How the Knights became masters of their own home

In March 1921, as planned, a plebiscite was held. Unfortunately, its results were not beneficial for the Polish side. On the another hand, the opposing organization utilized the regulation which allowed alleged migrants to vote, i.e. persons born in Silesia, but not surviving there. Most of them, nearly 190 000, voted to stay in advanced Silesia within German borders. The results of the plebiscite resulted in massive dismissal of Polish workers or cutting their wages by German entrepreneurs and mine owners. The position of the British government, supported by Italian, was besides not favoured by the Polish case. Unlike the French, the British considered that Silesia as a single industrial region should be left to Germany, while Poland could be granted any agricultural districts.

The expected return of advanced Silesia to German regulation announced bad times for people who had been engaged in the fight for joining Silesian lands in Poland since August 1919. In addition, German militias have not been busy, which have increased the weapon-gathering effort. The interview of Polish insurgent forces led by Lieutenant Jan Kowalewski already in March 1921 gave the French information about the German conspiracy in the plebiscite area. Most of the designated weapons warehouses were destroyed by Allied troops, but they could not halt the secret actions of the Germans sending weapons and ammunition to Silesia as well as men prepared for armed action. Furthermore, the Polish state did not stay passive in conflict with the German side – it besides directed the soldiers "dropped" in Silesia and enlarged insurgent arsenals of weapons.

III Silesian Uprising - insurgent division in Rybnik. Approximate volunteers with rifles. 1921

So both sides of the conflict were preparing to fight for advanced Silesia. Wojciech Korfanty and another members of the Polish Plebiscite Commission, like many Poles surviving in Silesia, feared the return of the German army and the passiveness of Allied troops. That's why they were preparing an uprising plan. It was ready in the second half of April. The advantage of the insurgents was to surprise the opponent. As expected, they were to seize the industrial territory and bring the offensive towards the advanced Oder. It was established that with the outbreak of the Plebiscite Defence Command would be renamed the Chief Command of the Insurgency Forces. It was headed by Colonel Maciej Mielżyński “Nowina-Doliwa” and then Colonel Kazimierz Zenkteller “Warwas” – both fought in Wielkopolska Uprising. The commanders divided more than 35 1000 troops into 3 operational groups: “North”, “East” and “South”. respective 1000 soldiers, mainly hallerians and Wielkopolska insurgents, volunteered to aid the insurgents. In addition, 800 officers were seconded to Silesia by the Polish Army. They supported insurgents who were organized like a regular army. In total, Polish troops counted about 60,000 people.

“Bridge” action and Corfante’s call

The outbreak of the uprising was preceded by a general strike in mines and steelworks which began on May 2. The main insurgent forces set out to fight on 3 May at 2 a.m. But a fewer hours earlier the Germans were amazed by the diversion actions carried out by the insurgent peculiar intent troops, called the “Wawelberg Destructive Group”. Its commander was Captain Tadeusz Puszczyński “Wawelberg”, a erstwhile legionary of the First Brigade. On the night of May 2, the Wawelbers carried out an action under the code name “Mosts” – they destroyed railway lines and bridges on a 90-kilometre long of the western border of the plebiscite area, allowing insurgent troops to scope the Odra line.

On 3 May, Wojciech Korfanty released the Manifesto to the advanced Silesian people and proclaimed himself the dictator of the uprising. “Over the last 2 years, the advanced Silesian people have been taking on weapons for the 3rd time to throw off the dense Prussian-German yoke. This time, tens of thousands of people took up arms spontaneously to actively rise protest against the German captivity that threatened him. To prove that the Prussian-German yoke can no longer be abolished, the armed people of the advanced Silesian people shed blood to yet win their freedom and merge after an age divided with the beloved Matrix of Poland" [in all quotations the first spelling was preserved in the text], wrote, among others, the leader of the show.

By May 10, the insurgents invaded the full area, which was covered by the plebiscite. But already 2 days earlier, Wojciech Korfanty sent a note to the governments of the allied states. It was published in the "Diary of Regulations". Korfanty announced that the government of the Republic of Poland had dismissed him from the position of Polish plebiscite commissioner in advanced Silesia. He besides stated that he had done everything in his power to prevent armed rebellion and disorder of public order. He besides explained the reason for the general strike. "However, erstwhile the proposals of the advanced Inter-Societal Commission of the Government and Plebiscite in Opole on the division of advanced Silesia came to the attention of broad circles of Polish workers and peasants, who for centuries have been subject to invariably exploitive and brutal policies of suppression by Prussia and Germany, it was overwhelmingly despairful that they could return to the Prussian-German yoke again. The people determined to know everything about the study and proposals of the Inter-Society Commission in Opole on Sunday, May 1st afternoon at 4 a.m., and on Monday morning, she spontaneously started a general strike. All mines and steelworks have stopped," Korfanty wrote.

The Dictator informed the governments of the allied states that he strikes 300,000 workers and solidaritys with them advanced Silesian entrants. He besides explained why people grabbed arms: “In twenty-four hours after receiving the hiobic news that the Inter-Societal Commission in Opole in proposals concerning the division of advanced Silesia between Poland and Germany included about 35 percent of the votes cast in favour of the merger of advanced Silesia and Poland, the population self-captured the arms which the Germans brought into the plebiscite area in large masses and which from secret German organizations for inexpensive money could be bought and within 12 hours it bought the districts – Pszczyna, Rybnik, Katowice, Zabrze, partially Racibórz and Kozle, and the immense natural movement has not yet stopped, but is moving more and more to the west.”

Corfanty besides confessed that at the request of insurgents and strikers, he took the lead in a race to "take him into organizational framework and prevent murder, rape and robberies and reconstruct public order and average life." He added that this people, who have held arms against the Germans for the 3rd time in the last 2 years, "will never endure the Prussian-German regulation again." He besides promised that this people, of whom he is simply a son, "was determined alternatively to have the Allied troops drain him as much as one, than to have his neck lifted again under the Prussian yoke," and that "it would alternatively destruct all mines and factories and another work workshops than to surrender."

Control and truce

Korfanta concluded with requests: “And therefore, in the interests of humanity and of Europe’s economical life, I ask that a decision be made about the destiny of advanced Silesia in accordance with the will of the Polish people in advanced Silesia, which so emphatically expresses it. In the interests of peace and humanity, I ask you to immediately appoint a demarcation line.” However, even partial fulfillment of these requests took a long time. From May 21 to June 6, the German side conducted a counteroffensive. The Germans won, among others, the conflict of Mount St. Anne and forced insurgent troops to retreat respective twelve kilometres to the east. German forces managed to gain Kozle-Port, Kłodnica and Kędzierzyn, among others, but failed to break the Polish front. After June 6, the war began to expire. The Germans demanded that the situation be restored before the outbreak. As a consequence of the truces, the parties to the conflict undertook to retreat their troops from the plebiscite area by 5 July 1921. The insurgents signed the agreement on 11 June, and Germany 2 weeks later – on 25 June a ceasefire was announced and on 5 July a truce was signed.

III Silesian - insurgent armored train "Kabicz". The train consists of a tanless T37 armored steamcar and 2 2-axle wagons, iron carbides.

After 5 July 1921 – this date is considered to be the end of the 3rd Silesian Uprising – the power in advanced Silesia was again taken over by the Inter-Soviet Commission of Government and Plebiscytov, chaired by French General Henri Le Rond. During the fighting, the general proposed a ceasefire line, which was to become the Polish-German border in advanced Silesia – she ran through the shooting and Oleski districts, but left Olesno on the German side. "Gen. Le Rond's Line" almost coincided with the alleged Korfante line.

However, the authoritative division of Silesia was only made on 20 October 1921 at a conference of ambassadors of the League of Nations Council. The division was more favourable than before the outbreak of the III uprising. From the plebiscite area, inhabited by more than 2 million people, 29% of the area and 46% of the population were annexed to the Republic. Importantly, Poland was granted an area where most of the advanced Silesian coal, zinc and lead mines, steel and steelworks were located. Wojciech Korfanty had reason to be pleased, and his words took on a different meaning, which he deleted in the May 10 manifesto "the arrangement between the leaders of the uprising and the Inter-Societal Commission and the warrant of civilian liberties". The dictator of the uprising wrote: “The hr of freedom struck out. We become masters of our own home, let us be wise and wise hosts.”

On June 15, 1922, in Opole, where the seat of the Inter-Society Commission of Government and Plebiscite was located, Gen. Dyw. Henri Le Rond officially handed over Poland the awarded part of advanced Silesia. 5 days later, the first troops of the Polish Army entered Katowice, which was commanded by General Stanislaw Szeptycki.