Breakout at the Arsenal

It’s 1730 hours on 26 March 1943. Operation “Meksyk II”, commonly known as Operation Arsenal, has just got under way…

Commander Stanisław Broniewski, codename “Orsza”, has given the order to attack a Nazi prisoner transport vehicle. It’s carrying Jan Bytnar, codename “Rudy,” from Gestapo heaquarters to nearby Pawiak prison.

However, with the original plan going up in smoke, the Polish contingent has to think fast. They end up storming the van, led by “Rudy”’s comrade in arms, Tadeusz Zawadzki, codename “Zośka”, managing to release around 20 prisoners, including “Rudy”.

While the event did not happen during the Warsaw Uprising itself, Operation Arsenal remains one of the most well-known events undertaken by the Polish underground during World War II and is a testament to the Polish determination to set themselves free from Nazi German domination.