Colonel Tadeusz Majewski
10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade (Poland)

Poland did not capitulate after the fall of France, and the Poles by various stages crossed to Great Britain, that last fortress of freedom, so that finally, together with the forces of the great British Empire, they might match themselves against those of our enemies.

(Quoted in Blairgowrie Advertiser and East Perthshire News-Review, 3 Apr 1942, 6)

Born on 26 August 1899 in Lwów, Poland, Tadeusz Adam Feliks Majewski served in the Polish Legions before being conscripted into the Austro-Hungarian Army on the Italian Front in 1918. At the end of the First World War, he joined the Blue Army formed by Polish soldiers in France. He advanced in the Polish Army through the interwar years, rising to lieutenant-colonel by March 1939. Six months later, he escaped to France following the invasion and occupation of Poland.

During the Battle of France in June 1940, Majewski commanded 1st Tank Regiment as part of the reconstituted 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade. Following the fall and occupation of the country, he evaded detection and escaped to the United Kingdom via Spain and Portugal. In November 1943, he became commanding officer of 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade as part of the 1st Armoured Division under General Stanisław Maczek. He severed throughout the Normandy campaign while the division was attached to II Canadian Corps. His citation for the Distinguished Service Order read:

throughout the action between CAEN and FALAISE, from Aug 7th to Aug 21st 1944, commanded his Bde with utmost ability and courage, especially in the final action on Aug 18 – 19th, which resulted in closing the pocket by joining hands with AMERICAN troops in the area of TRUN – CHAMBOIS, and the 48 hrs that followed, when his action greatly contributed to frustrate the enemy attempts to breakthrough the ring.

In January 1945, he transferred to Polish General Headquarters in London where he served as deputy chief of staff. Colonel Franciszek Skibiński of the 3rd Rifle Brigade took over the 10th Armoured Brigade. After the war, Majewski commanded Polish troops in the occupation of Germany before immigrating to Canada on a special visa in 1947. He worked as a watchmaker and died in Toronto on 20 June 1969.