After the outbreak of the War, Szostak and the unit under his command fought against the Soviets. On 24 September 1939, he lost all his tanks and crossed the border into free Lithuania with the reminder of his men and was interned in different Russian camps for almost a year. When Hitler invaded Russia, he joined the ‘Anders Army’, a Polish unit fighting for the Allies against the Nazis. When this unit was evacuated to Iran, he moved with them, and spent the rest of the war working with the British in the Middle East, in Palestine and elsewhere.

After the war, Szostak came to England, and joined the Polish Resettlement Corps. This was set up by the British government in 1946 for members of the Polish armed forces who had been serving with the British, and did not wish to return to a Communist Poland after 1945. It was designed to help their transition from military into civilian life. It was run by the British Army, and was finally disbanded in 1949. Barons Cross camp was one of the camps used by the PRC to accommodate the veterans until they were ready to move on. For a time Lieutenant Colonel Szostak was the Commander of the camp at Barons Cross. After his release from the army, he moved to live in London. He died there as the result of a car accident in 1961.

We have discovered half the story, but we don’t know who Mrs Ellwood was, and how she helped the Polish veterans at Barons Cross. Do you know? If so, please tell us!