The Battle of Horki was a series of three clashes between Polish-Lithuanian insurgent forces and units of the
Imperial Russian Army during the
January Uprising. It took place between 17 and 25 May 1863 in the village of
Horki
Horki ( be, Горкі, , pl, Horki) or Gorki (russian: Горки) is a town in the Mogilev Region of Belarus, an administrative center of Horki District. As of 2009, its population was 32,777.
History
For the first time Horki was mentioned ...
near
Kobryn
Kobryn ( be, Кобрын; russian: Кобрин; pl, Kobryń; lt, Kobrynas; uk, Кобринь, Kobryn'; yi, קאָברין) is a city in the Brest Region of Belarus and the center of the Kobryn District. The city is located in the southwest ...
,
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
(now
Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
). Insurgent forces were commanded by
Romuald Traugutt
Romuald Traugutt (16 January 1826 – 5 August 1864) was a Polish general and war hero best known for commanding the January Uprising of 1863. From October 1863 to August 1864 he was the leader of the insurrection. He headed the Polish national ...
.
In late April 1863, an insurgent unit consisting of volunteers from the area of Kobryn concentrated near Horki. It had almost 200 men, including 32 civil servants from Kobryn, who joined the insurrection. The party, commanded by Romuald Traugutt, was quickly noticed by Imperial Russian authorities, which decided to act.
On 17 May 1863 Traugutt carried out an ambush, in which a Russian detachment of infantry and
Cossacks was destroyed. The Russians retreated, losing 70 men, and their commandant, Colonel Ehrnberg, sent for reinforcements. Four days later, on 21 May, Russian forces attacked again, but after losing 12 men, they withdrew from Horki. Finally, on 25 May, strong Russian forces surrounded the insurgents. After a three-hour battle, the insurgents dispersed, losing 13 men. The Russians captured Polish camp, with 20 wagons and 50 horses.
The Battle of Horki was in 1990 commemorated on Warsaw's
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
A Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is a monument dedicated to the services of an unknown soldier and to the common memories of all soldiers killed in war. Such tombs can be found in many nations and are usually high-prof ...
, with inscription: “HORKI 17 - 25 V 1863”.
Sources
*
Stefan Kieniewicz: Powstanie styczniowe. Warszawa:
Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe
Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN (''Polish Scientific Publishers PWN''; until 1991 ''Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe'' - ''National Scientific Publishers PWN'', PWN) is a Polish book publisher, founded in 1951, when it split from the Wydawnictwa Szkolne i P ...
, 1983. .
Horki
Horki ( be, Горкі, , pl, Horki) or Gorki (russian: Горки) is a town in the Mogilev Region of Belarus, an administrative center of Horki District. As of 2009, its population was 32,777.
History
For the first time Horki was mentioned ...
1863 in Poland
Horki
Horki ( be, Горкі, , pl, Horki) or Gorki (russian: Горки) is a town in the Mogilev Region of Belarus, an administrative center of Horki District. As of 2009, its population was 32,777.
History
For the first time Horki was mentioned ...
May 1863 events
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