Operation Antyk
Encyclopedia
Operation Antyk also known as Department R was a complex of counter-propaganda
activities of Polish resistance movement
organisation Home Army, directed against pro-Soviet
and pro-communist
circles in Polish
society, mostly members of the Polish Workers' Party
. The operation was initiated by Office Antyk of the Home Army’s Bureau of Information and Propaganda
. Begun in November 1943, it was directed by Tadeusz Żenczykowski
.
Operation Antyk was a twin to the Home Army’s earlier and more famous counter-propaganda activity, Operation N.
, the Government Delegation for Poland, and its armed wing, the Home Army. Headquarters of the Home Army, together with the Delegation, decided to found special departments called “K”, whose tasks was to collect counter-propaganda materials, influence the propaganda in underground press, also inspire activities of anticommunist political parties. However, these were not enough, and on October 26, 1943, the Home Political Representation
created Social Anticommunist Committee (SKA), which was supposed to neutralize activities of the Polish Workers Party.
, created in November 1943. Also, some propaganda activities were carried out by the Department I of the Government Delegation, as well as the underground press. In late 1943 and early 1944, several Local Social Anticommunist Committees were created. The main task of the Operation Antyk was to show the nation lies of the Communist propaganda, and to raise awareness of the real purpose of the Soviets, which was to deprive Poland of its independence. Therefore, in underground papers, brochures, and leaflets, plans of the Soviet Union were frequently described.
People's Voice was a radical anticommunist magazine, with such articles, as:
Also, Soviet Union
was attacked by using the analogies to the Nazi Germany, with such expressions, as NKVD
- Gestapo
, or Hitlerism - Bolshevism. At the same time, some of the Communist proposals for postwar Poland, such as land reform
, were left untouched, as these were also supported by the publishers of the magazine.
Another publication was a biweekly Wolnosc Robotnicza (Laborer's Freedom), published since November 1943, with circulation of some 7 000. It contained articles similar to those published in the People's Voice, but also current information from the frontlines, as well as anti-Nazi propaganda.
Also, several brochures and leaflets were printed, in which history of Polish - Soviet relations was summarized. One of these brochures was titled Polish - Soviet Conflict in documents and official utterances. February 1943 - February 1944, another one was titled Red Targowica
. Leaflets, with titles such as We will not end up in a kolkhoz
, presented totalitarian face of the Soviet regime. In February 1944, after creation of the parliament-like, Communist political body State National Council
, a leaflet was published, signed by 23 parties and political organizations. It was entitled A response to the KRN's manifesto. Also, on the walls of several buildings in occupied Poland, slogans were painted, such as: PPR - traitors, PPR - the enemy, PPR - paid servants of Russia.
Antyk should not be confused with the Social Anti-Communist Committee (Społeczny Komitet Antykomunistyczny, SKA), an organization set up by the Home Political Representation
on 26th October 1943, headed by Franciszek Białas. Social Anti-Communist Committee coordinated anti-communist propaganda activity among the main political groups and organizations of the Polish Underground State; it also cooperated closely with AK's Operation Antyk.
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
activities of Polish resistance movement
Polish resistance movement in World War II
The Polish resistance movement in World War II, with the Home Army at its forefront, was the largest underground resistance in all of Nazi-occupied Europe, covering both German and Soviet zones of occupation. The Polish defence against the Nazi occupation was an important part of the European...
organisation Home Army, directed against pro-Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and pro-communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
circles in Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
society, mostly members of the Polish Workers' Party
Polish Workers' Party
The Polish Workers' Party was a communist party in Poland from 1942 to 1948. It was founded as a reconstitution of the Communist Party of Poland, and merged with the Polish Socialist Party in 1948 to form the Polish United Workers' Party.-History:...
. The operation was initiated by Office Antyk of the Home Army’s Bureau of Information and Propaganda
Bureau of Information and Propaganda
The Bureau of Information and Propaganda of the Headquarters of Związek Walki Zbrojnej, later of Armia Krajowa - in short: BIP) a conspiracy department created in spring 1940 during the German occupation of Poland, inside the Związek Walki Zbrojnej, then of the Supreme Command of Armia Krajowa...
. Begun in November 1943, it was directed by Tadeusz Żenczykowski
Tadeusz Zenczykowski
Tadeusz Żenczykowski pseudonym Kania, Kowalik, Zawadzki , took part in the Warsaw Uprising of 1944, immediately after the war a member of anti-communist conspiracy in Poland, since 1945 an emigration journalist...
.
Operation Antyk was a twin to the Home Army’s earlier and more famous counter-propaganda activity, Operation N.
Beginnings
After creation of the pro-Soviet Polish Workers Party (January 5, 1942), communist activists began propaganda attacks aimed at the agency of the Government in ExilePolish government in Exile
The Polish government-in-exile, formally known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in Exile , was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Poland of September 1939, and the subsequent occupation of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, which...
, the Government Delegation for Poland, and its armed wing, the Home Army. Headquarters of the Home Army, together with the Delegation, decided to found special departments called “K”, whose tasks was to collect counter-propaganda materials, influence the propaganda in underground press, also inspire activities of anticommunist political parties. However, these were not enough, and on October 26, 1943, the Home Political Representation
Home Political Representation
Home Political Representation was the representation of the four major Polish political parties continuing their activities underground . It was the political arm of the Polish Secret State in occupied Poland during World War II...
created Social Anticommunist Committee (SKA), which was supposed to neutralize activities of the Polish Workers Party.
Objectives
The Social Anticommunist Committee was directly linked with Office Antyk of the Home Army’s Bureau of Information and PropagandaBureau of Information and Propaganda
The Bureau of Information and Propaganda of the Headquarters of Związek Walki Zbrojnej, later of Armia Krajowa - in short: BIP) a conspiracy department created in spring 1940 during the German occupation of Poland, inside the Związek Walki Zbrojnej, then of the Supreme Command of Armia Krajowa...
, created in November 1943. Also, some propaganda activities were carried out by the Department I of the Government Delegation, as well as the underground press. In late 1943 and early 1944, several Local Social Anticommunist Committees were created. The main task of the Operation Antyk was to show the nation lies of the Communist propaganda, and to raise awareness of the real purpose of the Soviets, which was to deprive Poland of its independence. Therefore, in underground papers, brochures, and leaflets, plans of the Soviet Union were frequently described.
Activities
Operation Antyk brought out, among others, a weekly called Glos Ludu (People's Voice), which was targeted at the inhabitants of the countryside. The magazine’s publisher, the Bureau of Information and Propaganda, was not mentioned in the headline, because the operation was top secret, even in the structures of the Home Army.People's Voice was a radical anticommunist magazine, with such articles, as:
- Soviet Fifth Column,
- Brown Hitlerism-Red Stalinism,
- PPR - Soviet Agenture,
- Russia - Always the Same,
- PPR is creating the Soviets in Poland,
- Bataliony ChlopskieBataliony ChlopskieBataliony Chłopskie was a Polish World War II resistance movement and partisan organisation. The organisation was created in mid-1940 by the agrarian political party Stronnictwo Ludowe and by 1944 was partially integrated with the Armia Krajowa...
condemn the PPR.
Also, Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
was attacked by using the analogies to the Nazi Germany, with such expressions, as NKVD
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs was the public and secret police organization of the Soviet Union that directly executed the rule of power of the Soviets, including political repression, during the era of Joseph Stalin....
- Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
, or Hitlerism - Bolshevism. At the same time, some of the Communist proposals for postwar Poland, such as land reform
Land reform
[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
, were left untouched, as these were also supported by the publishers of the magazine.
Another publication was a biweekly Wolnosc Robotnicza (Laborer's Freedom), published since November 1943, with circulation of some 7 000. It contained articles similar to those published in the People's Voice, but also current information from the frontlines, as well as anti-Nazi propaganda.
Also, several brochures and leaflets were printed, in which history of Polish - Soviet relations was summarized. One of these brochures was titled Polish - Soviet Conflict in documents and official utterances. February 1943 - February 1944, another one was titled Red Targowica
Targowica Confederation
The Targowica Confederation was a confederation established by Polish and Lithuanian magnates on 27 April 1792, in Saint Petersburg, with the backing of the Russian Empress Catherine II. The confederation opposed the Polish Constitution of May 3, 1791, which had been adopted by the Great Sejm,...
. Leaflets, with titles such as We will not end up in a kolkhoz
Kolkhoz
A kolkhoz , plural kolkhozy, was a form of collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state farms . The word is a contraction of коллекти́вное хозя́йство, or "collective farm", while sovkhoz is a contraction of советское хозяйство...
, presented totalitarian face of the Soviet regime. In February 1944, after creation of the parliament-like, Communist political body State National Council
State National Council
Krajowa Rada Narodowa in Polish was a parliament-like political body formed in the late stages of the Second World War in the Soviet Union, as part of the formation of a new Communist Polish government...
, a leaflet was published, signed by 23 parties and political organizations. It was entitled A response to the KRN's manifesto. Also, on the walls of several buildings in occupied Poland, slogans were painted, such as: PPR - traitors, PPR - the enemy, PPR - paid servants of Russia.
Antyk should not be confused with the Social Anti-Communist Committee (Społeczny Komitet Antykomunistyczny, SKA), an organization set up by the Home Political Representation
Home Political Representation
Home Political Representation was the representation of the four major Polish political parties continuing their activities underground . It was the political arm of the Polish Secret State in occupied Poland during World War II...
on 26th October 1943, headed by Franciszek Białas. Social Anti-Communist Committee coordinated anti-communist propaganda activity among the main political groups and organizations of the Polish Underground State; it also cooperated closely with AK's Operation Antyk.
Results
The results of Operation Antyk were negligible, since most propaganda efforts of the Home Army's Bureau of Information and Propaganda were concentrated on anti-Nazi activities. Among around 150 workers of the Bureau, only some 20 were involved in Antyk, and the expenses were around 4% of total budget of the Bureau. Operation Antyk was terminated in the end of July 1944, just after nine months of existence.Further reading
- Grzegorz Mazur, Biuro Informacji i Propagandy SZP-ZWZ-AK 1939-1945, Warsaw, Instytut Wydawniczy PAX, 1987, ISBN 83-211-0892-X.
- Marek Ney-Krwawicz, Armia Krajowa. Szkic Historyczny, Warsaw, Wydawnictwo Ars Print Production, 1999, ISBN 83-8722-417-0.