A member of Józef Piłsudski's Polish Legions, he fought on the Italian Front in World War I, then was severely wounded in 1919, during the conflict with Ukraine over Lwów. He participated in the Polish September Campaign as an officer of the Polish Army. During the Nazi occupation of Poland he was an active member of the underground, was captured by the Gestapo, and spent several months in the Gestapo's notorious prison on Montelupi Street in Kraków.