"Army Bernolak" or "Slovakian forces in Case White"

[PreußensGlanz]

Hi
Is anyone able to provide me or point me to details of the Army "Bernolak"?
I'm mainly interested in the composition of the 3 infantry divisions.
1st Infantry Division "Janosik"
2nd Infantry Division "Skultety"
3rd Infantry Division "Razus"

Details of their actions would be also interesting.

[AHK]

Complete divisional OBs and campaign history in "Axis Slovakia, Hitler's Slavic Wedge, 1938-1945" by Mark W.A. Axworthy, 2002. Highly recommend this book which I obtained via AMAZON at very reasonable price!
AHK

[Domen123]

Is anyone able to provide me or point me to details of the Army "Bernolak"?
I'm mainly interested in the composition of the 3 infantry divisions.
1st Infantry Division "Janosik"
2nd Infantry Division "Skultety"
3rd Infantry Division "Razus"

Details of their actions would be also interesting.

Only several heavy combats were fought by Slovakian units, all of them fought against much weaker Polish units:

1. Combats near Piwniczna on 01.09.1939 - units of 2. Infantry Division "Škultéty" were easily repulsed by Polish forces. Combats were fought by units of 2. Inf.Div. "Škultéty" vs Separated Unit "Piwniczna" from 2. KOP Regiment "Karpaty".

2. Combats near Czeremcha between 2 and 6 September 1939 (as the result Slovakians captured Czeremcha on 5 September but were repulsed by Polish counterattack near Lipowiec, on 6 September Poles counterattacked again but were repulsed). Combats near Czeremcha were fought between 2. Infantry Division "Škultéty" and Polish 2. KOP Regiment "Karpaty".

3. Combats for Resistance Nest "Klodne" and Resistance Nest "Wietrznica" near Ochotnica in period 2 - 4 September, Polish forces defended "Klodne" (3rd company of KOP Btl. "Zytyn") for 2 days (2 - 3 September) and "Wietrznica" (3rd company of KOP Btl. "Zytyn" reinforced by 2nd company of National Defense Btl. "Limanowa") for one day against German forces from 2nd Mountain Division (three battalions + artillery) and Slovakian forces from 1. Infantry Division and 3. Infantry Division.

3. Combats near Tylicz on 3 September 1939 - Slovakian infantry from 3. Inf.Div. supported by 4 armoured cars was repulsed. One Slovakian armoured car was destroyed by several accurate shots of Polish AT rifle - 2 members of the crew were WIA. On the Polish side 7th company from 1. Podhalanscy Rifle Regiment (from 2. Mountain Brigade) participated in that combat.

There were also several Polish "raids" / "counterattacks" on Slovakian territory, during which some Slovakian POWs were captured. For example during the night from 2 to 3 September 1939 Polish 6th company of 2. KOP Regiment "Karpaty" attacked Slovakian territory across the Beskid Pass and captured the crew of Slovakian military post "Čertižské Sedlo" (five POWs from 21. Infantry Regiment of Slovakian 2. Inf.Div. were captured) Another attack also took place near Vyšný Komárnik during which Polish forces destroyed a Slovakian Border Guard post. Slovakian Border Guard - Finančná Stráž - as well as Slovakian equivalent of Waffen SS (if I'm correct) - Hlinková Garda - also suffered some losses in the Polish Campaign.

In fact only during the first week of the campaign Slovakian units were involved in some heavy combats. After that they were no longer involved in combats along the 1st frontline but were just advancing behind German forces somewhere in the rear area (or retreated back to Slovakia) and thus they were only encountering some remnants of defeated / cut off Polish units.

If it comes to combats over Poland - one Slovakian fighter was shot down by Polish AA defense (pilot managed to survive and joined his own forces thanks to help of a Polish teacher) and one was lost in accident. On the other hand, Slovakian fighters achieved one victory - they shot down one Polish RWD reconnaissance plane (which didn't have any armament).

Most probably Slovakian losses in the Polish campaign were:

Slovenská Armáda - 33 dead or MIA (29 KIA/MIA, 1 friendly fire victim and 3 non-combat deaths), 71 - 79 WIA;
Finančná Stráž and Hlinková Garda - 13 KIA, 35 - 43 WIA [in total Armáda + Stráž + Garda lost at least 114 WIA]
Slovenské Vzdusné Zbraně - 2 DiA, 1 Avia B.534 shot down by Polish AA defence and 1 Avia B.534 lost in accident.

If it comes to Slovenská Armáda:

1. Infantry Division "Jánošik":

- 4. Infantry Regiment - 8 KIA/MIA, 12 WIA, 4 POWs - in combats near Ochotnica 4 IX
- 6. Infantry Regiment
- 35. Infantry Regiment
- 1. Artillery Regiment
- II./4. Artillery Regiment
- 1. Reconnaissance Battalion
- 1. and 11. engineering companies
- 1. bridge unit
- 1. AA company
- telegraph battalion

Slovakian Combat Diary of 1. Infantry Division also says that on 03.09.1939 near Klodne German units of 2. Gebirgs-Division were halted by Polish forces (3rd company of battalion KOP "Zytyn") and that 2. Geb.Div. lost 20 KIA until 20:15 on 3 IX. During the next day Division "Jánošik" supported the German attack (3 battalions from 2. Geb.Div.) against position "Wietrznica". German-Slovakian attacks were repulsed by 2 Polish companies, but during the night from 4 to 5 IX Poles retreated.

2. Infantry Division "Škultéty":

- 21. Infantry Regiment - 8 KIA, ? MIA (est. 3), 1 DiA, ? WIA (est. 35), 5 POWs - in combats near Czeremcha 2 - 5 IX
- 5. Infantry Regiment - 1 killed by friendly fire, 1 suicide
- 3. Infantry Regiment
- 2. Artillery Regiment
- 2. Reconnaissance Battalion - 2 WIA and one Tatra OA vz.30 armoured car destroyed in combats near Tylicz
- 2. and 12. motorized engineering companies
- 2. bridge unit
- 2. AA company
- telegraph battalion

3. Infantry Division "Rázus":

- 1. Infantry Regiment - 3 KIA, ? MIA (est. 2), ? WIA (est. 15) - in combats near Ochotnica 3 - 4 IX
- 2. Infantry Regiment - 3 KIA, ? MIA (est. 2), ? WIA (est. 15) - in combats near Tylicz 3 IX
- 18. Infantry Regiment
- 3. Artillery Regiment
- I./4. Artillery Regiment
- 3. Reconnaissance Battalion
- 3. and 13. motorized engineering companies
- 3. bridge unit
- 3. AA company
- phone battalion

Fast Group "Kalinčak":

- 1. Cavalry Battalion
- 2. Bicycle Battalion
- 3. Motorized Battalion
- phone battalion

Army disposal units:

4. Artillery Regiment
51. Artillery Regiment
Armoured Train "Bernolák"
AA and Airforce Command "Ľalia"
AA Group "Šarfia"
AA Group "Čakanka"
AA District Command "Ruža"
7. battery of 153. AA Artillery Regiment
4., 5., 6., 7. AA companies
4. and 14. motorized engineering companies
Company of engineering machines
Telegraph battalion "Bernolák"
Building company "Bernolák"
Motorized battalion "Topol"

[Domen123]

I forgot about one non-combat death:

- 1. Reconnaissance Battalion

One officer from this battalion was killed in accident.

Btw - all of these Polish units mentioned in brief descriptions of the above listed combats (KOP Btl. "Zytyn", National Defense Btl. "Limanowa", 1. KOP Rgt. "Karpaty" and 1. Podhalanscy Rifle Rgt.) were parts of Polish 2. Mountain Brigade.

So vast majority of the entire campaign of Army "Bernolak" in Poland was fought against one Polish brigade.

Slovakian Air Force which took part in the Polish Campaign had got 3 fighter squadrons and 5 reconnaissance-bomber squadrons - 90 fighters (79 x Avia B.534, 11 x Avia Bk.534), 88 reconnaissance planes (73 x Letov S.328 + 15 x Aero A.100 and Aero Ab.101) and 3 bombers (1 Bloch MB-200, 1 Fokker F.VII and 1 Avia B-71).

Slovakian Avia B.534 No. 322 from 37. Fighter Squadron piloted by sergeant pilot William Gruń was shot down by Polish AA defence over the city of Stryj and fell down in village Olchowiec (near village Rajskie), 25 kilometres behind the Polish positions. It was on 9th of September 1939.

Few days later shot down Avia B.534 No. 322 was found by Polish soldiers (from 2. Mountain Brigade) and destroyed with use of hand grenades. Sergeant pilot Viliam Grün survived thanks to Polish civilians - local teacher and priest and inhabitants of village Olchowiec. Slovakian fighter pilot - corporal Viliam Jaloviar - was killed during a crash landing near locality Presov on 9th of September 1939. Another Slovakian airmen who died in accident lost his live on the ground.

Slovakian Air Force shot down one Polish plane during the campaign - not RWD (my mistake), but Lublin R-XIIID of corporal pilot Marian Piasecki and lieutenant observer Edward Porada from 56. Observation Squadron, shot down by F. Hanovec and his Avia B.534 from 12. stihacia letky (12. fighter squadron) on 12:18 on 6th of September 1939 near Presov, Slovakia. Both members of the Polish crew were KIA.

Slovakian video which shows the Slovakian invasion in September of 1939:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrwWakPLKgw

[Domen123]

There were also several Polish "raids" / "counterattacks" on Slovakian territory, during which some Slovakian POWs were captured. For example during the night from 2 to 3 September 1939 Polish 6th company of 2. KOP Regiment "Karpaty" attacked Slovakian territory across the Beskid Pass and captured the crew of Slovakian military post "Čertižské Sedlo" (five POWs from 21. Infantry Regiment of Slovakian 2. Inf.Div. were captured) Another attack also took place near Vyšný Komárnik during which Polish forces destroyed a Slovakian Border Guard post. Slovakian Border Guard - Finančná Stráž - as well as Slovakian equivalent of Waffen SS (if I'm correct) - Hlinková Garda - also suffered some losses in the Polish Campaign.

Another such incident took place during the night from 1st to 2nd of September when soldiers of Polish 1. company of KOP Btl. "Zytyn" (after repulsing attacks of Slovakian 2. Infantry Division near Piwniczna) successfully attacked Slovakian territory and even temporarily captured three Slovakian villages - Mníšek at the Poprad river, Kače and Pilhovčik.