The 21st Mountain Infantry Division (, 21 DPG) was a pre-war unit of the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 62,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military history stret ...

. It was one of two

mountain infantry Mountain warfare (also known as alpine warfare) is warfare in mountains or similarly rough terrain. Mountain ranges are of strategic importance since they often act as a natural border, and may also be the origin of a water source (for example, t ...

divisions of Poland to take part in the

Invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland (1 September – 6 October 1939) was a joint attack on the Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union which marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week aft ...

of 1939. Currently its traditions are continued by

Polish 21st Podhale Rifles Brigade Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

. Until 1939 the unit was commanded by Gen.bryg.

Józef Kustroń Józef Rudolf Kustroń (16 October 1892 in Stryj – 16 September 1939 in the village of Ulazow, during the Polish September Campaign) was a brigadier general of the Polish Army in the Second Polish Republic, commandant of the 21st Mountain Inf ...

and was stationed in and around the towns of

Nowy Sącz Nowy Sącz (; hu, Újszandec; yi, Tzanz, צאַנז; sk, Nový Sonč; german: Neu-Sandez) is a city in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship of southern Poland. It is the district capital of Nowy Sącz County as a separate administrative unit. It has ...

Bielsko Bielsko (german: Bielitz, cs, Bílsko) was until 1950 an independent town situated in Cieszyn Silesia, Poland. In 1951 it was joined with Biała Krakowska to form the new town of Bielsko-Biała. Bielsko constitutes the western part of that tow ...

Cieszyn Cieszyn ( , ; cs, Těšín ; german: Teschen; la, Tessin; szl, Ćeszyn) is a border town in southern Poland on the east bank of the Olza River, and the administrative seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship. The town has 33,500 inhabitant ...

, Bogumin,

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

. Along with 11th Infantry and 22nd Mountain Infantry Divisions, the 21st was notable for its distinctive uniforms, based on folk attire of the

Gorals The Gorals ( pl, Górale; Goral dialect: ''Górole''; sk, Gorali; Cieszyn Silesia dialect, Cieszyn Silesian: ''Gorole''), also known as the Highlanders (in Poland as the Polish Highlanders) are an indigenous ethnographic or ethnic group primar ...

(Polish highlanders) rather than standard uniforms of the Polish Army. During the Invasion of Poland, the division was attached to

Bielsko Operational Group Operational Group Bielsko (''Grupa Operacyjna Bielsko'', ''GO Bielsko''), named after southern Polish city of Bielsko-Biała, was an Operational Group of the Polish Army which fought in the 1939 Invasion of Poland. Officially created on 23 March 193 ...

of the

Kraków Army Kraków Army ( pl, Armia Kraków) was one of the Polish armies which took part in the Polish Defensive War of 1939. It was officially created on March 23, 1939 as the main pivot of Polish defence. It was commanded by Gen. Antoni Szylling. Original ...

. It defended the line of Cieszyn-Bogumin in the region of

Zaolzie Trans-Olza ( pl, Zaolzie, ; cs, Záolží, ''Záolší''; german: Olsa-Gebiet; Cieszyn Silesian: ''Zaolzi''), also known as Trans-Olza Silesia (Polish: ''Śląsk Zaolziański''), is a territory in the Czech Republic, which was disputed betwee ...

. Following the steady withdrawal eastwards, it was victorious in the battles of Krzywoczka and Mogilany along the

Dunajec The Dunajec (); Goral dialects: ''Dónajec'') is a river running through northeastern Slovakia and southern Poland. It is also regarded as the main river of the Goral Lands. It is a right tributary of the Vistula River. It begins in Nowy Targ at t ...

. Attacked on September 6 by superior forces of the

German 2nd Panzer Division The 2nd Panzer Division ( en, 2nd Tank Division) was an armoured division in the German Army, the Heer, during World War II. Created as one of the original three German tank divisions in 1935, it was stationed in Austria after the Anschluss and ...

and

German 4th Panzer Division The 4th Panzer Division ( en, 4th Tank Division) was an armored division in the Army of Nazi Germany. In World War II, it participated in the 1939 invasion of Poland, the 1940 invasion of France, and the 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union. I ...

, parts of its shielding forces managed to withdraw to the other side of the river, blowing the bridges in

Bobrowniki Bobrowniki (; german: Beberen) is a village in Lipno County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Bobrowniki. It lies approximately south-west of Lipno an ...

up. At the same time, a major part of the division was assaulted prior to the river crossing and had to withdraw northwards, where it joined with the

Polish 6th Infantry Division Polish 6th Infantry Division ( pl, 6. Dywizja Piechoty) was a unit of the Polish Army in the interbellum period, which fought in the Polish–Ukrainian War, Polish–Soviet War and Polish September Campaign. It was formed on May 9, 1919, in the area ...

near the town of Biskupice. Finally, the division managed to escape from German forces and cross the San river overnight of September 12 near

Jarosław Jarosław (; uk, Ярослав, Yaroslav, ; yi, יאַרעסלאָוו, Yareslov; german: Jaroslau) is a town in south-eastern Poland, with 38,970 inhabitants, as of 30 June 2014. Situated in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship (since 1999), previ ...

. Between September 13 and September 16 the division took part in heavy fights of Gen. Boruta-Spiechowicz's

operational group {{Unreferenced, date=October 2008 Operational Group ( pl, Grupa Operacyjna, abbreviated GO) was the highest level of tactical division of the Polish Army before and during World War II and the invasion of Poland. It was corps-sized, although variou ...

in the vicinity of

Oleszyce Oleszyce ( uk, Олешичі, ''Oleshychi'') is a small town in Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Poland, with 3,089 inhabitants (02.06.2009). History The history of Oleszyce dates back to the early 15th century, when the village belonged to Poland's ...

, Futorów, Cewków and Ułazów. There the division, by then reduced to merely 4,000 soldiers, managed to withstand a three days long assault of German 45th and 28th Infantry Divisions. However, on September 16 the remnants of the 21st Mountain Division were finally surrounded and most of them either capitulated or were disbanded by their commanders. The division's commanding officer,

, was killed on the battlefield while personally leading his soldiers in an assault.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:21st Military units and formations established in 1919 Mountain infantry divisions of Poland Military units and formations disestablished in 1944

See also

References