Last updated • 2 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
One of the Polish fronts during the Invasion of Poland of 1939
The Southern Front (PolishFront Południowy) was one of two fronts of the Polish Army created during the Invasion of Poland of 1939 against the allied forces of Nazi Germany and Soviet Union. It was established on September 12 out of the Polish Armies Karpaty and Kraków, as well as several military units created behind the front-lines.
Its commander was Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski, who was ordered by the Commander in Chief Edward Rydz-Śmigły to organize the Polish defence in the area of Lesser Poland and Volhynia and to prepare a last stand for the Polish defence in the so-called Romanian Bridgehead. Created too late to be able to change the fate of the war, the front was never established as a single entity and the entry of the Soviet Union on the side of Nazi Germany to the war against Poland made the plans for the front's creation obsolete.
Situation of the Polish Southern Front near the Lwow region, September 17 1939
On September 13, 1939, Gen. Kazimierz Sosnkowski came by plane to the location of Karpaty Army, renamed into Malopolska Army, which had already been encircled by the Wehrmacht. Since German units had established several bridgeheads along eastern bank of the San river, Sosnkowski decided to break through enemy lines in order to reach Lwow. The general had no idea that on September 12, the Germans had destroyed 24th Infantry Division near Bircza, and 3rd Mountain Brigade near Sambor. In the north, German forces pushed 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade to Jaworow, while 1st Mountain Division attacked Lwow (see Battle of Lwow (1939)).
On September 14 Przemysl fell to the Wehrmacht, and Sosnkowski's forces retreated to Sadowa Wisznia, where they concentrated and marched to Lwow. On September 15 and 16, Poles managed to repel German attacks in the forests of Jaworow, destroying among others, SS Germania Regiment. On September 17, Sosnkowski was ordered to march to the Romanian Bridgehead, but was unable to achieve this, due to German encirclement of his army. In the area of Grodek Jagiellonski, remains of what was Polish Southern Front were destroyed by the Wehrmacht. Several soldiers managed to escape to Hungary, but the front as such ceased to exist.
Tadeusz Jurga: U kresu II Rzeczypospolitej, Książka i Wiedza 1985, ISBN83-05-11669-7
Tadeusz Jurga: Wojsko Polskie: krótki informator historyczny o Wojsku Polskim w latach II wojny światowej. 7, Regularne jednostki Wojska Polskiego w 1939: organizacja, działania bojowe, uzbrojenie, metryki związków operacyjnych, dywizji i brygad. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Ministerstwa Obrony Narodowej 1975.
The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, War of Poland of 1939, and Polish Defensive War of 1939, was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak Republic, and the Soviet Union; which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week after the signing of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact between Germany and the Soviet Union, and one day after the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union had approved the pact. The Soviets invaded Poland on 17 September. The campaign ended on 6 October with Germany and the Soviet Union dividing and annexing the whole of Poland under the terms of the German–Soviet Frontier Treaty. The invasion is also known in Poland as the September campaign or 1939 defensive war and known in Germany as the Poland campaign.
This article discusses the Polish order of battle during the invasion of Poland. In the late 1930s Polish headquarters prepared "Plan Zachód", a plan of mobilization of Polish Army in case of war with Germany. Earlier, the Poles did not regard the Germans as their main threat, priority was given to threat from the Soviets.
The siege of Warsaw in 1939 was fought between the Polish Warsaw Army garrisoned and entrenched in Warsaw and the invading German Army.
The Romanian Bridgehead was an area in southeastern Poland that is now located in Ukraine. During the invasion of Poland in 1939 at the start of the Second World War), the Polish commander-in-chief, Marshal of Poland Edward Rydz-Śmigły, ordered all Polish troops fighting east of the Vistula to withdraw towards Lwów and then to the hills along the borders with Romania and the Soviet Union on 14 September. After the Soviets attacked on 17 September, Rydz-Śmigły ordered all units to withdraw to Romania and Hungary, but communications had become disrupted although smaller units crossed outside the major battles.
The Battle of Lwów was a World War II battle for the control over the Polish city of Lwów between the Polish Army and the invading Wehrmacht and the Red Army. The city was seen as the key to the so-called Romanian Bridgehead and was defended at all cost.
The Battle of Jordanów took place on 1–3 September 1939, during the Invasion of Poland and the opening stages of World War II. It was fought between the German XVIII Panzer Corps of Gen.E.Beyer and the Polish 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade under Col. Stanisław Maczek.
Kraków Army was one of the Polish armies which took part in the Polish Defensive War of 1939. It was officially created on March 23, 1939 as the main pivot of Polish defence. It was commanded by Gen. Antoni Szylling. Originally, Kraków Army was to be made of seven infantry divisions, two cavalry brigades and one mountain brigade. On September 1, 1939, General Szylling had the force which consisted of five infantry divisions, two cavalry brigades and one brigade of mountain infantry. Altogether, the army was made of 59 battalions, 29 squadrons, 352 cannons, 90 tanks, two armoured trains and 44 planes. These forces were not enough to halt German advance, especially in the area north of Częstochowa, where Kraków Army connected with Łódź Army. Main thrust of Wehrmacht panzer units was directed there, and this area was defended only by the Polish 7th I.D., which was destroyed in the early days of September 1939, opening the way towards central Poland.
General Kazimierz Sosnkowski was a Polish independence fighter, general, diplomat, and architect.
The Defence of Przemyśl took place between 11 and 14 September 1939, during the German Invasion of Poland. The Polish Army garrison of the former Austrian fortress of Przemyśl managed to halt the advance of the Wehrmacht for three days. The city surrendered on 14 September.
Karpaty Army was formed on 11 July 1939 under Major General Kazimierz Fabrycy after Nazi Germany created a puppet state of Slovakia and the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia was proclaimed after the events that lead to the breakup of Czechoslovakia. According to Polish historians Czesław Grzelak and Henryk Stańczyk, it consisted of two mountain brigades, Lwów Brigade of National Defence and a Battalion Węgry (Hungary). Altogether, Karpaty Army was made of 26 battalions, 160 cannons and 16 planes.
The Warsaw Armoured Motorized Brigade was a motorized unit of the Polish Army during the interbellum period. The brigade was one of two such units in Poland. Not fully formed by September 1, it was nonetheless partially combat ready and immediately rushed into battle during the Polish September Campaign. Following heavy losses during the Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski, it was disbanded on September 20, 1939.
The 49th Hutsul Rifle Regiment was a unit of the Polish Army, which belonged to the 11th Carpathian Infantry Division. Stationed in the interbellum in the garrison in Kolomyja, it participated in the Polish September Campaign, fighting in southern Poland. It became famous after its night attack on parts of the German Independent Regiment SS-Standarte Germania.
Modlin Army was one of the Polish armies that were part of the Polish defense against the German Invasion of Poland. After heavy casualties in the battle of Mława, the Army was forced to abandon its positions near Warsaw around September 10; eventually it took part in the battle of Tomaszów Mazowiecki and surrendered afterwards.
Polish 24th Infantry Division was a unit of the Polish Army in the interbellum period, which took part in the Polish September Campaign. The Division was created in 1921, and its first commandants were: General Jan Hempel, General Wacław Scaevola-Wieczorkiewicz, Colonel Boleslaw Maria Krzyzanowski, and Colonel Boleslaw Schwarzenberg-Czerny. The 24th Division's headquarters were located in Jarosław, with some regiments stationed in nearby cities of Rzeszów and Przemyśl. It consisted of:
Suwalska Cavalry Brigade was a cavalry unit of the Polish Armed Forces of the Second Polish Republic in the interbellum period. It was created on April 1, 1937, out of the 4th Independent Cavalry Brigade. Its headquarters were stationed in Suwałki and the brigade consisted of these units:
The Battle of Jaworów was a battle fought between the German forces and elements of the Polish Małopolska Army during the German Invasion of Poland. It took place from 14 to 16 September 1939 in the vicinity of the town of Jaworów. In the effect of a two-day assault, the Polish forces broke through the German line of defence on their way towards the city of Lwów. The engagement is best known for the destruction of one battalion of three battalions of SS-Germania regiment together with the capture of the heavy equipment of the entire regiment.
Polish Northern Front (1939) was an operational unit of the Polish Army in the Invasion of Poland. It was created by order of Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły, on September 10, 1939.
35th Infantry Division was a reserve unit of the Polish Army in the Second Polish Republic. It did not exist in peacetime organization of the army, and was formed between August 31 – September 4, 1939, during the Invasion of Poland.
The Battle of Boratycze took place on September 14, 1939, during the Invasion of Poland. Polish 24th Infantry Division, commanded by General Kazimierz Fabrycy, and supported by units of Border Protection Corps, clashed with German 2nd Mountain Division. The battle took place near the village of Boratycze, located between Przemysl and Lwów in the Second Polish Republic.
Gustaw Paszkiewicz was a soldier of the Imperial Russian Army, and officer of the Polish Army. He entered the military service in 1914, at the age of 22, fighting as Russian soldier in World War I. Paszkiewicz was a soldier until 1952.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
