Polish War Memorial Tweede Exloërmond

His grave is no longer in Eerste Exloërmond but in Breda. Yet the old tombstone in Drenthe is cherished as a monument. With the death of Polish group commander Boleslaw Stachoń, Poland lost a significant air force pioneer in 1941 over Drenthe. He is born on May 18, 1897. During the First World War he serves on the Italian front. After the war, the occupational officer becomes an important instructor at the Infantry Training Center in Rembertów.

On July 3, 1941, as No 301 squadron goes on a mission to bomb Bremen. Above Drenthe, the Wellington R1492 with Boleslaw Stachoń is shot down by the Messerschmitt Bf 110 of the renowned Oberleutnant Helmut Lent just after midnight - on July 4 00.34 am. Stachoń is the only crew member to die from the attack. The other five crew members are captured.

Air Force General Stachoń was buried in Eerste Exloërmond and was given a striking tombstone. He posthumously received numerous awards. Many years after the war, his remains were transferred to the Polish cemetery in Breda.

His gravestone in Drenthe ends up in a storage room. Found in a former morgue. Since April 21, 2017, the old gravestone is a war memorial in the morgue that has been transformed into a quiet room. Drenthe thus honors the Polish aviation hero Boleslaw Stachoń.

Do you have more information about this location? Inform us!

Source

• Text: Bert Deelman
• Photos: Bert Deelman
• Drenthe in Oorlog
• Poolse Oorlogsgraven Breda