Propaganda komunistyczna wobec Armii Krajowej w latach 1943–1955

Abstrakt

Communist Propaganda Relating to the Home Army in 1943–1955

More is known about the image of the Home Army in wartime and post–war communist propaganda from publicistics and a priori theses dealing with simple declarations about anti– AK attitudes and the falsification of history than from strictly scientific studies. Publications that would depict the creation and fluctuation of this image in collective memory are also lacking. It is thus worth drawing attention to a definition of the research theme as such. During the period in question the communists did not make a considerable distinction between AK, WiN (Freedom and Independence), NSZ (National Armed Forces) and other pro–independence organisations, on the one hand, and actual gangs of armed bandits who after the war acted the guise of the Underground, on the other hand.

The image of the AK in post–war propaganda was a continuation of the accusatory stance devised by the PPR (Polish Workers’ Party) already in 1943, i.e. at the time of the German occupation. After the war equally negative slogans about AK responsibility for the „sanacja” government and defeat at the time of the September 1939 campaign, wartime passivity, affiliation with fascism, nationalism, and fratricide were furthered with accusations of murdering democrats, banditry, and collaboration with anti–Polish agents in the West.

It is essential to indicate the changing perspective. During the so–called amnesty period the impact of anti–AK propaganda was diminished in order to encourage the conspirators to come out into the open. Soon, however, the campaign regained its previous state. The next stage proved even more important; note that at the end of the 1940s and especially during the early 1950s the communists changed their strategy and acknowledged the necessity of deploying a totally different method, i.e. remaining silent. The Home Army became mentioned in the media increasingly rarely and in time the attacks launched against it ceased almost entirely. They reappeared sporadically, e.g. upon the occasion of anniversaries of the Warsaw Uprising, which entailed the functioning of a division into „good” soldiers and „bad” commanders, with General Tadeusz „Bór” Komorowski as the symbolic archenemy.

This is not to say that the attitude towards the Home Army actually changed. Pro–independence soldiers were imprisoned, investigated or remained unemployed. The new method aimed at a different target: the relegation of the existence of the underground army from collective memory and its replacement with communist formations. The ultimate goal was probably the creation of an image of communists monopolising the armed struggle and of small fascist bandits groups, which hindered armed struggle and which, for all practical purposes, were not even worthy of recollection.