Adam Koc
Adam Ignacy Koc was a Polish politician, MP, soldier, journalist and Freemason. Koc, who had several noms de guerre, fought in Polish units in World War I and in the Polish–Soviet War.
In his youth, he was a member of the Revolutionary Association of the Nation's Youth, the Union of Active Struggle and the Riflemen's Association. He then became a commandant of the Polish Military Organisation, first in the Warsaw district, and then its Commandant-in-Chief. Adam Koc was one of the officers of the Polish Legions and a member of so-called Convent of Organisation A.
In the Second Polish Republic, Adam Koc joined the Polish Armed Forces, in December 1919, where he was given command of the 201 Infantry Regiment of Warsaw's Defense, which later became a Volunteer Division. Afterwards, he served in the Ministry of Military Affairs, in different positions. A participant in the May Coup, he was promoted in 1926 to be chief of the Command of VI District of Corps in Lwów, a position he held until 1928.
Considered a member of Piłsudski's colonels group, he was elected to the Sejm three times and once to the Senate. He was also multiple times in office, mostly in financial positions. He was one of the negotiators of loans to the Second Polish Republic from the UK and France.
As a Sanational politician, he created the newspaper Gazeta Polska, published from 1929 to 1939. He was editor-in-chief of its Sanational predecessor Głos Prawdy in 1929.
After Piłsudski died in May 1935, Adam Koc joined the people close to Edward Rydz-Śmigły. He became commandant-in-chief of the Association of Polish Legionists.
In 1936–1937, Koc started co-creating a new political entity, the Camp of National Unity. He became its head a year later. He was supportive of the idea of OZN's approach towards the radical right National Radical Camp Falanga and right-wing National Democracy.
As World War II started, Koc coordinated the evacuation of the Bank of Poland's gold reserves. He served as Minister of Finance, Trade and Industry for a short period in 1939, before he fled to the United States in 1940. He became one of the active members of the Józef Piłsudski Institute of America and died, still in exile, in 1969.
Early life
Adam Koc was born into an aristocratic family from Podlachia. It is possible that the family derived itself from the area near Biała Podlaska.His grandfather, Leon, was a veteran of the January uprising and mayor of Filipów and Sereje, both near Suwałki, Koc's hometown, while his grandmother, Waleria, was part of the Polish National Government. Adam's father, Włodzimierz was a teacher of ancient languages. His marriage with Helena brought three children: Stefan, Adam Ignacy himself and Leon Wacław, the youngest of them.
After the death of Adam's mother in 1894, his aunt, Elżbieta Pisanko, took care of them. Five years later, the family moved to a rented flat in Suwałki. He started school in 1900 and he attended the Russian Boys' Gymnasium in Suwałki. It is there, most probably, that Koc became involved in the pro-independence activities, participating in self-taught additional lectures, in 1901.
During the 1905 revolution he was part of the strike action gymnasium committee. As a result, he and future politician and MP Aleksander Putra were expelled from the school. At the time, he was a member of the National Workers' Union, an organisation with close ties with the National Democracy. He continued his education in January 1906 in the newly opened Polish Private Seven-class Trade School in Suwałki.
Later on, his father sent Adam to Kraków, where he attended the Philosophical College of the Jagiellonian University. In order to do so, he had to pass final exams in one of the Kraków's gymnasiums. He did so on 20 June 1912, in then named IV classical gymnasium, located in Podgórze, on quite a low level, which was enough, however, to start Polish studies there.
Pro-independence activity (1909–1914)
Before World War I
Koc had been in Kraków for three years when he wrote his Matura exam in 1912. At the time he committed to pro-independence conspiracy organisations, and was listed among the radical youth. Władysław Studnicki was his mentor, while Aleksander Putra, Bolesław Kunc and Bolesław Dąbrowski were his closest cooperators. In the fall of 1909, Koc joined the newly created Revolutionary Association of Nation's Youth, which was introduced into the conspirative Union of Active Struggle by Studnicki, despite fears that the organisation bore a socialist character. There, Koc received his first pseudonym, Witold. His brother, Leon, joined the organisation in 1911, after Adam introduced him.Koc was engaged in the Riflemen's Association, a legal organisation related to ZWC. Initially he was responsible for the financial state of the Kraków branch, but Koc was sent to Grodno in late May 1910 by Kazimierz Sosnkowski and Józef Piłsudski, so as to make a detailed description of the fortress. The task was done well, while the maps and sketches were sent via Aleksander Prystor. It is probable that it was the reason Koc could complete the officer's course, organized by the Union of Active Struggle in Stróża near Limanowa, in Austrian Galicia, in 1912, and therefore promoted to a higher rank in the ZWC a year later. In spring 1914, he passed an exam that gave him an officer's rank in the ZWC and an Officer's Star "Parasol" award. Simultaneously, Koc was an adjutant of the main headquarters of Riflemen's Organisation for the Russian partition affairs, starting from October 1913.
Polish Military Organisation (1914–1919)
On 10 August 1914, Koc came to Warsaw from Druskininkai on the order of Walery Sławek, to take command of the local branch of the Union of Active Struggle in the Russian partition. Soon afterwards, the Union of Active Struggle and the Riflemen's Association in Congress Poland united under leadership of Karol Rybasiewicz, formerly commandant of the Polish Rifle Squads. Koc became his deputy, and in August 1914, the new body was named the Polish Military Organisation, led by Piłsudski's emissary, Tadeusz Żuliński. The main target of the new organisation was to create sabotage actions behind the Russian army. Koc was one of the members of the Chief Commandment of POW. In addition, Koc commanded the Warsaw district of the organisation from the beginning of 1915. In February 1915 he was advanced to Podporuchik by Żuliński.Koc desperately wanted to fight Russians on the front, among Piłsudski's Legions, an occasion that could have been possible unless the front stabilized by spring 1915. Then, Żuliński sent him to Piłsudski with reports on POW's activity. Normally, such a person could cross the frontline to the 1st Brigade of Polish Legions, but it proved to be impossible. To fulfill the task, Koc had to use the northern route, via Finland and Sweden. Alias Adam Krajewski, Koc left Warsaw on 25 May 1915, giving up his POW's position.
He arrived in Petrograd, and started to move towards Helsinki, illegally crossing the border between Russia and the Great Duchy of Finland. Then, Koc was transported to Stockholm, in agreement with Finnish pro-independence organisations. There, he met another messenger from POW, Aleksander Sulkiewicz. Problems with getting an Austro-Hungary visa, both had to wait for them in Kopenhagen. Having received the documents, Koc arrived in Piotrków Trybunalski, where he met with Adam Skwarczyński. He then finally reached Annopol, then Piłsudski's headquarters. The reports were given, and, on Koc's will, he was allowed to participate in the Legions.
Polish Legions (1915–1918)
Having completed the task given by Żuliński, he joined the 5th Infantry Regiment, which was part of the 1st Brigade of the Polish Legions. It almost coincided with the Central Powers countries' occupation of Lublin in summer 1915.He received a task coinciding with his earlier life experience: supporting the newly summoned Lublin's National Department – an organisation aiming at the propagation of Piłsudski's policies. By doing so, he raised suspicions among the Austro-Hungarian militia, so he was sent to the front line. Koc struggled with pneumonia and malaria, which was aggravated by his sight issues. Koc commented on his state:
On 18 September 1916, Koc was severely wounded in the Battle of Sitowicze, in Volhynia. He was shot near his liver, while on a spy mission. Sulkiewicz was shot dead. Felicjan Sławoj Składkowski cared for him at the battlefield. The wounded Koc was transported to the Legions' clinic in Lublin, and then to Kraków.
He finished his treatment at the clinic on 31 January 1917. Koc returned to political life in the Legions, where he became one of the founders of the so-called Analphabet Association – a conspirative military organization in the 5th Infantry Regiment supporting Piłsudski's pro-independence policy. By that time he was one of the piłsudczyk who has already been a decent authority in the Legions.
His actions did not remain unnoticed by the Austro-German generals, so Koc was sent to Ostrów Mazowiecka for additional schooling, as a punishment. Additional trouble came to Koc after the oath crisis, when, as one of the officers of the Legions, he was imprisoned at the camp in Beniaminów, while his brother Leon was imprisoned at Szczypiorno. At Beniaminów, Koc worked to convince other prisoners to join Piłsudski and to continue resistance. Koc was released on 22 April 1918, with his health deteriorating.
Polish Military Organisation (1918)
After he was freed from the prisoner-of-war camp, Koc rejoined the Polish Military Organisation. Jan Zdanowicz-Opieliński, who was then the Main Commandant of POW district number 1, convinced the then head of POW, Edward Rydz-Śmigły, to transfer his command to Koc.As POW's Main Commandant, Koc reorganized his Command, and created fast-moving squads for sabotage actions, on the order of Edward Rydz-Śmigły. He initiated protests against the German police and coordinated POW activity with the Armed Squads of the Polish Socialist Party. His successes increased his authority in the military organisations. While Main Commandant, he made close ties with Bogusław Miedziński and Rydz-Śmigły. The latter soon gave over his functions to Koc, in September 1918.
At the same time, Koc substituted for Tadeusz Kasprzycki in the Convent of Organisation A, which was created in summer 1917, as a conspiratorial group of Piłsudski supporters.
As the process of the so-called Lublin government advanced, German-led military councils were organized in Warsaw. Koc initiated the demilitarisation of some part of them.
On 10 November 1918, together with Prince Zdzislaw Lubomirski, part of the Regency Council of the Kingdom of Poland, he welcomed Józef Piłsudski and one of his fellow warriors, Kazimierz Sosnkowski, who returned by train to Warsaw from internment in Magdeburg. Then, Koc ordered his subordinates to disarm German soldiers in Warsaw. This done, Józef Piłsudski and the Provisional People's Government of the Republic of Poland could then peacefully enter Warsaw to start governing the newly created Polish Republic.