In a moving Remembrance weekend encounter in the Oxfordshire Chilterns, a centenarian veteran met the descendants of the man he braved enemy sniper fire and a minefield to rescue in Italy in 1944. 

In one of the most remarkable stories of the 2026 Remembrance commemorations, a 100-year-old allied Polish veteran yesterday reunited for the very first time with the daughter and granddaughter of the officer whose life he saved 82 years ago. 

Czeslaw „Ches” Blachucki (Black) – who served in the 15th Rifle Battalion of the 5th Kresowa Infantry Division (5KDP) within the legendary 2nd Corps of General Montgomery’s 8th Army in Italy – came face-to-face with Irene Matulewicz and her  daughter, Beverley Woodward, who travelled from Cornwall for the historic meeting. 

The extraordinary bond between the two families traces back to the harrowing aftermath of the famous Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944. Near the mountain village of San Sofia, Italy, Czeslaw’s commanding officer, Lieutenant Wladyslaw  Matulewicz, was blown up and severely wounded in the head by a landmine.

With medics and fellow soldiers too scared to venture into the pitch-black night amidst active German sniper positions and heavy gunfire, a 19-year-old Czeslaw made the courageous decision to risk his own life. Braving the minefield, he successfully  carried on a stretcher his injured officer to safety and to a waiting jeep, which rushed Lieutenant Matulewicz to a British field hospital. 

For 80 decades, neither family knew the other existed. The incredible reunion was made possible by Graham Drucker, Coordinator of the Friends of Checkendon,  Nettlebed and Kingwood camps, who rediscovered the connection as part of the  80th-anniversary commemorations honouring the brave allied Polish soldiers who made the UK their home after Winston Churchill fulfilled his promise to let them stay  following the loss of Poland to the Soviet Union. 

Gathered in the Oxfordshire Chilterns for the poignant weekend were veteran Czeslaw Blachucki, the rescued officer’s daughter Irene Matulewicz, her daughter Beverley Woodward, Czeslaw’s grandson Ian Paice and his partner Mary, and  Ches’s niece Miranda (Habasinska) and her husband Richard Milnes. The historic meeting was captured on film by videographer Roy Drucker. 

„This is a testament to the enduring bonds forged in the fires of history,” said Graham Drucker. „To bring Czeslaw together with the daughter and granddaughter of the man he saved over eight decades ago, especially during Remembrance weekend, is an unforgettable privilege.”

The emotional gathering stands as a powerful tribute to the sacrifices of the Polish forces who fought shoulder-to-shoulder with the Allies for freedom during World War II. 

Roy Drucker, Friends of Checkendon, Nettlebed and Kingwood camps 

Photos: Roy Drucker