This is an article about the Polish military decoration. For the 1959 film by Kazimierz Kutz see: Krzyż Walecznych (film)

Krzyż Walecznych (English: Cross of the Valorous) is a Polish military award. It was introduced by the Council for the Defence of the State on August 11, 1920. It is awarded to a person who "has shown deeds of valour and bravery on the battlefield". It can be awarded to the same person for up to four times. The medal is awarded only during wartime and shortly afterwards.

Krzyż Walecznych from the times of the Polish-Bolshevik War

History

The medal was introduced at the peak of the Polish-Bolshevik War of 1920, shortly before the Battle of Warsaw. Initially the medal had no Order Council and it was awarded personally by the Commander in Chief of the Polish Army. Later a possibility of ceding the priviledge to front and division commanders was added.

Polish-Bolshevik War

Until May 29, 1923, when the last medal for the 1920 war was awarded, the Krzyż Walecznych was granted to approximately 60 000 soldiers. Apart from the soldiers who took part in the Polish-Bolshevik War, it was also retroactively awarded to several soldiers of the Polish Legions, Polish military units during the World War I, Silesian Uprisings, Great Poland Uprising and members of Polska Organizacja Wojskowa. It was also awarded to veterans of the 1863 January Uprising and the city of Płock.

Krzyż Walecznych of the Soviet-backed Polish Army

World War II

In 1940 Władysław Sikorski, the Polish Commander in Chief issued an order in which he reintroduced the Krzyż Walecznych. The order was published in January 1941, and on September 20 of the same year the President of Poland agreed to award the medal to those who were already awarded with it four times during the Polish-Bolshevik War.

People's Republic of Poland

In 1943, after the Battle of Lenino, the commander of Polish Soviet-backed 1^st Corps Zygmunt Berling awarded several soldiers with the medal. The medal itself was accepted as a military decoration by order of the Home National Council of December 22, 1944. Until 1947 approximately 40 000 medals were awarded to Polish soldiers fighting alongside the Red Army.