequent.
During the Polish-Soviet War and in the immediate postwar period, the Information Department had a well-developed network of informants and local units, reaching as far as China, Persia, Siberia and Japan. Following the Polish victory in the war, in which Polish intelligence played a significant role, the Information Department was expanded and renamed into the Second Department of the Polish General Staff. It also was restructured, and divided into the following departments: Organizational, Offensive A, Offensive B, Defensive, Foreign Propaganda, and Home.
The Second Department cooperated with a number of both civilian and military institutions of the Second Polish Republic. Among them were Police, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Straż Graniczna, Border Protection Corps and others. Since 1932, it also concentrated some of its efforts on industrial espionage, after the formation of Polish Agency of Trade Information.
Following Polish–Soviet War, the Second Department formed its outposts in main cities of the Soviet Union: Moscow, Leningrad, Kharkov, Kiev and Tiflis. Furthermore, with support from the Border Protection Corps, it carried out several raids along the Polish–Soviet border, established in 1921. The purpose of these raids was to find information about Soviet military installations, also to enroll agents or informants. In the early 1920s, Polish services managed to convince an ethnic Pole, Bolesław Kontrym, who commanded Red Army's 28th Rifle Brigade, to change sides. Kontrym crossed the border, and was soon employed by the Polish Police.
Beginning in 1919, the department actively operated against Germany, with 30 outposts located there. The most important was the outpost in Berlin, called In.3. It was headed by Jerzy Sosnowski, who came there in the spring of 1926. In 1924 – 27, Bydgoszcz office of the department, commanded by Major Marian Steifer, successfully carried out Operation Cart (Operacja Wozek), during which German correspondence between Berlin and East Prussia was controlled. In April 1939, the Independent Situational Office Germany (Samodzielny Referat Sytuacyjny Niemcy) was formed. This office gathered all kinds of information regarding Nazi Germany, presenting daily and weekly reports to the Polish General Staff and the government. Since mid-June 1939, daily meetings took place at the office, with reports sent to Polish Commander-in-chief.
Before WWI, radio intelligence was an important source of information. Polish cryptologists managed to break the codes of German Enigma machine. On July 25, 1939, in a forest near Pyry, Polish experts handed a copy of Enigma to French and British specialists in Pyry (see also Biuro Szyfrów).