Left homeless by the betrayal in Yalta, most of the soldiers went to Britain after the war, where they joined a resettlement corps for training to enter the job market.  In England and Scotland, they were clearly unwanted heroes amidst a surplus of British veterans, also seeking employment.    On arrival in Britain, the Poles were told never to speak about their war time experiences with the British citizens: the British government did not want to offend their "great Soviet Ally."   In the postwar, the significance of the Poles’ contribution to the war effort was downplayed—not only the contributions of Anders and his men, but those of other Polish outfits, as well.  Anders’ Army was not invited to participate in the Grand Victory Parade held in London on June 8, 1946, a celebration in which many countries who fought against Germany participated.  The British government also downplayed the significance of the massacre in the Katyn forest.  Since the murders had occurred three years prior to their discovery, the British preferred to think of their “ally’s” involvement in this as a matter of the past.  

In Communist Poland, Anders’ Army officially did not exist, and a popular song about them entitled “The Red Poppies of Monte Cassino” was banned.   In the United States, a bill endorsed by General Lee, Commanding General of American Forces in the Mediterranean, was introduced in the U.S. Congress.  The bill would give special emigration rights to the men of the Second Corps and their families, granting American citizenship to men General Lee referred to as “these gallant soldiers who can’t return to Poland.” But the bill was killed by Secretary of State Dean Acheson.

Although most of the men of the Second Polish Corps were evacuated to Britain, some returned to a Communist Poland and were promptly arrested.  Sadly, some of these men were even sent back to Siberia.  Had more of the soldiers yielded to pressure by the British government to return to Poland for “free elections,” many brave souls would certainly have perished. 

Many who went to England remained there for the rest of their lives.  Others emigrated to the United States and Canada.  General Anders lived the rest of his life in England, though he never applied for British citizenship.  He considered the Communist government of Poland illegitimate, and himself a Pole in exile.  He died in May of 1970 and did not live to see a free Poland.  At his request, he was buried with his men at the Polish cemetery in Monte Cassino.

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