Battle between Wehrmacht and Polish Army forces during the 1939 Invasion of Poland
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Battle of Wizna
Part of the Invasion of Poland
Tactical map of the battle
Date
September 7–10, 1939
Location
Wizna, Warsaw Voivodeship, Poland
Result
German victory
• Victory because of Polish forces lack of ammunition
The Battle of Wizna was fought between September 7 and September 10, 1939, between the forces of Poland and Germany during the initial stages of the invasion of Poland, which marked the beginning of the Second World War in Europe. According to Polish historian Leszek Moczulski, between 350 and 720 Poles defended a fortified line for three days against more than 40,000 Germans.[1] Although defeat was inevitable, the Polish defence stalled the attacking forces for three days and postponed the encirclement of Independent Operational Group Narew fighting nearby.[2] Eventually the tanks broke through the Polish line and German engineers eliminated all the shelters one by one. The last shelter surrendered around midday on September 10.[3]
Because the battle consisted of a small force holding a piece of fortified territory against a vastly larger invasion for three days at great cost before being annihilated, Wizna is sometimes referred to as the "Polish Thermopylae".[4][5] One of the symbols of the battle is Captain Władysław Raginis, the commanding officer of the Polish force, who swore to hold his position as long as he was alive. When the last two shelters under his command ran out of ammunition, he ordered his men to surrender their arms and committed suicide by detonating a grenade against his neck.
The BattleofWizna was fought between September 7 and September 10, 1939, between the forces of Poland and Germany during the initial stages of the invasion...
the BattleofWizna and the Battleof Brześć Litewski. Important battlesof the 4th Army included the Battleof Tuchola Forest, the Battleof Westerplatte...
flanks by Bolsheviks and annihilated.[citation needed] BattleofWizna (7–10 September 1939) – a battle fought during the September Campaign (Polish: Kampania...
afterwards: BattleofWizna - 6 to 10 September Battleof Hel - 1 September to 2 October and many other battles and defenses. German order ofbattle for Operation...
invasion of Poland. This was abandoned the next day in favor of the Bug as German forces had already penetrated the defenses. The BattleofWizna was fought...
looting and destruction of the southeastern corner of the Duchy of Prussia, together with the neighboring Polish counties ofWizna and Rajgród. Gosiewski...
and heads of states. Museum of the Second World War September Campaign BattleofWizna Westerplatte Monument 79th anniversary of the outbreak of World War...
Commanders of World War II were for the most part career officers. They were forced to adapt to new technologies and forged the direction of modern warfare...
Thermopylae (together with Battle of Zadwórze and BattleofWizna). It took place on 16 September 1920 between units of the 8th Polish Field Artillery Regiment...
Campaign (siege of Tobruk); the Italian campaign (including the capture of the monastery hill at the Battleof Monte Cassino); and in battles following the...
eliminate the threat. Guderian refers to this battle as the Bunkerkampf bei Wizna, 'bunker combat near Wizna'. Raginis, the Polish commander, was killed...
defenses. The BattleofWizna began. German troops reached the suburbs of Warsaw and tried to enter the city but were beaten back. The Siege of Warsaw began...
Władysław Raginis (commander in the BattleofWizna) kpt Franciszek Dąbrowski (the second commander in the Battleof Westerplatte) rtm (kpt) Witold Pilecki...
during the BattleofWizna (see Polish September Campaign) and in other battlefields in the area of Osowiec and Upper Silesia, where up to 80% of them died...
of September 12, remnants of 2nd Uhlan Regiment, destroyed by the Wehrmacht in the BattleofWizna, reached the same forest. Colonel Karol Anders of 2nd...
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