Battle of the Bzura

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Battle of Bzura
Part of Invasion of Poland

Map showing the Polish assault southwards
Date September 9 – September 221, 1939
Location Near Kutno, Poland
Result German victory
Belligerents
Poland Nazi Germany
Commanders
Tadeusz Kutrzeba
Władysław Bortnowski		 Gerd von Rundstedt
Johannes Blaskowitz
Strength
8 infantry divisions,
2-4 cavalry brigades		 12 infantry divisions,
5 armoured and motorized divisions
Casualties and losses
18,000 dead
32,000 wounded
170,000 captured [1]		 8,000 dead
v • d • e
Invasion of Poland
Westerplatte – Danzig – The Border - Krojanty – Chojnice – Grudziądz – Lasy Królewskie – Mokra – Gdańsk Bay – Pszczyna – Mława – Tuchola Forest – Jordanów – Borowa Góra – Mikołów – Węgierska Górka – Tomaszów Mazowiecki – Wizna – Łódź – Przemyśl – Piotrków – Różan – Radom – Łomża – Wola Cyrusowa – Warsaw – Gdynia – Hel – Bzura – Jarosław – Kałuszyn – Węgrów – Wilno – Lwów – Modlin – Kobryń – Brześć – Kępa Oksywska – Tomaszów Lubelski – Wólka Węglowa – Kampinos Forest – Janów, Wereszyca, and Hołosko – Krasnystaw – Grodno – Sarny – Cześniki – Krasnobród – Władypol – Szack – Wytyczno – Parczew – Kock
Battle of the Bzura: Polish cavalry in Sochaczew in 1939.
Battle of the Bzura: Polish cavalry in Sochaczew in 1939.

The Battle of the Bzura (or Kutno or Battle of Kutno - German name) was a battle in the opening campaign of World War II during the 1939 German Invasion of Poland, fought between September 9 and 19,[1] 1939, between Polish and German forces.

It was the single largest[2] battle in the 1939 September campaign and took place to the west of Warsaw, near the Bzura River. In it, a Polish breakout attack gained initial success but eventually faltered after a concentrated German counterattack.

Contents

[edit] Opposing Forces

Polish forces consisted of Army Poznań and Army Pomorze. German forces included the 8th and 10th Armies of Army Group South (Heeresgruppe Süd).

[edit] The Battle

The battle can be divided into 3 phases:

  • Phase I — Polish offensive on Stryków (9–12 September)
  • Phase II — Polish offensive towards Łowicz (13–16 September)
  • Phase III — German counterattack and eventual defeat of the Poles, with the latter's withdrawal towards Warsaw and Modlin
Brigade of Polish cavalry in Battle of Bzura
Brigade of Polish cavalry in Battle of Bzura

On September 9, the Polish Poznań Army commenced a counterattack from the south of the Bzura river, its target being the German divisions advancing between Łęczyca and Łowicz. The commander of Poznań Army: Tadeusz Kutrzeba noticed that German 8th Army commanded by general von Blaskowitz is weakly secured from North by only 30th Infantry Division stretched on 30 kilometers defensive line while the rest of the army advancing towards Warsaw. The Pole's main effort was concentrated in the area of Stryków. The right wing of the offensive included the Podolska Cavalry Brigade, and on the left, in the area of Głowno, the Wielkopolska Cavalry Brigade. These groups managed to inflict considerable losses on the German defenders, which included some 1,500 German soldiers killed and wounded in action and 3,000 taken prisoner [3] [4] during the initial push. Cavalry brigades pushed Germans by advancing towards vulnerable flanks and disorganizing the rear. They also succesfully used TKS and TK-3 reconnaissance tanks. German 30th Division shown fierce resistance and suffered heavy casaulties[5]. Its commander: Generalmajor von Briesen personally led his last reserve battalion into the desperate fighting, halting the Poles, but losing his left forearm in the process. Visited in Hospital by Wilhelm Keitel and Adolf Hitler, von Briesen was awarded the Knight's Cross for his gallantry, and for maintaing the integrity of Blaskowitz's 8th Army lines. The German forces were thrown back approximately 20 kilometres south of their original positions and the Poles recaptured several towns, including Łęczyca and Piątek. The German 8th Army also suffered heavy casualties. On September 10, the Polish 17th Infantry Division met the German 17th Infantry Division at Małachowicze and a bloody fight ensued. A day later, Army Poznań, continuing its advance with the forces of the 25th Division and Podolska Cavalry Brigade, engaged the German 221st Infantry Division south of Łęczyca. Meanwhile, the remnants of Polish Pomorze Army arrived in the area of Włocławek, Brześć Kujawski and Koło.

Polish 18th Infantry Regiment advancing during the battle
Polish 18th Infantry Regiment advancing during the battle

German radio broadcasted report that in region of Kutno (German name: Battle of Kutno) heavy fights with brave enemy are taking place. The battlefield was visited by Adolf Hitler who later said that "this battle cost him more nerves than the whole French Campaign".

Initially underestimating the Polish advance, on September 11 the Germans soon decided to redirect the main force of the German 10th Army, the German 4th Army, the reserves of the Army Group South, and aircraft from 4th Air Fleet towards the Bzura. The following day the Poles reached the line Stryków-Ozorków. On the same day General Tadeusz Kutrzeba learned that units of Army Łódź had retreated to the stronghold of Modlin. Upon hearing this, Kutrzeba decided to stop the offensive and instead try to reach Sochaczew and Kampinos Forest.

On the morning of September 14, General Władysław Bortnowski's group began the second phase of the battle. The 26th and 16th Infantry Divisions crossed the Bzura near Łowicz and the Polish 4th Infantry Division reached the road linking Łowicz with Głowno. At this point however, Bortnowski was informed that the German 4th Panzer Division was withdrawing from its positions on the outskirts of Warsaw. Fearing that this Panzer division posed an immediate threat to his men, he ordered the 26th Infantry Division to retreat.

Aftermath of bombing of a Polish column, with Bofors AA gun in the foreground
Aftermath of bombing of a Polish column, with Bofors AA gun in the foreground

On September 15 and 16th, Army Pomorze took up defensive positions on the northern bank of the Bzura. General Stanisław Grzmot-Skotnicki’s group was located between Kutno and Żychlin, General Michał Karaszewicz-Tokarzewski’s units near Gąbin, and parts of Army Poznań by the Bzura near Sochaczew, were ready to commence their drive towards Warsaw. To encircle and destroy the Polish forces, the Germans engaged most of their own 10th Army, including two armoured, one motorized, and three light divisions, equipped with some 800 tanks altogether. The attack from all sides on Polish positions started on September 16, with the support of the Luftwaffe. The German 1st Panzer Division, after crossing the Bzura between Sochaczew and Brochów and engaging the Polish 25th Infantry Division managed to capture Ruszki, but its advance was then halted.

During the night of September 17, the main forces of Army Poznań attacked the German forces in order to break out of the German encirclement between Witkowice and Sochaczew. The 15th Infantry Division and Podolska Cavalry Brigade again crossed the Bzura in Witkowice. in Brochow, the 25th and 17th Infantry Divisions crossed the Bzura river. The 14th Infantry Division was concentrated in Łaziska. At the same time, Army Pomorze marched towards the villages of Osmolin, Kierozia and Osiek.

In the morning the Germans started their drive towards the south on along both banks of the Bzura, supported by more than 300 aircraft and heavy artillery. German howitzers, taking advantage of its position on the high ground of the Vistula's right bank, shelled Polish positions for the entire day. And after two days of heavy fighting, with no ammunition or food rations remaining, further attempts at a breakout for the Poles became impossible.

Only a few Polish units managed to break out of the encirclement. These groups entered Warsaw and Modlin, crossing the Kampinos Wilderness. Among them were Generals Kutrzeba, Knoll-Kowacki and Tokarzewski, two cavalry brigades, and the 15th and 25th Infantry Divisions. The remainder, with General Bortnowski, capitulated between the 18th and 22nd of September.

[edit] Aftermath

After the battle the remaining German divisions rushed towards Warsaw and Modlin and soon encircled both. Even though the Bzura campaign ended in defeat for the Poles, its strategic importance lay in the fact that because of initial Polish local victories the German advance on Warsaw was halted for a several days, and the Wermacht was required to divert units from its Warsaw campaign. This enabled the Polish units defending Warsaw and its environs to better organize their own long-term, but ultimately failed, defense of the capital.

[edit] Notable participants

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[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Sources vary regarding the end date, some giving 18th September while others 19th September. Brockhaus Multimedial Lexikon gives the date of 19 September as the end date of the battle.
  2. ^ The Second World War: An Illustrated History , Putnam, 1975, ISBN 0399114122, Google Print snippet (p.38)
  3. ^ Elble Rolf, 1975, Die Schlacht an der Bzura im September 1939 aus deutscher und polnischer Sicht
  4. ^ Tadeusz Kutrzeba mentions 1500 prisoners
  5. ^ Elble Rolf, 1975, Die Schlacht an der Bzura im September 1939 aus deutscher und polnischer Sicht: 30Inf Div lost 800KIA, 100MIA, 750WIA and 3000 captured (first day)


[edit] External links