Statute of the Special Office of the Ministry of Public Security
Remembrance and Justice, Vol. 32 No. 2 (2018), pages: 520-529
Publication date: 2018-12-30
Abstract
Party cleansing in the communist elites (PWP-PUWP) took place in Poland between 1948 and 1956. The search for “internal enemies” was conducted by a special secret unit of the MPS, initially called a special group (1948), then the Special Office (1950), and finally Department X of the MPS (1951–1954). Work of these units was supervised by Gen. Roman Romkowski (deputy minister at the MPS) by order of the management of the Polish United Workers’ Party. The introduction of the article briefly outlines the history of the establishment of the Special Office, indicates the persons deciding on the local scope and course of the search for “internal enemies” (including Bolesław Bierut, Jakub Berman, Roman Romkowski) and mentions communists representative of the whole issue (inter alia, Władysław Gomułka, Marian Spychalski, Włodzimierz Lechowicz, Leon Gecow, Hermann Field), who were arrested, imprisoned and interrogated under false allegations of treason, cooperation with foreign intelligence, striving for a systemic coup in “Polska Ludowa.” The document published further shows the moment of transformation of the non-formalised, secret special group of the MPS, operating under the direction of Col. Józef Różański, into a formalised, still secret, unit with fulltime employees – the Special
Office, managed by Col. Anatol Fejgin. This structure was functioning for less than two years because the growing auto-aggressive terror required another reorganisation of the secret structure. The newly established Department X of the MPS covered the entire country.
Keywords
Bolesław Bierut • czystki • Władysław Gomułka • Biuro Specjalne • Departament X Ministerstwa Bezpieczeństwa Polska • grupa specjalna • Polska Partia Robotnicza (PPR) • Polska Zjednoczona Partia Robotnicza (PZPR) • Roman Romkowski • terror Bolesław Bierut • purge • Władysław Gomułka • Special Office • Department X of the Ministry of Public Security • special group • Polish Workers’ Party (PWP) • Polish United Workers’ Party (PUWP) • Roman Romkowski • terror
References
Paczkowski A., Utworzenie X Departamentu MBP, „Zeszyty Historyczne” (Paryż) 2003, z. 145.
Spałek R., Komuniści przeciwko komunistom. Poszukiwanie wroga wewnętrznego w partii komunistycznej w Polsce w latach 1948–1956, Warszawa–Poznań 2014.
Topyło J., Departament X MBP w latach 1949–1954. Geneza – struktura organizacyjna – metody pracy, Toruń 2006.
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