An exquisite one-of-a-kind First War Polish Legion Riflemen ‘Rudka’ Branch Banner, crafted in fine silk with extremely fine floral embroidery, exhibiting rich colours and intricate detail. The obverse illustrates a deep red silk Maltese cross with a floral design on a silk champagne backer, also with a floral design. The borders of the Maltese cross are constructed of woven intertwined embroidery on three sides of each arm of the cross. In the center of the Maltese cross is the Polish eagle in exquisite and very detailed white embroidery, with padding in the chest and legs of the eagle. The crest is surrounded by a very intricate laurel wreath with multiple-coloured leaves and gold-coloured bullion wire to form the veins, with yellow berries on green twigs hanging from the wreath. The upper arm of the Maltese cross has “Honour I” embroidered into it in deep gold-coloured thread, meaning “Honour”, with the lower arm of the cross having “Ojczyzna” embroidered, meaning “Fatherland”. The reverse illustrates a vivid green Maltese cross with a floral design on another silk champagne backer. Like on the obverse, the borders of the Maltese cross are also constructed out of woven intertwined embroidery on two sides of each arm of the cross. In the center of the Maltese cross is the Polish Riflemen’s Association (Związek Strzelecki) crest on a red floral design backer, consisting of a white eagle with padded chest and legs clutching a gorget with the letter “S” (meaning “Strzelec”) embroidered in gold-coloured thread and bullion wire outlines. The upper arm of the maltese cross has “Oddzial” embroidered into it in gold-coloured thread, meaning “Branch”, with the lower arm of the cross having “Rudka” embroidered into it, being the name of the town/city where the branch was stationed, with “Związek” and “Strzelecki” embroidered on on each side of the cross, meaning “Shooting Association”. Three sides of the perimeter are trimmed in 7 mm wide ornately-designed gold-coloured bullion, with bullion wire fringes approximately 30 mm long. The fourth side of the banner has strings for attachment to a flagpole that appear to have been cut. The banner measures 72 cm x 72 cm, and exhibits heavy fret wear on multiple sections of the banner, including the obverse on the outside corners. There is a moderate 25 mm hole in the red silk within the laurel wreath with a small burn hole in the lower section of the upper arm of the cross. The reverse is nicely preserved with only fraying and a small stain on the right outside-facing side of the banner. Overall, this is a well-preserved, and rich piece of history in very fine condition.
Footnote: The Polish Riflemen’s Association (PRA) (“Związek Strzelecki”) were Polish paramilitary organizations that formed in large numbers prior to to the First War. Polish Riflemen’s Associations active within the German Empire were illegal and operated without the permission of the government, while the government of the Austro-Hungarian Empire supported the associations, knowing that they were training approximately 10,000 young Poles in military skills, which later formed an important part of the Polish Legions during the future Great War with the Russian Empire. “Honour i Ojczyzna” (Honour and Fatherland), as embroidered on this banner, is one of the unofficial military mottos of Poland during the era of partitions of Poland and Polish Legions. The Polish Legions (Legiony Polskie) were a Polish military force established in August 1914 in Galicia soon after the First War erupted between the Triple Entente (British Empire, French Empire, French Republic, and the Russian Empire) and the Central Powers (German Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire). The Polish Legions merged with the Polish II Corps of Russia and continued to fight alongside the Russian Empire against Austria-Hungary until it was disbanded in May 1918.