Battle of Zadwórze

Battle of Zadwórze
	Part of Lwów
Result	See Aftermath

Belligerents

Poland

Russian SFSRCommanders and leaders Bolesław Zajączkowski † Semyon BudyonnyStrength 330 1st Cavalry ArmyCasualties and losses 318 dead Unknown, probably exceeding 600

Battle of Zadwórze (sometimes referred to as the "Polish

Siemion Budionnyi from seizing Lwów and so contributing to the successful defence of Warsaw. The battle has been called a Polish Thermopylae

.

History

Eve of the battle

By mid-August 1920, the

Bug River line against three Russian armies (9th, 13th and 14th

).

After several days of heavy fighting, the

Battle of Lwów, volunteered for the self-defense units. Ill-equipped detachments were sent towards the front line and fought in several battles (among them battles of Kamionka Strumiłłowa, Ruda Siedlecka, Chodaczków, Krasne, Busko, Biłka Szlachecka, Kurowice, Streptów, Zuchorzyce and Laszki Królewskie), but were unable to stop numerically and technologically superior forces of the Red Army

.

Battle

Among the volunteer units organized in Lwów was a group of soldiers of Major (later a general)

Krasne) in order to help the endangered units formed by Roman Abraham. Upon its arrival, the battalion found the town occupied by the Red Army and recaptured it. However, the following day it was endangered by encirclement and was ordered to withdraw towards Lwów. In the morning of 17 August it was taken by surprise near a train station in the village of Zadwórze and was completely destroyed by forces of the Red 6th Cavalry Division of the 1st Cavalry Army

. All Polish soldiers, approximately 200, were killed or missing.

At the same time, a battalion of approximately 500 volunteers organized by Roman Abraham under command of Captain

Tarnopol railroad. On 17 August, shortly before noon, when the group reached the village of Kutkorz it was attacked with machine gun

fire from the nearby village of Zadwórze. Capt. Zajączkowski ordered his men to form a line and started an assault towards the village. After a short fight, 330 Poles captured the train station. However, the village was not taken and soon the Polish forces were counter-attacked by units of the 6th Cavalry Division.

By dusk, the Poles' ammunition was almost completely depleted, yet the Polish unit managed to repel six consecutive cavalry charges. Captain Zajączkowski decided that further defense of the station was impossible and ordered his units to retreat towards Lwów. However, the retreat was halted by three Bolshevik airplanes strafing the Polish defenders. After suffering heavy casualties, Zajączkowski ordered his men to organize a last pocket of resistance near the lineman's hut. After hand-to-hand combat with sabers and bayonets, the Polish resistance was broken. Out of 330 Polish soldiers who seized the train station earlier that day, 318 were dead. Several dozen wounded Poles were captured by the Red Army and are assumed murdered. Captain Zajączkowski himself committed suicide in order not to be captured by the enemy. Only twelve Polish soldiers returned to the Polish lines to recount what had happened during the battle.

Aftermath

The battle was a disaster for the Polish forces defending Zadwórze, in effect they were almost annihilated. However, the 11-hour-long fight halted the advance of the whole 6th Cavalry Division for almost 24 hours. This allowed for the strengthening of the defences of Lwów. In addition, because of the defense of Zadwórze, the

Siemion Budionnyi could not reach the forces fighting in the Battle of Warsaw and attack the undefended right flank of the forces of Józef Piłsudski advancing towards the rear of the Red Army forces around Warsaw. When the forces of Budionnyi finally regrouped and restarted their march northwards, it was already too late and the Battle of Warsaw ended with a complete defeat of the Red Army. The 1st Cavalry Army was later defeated in a Battle of Komarów

, which became known as "the biggest cavalry battle since the 18th century."

Remembrance

Because of the heroic defense and high casualties, the battle of Zadwórze was nicknamed the "Polish Battle of Thermopylae".

Among the Polish soldiers killed in the battle was 19-year-old

Krzyż Walecznych

. His body was never found. He was depicted on a 20-zlytoch coin released by Poland to commemorate the battle.

In 1925 when the authorities of

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw

, his mother Jadwiga Zarugiewiczowa was chosen as the person to select the coffin to be transported to Warsaw and buried in the grave.