Polish 3rd Legions' Infantry Division
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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 ...
3rd Legions Infantry Division (''3. Dywizja Piechoty Legionów'') was a tactical unit of the Polish Army between the World Wars. Formed in 1919, as a third unit composed significantly of veterans of the Polish Legions in World War I (after Polish 1st Legions Infantry Division and
Polish 2nd Legions Infantry Division Polish 2nd Legions Infantry Division (''2. Dywizja Piechoty Legionów'') was a tactical unit of the Polish Army between the World Wars. Formed on February 21, 1919, in the towns of Zegrze and Jablonna near Warsaw, and composed mostly of veterans of ...
), it saw extensive action during the Polish-Bolshevik War and the Invasion of Poland. In the interbellum period, the headquarters of the division was stationed in Zamość, while its regiments were garrisoned in Chelm,
Lublin Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of t ...
, Zamosc and other locations. The division was officially formed on April 9, 1919, in former Austrian
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, during the ongoing Polish-Ukrainian War. At the beginning it consisted of three regiments (7th Legions Infantry, 8th Legions Infantry and 3rd Legions Light Artillery), but was later reinforced with 9th Infantry Regiment.


The Division in September 1939

In accordance with Polish mobilization plan (see
Plan West Plan West ( pl, Plan Zachód) was a military plan of the Polish Army of the Second Polish Republic, for defence against invasion from Nazi Germany. It was designed in the late 1930s. Background While Józef Piłsudski was the dictator of Poland ...
), the division, commanded by Colonel
Marian Turkowski Marian Turkowski (1894–1948) was a soldier of Polish Legions in World War I and Polish II Corps in Russia, and officer, later General brygady of the Polish Army. Altogether, Turkowski served in different military units from 1914 until 1948, wit ...
, was to form main force of southern group of Prusy Army. On September 3, 1939, its first battalions detrained in the area of Radom -
Jedlnia Jedlnia is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Pionki, within Radom County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It lies approximately south-west of Pionki, north-east of Radom, and south of Warsaw. The village has a ...
. Since divisional headquarters was still on the way to the concentration point, these battalions were temporarily commanded by General
Gustaw Paszkiewicz Gustaw Paszkiewicz (1 April 1892 – 27 February 1955) was a soldier of the Imperial Russian Army, and officer of the Polish Army. He entered the military service in 1914, at the age of 22, fighting as Russian soldier in World War I. Paszkiewicz was ...
of the 12th Infantry Division. After concentration, the division was sent to defend the positions along the Krasna river, near Samsonow and Krasna. Several battalions were unable to reach their positions. In the morning of September 6, 1939, German 3rd Light Division attacked. The enemy was divided into two columns, advancing from Mniow towards Samsonow and Krasna. First German assault was repelled, but after a few hours, the enemy attacked again, supported by its artillery. At app. 2 pm, retreat was ordered, as Polish positions were exposed and there was a danger of encirclement. After the Germans had captured Krasna, Poles withdrew along forest roads towards Radom. During the morning battle, the Germans lost 103 KIA and app. 15 tanks and armoured carriers. Polish losses were 33 KIA. Since German armoured forces succeeded in breaking Polish positions and quickly advanced, General
Stanislaw Skwarczynski Stanislav and variants may refer to: People *Stanislav (given name), a Slavic given name with many spelling variations (Stanislaus, Stanislas, Stanisław, etc.) Places * Stanislav, a coastal village in Kherson, Ukraine * Stanislaus County, Cali ...
ordered all units to withdraw behind the Vistula river. The crossing was to take place in several stages, with final stage taking place on the bridge at
Solec nad Wisla Solec may refer to several places in Poland: *Solec, Warsaw, a neighbourhood in Śródmieście, Warsaw *Solec, Łódź Voivodeship (central Poland) *Solec, Gostynin County in Masovian Voivodeship (east-central Poland) *Solec, Piaseczno County in Ma ...
, on September 10. In the night of September 7/8, the Third Legions Division, together with elements of the 12th Division, marched northwards, to Ilza. The defence of the town was given to the 7th Regiment, supported by light artillery. Other regiments were located in the nearby villages, while 12th Division took positions in the forests near
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. Meanwhile, German 1st Light Division advanced along the road from Konskie to Radom and
Kozienice Kozienice (; yi, קאזשניץ ''Kozhnits''; german: Koschnitz) is a town in eastern Poland with 21,500 inhabitants (1995). Located four miles from the Vistula, it is the capital of Kozienice County. Even though Kozienice is part of Lesser Pol ...
. On September 9, the Germans captured river crossing at
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, and concentrated near Radom. South of Polish group, German divisions also advanced, hoping to encircle the Poles. These Wehrmacht units, however, consisted mostly of infantry, which was much slower than motorized regiments. On September 6, the Germans captured
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, and two days later, Skarzysko-Kamienna, advancing then towards Szydlowiec in an attempt to divide the Poles into two groups. On September 9, a regiment of German tanks surprised the headquarters of the 3rd Legions Division, which at that time was located south of the village of
Seredzice Seredzice is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Iłża, within Radom County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It lies approximately west of Iłża, south of Radom, and south of Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa ...
. After a bloody clash, the enemy was repelled. 7th Legions Infantry Regiment, stationed in Ilza, was attacked by tanks of the 3rd Light Division. After losing three tanks, the Germans regrouped and assaulted again, with artillery support. At app. 1700 Polish soldiers began to abandon their positions under heavy artillery fire. German infantry then entered the battle, in support of the tanks. Due to quick reaction of Polish officers, the crisis was overcome and Ilza remained in Polish hands. Following the plan, elements of Polish 3rd and 12th Infantry Divisions prepared for the march to the forests between Ilza and Lipsko. To disorient the enemy, 8th Legions Regiment carried out a successful attack on German positions at Trebowiec Duzy. In the evening of September 9, commandant of the 3rd Legions Division formed an assault group, tasked with opening the route for the retreating units. The group consisted of 1st Battalion of the 7th Regiment and 1st Battalion of the 9th Regiment, supported by two artillery batteries. Its task was to remove German elements from the road Lipsko - Ilza. The attack began at 2030, but Polish soldiers were immediately sprayed by machine gun fire from German positions on the local hills. Nevertheless, the Poles advanced, reaching the headquarters of German 9th Motorized Infantry Regiment, whose commandant was killed in battle. Soon afterwards, however, several Polish soldiers and officers were killed by German machine guns. Despite numerous attempts, Polish assault failed, and at app. 9 pm, soldiers of the 9th Legions Regiment returned to their starting positions. German losses amounted to 4 tanks, unknown number of vehicles and motorcycles, as well as several KIA and WIA. After the clash, elements of the 3rd Legions Division were ordered to try to break through German positions and reach Solec nad Wisla. Polish soldiers, in groups of app. 300, concentrated in local forests, but the division as such ceased to exist. Those who managed to cross the Vistula joined
1st Legions Infantry Division Polish 1st Legions Infantry Division () was a tactical unit of the Polish Army between the World Wars. Formed on February 20, 1919, partially of veterans of the I Brigade of the Polish Legions, the unit saw extensive action during the Polish-Bol ...
, and fought in the
Battle of Tomaszow Lubelski A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
. Other soldiers joined the unit of Colonel Stanislaw Gumowski, which was part of
Polish Northern Front (1939) Polish Northern Front (1939) (Polish language: Front Północny, also called Army Group of General Stefan Dąb-Biernacki) was an operational unit of the Polish Army in the Invasion of Poland. It was created by order of Marshal Edward Rydz-Śmigły ...
, and fought near Krasnystaw. In mid-September 1939, some 500 reservists of the 3rd Division were sent to Kowel, where new units were formed. When news of the Soviet invasion of Poland reached the town, the soldiers were ordered to break to Hungary on their own.


Order of Battle of the 3rd Legions Infantry Division in September 1939

* Headquarters of the Division, stationed in Zamosc: Colonel
Marian Turkowski Marian Turkowski (1894–1948) was a soldier of Polish Legions in World War I and Polish II Corps in Russia, and officer, later General brygady of the Polish Army. Altogether, Turkowski served in different military units from 1914 until 1948, wit ...
, Commandant of Divisional Infantry Colonel Jan Korkozowicz, Commandant of Divisional Artillery Colonel Stanislaw Tatar, Staff Officer Major Jan Szczurek-Cergowski, Chief of Staff Colonel Henryk Sobolewski. * 7th Legions' Infantry Regiment from Chelm, Colonel Wladyslaw Muzyka, *
8th Legions' Infantry Regiment 8th Legions Infantry Regiment (Polish: 8 Pulk Piechoty Legionow, 8 pp Leg.) was an infantry regiment of the Polish Army. It existed from 1918 until 1939. Garrisoned in Lublin, and belonged to the 3rd Legions Infantry Division (Poland), 3rd Legions ...
from
Lublin Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of t ...
, Colonel Antoni Cebulski, *
9th Legions' Infantry Regiment 9th Legions Infantry Regiment (Polish: 9 Pulk Piechoty Legionow, 9 pp Leg.) was an infantry regiment of the Polish Army. It existed from 1918 until 1939. Garrisoned in Zamość, and belonged to the 3rd Legions Infantry Division (Poland), 3rd Legions ...
from Zamosc, Colonel
Zygmunt Alojzy Bierowski Zygmunt, Zigmunt, Zigmund and spelling variations thereof are masculine given names and occasionally surnames. People so named include: Given name Medieval period * Sigismund I the Old (1467–1548), Zygmunt I Stary in Polish, King of Poland and Gr ...
, * 3rd Legions Light Artillery Regiment from Zamosc, Colonel Tomasz Nowakowski * other units, such as 3rd Battalion of Heavy Artillery (Chelm), 3rd Sapper Battalion, Battery of Motor Antiaircraft Artillery, Telephone Company, Cavalry Squadron, Independent Company of Machine Guns, Company of Cyclists, Platoon of Military Police, Field Court.


Other 3rd Infantry Divisions of Poland

There were at least four other 3rd Infantry Divisions in Polish twentieth century military history. There was a 3rd Infantry Division which attained partially formed status with the
Polish Army in France (1939–1940) The Polish Army in France formed in France under the command of General Władysław Sikorski (and hence sometimes known as Sikorski's Army) in late 1939, after the fall of Poland resulting from the Polish Defensive War. About 85,000 troops were i ...
, there was the
3rd Carpathian Rifle Division The 3rd Carpathian Rifle Division ( pl, 3 Dywizja Strzelców Karpackich, sometimes translated as ''3rd Carpathian Infantry Division''), also commonly known as ''Christmas Tree Division'' due to the characteristic emblem of a cedar of Lebanon supe ...
served with II Corps (Poland),
Polish Armed Forces in the West The Polish Armed Forces in the West () refers to the Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its allies during World War II. Polish forces were also raised within Soviet territories; thes ...
, the 3rd Infantry Division of the Home Army, and another 3rd Infantry Division ( :pl:3 Pomorska Dywizja Piechoty) served with the First Army, Soviet-controlled Polish Armed Forces in the East. This division fought at the Battle of Kolberg (1945). In 1962 it became the 3rd Mechanised Division.


Sources

* Jan Wróblewski. Armia Prusy, Warszawa 1986. * Zdzisław Jagiełło: Piechota Wojska Polskiego 1918-1939. Warszawa: Bellona, 2007.


See also

* Polish army order of battle in 1939 * Polish contribution to World War II * List of Polish divisions in World War II {{Authority control 03rd Legions Military units and formations established in 1919 3rd Legions Military units and formations disestablished in 1939