Polish II Corps in Palestine and Rome

[redbarnchris]

Hi - I'm hoping someone can help me on something which I have scoured the internet and failed to find an answer on. My father was one of the hundreds of Polish soldiers released from Siberia to fight in the middle east in WWII, then Italy. I'm preparing to get his medals mounted properly and intend to include photographs and a brief history for the display. I've read in this site that the Jerusalem Cross was a pilgrim's cross for visitors to Jerusalem - my father's has a booklet with it dated 1942, so I presume he obtained it then rather than when in Rome later on. 1) Can anyone tell me whether this was a formal presentation to Polish soldiers in Jerusalem at the time or whether it was almost like a tourist trinket, given to any pilgrim who happened to make the journey? 2) Beyond that, can anyone tell me whether the Polish soldiers in Rome after their fighting (I presume in 1946, although would be interested to know if they went to Rome before Ancona and Bologna) had an audience with Pope Pius XII? If so, when was it, who was involved, are there any details available? I've seen lots of photos of groups of Polish soldiers at The Vatican, but no detail of what the occasion was. Thanks, Chris.