Jozef Kiryluk

Polish 2nd Corps

Born on 14 March 1921 in Konin, Poznan Voivodeship, Poland. He grew up in Bresc nad Bugim, where he attended school.

In the September Campaign of 1939, he served as a volunteer in the 83rd Polish Rifle Regiment of the Independent Operational Group “Polesie” under General Franciszek Kleeberg. On October 7, 1939, near Kock, he was captured by the Germans but managed to escape. In mid-October, he returned to Bresc and Bugim. He was soon arrested, this time by the Russians, and imprisoned first in Bresc and then deported to Kharkiv. He was sentenced to 8 years and transported to the depths of Soviet Russia to Kuybyshev and then to Kotłas. There he worked on the construction of the Kotłas-Workuta railway line.

Under the Sikorski-Majski agreement he was released from the camp. He journeyed to the south and arrived at Tockoye (Orenburg Oblast) and joined the 6th Infantry Division formed here, commanded by the General Michał Tokarzewski-Karaszewicz.

In March 1943, he became part of the 5th Borderland Infantry Division. He trained in Persia, Iraq and Palestine, where he attended a high-altitude course in Syria. In January 1944, the Division was in Alexandria, Egypt, and in February it landed on the Apennine Peninsula in Taranto.

In the Italian campaign he was a Corporal in the 17 Lwow Rifle Battalion, 6 Lwow Infantry Brigade, 5th Borderland Infantry Division, Polish 2nd Corps. He fought in the attack on Monte Cassino and the battles of Ancona and Bologna. In the battle of Monte Cassino, he destroyed two German bunkers with grenades, killing their six-person crews. For this act, he was awarded the War Order of the Virtuti Militari V Class and promoted to Platoon Sergeant. During the Italian Campaign he was wounded twice.

After demobilization, he emigrated to Canada in November 1946. He first arrived in Winnipeg and eventually settled in Edmonton, Alberta. He worked in the construction sector, retiring in 1983.

He married Helena (nee Olbert) and was a long-time member of the Association of Polish Veterans in Canada Branch No. 6 in Edmonton. In 2000, he was appointed to the rank of captain by the Polish Minister of National Defence. Jozef passed away in Edmonton on 16 May 2021, at the age of 100 years.

He was awarded the following medals:

Order of War Virtuti Militari V Class
Cross of Valour
Monte Cassino Cross
Cross of the Polish Armed Forces in the West
Honorary Badge for Wounds
1939-1945 Star (British)
Italy Star (British)
Defence Medal (British)
War Medal (British)