Battle of Piotrków Trybunalski
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Battle of Piotrków Trybunalski was a battle in the German
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 ...
from the 4 to 6 September 1939, which involved Polish and German tank formations.


Opposing forces


Polish Army

The core of the Polish force consisted of most of
Prusy Army The Prusy Army ( pl, Armia Prusy) was one of the Polish armies to fight during the Invasion of Poland in 1939. Created in the summer of 1939 as the main reserve of the Commander in Chief, it was commanded by Gen. Stefan Dąb-Biernacki. The word '' ...
's Northern Group. The army, created as the main operational reserve of Polish commander in chief
Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...
Edward Rydz-Śmigły Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły (11 March 1886 – 2 December 1941; nom de guerre ''Śmigły, Tarłowski, Adam Zawisza''), also called Edward Śmigły-Rydz, was a Polish politician, statesman, Marshal of Poland and Commander-in-Chief of Poland's ...
, was also the last to be mobilised in the summer of 1939. Intended as a reserve of
Łódź Army Łódź Army ( pl, Armia Łódź) was one of the Polish armies that took part in the Invasion of Poland of 1939. It was officially created on 23 March 1939 with the task of filling the gap between Poznań Army in the north and Kraków Army in the ...
and
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 ...
, the Prusy Army was to support its neighbours and relieve them once the main German attacks were slowed. However, the Battle of the Border did not gain the Poles enough time to fully mobilise the reserves.Zaloga, S.J., 2002, Poland 1939, Oxford: Osprey Publishing Ltd., While most of Polish Army had been successfully mobilised prior to 1 September 1939, many sub-units of Prusy Army were still being formed or transported. By 4 September 1939, when the German forces broke through the overstretched Polish defences, the Prusy army was far from battle-ready. Its Northern Group at that date consisted of 29th Infantry Division and
Wileńska Cavalry Brigade Wilenska Cavalry Brigade ( pl, Wileńska Brygada Kawalerii) was a unit of the Polish Army, created on 1 April 1937 out of the 3rd Independent Cavalry Brigade. Its headquarters were stationed in Wilno (Vilnius), with some regiments garrisoned in the ...
, with 19th Infantry Division still being formed in the forests to the north-east of Piotrków Trybunalski while the 13th Infantry Division was still waiting for some of its sub-units near the railway hub of
Koluszki Koluszki is a town, and a major railway junction, in central Poland, in Łódź Voivodeship, about 20 km east of Łódź with a population of 12,776 (2020). The junction in Koluszki serves trains that go from Warsaw to Łódź, Wrocław, Cz ...
and did not become available until 6 September. The army was strengthened by a mobile reserve formed by the 1st Light Tank Battalion (armed with modern
7TP tank The 7TP (''siedmiotonowy polski'' - 7-tonne Polish) was a Polish light tank of the Second World War. It was developed from the British Vickers 6-ton. A standard tank of the Polish Army during the 1939 Invasion of Poland, its production did not ...
s) stationed between
Opoczno Opoczno ) is a town in south-central Poland, in eastern part of Łódź Voivodeship (since 1999), previously in Piotrków Trybunalski Voivodeship (1975–1998). It has a long and rich history, and in the past it used to be one of the most importa ...
and
Końskie Końskie ( yi, Kinsk, קינצק / קינסק) is a town in south-central Poland with 20,328 inhabitants (2008), situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. Historically, Końskie belongs to the province of Lesser Poland, and since its found ...
, and the 81st Motorised Sappers Battalion. Apart from units of the Prusy Army, the Polish side also included a number of smaller units from Łódź Army. In the city of Piotrków Trybunalski itself the 146th Infantry Regiment was being mobilised for the 44th Reserve Infantry Division and was dispatched to the front as part of an improvised battle group under Col. Ludwik Czyżewski. In addition, 2nd Light Tank Battalion including elements of the
Wołyńska Cavalry Brigade The Volhynian Cavalry Brigade ( pl, Wołyńska Brygada Kawalerii) was a Polish cavalry brigade, which saw action against the invading Germans during the Invasion of Poland, a part of World War II. Raised from recruits in the area of Wołyń, the di ...
and the
2nd Legions' Infantry Regiment The 2nd Legions' Infantry Regiment ( pl, 2. pułk piechoty legionów, 2ppLeg) was a Polish military unit active between 1914 and 1944. Initially a part of the Polish Legions in World War I, after the war it was incorporated into the Polish Army. D ...
of the 2nd Legions Infantry Division also took part in the battle as part of Col. Czyżewski's group.


Wehrmacht

The German force fighting in the battle consisted of the entire
XVI Panzer Corps The XVI Army Corps (16th Corps) was a corps in the German Army during World War II. The XVI (motorized) Corps (german: Generalkommando XVI. (mot.) Armeekorps) was activated as a headquarters for motorized units in February 1938 in Berlin. The XV ...
. The unit, part of German 10th Army, was the strongest Panzer corps in the Wehrmacht and on 1 September 1939 included between 616 and 650 tanks of all types (the entire Polish Army had 313 proper tanks altogether, not including reconnaissance
tankette A tankette is a tracked armoured fighting vehicle that resembles a small tank, roughly the size of a car. It is mainly intended for light infantry support and scouting.
s). The XVI Corps included the 1st and 4th Panzer Divisions as well as the
14th 14 (fourteen) is a natural number following 13 (number), 13 and preceding 15 (number), 15. In relation to the word "four" (4), 14 is spelled "fourteen". In mathematics * 14 is a composite number. * 14 is a square pyramidal number. * 14 is a s ...
and 31st Infantry Divisions.


Battle

On the morning of 4 September,
Hoepner Erich Kurt Richard Hoepner (14 September 1886 – 8 August 1944) was a German general during World War II. An early proponent of mechanisation and armoured warfare, he was a Wehrmacht army corps commander at the beginning of the war, leading hi ...
’s
XVI Panzer Corps The XVI Army Corps (16th Corps) was a corps in the German Army during World War II. The XVI (motorized) Corps (german: Generalkommando XVI. (mot.) Armeekorps) was activated as a headquarters for motorized units in February 1938 in Berlin. The XV ...
reached
Rozprza Rozprza is a town in Piotrków County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Rozprza. It lies approximately south of Piotrków Trybunalski and south of the regional capital Ł ...
, just 12km south of Piotrków. It was a defensive position of the "Lodz" army under command of general Thommee, defended by an improvised infantry battalion without anti-tank weapons, supported by two artillery pieces. The
Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
managed to throw off the defenders and build bridges across the river. In the afternoon a
Polish 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 ...
2nd tank battalion was sent to counterattack but withdrew under artillery fire. In the evening Thomme.decided to make another counterattack the next day using the 2nd tank battalion and an infantry battalion from
Wolynska Cavalry Brigade Volhynia (also spelled Volynia) ( ; uk, Воли́нь, Volyn' pl, Wołyń, russian: Волы́нь, Volýnʹ, ), is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between south-eastern Poland, south-western Belarus, and western Ukraine. The ...
. At the same time, Hopener decided to regroup his 1st and 4th panzer divisions, and attack Piotrków next day using the captured bridgeheads. The city was defended by 19th infantry division from "Prusy" army. In addition, there was a Wilenska Cavalry Brigade and 29th infantry division nearby, which Biernacki intended to use for a night attack on the armored troops attacking Piotrków. Permission for this attack was given at night and the attack was scheduled for the night of September 5/6. At dawn on September 5, Hoepner moved north and at 10 a.m. 1st panzer division attacked Piotrków. This was a surprise to Biernacki who thought that Rozprza was still defended by the "Lodz" army. The attack was repelled with the participation of 2nd tank battalion which counterattacked on the flank. However, the Polish tanks soon began to retreat due to the numerical superiority of the Germans. Hoepner collected more forces and after a strong artillery fire at 2 p.m. the second attack on the city began. This time, the Polish defensive line was pierced and german tanks began to pour through. The two battalions of the 19 infantry division were decimated, having lost more than 80 percent of their personnel and equipment. The Germans occupied the city by evening. At the same time, Biernacki, unaware of the loss of the city due to missing reports, continued to prepare for a night attack. However, 19th division was badly battered and Wilenska Cavalry Brigade began to retreat to the northeast. Only 29th division continued the advance by marching into the fighting area. At midnight the Biernacki realized the situation and ordered to recapture the city with the forces of 29th infantry division and four battalions from 19th infantry division that had not yet taken part in the fighting. The attack, however, was not carried out and the troops withdrew to the north. 29th division lost two infantry battalions already fighting near Piotrków, which did not receive new orders.


See also

*
List of World War II military equipment of Poland Polish Armament in 1939–45 article is a list of equipment used by Polish army before and during the Invasion of Poland, foreign service in British Commonwealth forces and last campaign to Germany with the Red Army in 1945. Aircraft Local des ...
*
List of German military equipment of World War II The following is a list of German military equipment of World War II which includes artillery, vehicles and vessels. World War II was a global war that was under way by 1939 and ended in 1945. Following political instability build-up in Europe from ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Piotrkow Trybunalski Battles of the Invasion of Poland Tank battles involving Germany Tank battles involving Poland Łódź Voivodeship (1919–1939) September 1939 events Tank battles of World War II