Wladyslaw Eugeniusz Sikorski    continued   It was  apparent to General Anders that over 15,000 Polish officers had not reported for duty, and their  whereabouts were   unaccounted for. In the spring of 1943, the German army discovered mass graves in the forests of  Katyn where the bodies   of the Polish soliders were buried. The Germans accused the Russians of having committed the atrocity, but the Russians   denied any responsibility. Sikorski did not tolerate these denials, and on April 16 called for an investigation by the   International Red Cross.  On April 26, the Soviets broke off diplomatic relations with Poland, accusing  the Sikorski   government of having colluded with the Germans. It was clear that Stalin had his sights on Poland. In the words of   Ambassador Maisky to Churchill, Poland was " a country of 20 millions next door to a country with 200 millions. " It was   enough to intimidate Churchill, and he did all he could to apply pressure on Sikorski to give in to Stalins' demands.   Sikorski never gave in, asserting  that it was not his mandate to cede any part of Poland's territory without the consent of   the Polish people.   On July 4, 1943, at Gibraltor, Sikorski's plane crashed into the sea seconds after take-off. He was killed together with his   daughter, and several members of the military staff.  The sole survivor was the pilot, Eduard Prchal, who Sikorski had   personally selected.  Prchal was known for never wearing a life preserver. But this time he did.   A British Court of inquiry investigated the crash of Sikorski's plane and concluded that it was only an accident.  But theories   had began to circulate that the crash was caused by sabotage by the Soviets and, or the British. Sikorski's briefcase was   salvaged from the wreckage but was never restored to Polish authorities.  Strangely, six weeks before the crash, an   anonymous telephone call was made to the Polish government-in-exile in London, informing them that Sikorski had died   in a plane crash.  On two previous occasions, Sikorski's plane had to make an emergency landing due to mechanical   trouble - one in Montreal on November 30,1942.  Sabotage was also suspected. With Sikorski out of the way, the Allies   were able to proceed at improving relations with Stalin without further ado. Sikorski's successor, Stanislaw Mikolajczyk   did not have the authority nor influence to challenge Stalin's claims on Poland's eastern territory . ( See Curzon Line)   Stalin called Mikolajczyk's government, an "illegal and self-styled authority"  and Churchill lambasted Mikolajczyk to force   his cooperation. In a final coup de grace,  Stalin introduced the Committee of National Liberation in Poland and promptly   recognized it as the only legitimate authority in Poland. Britain, the US and the entire westen world obediently followed suit,   and  recognized the puppet government, revoking recognition of the legitimate Polish government-in-exile in London.   There was nothing left  for Mikolajczyk to do but resign.   Lech Walesa became the President of Poland in December 1990.  After 45 years of Soviet oppression, Poland was   finally free.  Walesa officially recognized the legitimacy of the Polish government-in-exile during World War II, and re-   stablished the continuity of the Republic of Poland.   In 2003, the Sejm commemorated the 60thAnniversary of Sikorski's death by  declaring 2003 as the Year of Sikorski.          HOME