Fighting in the area of ​​the BK Wielkopolska - 1939.

[tigre]

Hello to all ; talking about cavalry, here goes a brief summary of the fighting of the BK Wielkopolska in September 1939 ................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

General Abraham was responsible for the border area along the line Kościan - Leszno - Rawicz and along the Warta river in the sector between Mosiną and Nowy Miasto. On the border ahead of Warta were three separate defensive sectors: OW "Leszno" with I. / 55 pp (mjr. Jan Dymowski); OW "Radzyn" with the 3. / 17 pu (rtm Stanisława Czerniawski) reinforced with heavy machine guns and anti-tank weapons; OW "Rawicz" with the 8. / 55 pp (kpt. Stefan Otworowski) reinforced with a Platoon of light armored scout cars and cyclists.

General Abraham was determined to defend the key locations along the border defense belt, ie Leszno, located in the northwest corner of the deployment and Rawicz, located in the extreme southwest.


Area of operations..................
http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danuta_ (POCI% C4% 85g_pancerny)

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

[tigre]

Hello to all ; more follows................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The first day of the war.

On September 01, 1939 the German Army attacked the defensive belt of the Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska. Its Commander, Gen. Abraham, proclaimed: Soldiers! the ancient Teutonic-Prussian enemy attacked our country, our brigade will have the honor of the first fight and defend the country's border. Defend your homeland and your families.

At 05:00 hours the first shells fell in Leszno. The artillery fire continued until 06:10 hours but with little effect. In the first line were deployed the 1. and 3. Companies of mjr. Dymowski's Battalion (the I./ 55 pp) supported by artillery Platoon of kpt. Snitko and the antitank guns of por. Hromady.

The first attack against Leszno, executed by troops of the 252. ID and the Grenzsch. Rgt 61, was rejected; the first prisoners were taken. At 09:00 hours a fight broke out in Leszno, from the house of the German Hessing started shooting a machine gun and killed the szer. Paweł Koprykowski of the 2. Company; kpt. Snitko ordered to open fire with heavy machine guns and cannons on the building. Through holes in the walls the Polish soldiers penetrated inside and captured the saboteurs, one tried to escape and was killed. Throughout the day were captured 400 Germans and the war tribunal sentenced to death five of them as saboteurs.


http://niewiarowicz.republika.pl/szkic1.jpg

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

[tigre]

Hello to all ; more follows................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The first day of the war.

At 11:00 the Platoon of kpr Antoni kamowski carried out ​​a retaliatory action on Geyersdorf / Dębowa Łąka and opened fire on German soldiers and burned a dozen stacks of grain. At noon when they were still fighting against the saboteurs, took place the second German assault which was also rejected. At that time the garrison had been reinforced by one armored reconnaissance Platoon (por. Wacław Chłopik) and two cyclists Platoons. General Abraham was informed of the outcome of the struggles and from this morning in the town was also the commander of the 55 pp, plk W. Wiecierzyński, who personally oversaw the defense situation.

Northwest of Leszno it was deployed the II. Squadron of rtm. Danielewicz, who was informed that at 05:00 hours German soldiers in a company strength had crossed the border. The enemy was rejected and from the prisoners taken it was knew that the Polish troops were facing 2 or 3 territorial battalions without artillery nor armored vehicles.


Destruction at Koscian, 01 Sep 1939 (Obra river?)...........

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

[tigre]

Hello to all ; more follows................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The first day of the war.

South of Leszno the situation was worse. At 05:15 hours the German artillery opened fire against Radzyn. The attack of the German battalion, with artillery support, was successful and the squadron of rtm. Czerniawski was defeated, being wounded wachm. Kedzierski and several Uhlans.

The Polish defense in the region of Kaczkowa had better luck, where a company of the Battalion ON "Rawicz", commanded by por. Lewicki, rejected the German attack and captured 15 prisoners, but it had to retreat due to the situation arising in the wings. While the Poles were expelled from Radzyny, a German battalion crossed the border by Masłowo and Goła and advanced towards Bojanowo. The reconnaissance company of the 55 pp (deployed in Paniecu) fought the enemy and captured 12 prisoners, but the Germans still retained Bojanowo.



Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

[tigre]

Hello to all ; more follows................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The first day of the war.

The situation was worse in Rawicz where at 09:30 hours and after an artillery preparation, a German battalion advanced along the north and south of the town. Despite fierce resistance from the Polish soldiers of the 8. Company, they failed to retain their positions and by 10:30 hours the city was in German hands. The Commander of the Wielkopolska Cavalry Brigade took decisive action; he sent ppłk Jabłoński to Rawicz and the General himself went to Bojanowo.

General Abraham organized a vigorous counterattack with the reconnaissance company and after heavy fighting reconquered Bojanowo captured several German soldiers of the Grenzsch. Rgt 61. The counterattack on Rydzyny failed, but the 8. Company reinforced by two rifle companies and the armored reconnaissance squadron under por. Adán Staszkow managed to reconquer Rawicz, suffering 3 KIA and 10 WIA, including kpt. Otworowski (Commander of the defensive position of Rawicz). Some Polish troops even crossed the German border and near Königsdorf the Platoon of ppor. Jankowski attacked a German motorized column at 19:30 hours and destroyed several vehicles.


The Wehrmacht entering into Poland - Sep 1939...........................

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

[tigre]

Hello to all ; more follows................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The second day of the war.

German troops behaved passively. Around the village of Gorki, on the road Krobia-Rawicz was shot down a German reconnaissance aircraft, the pilots escaped but left behind the maps with enemy troops available in the area. While the Polish troops were prepared for a raid on German territory to Fraustaad (Wschowa). In the evening a Cyclist Platoon under por. Zbigniew Baranski went from Krzywinia to Leszno. At dawn on September 2, 1939 a Polish reconnaissance aircraft took off in order to report about the German deployment at Wschowa, also a Uhlans Platoon under ppor. Stryj carried out a ground reconnaissance and reported about it by radio.

At 14:30 hours the commander of the I. / 55 pp was given the task of attacking Wschowa, the order specified: reject German troops and beat the city with artillery fire. In that raid took part the 2. Company under kpt. Edmund Lesisz, an artillery Platoon under kpt. Snitko, a machine gun Platoon and a Platoon of scout cars. To the north the operation was supported by the Uhlans Platoon of ppor. Strij and from the south by one armored squadron (TKS tanks) and a cyclist Platoon; this second group was led by General Abraham in person. The link between the different groups was provided by cyclists and Uhlans.


Advance of the German troops from Chodzież to Posnan...................

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

[tigre]

Hello to all ; more follows................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The second day of the war.

At 16:00 hours both groups moved to its starting position on the border. The infantry was moved ahead in vehicles and was in place before the artillery which was horse-drawn. The kpt. Lesisz ordered the Leader of the 2nd Platoon, ppor. Władysław Konwiński, to attack the watchtower of the German border troops (Grenzschutz), and thus blocking the access to the town of Geyersdorf (Dębowa Łąka), this this led to a brief but intense struggle between both opponents.

Soon the enemy withdrew and then the Polish artillery went into position, the kpt. Snitko established the observatory post in a school located on the border itself. Antitank ditches dug by the Polish population prevented the progress of the reconnaissance vehicles and the artillery had to open fire from the own territory. The artillery unleashed its concentrations on Geyersdorf sowing panic among German soldiers. Near the village were assembled the armoured of por. Schlopik, which came easily up to the surroundings of the buildings, disbanding a group of German border guards.


Wehrmacht soldiers entering into Poland; in the background the Church of Kalisz - Sep 1939...........

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

Feliz Navidad - Feliz Natal - Frohe Weihnachten - Joyeux Noël - Merry Christmas - Wesołych Świąt!. :lol:

[tigre]

Hello to all ; more follows................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The second day of the war.

Under cover of the machine guns fire, the TKS entered the village, while on the other side, entered the infantry. The company Lesisz continued the advance against Wschowa. At 18: 00 hours the Polish artillery began to shell Wschowa. As a reprisal for the bombardment of Leszno, 36 grenades fell in the German barracks in Wschowa. Meanwhile the Polish spearhead had reached the crossroads of Leszno-Głogów and Zbarzewo-Góra Śląska, i.e. 8 kilometres in territory of the Reich. 7 German soldiers were captured in the town. At dusk General Abraham ordered the withdrawal towards Leszno.

On September 02, 1939 the Germans renewed their offensive on Bojanowo but were rejected by the 1. Company of the battalion ON "Rawicz", which stopped the attack and captured 28 German soldiers who were transported first to the CP of the III. / 55 pp in Małachow and then to the command of the Brigade at Śremie.

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

Cheers. Raúl M .

Feliz Navidad - Feliz Natal - Frohe Weihnachten - Joyeux Noël - Merry Christmas - Wesołych Świąt!.

[tigre]

Hello to all ; the end................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

Withdrawal from the border.

Unfortunately the actions in other parts of the front were so unfavorable therefore at 13:40 hours on September 2, 1939 the Posen Army had received the withdrawal order. At 22:00 hours General Abraham gave the order to retreat towards the Warta line.

On September 3, 1939, the 55 pp. marched from Leszno to Zaniemyśl in order to rejoin the 14. DP. The news of the declaration of war by Britain and France to the German Reich had a positive impact on the morale of the Polish troops. In the night from September 3 to September 4, 1939 the 17 pu marched towards Koscian and sent two squadrons, six machine guns and two anti-tank guns to Mięczewa.


German troops in Leszno, 04 Sep 1939 ...................

Sources: http://szeremietiew.pl/garnizon-leszczy ... -01-06-09/
http://1wrzesnia39.pl/portal/39p/1297/8 ... olsce.html

It's all folks. Cheers. Raúl M .

Feliz Navidad - Feliz Natal - Frohe Weihnachten - Joyeux Noël - Merry Christmas - Wesołych Świąt!.

[tigre]

Hello to all ; a map again................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

Source: in the map.

Cheers. Raúl M .

[tigre]

Hello to all ; a map again................

Fighting in the area of ​​Cavalry Brigade Wielkopolska.

The first day of the war.

Sources: http://niewiarowicz.republika.pl/szkic1.jpg

Cheers. Raúl M .