Edmund Semrau was born on 21 January 1926 in Chełmno, Poland. His father was employed at the Cadet Corps school in Chełmno. His father was mobilized in August 1939. and in the September campaign he fought in the eastern part of Poland. He was captured by the Russians and sent to Siberia where he died. His mother, along with her son Edmund and two of his siblings, moved to eastern Poland. The town where they lived was occupied by the Russians after 17 September 1939, and he family were deported to Siberia by goods transport.

 

On July 30, 1941, Gen Sikorski signed an agreement with the Soviets. In the additional protocol, the USSR government guaranteed "amnesty" for Polish citizens in the USSR in prisons and camps in Gulag. Edmund was released by the ‘amnesty’ and Edmund volunteered for the Polish Army. He evacuated to Persia with the army and later transferred to England.

 

From 1943 to 1944 he attended school in Montrose Scotland. After reaching the age of 18, transferred to the 2nd squadron of the 1st Armoured Regiment of the 1st Polish Armoured Division. His first training was at the Armoured Arms Training Centre in Catterick England. In June 1944, he was assigned to the 2nd Squadron of the 1st Armored Regiment. In August 1944 he transferred to France with the Division.

 

He served under the pseudonym Edmund Sniegocki. He fought in the European Campaign from France (Falaise, Chambois, Mont Ormel), to Belgium, to the Netherlands (Baarle – Nassau, Breda, Moerdijk), and in Germany (Jever). He had his baptism by fire as an 18-year-old soldier on Hill 111 in Normandy and was wounded in battle.

 

During the two-year occupation of Germany by the 1st Armoured Division, he studied at the 1st Division High School in Quakenbrueck, where he graduated. He then went on a 9-month course at the Royal Armoured Weapons School in Bovington, Great Britain.

 

Medals: Polish – Gold Badge of the 1st Armoured Division, French – Legion of Honour

 

Demobilized, he returned to Great Britain in 1947. Not wanting to leave his mother and siblings unattended, Edmund Semrau returned to Poland by ship in June 1948.. Only his mother and his siblings returned from exile in the USSR - his father died there. The communist authorities did not recognize Edmund’s high school leaving certificate from the 1st Armoured Division. He had to take the exam again in Poland. He was very active in commemorating and popularizing the history of the 1st Armoured Division in Poland and abroad. Since 1995, he has been a member the ToruńCompanion Circle focusing on former soldiers of the 1st Armoured Division. In October 2019, visited Breda on the anniversary of the city's liberation.

 

Edmund passed away on 25 May 2020, Toruń, Poland. He was 94 years old. He was buried in Chełmno, Poland.

 

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Source: 1st Polish Armoured Division Facebook post

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