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Soviet raid on Stołpce refers to the events of the night of August 3/4, 1924, when a group of 150 Soviet agents, commanded by Leutnant Boryshkevich, raided the town of Stołpce (now Stowbtsy, Belarus), which back then was a railroad border crossing between Second Polish Republic, and Soviet Union. The raid ended in temporary capture of the town, and destruction of a police station, railroad station, and several houses.〔(Border Defence Corps - history )〕 ==Background== After Polish-Soviet War, the border between the two countries was established roughly along the 1400-kilometer line going from the Daugava in the north, to the Dniester in the south - east of the line marked by the towns of Wilejka - Baranowicze - Luniniec - Sarny - Rowne - Brody. The town of Stołpce therefore became part of the Second Polish Republic, and was a border rail station along the main European rail line Paris - Berlin - Warsaw - Minsk - Moscow. Newly established Polish - Soviet border from the beginning was marred by violence. The Soviets regarded it as temporary, and, hoping to ignite a revolution in Poland, carried out a guerilla war against Polish authorities. At the same time, the Poles supported for a time Belorussian partisan movement, and Polish Army teams also penetrated into the Soviet area.〔Marek Jan Chodakiewicz, The Last Rising in the Eastern Borderlands: The Ejszyszki Epilogue in its Historical Context〕 In one of the most famous incidents of this kind, Soviet agents captured a passenger train from Pinsk to Luniniec. This event took place on September 24, 1924, near the village of Lowcza, and the Soviets were commanded by Trofim Kalinienko. Among passengers of the train, there were local personalities - Voivode of Polesie Voivodeship Stanislaw Downarowicz, Roman Catholic bishop Zygmunt Łoziński of Minsk and Pinsk, and well-known Senator of the Second Polish Republic, Boleslaw Wyslouch. After robbing all valuables, the attackers escaped into Soviet territory.〔(Kalendarium: 24 września ). Nasz Dziennik 24 September 2009, Nr 224 (3545).〕 Before escaping, Kalinienko handed a “receipt” to train conductor. It stated: “Ataman Trofim Kalinienko, Headquarters Timkowicze”〔(Association of Veterans of Polish Border Units )〕 Originally, the border was guarded by units of the Polish Police, but the situation was getting out of control, and the government in Warsaw knew it had to find a solution. Altogether, in the year 1924, along the Polish - Soviet border there were some 200 raids, in which around 1000 Soviet agents participated, and at least 54 people died.〔Wojciech Materski "Na widecie. II Rzeczpospolita wobec Sowietów 1918-1943”. Warszawa 2005, Wyd. ISP PAN i oficyna "Rytm" ISBN 83-88490-84-2〕 Year 1924 was by far the worst, especially summer and autumn. In the night of July 18/19, 1924, some 30 armed Soviet agents attacked the village of Wiszniew, located in Wolozyn county of Nowogródek Voivodeship. During the raid, the perpetrators stole the valuables, and a skirmish ensued, during which commandant of Polish Police station was killed.〔 Raids also took place in Polish part of Volhynia, where manor houses and villages were robbed, and horses were stolen. Polish authorities knew well who stood behind these raids, and what was their real purpose. In 1925, Colonel Juliusz Ulrych of freshly created Border Protection Corps (Korpus Ochrony Pogranicza, KOP) wrote: “The Soviets have undertaken the plan to capture eastern lands of Poland, even though there is no official war. They want to use these provinces as a foreground of their struggle, in which the sphere of influence of Russian statehood would dominate over the sphere of influence of Poland. Therefore we witness immense activities of diversionary nature, with widespread Communist groups, willingly supporting banditry”.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Soviet raid on Stołpce」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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