Battle of Racławice

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Battle of Racławice

"Battle of Racławice", Jan Matejko 465 x 897 cm. Kraków's National Museum.

Date	April 4, 1794
Location	Racławice, Lesser Poland
Result	Polish victory

Combatants

Poland

Russia

Commanders

Tadeusz Kościuszko

Fiodor Denisov

Strength

4 440 and 11 cannons

5 000 and 30 cannons

Casualties

500

Kościuszko Uprising
Racławice – Warsaw – Wilno – Greater Poland – Szczekociny – Chełm – Krupczyce – Terespol – Maciejowice – Praga

The Battle of Racławice was one of the first battles of the Polish Kościuszko Uprising against Russia. It was fought on April 4, 1794 near the village of Racławice in Lesser Poland.

The Polish forces prepared for the battle were relatively small. The Polish Order of Battle was as follows:

unit	supperior	soldiers
2 battalions	Infantry Regiment of Czapski	400 bayonettes
2 battalions	Infantry Regiment of Wodzicki	400 bayonettes
2 battalions	Infantry Regiment of Ożarowski	400 bayonettes
1 battalion	Infantry Regiment of Raczyński	200 bayonettes
10 squadrons of cavalry	under Antoni Madaliński	400 sabres
10 squadrons of cavalry	under Magnet	400 sabres
4 cavalry squadrons	under Biernacki	160 sabres
2 auxiliary cavalry squadrons	Duchy of Wurtemberg	80 sabres
2440 men altogether

In addition, Lesser Poland fielded approximately 2,000 peasants armed with war scythes and pikes, as well as 11 cannons. The outcome of the battle was a tactical Polish victory, with Kościuszko defeating the numerically superior enemy. However, his forces were too small to start a successful pursuit and the Corps of General Denisov evaded destruction and continued to operate in Lesser Poland.

The victory was subsequently promoted in Poland as a major success and helped in starting the Kościuszko Uprising in other areas of Poland and the Warsaw Uprising of 1794. Also, the participation of peasant volunteers was seen by many as the starting point of the political evolution of Polish peasantry from serfs to equally-entitled citizens of the nation.

After the battle, Kościuszko paraded in front of his troops in a sukmana, a traditional attire worn in Lesser Poland, in honour of the bravery of the peasants, whose charge ensured the quick capture of the Russian artillery. He also praised Wojciech Bartosz Głowacki, a peasant who was the first to capture the cannon (he is visible in the Matejko's painting, above). Both the red cap worn by his soldiers and the home-made war scythes were later featured on the emblem of the 303rd Polish Fighter Squadron which took part in the Battle of Britain.