The Warsaw Uprising broke out August 1, 1944. After 5 years of suffering under German occupation, Poles took up arms in a heroic battle against the enemy.
Soviet forces had reached the banks of the Vistula river in Warsaw, but made no effort to aid the uprising, waiting instead for the city to drown in blood. Flying from Brindisi, Italy, Allied planes delivered weapons and supplies to the insurgents. 155 airmen lost their lives.
On September 18, 1944, 110 Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses from the United States Army Air Forces took off from the United Kingdom, carrying 1,284 containers filled with weapons, food, and medicine for the insurgency in Warsaw. The Americans lost one bomber and two escort fighters. Only about 25% of the drops made during Operation Frantic 7 ended up in the hands of the insurgents. The assistance lent by the Allies was crucial in sustaining Polish morale, but did little to shift the course of the uprising. Over 200 thousand insurgents and civilians lost their lives in the 63 days of the uprising. The Soviets stood idly by as German forces demolished 80% of Warsaw.
Poles fulfilled their obligation to the Allies. Several months after the collapse of the uprising, the Soviets took power and violently imposed a communism regime. Yet Warsaw’s great sacrifice was not for naught: for generations to come, the Warsaw Uprising would be a symbol of the struggle for independence and a key part of the Polish identity. Poland regained her independence 45 years later.
