Henryk Dobrzański Major Henryk Dobrzański aka " Hubal " ( June 22 , 1897 - April 30 , 1940 ) was a Polish soldier , sportsman and partisan . He was the first guerrilla commander of the Second World War in Europe . Early life and career . Henryk Dobrzański was born on June 22 , 1897 , in Jasło , Austria - Hungary to a Polish noble family ( Coat of arms of Leliwa ) , of Henryk Dobrzański de Hubal and Maria Dobrzańska née Lubieniecka . In 1912 he joined the " Drużyny Strzeleckie " , an underground Scouting organisation . When World War I broke out he volunteered to join Józef Piłsudski ' s Polish Legions . He served with distinction in the 2nd Regiment of Uhlan s and participated in many battles such as Stawczany and Battle of Rarańcza . In 1918 after Poland regained its independence he joined the Polish Army . He took part in the Polish - Ukrainian War of 1918 and fought with his cavalry platoon during the Siege of Lwów . Later he participated in Polish - Bolshevik War of 1919 - 1921 . For his bravery he was awarded the Virtuti Militari , the highest Polish military award , and four times the Krzyż Walecznych , in addition to many other military awards . After the Peace of Riga he remained in the Polish Army . He became a member of the Polish equestrian team , winning many international competitions . He also took part in the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam and came fourth at the prestigious Aldershot competition . In his sports career he gained 22 gold , three silver and four bronze medals altogether . World War II . Shortly before the outbreak of the Polish Defensive War of 1939 he was assigned to the 110th reserve Cavalry Regiment as a deputy commander . His unit was to enter combat as a second - line formation , but fast advances of the Wehrmacht made the completion of training impossible . On September 11 it was moved to Wołkowysk , from where it marched towards Grodno and Augustów Forest . It fought several skirmishes against the German army and took part in the defense of the city against the Red Army . After two days of heavy fighting against the numerically superior Soviets , on September 20 Grodno was lost and three days later gen . bryg . Wacław Przeździecki , the commander of the defense of the Grodno area , ordered all his troops to escape to neutral Lithuania . The 110th Regiment was the only unit to disobey this order . The unit joined with the remnants of several routed regiments and fought its way towards the capital Warsaw . The unit got surrounded by the Red Army in the Biebrza river area and suffered serious casualties , but managed to break through the enemy defenses . After that , Lt . Col . Jerzy Dąbrowski , the commander of the regiment , decided to disband it . Henryk Dobrzański took command of approximately 180 men who decided to continue their march towards besieged Warsaw . When Warsaw capitulated on September 27 , Dobrzański faced three choices : evacuate ( via Hungary or Romania ) to France , disband the unit , or continue the fight . He decided to lead his unit southwards and try to break through to France . Approximately 50 men volunteered to stay in the army , while the rest were allowed to leave . On October 1 , 1939 , they crossed the Vistula near Dęblin and started their march towards the Holy Cross Mountains . The same day his unit fought the first skirmish against the Germans . After that he decided to stay in the Kielce area with his unit and wait until the Allied relief came , which he expected in the Spring of 1940 . He also swore that he would not take off his uniform until after the war . On October 5 , the Battle of Kock ended the resistance of the last major unit of the Polish Army and thus Hubal became the first partisan commander of World War II . Thanks to the support of the local civilian population , the " Separated Unit of the Polish Army " ( " Oddział Wydzielony Wojska Polskiego " ) , as he named his unit , managed to evade all raids and traps organised by the Germans . However , the German authorities responded with brutal retaliation against the civil population . Because of that the newly formed ZWZ and the Government Delegate ' s Office at Home ordered Hubal to disband his unit , but he refused . At the same time he limited his contacts with the civilians so as not to endanger them more than necessary . In March 1940 his unit completely destroyed a battalion of German infantry in a skirmish near the village of Huciska . A few days later , in an ambush near the village of Szałasy , it inflicted heavy casualties on another German unit . To counter this threat the German authorities formed a special 1 , 000 men strong anti - partisan unit of combined SS - Wehrmacht forces , including a Panzer group . Although the unit of Maj . Dobrzański never exceeded 300 men , the Germans fielded at least 8 , 000 men in the area to secure it . Death and legacy . On April 30 , 1940 , his staff quarters in a ravine near the village of Anielin ( powiat of Opoczno ) were ambushed . In an unequal battle Dobrzański and most of his men were killed . The Germans desecrated his body and put it on public view in the local villages . They then transported it to Tomaszów Mazowiecki and either burnt it or buried it in an unknown location . The remnants of the " Separated Unit of the Polish Army " continued the struggle until June 25 , 1940 , when it was disbanded . In 1949 , Dobrzanski ' s son , Ludwik , emigrated to England and became a property developer . He died in 1990 ( December 15 ) , in the town of Bedford . In 1966 Henryk Dobrzański was posthumously awarded the Golden Cross of the Virtuti Militari and promoted to Colonel . Currently almost 200 organisations and institutions bear his name , including 82 Scouting groups , 31 schools and several military units . There are streets named after him in almost every Polish city . The site of his burial remains unknown . In 1973 the film " Hubal " , based on his resistance campaign , was released . The pseudonym " Hubal " comes from his family coat of arms . Decorations . Military decorations awarded to Henyrk Dobrzański include :