8th Uhlan Regiment of Prince Józef Poniatowski () was a cavalry unit of the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

in the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 7 October 1918 and 6 October 1939. The state was established in the final stage of World War I ...

. Until 1939, it was garrisoned in

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

, and its traditions dated back to 1784, when a cavalry regiment of Prince

Józef Poniatowski Prince Józef Antoni Poniatowski (; 7 May 1763 – 19 October 1813) was a Polish general, minister of war and army chief, who became a Marshal of the French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. A nephew of the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lit ...

was formed in

Lwow Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

. The ''Prince Poniatowski Regiment'' was part of the Imperial Austrian Army, and in the early 20th century was called ''1st Regiment of Austrian Uhlans''. Nevertheless, it was made of ethnic Poles, with Polish officers and Polish traditions. In late 1918 it was renamed into ''1st Land of Kraków Uhlan Regiment'', and after a few years it was renamed again, into ''8th Uhlan Regiment of Prince Jozef Poniatowski''. Krakowska BK w 1938

The regiment was involved in heavy fighting during the Polish-Soviet War. It took part in the

Kiev offensive (1920) The 1920 Kiev offensive (or Kiev expedition, ) was a major part of the Polish–Soviet War. It was an attempt by the armed forces of the recently established Second Polish Republic led by Józef Piłsudski, in alliance with the Ukrainian People ...

, and then fought against

1st Cavalry Army (Soviet Union) __NOTOC__ The 1st Cavalry Army (), or ''Konarmia'' (Кона́рмия, "Horsearmy"), was a prominent Red Army military formation that served in the Russian Civil War and Polish-Soviet War. History Formation On 17 November 1919, by the ord ...

, commanded by

Semyon Budyonny Semyon Mikhailovich Budyonny ( rus, Семён Миха́йлович Будённый, Semyon Mikháylovich Budyonnyy, p=sʲɪˈmʲɵn mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ bʊˈdʲɵnːɨj, a=ru-Simeon Budyonniy.ogg; – 26 October 1973) was a Russian and ...

. It participated in the

Battle of Komarow 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 co ...

, one of the most important battles of the Polish-Bolshevik War. After the war the regiment was garrisoned in the village of Rakow, located in the suburbs of Kraków. During the

1923 Kraków riot The 1923 Kraków riot, or 'riots', or 'bloody Kraków events', took place during a demonstration on 6 November 1923 in Kraków, Poland. The incident is also called the 1923 Kraków uprising, particularly by Marxist sources. Demonstrators took cont ...

, its soldiers under

Rotmistrz Rittmaster () is usually a commissioned officer military rank used in a few armies, usually equivalent to Captain. Historically it has been used in Germany, Austria-Hungary, Scandinavia, and some other countries. A is typically in charge of a s ...

Lucjan Bochenek charged on the crowd of protesting workers. The charge was a complete failure, as horses slipped on wet pavement. Altogether, 14 uhlans of the regiment were killed in the riots. During the

Invasion of Poland The invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign, Polish Campaign, and Polish Defensive War of 1939 (1 September – 6 October 1939), was a joint attack on the Second Polish Republic, Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak R ...

, the regiment was part of

Kraków Cavalry Brigade Kraków Cavalry Brigade (') was a unit of the Polish Army, created on April 1, 1937. Its headquarters were located in Kraków, but some units were stationed in other places: * 3rd Silesian Uhlan Regiment, in Tarnowskie Góry * 8th Uhlan Regiment o ...

(General Zygmunt Piasecki),

Kraków Army Kraków Army () was one of the List of Polish armies, Polish armies which took part in the Invasion of Poland (1939), Polish Defensive War of 1939. It was officially created on March 23, 1939 as the main pivot of Polish defence. It was commanded by ...

. Commanded by Colonel Wlodzimierz Dunin-Zuchowski, it was on September 3, 1939, sent to the area of

Szczekociny Szczekociny () () is a town on the Pilica (river), Pilica river, in Silesian Voivodeship, in southern Poland, with 3,612 inhabitants (2019). Even though Szczekociny administratively belongs to the Silesian Voivodeship, it is part of the historic r ...

, where it was mauled by the armoured

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

divisions. By September 6, it had crossed the

Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...

, to join the newly created

Lublin Army Lublin Army () was an improvised Polish Army created on September 4, 1939 from the Warsaw Armoured Motorized Brigade and various smaller units concentrated around the cities of Lublin, Sandomierz and upper Vistula river. It was commanded by Maj. G ...

. Most of the regiment was destroyed during the campaign, only some of its elements managed to cross the Hungarian border in the second half of September 1939. In 1940, the regiment was recreated in France, as ''1st Prince Jozef Poniatowski Reece Company''. Also, its traditions were kept by the

Home Army The Home Army (, ; abbreviated AK) was the dominant resistance movement in German-occupied Poland during World War II. The Home Army was formed in February 1942 from the earlier Związek Walki Zbrojnej (Armed Resistance) established in the ...

of Kraków district.

Commandants

* Colonel Roman Kawecki (XI 1918 – 14 I 1919), * Colonel Adam Kicinski (14 I 1919 – 1920) * Major Henryk Brzezowski (II – VIII 1920) * Major

Karol Rommel Karol may refer to: Places * Karol, Gujarat, a village on Saurashtra peninsula in Gujarat, west India ** Karol State, a former Rajput petty princely state with seat in the above town *Karol Bagh, neighbourhood of Central Delhi, Delhi, India **Ka ...

(1920) * Rotmistrz Kornel Krzeczunowicz (1920–1921) * Major Stanislaw Riess de Riesenhorst (1921) * Colonel Adam Rozwadowski (1921) * Colonel Stanislaw Riess de Riesenhorst (1921–1922) * Colonel Wladyslaw Bzowski (1922-1923) * Colonel Stanislaw Riess de Riesenhorst (1923) * Colonel Aleksander Zelio (1923) * Colonel Wladyslaw Bzowski (1923–1928) * Colonel Stefan Dembinski (1928–1930) * Colonel Kazimierz Mastalerz (1930–1939) * Colonel Wlodzimierz Dunin-Zuchowski (1939) * Major Wlodzimierz Kasperski (1940) * Major Wladyslaw Pininski (1942–1944)

Symbols

The regimental flag was funded by wives, mothers and sisters of the officers of the unit. In April 1920, it was handed to Captain Adam Sokolowij, during the ceremony at Lwow Cathedral. The badge was accepted by the military authorities on February 28, 1922. It was in the shape of the cross, with dates 1791, 1918 and inscription ''8 U'' written on its arms. On the top was the inscription ''PIERWSZY PULK'' (''FIRST REGIMENT''), and between the arms of the cross were coats of arms of the

Lands Land is the solid surface of the Earth that is not covered by water. Land, lands, The Land, or the Lands may also refer to: Entertainment and media Film * ''Land'' (1987 film), a British television film by Barry Collins * ''Land'' (2018 film), a ...

of Kraków,

Oświęcim Oświęcim (; ; ; ) is a town in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship in southern Poland, situated southeast of Katowice, near the confluence of the Vistula (''Wisła'') and Soła rivers. Oświęcim dates back to the 12th century, when it was an im ...

, Zator and

Cieszyn Cieszyn ( , ; ; ) 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 inhabitants ( and lies opposite Český Těšín in the Czech Repu ...

. The badge was designed by Jozef Brunicki, and manufactured by Franciszek Malina from Kraków. The regiment had its own zurawiejka: “Wry mouths, wry legs, we are the uhlans of Prince Jozef”. Currently, the traditions of the 8th Regiment are continued by reenactors of the Association Squadron Niepolomice, who wear the uniforms of the regiment during patriotic events. In

Andrzej Wajda Andrzej Witold Wajda (; 6 March 1926 – 9 October 2016) was a Polish film and theatre director. Recipient of an Honorary Oscar, the Palme d'Or, as well as Honorary Golden Lion and Honorary Golden Bear Awards, he was a prominent member of the "P ...

Katyn (film) Katyn may refer to: *Katyn massacre, a mass execution of Polish generals, military commanders and intelligentsia in 1940 by Soviet organization NKVD * ''Katyń'' (film), a 2007 Polish film about the Katyń massacre directed by Andrzej Wajda *Katyn ...

, two of the main characters, Rotmistrz Andrzej and Colonel Jerzy serve in the 8th Uhlan Regiment.

Sources

* Kornel Krzeczunowicz, Ułani księcia Józefa. Historia 8 Pułku Ułanów ks. Józefa Poniatowskiego 1784-1945, London 1960 * Rodowody pułków jazdy polskiej 1914 – 1947, pod red. Kornela Krzeczunowicza, London 1983 * Kazimierz Satora: Opowieści wrześniowych sztandarów. Warsaw: Instytut Wydawniczy Pax, 1990.

Commandants

Symbols

Sources

See also