because of this son-of-a-bitch". The above-mentioned statements made by General Bołtuć were publicised by General Wiktor Thommée. On the other hand, Bołtuć's statements regarding Bortnowski and his leadership during September 1939 were contrary to the general opinion of the other officers who had served under Bortnowski's command in the Pomeranian Army. General Bołtuć, who was remembered positively by Bortnowski himself, was supposedly hot-tempered in both word and action. During the September Campaign, Bołtuć dismissed both commanders of the two divisions that were part of his Operational Group. It is alleged that as a result of the bombardment during the Battle of Bzura, as well as the break-through towards the Modlin Fortress, Bołtuć may have suffered from a nervous breakdown. Bołtuć attributed to Bortnowski the series of disastrous events of September 1939 that eventually resulted in Nazi Germany's and the Soviet Union's occupation of Poland. Specifically, Bołtuć criticized the "absurd" deployment of three large Polish Army units: the Pomeranian Cavalry Brigade, the 9th Infantry Division and the 27th Infantry Division into the Polish Corridor, which would allow Germany forces to cut Poland off from access to the Baltic Sea. Bołtuć was correct since General Günther von Kluge's 4th Army quickly ecploited the tactical error. Kluge and his 4th Army captured the Corridor by smashing through the three Polish units and cut off the rest of Poland from the Baltic coast, where several Polish coastal defense units remained and were forced to defend alone, which resulted in the notable Battle of Hel. On the other hand, General Bortnowski had known of the tactical absurdity and had unsuccessfully appealed several times to his superiors prior to the invasion. Bołtuć's reaction and criticisms may be justified through the Clausewitzian philosophy in which the commander of a losing army holds the heaviest burden for the loss since he holds full responsibility for his army. With that interpretation, Bołtuć's criticisms of Bortnowski are justified in that Bortnowski was the commanding officer of the Pomeranian Army. Awards and decorations Among the military decorations he received are: Silver Cross of Virtuti Militari Commander of the Legion of Honour (France) Cross of Independence (Krzyż Niepodległości) Commander's Cross with Star of the Polonia Restituta (earlier Officer's Cross) Cross of Valour (Krzyż Walecznych – 4 times) Gold Cross of Merit (Krzyż Zasługi) Latvian Order of Lāčplēsis – Third Class Order Number 1904 References Bibliography Konrad Ciechanowski, Armia "Pomorze" 1939, Warszawa, 1983.