Smokey in Oz Posted 21 February , 2006 Share Posted 21 February , 2006 Gents, a friend has approached me to help research her Grandfather who 'witnessed his father and 2 brothers being gunned down by the Germans.' The family believes he fought with the British in WW1 and possibly WW2. He was Polish, sirname Sokolski. They strongly believe he was awarded a VC amongst other decorations. This is the only info I have to go on. Apparently one side of the family have his medals and a brief history but refuse to share the fellows story. Any pointers on where to begin would be greatly appreciated. Cheers and thanks in advance, Smokey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 21 February , 2006 Share Posted 21 February , 2006 No-one of that name with a VC, as far as I am aware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeppoSapone Posted 21 February , 2006 Share Posted 21 February , 2006 No-one of that name with a VC, as far as I am aware. Ready to be shot down in flames here, because I am not a medal man. I have heard the "Virtuti Militari" described as the "Polish VC". However, from the amount awarded it looks to rate about level with the MM. Anyway, what was your mans first name? An Aleksander Sokolski won the Virtuti Militari. No further details, but it might be worth looking into. Source: http://feefhs.org/PL/vm/vm-s1.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeppoSapone Posted 21 February , 2006 Share Posted 21 February , 2006 Wonderful thing the internet! "The Polish order of the VIRTUTI MILITARI was established 200 years ago by King Stanislaw August Poniatowski as the highest military decoration for gallantry the Polish nation bestows upon it's soldiers for acts of heroism above and beyond the call of duty. The VIRTUTI MILITARI is equivalent to the American MEDAL OF HONOR or the British VICTORIA CROSS." Source: http://www.virtuti.com/order/ If your friends relative was Aleksander Sokolski it is possible to pay in order to find out more: http://turbosales.tzo.com:591/virtuti/FMPro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armourersergeant Posted 21 February , 2006 Share Posted 21 February , 2006 I believe there are different grades of the medal, 1st class 2 nd class etc. regards Arm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokey in Oz Posted 21 February , 2006 Author Share Posted 21 February , 2006 Beppo, mate, you might just be on the right track. I'm not surprised it's steered away from VC possibilities, it's easy for the real story to become blurred with time. Thank you all for steering me in a direction, still not positive its the right direction yet, only time will tell. Thanks again for the start. Smokey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Burns Posted 21 February , 2006 Share Posted 21 February , 2006 I have the book that you can search through the above links, I will give you the details of the award in a day or so. Neil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Broomfield Posted 21 February , 2006 Share Posted 21 February , 2006 Beppo - top man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokey in Oz Posted 22 February , 2006 Author Share Posted 22 February , 2006 LATE UPDATE; John Stanislaw Sokolski, served in WW2. Obviously this may not be the best forum for my search, any further directions for info would be appreciated. Thanks to those who've contributed so far. Smokey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackblue Posted 22 February , 2006 Share Posted 22 February , 2006 Immigrated to Australia? Is it worth having a look at Australian National Archives? There is a Jan Sokolski who emigated in 1949. http://naa12.naa.gov.au/scripts/ResearcherScreen.asp Rgds Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Burns Posted 22 February , 2006 Share Posted 22 February , 2006 There were two Sokulskis who were awarded the Virtuti Militari 5th Class during the Second World War, note the spelling as there are no Sokolskis listed. The search engine must take alternate spellings. Ensign Stanislaw Sokulski was awarded cross #11992 for bravery with an unspecified unit in September 1939 Lt. Wlodzimierz Sokulski was awarded cross #11993 also with an unspecified unit in September 1939. On further reflection it is quite possible your man was awarded a Valor Cross which is a lesser Polish combat valor decoration. The Valor Cross (VC) may have been confused over time. Unfortunately I do not know of a complete list of those awarded the Valor Cross during WWII or the Polish-Soviet War for that matter. Neil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smokey in Oz Posted 28 February , 2006 Author Share Posted 28 February , 2006 Thanks guys for the info, Neil & Tim. Will need to go back to my source to verify details before I continue. Sorry for the delayed response, I had a 3 day game fishing trip offer at short notice, when I got home the computer had crashed. Just back online today. Will post anything interesting I find, thanks again. Cheers, Smokey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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