General Stanis?aw Maczek's memoir chronicles the bravery, sacrifice, and disillusionment of Polish soldiers in WWII.

General Stanisław Maczek’s stirring memoir captures the élan, the sacrifice and the disappointed hopes of the Polish soldiers who fought alongside the Allies during the Second World War.

As Commander of the 10th Motorised Cavalry Brigade in the September 1939 campaign, his men played a crucial role in resisting the German advance before crossing into Hungary with orders to rebuild the Polish Army on French soil. Fighting a further rearguard action during the 1940 Allied retreat, he and his men escaped to Britain. In February 1942, Maczek assumed command of 1st Polish Armoured Division, created out of the Polish forces which had been training in Scotland since 1940. In July 1944 the Division landed in Normandy and was responsible for closing the Falaise Gap at Mont Ormel and Chambois. Thereafter it fought on through Belgium and Holland, ultimately accepting the surrender of the German Navy at Wilhelmshaven.

The Price of Victory is an inspiring tale of bravery and skill in the face of overwhelming odds, and of determination to fight for Poland on foreign soil. Having been welcomed as liberators in so many towns across Europe, it was the ultimate irony that the terms of the Yalta Agreement meant the Poles’ aim of liberating their country was denied them.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Foreword by Brigadier Justin Maciejewski DSO MBE (retd)
• Foreword by Karolina Maczek
• Editor’s Note
• Part I
  • Introduction, and a Few Words About Myself
  • The Expedition to Chyrów
  • The Flying Company Emerges and Proves its Worth
  • The Flying Company’s Race To Zbrucz
  • Without My Own Unit
  • Captain Maczek’s Assault Battalion of the 1st Cavalry Division
• Part II
  • I Take Command of the 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade
  • The Outbreak of War The Brigad’s Battles in the Beskid Wyspowy Mountains
  • The Dunajec, Wisłoka and San Rivers: The Stages of Our Retreat
  • The Screening and Defence of Lwłw, 12–17 September
  • Hungary
  • The French Campaign – The Period of Organization
  • The French Campaign – The Front
  • Among German Troops
  • Escaping France
• Part III
  • The Formation of the 1st Polish Armoured Division
  • Invasion – Totalize and Tractable
  • Breakthrough At Last
  • Closing the Falaise Gap
  • The Critical Phase of the Battle
  • Summary of the Battle – The Highs and the Lows of the Battle of the Polish Armoured Division at Falaise
  • From the Seine to the Ghent Canal, the Pursuit
  • From Ghent to Terneuzen
  • Advancing on Breda
  • The Breda Offensive – Reaching the Meuse – Occupying Moerdijk
  • Winter in Breda
  • The Yalta Conference – Arc de Triomphe
  • On German Soil. The End Of The War
• List of Abbreviations
• Plates