Stefan Szlaszewski

Stefan Szlaszewski was a Polish military officer and a notable commander of mountain troops of the Polish Army in the period preceding the World War II. Serving in the rank of Colonel, among other posts, he was the commanding officer of the Polish 2nd Podhale Rifles Regiment in Sanok, a prestigious unit of the Podhale Rifles attached to the 22nd Division. For his part in the battles of Kraków and Kielce during the Polish Defensive War he was awarded with Virtuti Militari, the highest Polish military award [http://feefhs.org/pl/vm/vm-s2.html] . For his part in the Polish-Bolshevik War and the remainder of World War II he also received a number of other decorations, both Polish and foreign. Among them was the Cross of Independence and the French Legion of Honour.