Implementation of intelligence and diplomatic tasks by the Military Attaché Office of the legation of the Republic of Poland in Berlin in 1928-1932

The article presents the origins and functioning of the Military Attaché Office in Berlin in the years 1928-1932 led by Lieutenant Colonel Witold Dzierzykraj-Morawski, who carried out the intelligence activities under the guise of a military diplomat. Within the scope of his operational activities, Lieutenant Colonel Morawski established contacts with other military attachés and gathered and transmitted in- formation on the country of residence in order to identify its military potential as well as internal and external political situation in the Weimar Republic. In his work, Lieutenant Colonel Morawski did not conduct intelligence activity of a purely operational nature, however, he managed to obtain a wide range of contacts for intelligence work, in which he used the meetings with military attachés of foreign countries, people from various circles from German pacifists and the Union of Poles in Germany as well as the environments related to the armaments industry. From 1929 to 1932 he expanded his activity to include open sources, i.e. the official press and announcements of the Ministry of the Reichswehr that gave him knowledge about the dates of the next maneuvers and detailed information about their course, which he received in a wider range from Japanese or Spanish military attachés. Moreover, he obtained information about the cooperation between Germany and the USSR, which was to serve to devalue contacts between the military attaché of Great Britain and the German military authorities. One of such information was obtained in 1931 from the military attaché of Sweden through the Finnish military attaché office. In spite of quite secretive action, in November 1931 he was accused of espionage and was expelled in March 1932. He also gave a lecture at the Center for Higher Military Studies in Warsaw (February 1932) where he presented the possible directions of attack of the German Army and the entire doctrine of combat activity of the Reichswehr.