Polish paratroops plaque in Earlsferry
A plaque on the wall of the town hall in Earlsferry in Fife records the gratitude of Polish paratroopers to the community of Ellie and Earlsferry for their hospitality during the Second World War. Troops billeted in the area were components of the 1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade with its headquarters in Largo House at Lower Largo near Leven. The plaque, the work of the Polish sculptor Zofia Kruszelnicka and unveiled in June 1943, is surmounted with a representation of the brigade’s diving eagle emblem.
The Polish parachute brigade was formally constituted on nearby Kincraig Point, a rocky promontory a short distance to the west of Earlsferry. Volunteers, drawn from a Polish infantry unit based in Fife, underwent parachute training at Ringway near Manchester, after which they were dropped at Kincraig Point in a simulated attack on coastal defences – also manned by Polish troops. Following the exercise in September 1941, in the presence of the Polish leader-in-exile, General Sikorski, together with British officials, the unit involved was renamed the 1st Independent Polish Parachute Brigade, under the command of General Sosabowski.
The parachute brigade relocated to bases in England in July 1944 in preparation for the expected participation in the liberation of Poland. For political and logistical reasons that deployment never occurred and the Polish unit took part instead in the unsuccessful Arnhem operation in September 1944, where it suffered substantial loses alongside British forces.
The Earlsferry town hall is located on the High Street. The plaque is by the corner with Cross Wynd at grid reference 56°11′21″N 2°50′02″W. The remains of the coastal battery at Kincraig Point are located at grid reference 56°11′21″N 2°51′32″W, but are not accessible by road.
Polish plaque image © Kim Traynor, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph
