Battle of Praszka

Last updated

The Battle of Praszka, one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, took place on 11 April 1863 near Praszka in southwestern corner of Russian-controlled Congress Poland. Polish forces under Jozef Oxinski clashed with troops (mostly Cossacks) of the Imperial Russian Army, commanded by Mayor Yakov Ogalin.

In early April 1863, Oxinski's unit stationed for a while at a folwark in the village of Kuzniczka, one kilometer from Praszka. Polish insurgents were closely watched by the Russians, and Oxinski was well aware of it, so he decided to march northeast, closer to the Prussian border, to spend Easter there. An insurgent patrol, sent out on 11 April, spotted a group of Cossacks, stationed in the village of Strojec. As turned out later, it was a trap, as a large Russian force was hidden in a forest. Oxinski, who at some point sensed the danger, decided to break through Russian lines in their weakest point, and flee to Wielun.

The battle took place in a dense forest, and Polish insurgents used bayonets. Using the element of surprise, Oxinski and his men managed to escape encirclement. Poles lost 10 men, while Russian losses amounted to 28 killed. A few days after the skirmish, bodies of 9 unnamed Poles were buried in a mass grave in Praszka. A monument in their memory was later unveiled at the cemetery.

Sources

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Praszka</span> Place in Opole Voivodeship, Poland

Praszka is a town in Olesno County, Opole Voivodeship, Poland, with 7,655 inhabitants (2019).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maria Piotrowiczowa</span> Polish resistance fighter (1839–1863)

Maria Piotrowiczowa was a Polish January insurgent and a participant of the battle of Dobra. She was born in 1839 and killed on 24 February 1863.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Panasówka</span>

The Battle of Panasówka, which took place on September 3, 1863, near the village of Panasówka, was one of the largest battles of the January Uprising. A unit of Polish insurgents of some 1,200 defeated here a Russian army detachment. The Poles were supported by some 40 Hungarian volunteers under Count Edward Nyáry, who himself was wounded and died.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Siemiatycze</span>

The Battle of Siemiatycze was one of the largest battles of the January Uprising. It took place on February 6–7, 1863, in the town of Siemiatycze, Russian Empire. Russian forces of some 2,500 under General Zachar Maniukin clashed with 4,000 Polish insurgents commanded by Walenty Lewandowski, Roman Roginski and Wladyslaw Cichorski-Zameczek. The battle was won by the Russians, and their victory had widespread implications in the area of Białystok, as local population decided not to back the uprising.

The Battle of Słupcza took place on 8 February 1863 near the village of Słupcza, Congress Poland, during the January Uprising. Up to 100 Polish insurgents commanded by Leon Frankowski and Antoni Zdanowicz clashed on that day with a unit of the Imperial Russian Army. The skirmish was won by the Russians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Krzywosądz</span>

The Battle of Krzywosądz was one of the battles of the January Uprising. It took place in the village of Krzywosądz, Congress Poland, on 19 February 1863, when a poorly armed party of 500 Polish insurgents, under Ludwik Mierosławski, clashed with a 1,000 strong unit of the Imperial Russian Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Dobra (1863)</span>

The Battle of Dobra took place on February 24, 1863 near the village of Dobra, Russian-controlled Congress Poland. It was one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, the anti-Russian rebellion of Poles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Mrzygłód</span>

The Battle of Mrzygłód took place on 1 March 1863 near the village of Mrzygłód, Russian-controlled Congress Poland. It was one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, the anti-Russian rebellion of Poles. The battle resulted in Polish victory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Pieskowa Skała</span> Part of the January Uprising

The Battle of Pieskowa Skała, one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, took place on 4 March 1863 near Pieskowa Skała in southwestern corner of Russian-controlled Congress Poland. A party of Polish insurgents commanded by Marian Langiewicz, heading towards the border with Galicia, clashed with units of the Imperial Russian Army.

The Battle of Igolomia, one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, took place on 21 March 1863 near the village of Igolomia in southwestern corner of Russian-controlled Congress Poland. Polish forces under Jozef Smiechowski clashed with the troops of the Imperial Russian Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Buda Zaborowska</span>

The Battle of Buda Zaborowska, one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, took place on 14 April 1863 near the village of Buda Zaborowska in central part of Russian-controlled Congress Poland. Polish forces under Major Walery Remiszewski clashed with troops of the Imperial Russian Army. The battle resulted in Russian victory.

The Battle of Borowe Mlyny, one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, took place on 16 April 1863 near the village of Borowe Mlyny in southeastern part of Russian-controlled Congress Poland. 300 Polish insurgents under Colonel Marcin Borelowski clashed with approximately 1,000 soldiers of the Imperial Russian Army.

The Second Battle of Nowa Wies was a skirmish of the January Uprising in the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth against the Russian Empire on 26 April 1863. It took place near the village of Nowa Wies, which at that time belonged to Russian-controlled Congress Poland. A thousand Polish insurgents under Frenchman Leon Young de Blankenheim were victorious over some seven hundred soldiers of the Imperial Russian Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Pyzdry (1863)</span>

The Battle of Pyzdry, one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, took place on April 29, 1863, near the town of Pyzdry, which at that time belonged to Russian-controlled Congress Poland. 1,200 Polish insurgents under Edmund Taczanowski and Alojzy Oranowski clashed here with 1,500 soldiers of the Imperial Russian Army. The battle ended in Polish victory.

The Battle of Kobylanka, one of many skirmishes of the January Uprising, took place on May 1 and May 6, 1863, in the Kobylanka Forest, located near the village of Borowiec, which at that time belonged to Russian-controlled Congress Poland. A Polish insurgent party of some 800, under Antoni Jezioranski, clashed here with a 1000-strong unit of the Imperial Russian Army.

The Battle of Horki was a series of three clashes between Polish-Lithuanian insurgent forces and units of the Imperial Russian Army during the January Uprising. It took place between 17 and 25 May 1863 in the village of Horki near Kobryn, Russian Empire. Insurgent forces were commanded by Romuald Traugutt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Salicha</span>

The Battle of Salicha was a clash between Polish insurgent forces and units of the Imperial Russian Army during the January Uprising. It took place on May 26, 1863 near the village of Salicha (Salikha), Russian Empire. Insurgent forces were commanded by Edmund Różycki, and the battle ended in Polish victory.

The Battle of Fajslawice, one of many clashes of the January Uprising, took place on August 24, 1863, near the village of Fajsławice, which at that time belonged to Russian-controlled Congress Poland. A party of 1,500 Polish insurgents, commanded by Michał Heydenreich, clashed with 2,500 soldiers of the Imperial Russian Army’s Mounted Artillery Division under Colonel Grigoriy Emanov. The battle, which was one of the bloodiest clashes of the uprising, resulted in Russian victory. The insurgents lost 320 killed, 650 captured and 40 wounded, while Russian losses were app. 40 wounded and unknown number killed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Mełchów</span>

The Battle of Mełchów, one of many clashes of the January Uprising, took place on September 30, 1863, in the village of Mełchów, which at that time belonged to the Russian-controlled Congress Poland. A party of 800 Polish insurgents, commanded by Zygmunt Chmieleński, clashed with soldiers of the Imperial Russian Army. Russian losses were estimated at approximately 100 killed, while Polish losses totaled 70 killed and wounded.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Rybnica</span>

The Battle of Rybnica, one of many clashes of the January Uprising, took place on October 20, 1863, near the village of Rybnica, which at that time belonged to Russian-controlled Congress Poland. A party of 650 Polish insurgents, commanded by Dionizy Czachowski, clashed with a 500-strong detachment of the Imperial Russian Army. The clash ended in rebel victory; Russian losses were estimated at app. 50–60 killed, while Poles lost 27 killed and 30 wounded.