1st Independent Parachute Brigade ( Poland ) The 1st ( Polish ) Independent Parachute Brigade was a parachute brigade under command of Maj . Gen . Stanisław Sosabowski , created in Scotland in September 1941 , with the exclusive mission to drop into occupied Poland in order to help liberate the country . The British government , however , pressured the Polish into allowing the unit to be used in the Western theater . Operation Market Garden eventually saw the unit sent into action supporting the British 1st Airborne Division at the Battle of Arnhem in 1944 . The Poles were initially landed by glider from 18 September , whilst due to bad weather over England , the Parachute section of the Brigade was held up , and jumped on 21 September at Driel on the South bank of the Rhine . The Poles suffered significant casualties during the next few days of fighting , but still were able , by their presence , to cause around 2 , 500 German troops to be diverted to them for fear of supporting the remnants of 1st Airborne trapped over the lower Rhine in Oosterbeek . History . The brigade was originally trained close to RAF Ringway and later in Upper Largo , finally based in Lincolnshire , close to RAF Spitalgate ( Grantham ) where it trained and from which it would eventually depart for Europe after D - Day . It was formed by the Polish High Command in exile with the intent of being used to support Polish resistance during the nationwide uprising , a plan that encountered opposition from the British , who argued they would not be able to properly support it . The pressure of the British government eventually caused the Poles to cave in and agree to let the Brigade be used on the Western Front . On 6 June 1944 the unit , originally the only Polish unit directly subordinate to the Polish government in exile and thus independent of the British command , was transferred into the same command structure as all other Polish Forces in the West . It was slotted to take part in several operations after the invasion of Normandy , but all of them were canceled . On 27 July , aware of the imminent Warsaw Uprising , the Polish government in exile asked the British government for air support , including the drop of the Brigade in the vicinity of Warsaw . This request was denied . Eventually , the Brigade entered combat dropped during the Operation Market Garden . During Operation Market Garden , the brigade ' s anti - tank battery went into Arnhem during the third day of the battle ( 19 September ) , supporting the British paratroopers at Oosterbeek . This left Sosabowski without any anti - tank capability . The light artillery battery was left behind in England due to a shortage of gliders . Owing to bad weather and a shortage of transport planes , the drop into Driel , was delayed 2 days , to 21 September . The British units which were supposed to cover the landing zone were in bad situation , and out of radio contact with the main Allied forces . Finally the 2nd Battalion , and elements of the 3rd Battalion with also the support troops from the brigades Medical Company , Engineer Company , and HQ Company were dropped under German fire East of Driel . They overran Driel , after it was realised that the Heveadorp ferry had been destroyed . In Driel , the Polish Paratroopers set up a defensive " Hedgehog " position , from which over the next two nights further attempts to cross the Rhine were made . The following day , the Poles were able to produce some makeshift boats and attempted the crossing . With great difficulty and under German fire from the heights of Westerbouwing at the northern bank of the river , the 8th Parachute Company and later additional troops from 3rd Battalion , managed to cross the Rhine in two attempts . In total about 200 Polish Paratroopers made it across in two days , and were able to cover the subsequent withdrawal of the remnants of the British 1st Airborne Division . On 26 September 1944 , the brigade ( now including the 1st Battalion and elements of the 3rd Battalion , who were parachuted near to Grave on 23 September ) was ordered to march in the direction of Nijmegen . The brigade had lost 25 % of its fighting strength , amounting to 590 casualties . In 1945 it was attached to the Polish 1st Armoured Division and undertook occupation duties in Northern Germany until 30 June 1947 , when it was disbanded . The majority of its soldiers stayed in exile . Post - war honours . More than 61 years after World War II , the Brigade was awarded the Military Order of William ( 31 May 2006 ) for its distinguished and outstanding acts of bravery , skill and devotion to duty during Operation Market Garden .