The Battle of Filipów was fought on October 22, 1656 between forces of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi- confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Poland and Lithuania ru ...

commanded by

Field Lithuanian Hetman Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a grass ...

Wincenty Korwin Gosiewski Wincenty Aleksander Korwin Gosiewski '' de armis'' Ślepowron (c. 1620 – 29 November 1662) – was a Polish nobleman, general, Field-Commander of Lithuania from 1654, Grand Treasurer of Lithuania and Lithuanian Great-Quartermaster since 1652 ...

on one side, and on the other allied Swedish and Brandenburg-Prussia forces commanded by

Gustaf Otto Stenbock Count Gustaf Otto Stenbock (7 September 1614 – 24 September 1685) was a Swedish soldier and politician. He was son of Friherre Gustav Eriksson Stenbock (1575–1629) and Countess Beata Margareta Brahe (1583–1645), born in Torpa, Länghem p ...

and

Prince Georg Friedrich of Waldeck Prince Georg Friedrich of Waldeck (31 January 1620 – 19 November 1692) was a German and Dutch Field Marshal and, for the last three years of his life, Grand Master of the Order of Saint John (Bailiwick of Brandenburg). In 1641, Waldeck e ...

. The battle ended with victory for the Swedish-Brandenburg-Prussian troops. After their victory in the

Battle of Prostki The Battle of ProstkI was fought near Prostki (German: ''Prostken''), Duchy of Prussia (today in Ełk County, Poland) on October 8, 1656, between forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and allied Crimean Tatars commanded by hetman Wince ...

, the Lithuanian - Tatar forces began widespread looting of the

Duchy of Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establish ...

. Soon afterwards, Crimean Tatar units, allied to Poland–Lithuania headed back to their homeland, and the Commonwealth army shrank to some 8,500. In the second half of October, a Swedish - Brandenburg - Prussian army of some 9,000 rushed towards the Lithuanians, who camped in the town of Filipów. The Lithuanians were commanded by

Hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...

, while Swedish-Prussian forces were led by

and

. While main Lithuanian forces rested in Filipów, Swedish-Prussian army carried out a surprise attack on their rear units, which were stationed in Mieruniszki. As time went by, additional units on both sides entered the battle. From the very beginning, Gustaf Otto Stenbock and Georg Friedrich of Waldeck enjoyed a tactical advantage. The Lithuanians were threatened with encirclement, so Gosiewski ordered a retreat northwards. Due to this decision, Lithuanian losses were negligent, with one exception of Prince

Bogusław Radziwiłł Bogusław Radziwiłł ( lt, Boguslavas Radvila; 3 May 1620 – 31 December 1669) was a Polish princely magnate and a member of the Polish-Lithuanian ''szlachta'', or nobility. He was of the Radziwiłł magnate family. By birth he was an ...

, who had been captured in Prostki, and who was released in Filipów. After the battle, the Lithuanians retreated from the Duchy of Prussia, while Stenbock with his army headed southwards, to the

Vistula The Vistula (; pl, Wisła, ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest river in Europe, at in length. The drainage basin, reaching into three other nations, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra in ...

river.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Filipow Conflicts in 1656 1656 in Europe Filipow Filipow