Veterans and officials were expected to gather at the Polish War Cemetery in Loreto to pay tribute to soldiers from the wartime 2nd Polish Corps led by Gen. Władysław Anders.
The ceremony was scheduled to take place on the eve of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Adriatic port city of Ancona by Polish soldiers.
Jan Józef Kasprzyk, head of Poland’s Office for War Veterans and Victims of Oppression, said ahead of the ceremony that the main idea was to honour Polish soldiers who perished during their unit's Adriatic campaign and to thank veterans for their efforts in fighting for the freedom of Poland, Italy and all of Europe.
More than 1,000 Polish soldiers were killed during the 2nd Corps’ Adriatic campaign, which began in June 1944, according to public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency.
They were all laid to rest at the Polish war cemetery in Loreto.
Kasprzyk said that Polish soldiers not only captured the Italian city in July 1944, but also saved the local basilica, a place of worship for Christians, from a fire caused by German incendiary bombs.
Kasprzyk added that Polish soldiers led by Gen. Anders went about liberating Italian cities in such a way that their populations would be least affected and to spare as many priceless historic sites as possible.
Polish troops commanded by Gen. Anders liberated a host of cities across Italy’s Marche region as part of their Adriatic campaign. These included Ancona, which was captured after heavy fighting on July 18, 1944.
(gs/pk)
Source: IAR