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133-641: During the Polish-Bolshevik War the Pinsk Marshes proved to be almost impassable to troops of both sides. Lack of roads and railways posed a serious danger to infantry and cavalry that could easily be cut off both by the enemy and the weather. Because of that, a number of river monitors were either constructed or acquired from private owners and armed. They were used on the Pripyat River , as well as its extensive river basin. After

266-580: A European Soviet Republic, but its leaders felt now that their goal could be accomplished at some time in the future, not necessarily immediate. They decided that peace with Poland would be desirable and on 22 December 1919, People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Georgy Chicherin sent Warsaw the first of several peace offers. For the time being, the Soviets proposed a demarcation line at the current military frontiers, leaving permanent border issues to future determinations. Some Polish politicians, including

399-417: A National Democrat, resigned in protest his chairmanship of the parliamentary committee. In the early months of 1920, Polish representatives engaged in pretended negotiations, as directed by Piłsudski. Stanisław Wojciechowski , Poland's future president, wrote that Poland had squandered the opportunity to conclude peace with the Soviets when they were most inclined to allow it. Piłsudski was convinced that

532-778: A Soviet response. Trotsky arrived at Mogilev to personally motivate Russian troops to avenge the Polish insult. He predicted the Red Army's presence in Warsaw in the near future. On 14 May, Trotsky ordered the Red Army to attack. Mikhail Tukhachevsky , accomplished in fighting the Whites , was made commander of the Western Front on 1 May 1920. He wanted to launch an assault on the Belarusian front before Polish troops arrive from

665-568: A Ukrainian faction as cover for the action perceived abroad as military aggression. As the treaty legitimized Polish control over the territory that Ukrainians viewed as rightfully theirs, the alliance received a dire reception from many Ukrainian leaders, ranging from Mykhailo Hrushevsky , former chairman of the Central Council of Ukraine , to Yevhen Petrushevych , the leader of the West Ukrainian People's Republic who

798-422: A conversation with Prime Minister David Lloyd George , commented sarcastically: "The war of giants has ended, the wars of the pygmies begin." The Polish–Soviet War was the longest lasting of the international engagements. The territory of what had become Poland had been a major battleground during World War I and the new country lacked political stability. It had won the hard-fought Polish–Ukrainian War against

931-522: A decisive battle would be fought on the city's outskirts, but that was not to be the case. For the most part, Yegorov's units refrained from challenging Piłsudski's armies and withdrew. The Polish advantage on the southern Ukrainian front caused a quick defeat of the Soviet armies and their displacement past the Dnieper River. Zhytomyr was captured on 26 April. Lieutenant Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski

1064-610: A definitive ruling in regard to Poland's eastern border but on 8 December 1919, the Allied Supreme War Council issued a provisional boundary (its later version would be known as the Curzon Line ). It was an attempt to define the areas that had an "indisputably Polish ethnic majority". The permanent border was contingent on the Western powers' future negotiations with White Russia , presumed to prevail in

1197-541: A formally independent Ukraine, although its dependence on Poland was inherent to Piłsudski's plans. Ukrainians ended up fighting on both sides of the conflict. The campaign was conducted from April to July 1920. The Polish Army faced the forces of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. At first, the war was successful for the allied Polish and Ukrainian armies, which captured Kiev (Kyiv) on 7 May 1920, but soon

1330-757: A group of mathematicians from the University of Warsaw and the University of Lwów (most notably the founders of the Polish School of Mathematics  – Stanisław Leśniewski , Stefan Mazurkiewicz and Wacław Sierpiński ), who succeeded in breaking the Soviet Russian ciphers as well. During the Polish–Soviet War, the Polish decryption of Red Army radio messages made it possible to use Polish military forces efficiently against Soviet Russian forces and to win many individual battles, most importantly

1463-600: A highly profitable enterprise for state treasury. Following fruitless exchanges with Foreign Minister Stanisław Patek , after 7 April Chicherin accused Poland of rejecting the Russian peace offer and heading for war; he notified the Allies and called on them to restrain the Polish aggression. The Poles claimed that the Russian Western Front presented an immediate danger and was about to launch an attack, but

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1596-537: A highly regarded formation credited with the destruction of the "White" Volunteer Army, was assigned by Kamenev and Dzerzhinsky the leading role in attacking the Polish armies in Ukraine. On 1 May, the 1st Cavalry Army was over 40,000 men (and women) strong, but only 18,000 of its soldiers were brought to bear on the Polish front. To better prepare for the expected Soviet counteroffensive, the Ukrainian Front,

1729-554: A highly successful military expedition to a city that symbolized the eastern reaches of Polish history (harking back to the intervention of Bolesław I the Brave in 1018) caused enormous euphoria in Poland. The Polish Sejm declared the need to establish such "strategic borders" that would make a future war improbable already on 4 May. Piłsudski was lionized by the public and by politicians of different orientations. On 18 May in Warsaw, he

1862-547: A local Polish offensive action of 13–16 February, led by General Antoni Listowski, near Byaroza , Belarus. The event has been presented as the beginning of the war of liberation by the Polish side, or of Polish aggression by the Russian side. By late February, the Soviet westward offensive had come to a halt. As the low-level warfare continued, the Polish units crossed the Neman River, took Pinsk on 5 March and reached

1995-551: A majority on the Foreign and Military Affairs Committee of Polish parliament , insisted on negotiating with the Soviets. Socialist and agrarian leaders discussed the issue with Prime Minister Leopold Skulski . The National Democracy politicians had hoped that talks with the Soviets would derail the plans for Józef Piłsudski 's alliance with Symon Petliura and resumption of the war with Russia, which they opposed. National Democrats did not believe that poor and relatively weak Poland

2128-488: A new Polish formation, was established on 28 May. It comprised 57,000 soldiers and was charged with holding onto the territory that Polish forces had acquired. Polish (and Allied) commanders held Soviet cavalry in low regard. To Piłsudski, Budyonny's horse people were like bands of nomads or swarms of locusts (a reference to their propensity to wreak havoc on civilian communities encountered), incapable of executing any effective cavalry charge . Alexander Yegorov, commander of

2261-509: A rapid strike at the Soviet forces on the southern front would throw the Red Army far beyond the Dnieper River; consequently, the Soviets would have to accept the peace proposals presented by Poland. He argued that war provided optimal growth conditions for Polish industry and was an effective way to fight unemployment and its consequences. General Kazimierz Sosnkowski , Piłsudski's close collaborator, claimed that war had turned out to be

2394-475: A significant player in Eastern European geopolitics in the interwar period. The war is known by several names. "Polish–Soviet War" is the most common but other names include "Russo–Polish War" (or "Polish–Russian War") and "Polish–Bolshevik War". This last term (or just "Bolshevik War" ( Polish : Wojna bolszewicka )) is most common in Polish sources. In some Polish sources it is also referred to as

2527-559: A takeover of the western part of the province. The Polish–Ukrainian warfare there was discontinued from late May, and in early September an armistice was signed. On 21 November 1919, after contentious deliberations, the Allied Supreme War Council mandated Polish control over eastern Galicia for 25 years, with guarantees of autonomy for the Ukrainian population. The Conference of Ambassadors , which replaced

2660-621: A year and a half for a full-scale war to develop. The Western powers considered any significant territorial expansion of Poland, at the expense of Russia or Germany, to be highly disruptive to the post-World War I order. Among other factors, the Western Allies did not want to give Germany and Russia a reason to conspire together. The rise of the unrecognized Bolshevik regime complicated this rationale. The Treaty of Versailles , signed on 28 June 1919, regulated Poland's western border. The Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920) had not made

2793-533: The Ober Ost regions abandoned by the Germans. Lenin viewed the newly independent Poland as a critical route for spreading communist revolutions into Europe . Meanwhile, Polish leaders, including Józef Piłsudski , aimed to restore Poland’s pre-1772 borders and secure the country's position in the region. Throughout 1919, Polish forces occupied much of present-day Lithuania and Belarus , emerging victorious in

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2926-552: The Battle of Warsaw . On 5 January 1919, the Red Army took Vilnius, which led to the establishment of the Socialist Soviet Republic of Lithuania and Belorussia (Litbel) on 28 February. On 10 February, Soviet Russia's People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Georgy Chicherin wrote to Polish Prime Minister Ignacy Paderewski, proposing resolution of matters of disagreement and establishment of relations between

3059-639: The Caucasian Front and from elsewhere. However, as the Soviet intelligence informed of concentrations of Polish forces in the south and in the north, the Soviet leaders had been unable to determine where the main Polish offensive was going to take place. The government of the Ukrainian People's Republic (UPR) faced from early 1919 mounting attacks on the territory it claimed. It had lost control over most of Ukraine, which became divided among several disparate powers: Anton Denikin 's Whites ,

3192-650: The Curzon Line , securing Polish control over parts of modern-day Ukraine and Belarus . The war resulted in the official recognition of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic as Soviet states, undermining Piłsudski’s ambitions for a Intermarium federation led by Poland. Despite this, Poland's success at the Battle of Warsaw cemented its position as

3325-958: The Estonian War of Independence , the Latvian War of Independence , and the Lithuanian Wars of Independence were all fought in the Baltic Sea region. Russia was overwhelmed by domestic struggles. In early March 1919, the Communist International was established in Moscow . The Hungarian Soviet Republic was proclaimed in March and the Bavarian Soviet Republic in April. Winston Churchill , in

3458-789: The Kingdom of Poland and for the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . In the first half of the 14th century, the Principality of Kiev and the land between the Dnieper , Pripyat , and Daugava (Western Dvina) rivers became part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In 1352, Poland and Lithuania divided the Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia between themselves. In 1569, in accordance with the terms of the Union of Lublin between Poland and Lithuania, some of

3591-641: The Polish–Ukrainian War . However, Soviet forces regained strength after their victories in the Russian Civil War , and Symon Petliura , leader of the Ukrainian People's Republic , was forced to ally with Piłsudski in 1920 to resist the advancing Bolsheviks. In April 1920, Piłsudski launched the Kiev offensive with the goal of securing favorable borders for Poland. On 7 May, Polish and allied Ukrainian forces captured Kiev , though Soviet armies in

3724-594: The Red Army forces to the east and gaining territory there, should now pursue peace by negotiating with Soviet Russia. The authorities increasingly had to deal with public protests and anti-war demonstrations. The Soviets also faced pressures to negotiate resolutions to the regional conflicts they were involved in. They launched diplomatic initiatives aimed at the eastern Baltic region states and Romania , which eventually resulted in treaties and improved relations. Soviet Russia had not given up its mission of establishing

3857-844: The Regency Council of the Kingdom of Poland, a body installed by the Central Powers . Subsequently, he was recognized by many Polish politicians as temporary chief of state and exercised in practice extensive powers. Under the Small Constitution of 20 February 1919, he became chief of state . As such, he reported to the Legislative Sejm . With the collapse of the Russian and German occupying authorities , virtually all of Poland's neighbours began fighting over borders and other issues. The Finnish Civil War ,

3990-696: The Romanian border. A Red Army assault between the Daugava and Berezina Rivers was repelled in October and the front had become relatively inactive with sporadic encounters only, as the line designated by Piłsudski to be the goal of the Polish operation in the north was reached. In autumn 1919, the Sejm voted to incorporate into Poland the conquered territories up to the Daugava and Berezina Rivers, including Minsk. The Polish successes in summer 1919 resulted from

4123-801: The Russian Civil War . The Russian state lost territory due to the German offensive and the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk , signed by the emergent Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic . Several nations of the region saw a chance for independence and seized their opportunity to gain it. The defeat of Germany on the Western Front and the withdrawal of the Imperial German Army in the Eastern Front had left Berlin in no position to retaliate against Soviet Russia, which swiftly repudiated

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4256-558: The Socialist Soviet Republic of Lithuania and Belorussia (Litbel). It is however unlikely that the Soviet forced plannes further incursions westward. From late 1919, Lenin, encouraged by the Red Army's civil war victories over the White Russian forces and their Western allies, began to envision the future of world revolution with greater optimism. The Bolsheviks proclaimed the need for the dictatorship of

4389-620: The West Ukrainian People's Republic by July 1919 but had already become embroiled in new conflicts with Germany (the 1919–1921 Silesian Uprisings ) and the January 1919 border conflict with Czechoslovakia . Meanwhile, Soviet Russia focused on thwarting the counterrevolution and the 1918–1925 intervention by the Allied powers . The first clashes between Polish and Soviet forces occurred in autumn and winter 1918/1919, but it took

4522-552: The Western Rifle Division in October 1918. In summer 1918, a short-lived Polish communist government, led by Stefan Heltman, was created in Moscow. Both the military and civilian structures were meant to facilitate the eventual introduction of communism into Poland in the form of a Polish Soviet Republic . Given the precarious situation resulting from the withdrawal of German forces from Belarus and Lithuania and

4655-574: The taking of Vilnius in the north in April 1919. Another success of a "legionnaire" formation was going to further strengthen the dominant role of the Polish Legions former members and of their chief Piłsudski in the Polish Armed Forces. 60,000 Polish and 4,000 Ukrainian soldiers took part in the initial invasion. The well-equipped Polish 3rd Army was supposed to split the enemy forces into two parts. Speed and maneuverability of

4788-440: The "War of 1920" ( Polish : Wojna 1920 roku ). The ending year of the conflict is variously given as either 1920 or 1921; this confusion stems from the fact that while the ceasefire came into force on 18 October 1920, the official treaty ending the war was signed on 18 March 1921. While the events of late 1918 and 1919 can be described as a border conflict and only in spring 1920 were both sides engaged in an all-out war ,

4921-541: The 6th Army. Facing them were the Soviet 12th and 14th Armies led by Alexander Yegorov . Yegorov commanded the forces of the Soviet Southwestern Front. They were weak and poorly equipped. On its western fronts, the Red Army aimed for full military readiness in July 1920. In late April there, its troops were no match for the Polish forces. Piłsudski wanted to believe that the enemy would defend Kiev and

5054-586: The Allies. The National Democrats did not recognize Ukrainians as a nation and to them the Ukrainian issue reduced to a proper division of Ukraine between Poland and White (or Red) Russia. The UPR was not recognized by the Allies. The British and the French warned Poland that the treaty with the UPR amounted to irresponsible adventurism, because Poland lacked strong economic foundations, industry, or stable finances, and

5187-588: The Bolshevik forces and 40,000 of them complied. A large army of volunteers had also been raised and sent to the Western Front; the first units departed Moscow on 6 May. The Soviet leaders considered the Polish attack in Ukraine a stroke of good fortune. They saw Poland as falling into its own trap and expected a military victory for Russia. Moscow had masterfully unleashed psychological warfare in Soviet Russia, Poland, and Europe. A new Great Patriotic War

5320-657: The German front by mid-June. The offensive in the east was resumed at the end of June, following the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty, signed and ratified by Germany, preserved the status quo in western Poland. On the southern front in Volhynia, in May and in July the Polish forces confronted the Red Army, which was in process of pushing Petliura's Ukrainian units out of the contested territories. The rural Orthodox population there

5453-672: The Paris Peace Conference. At the conference, Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ignacy Paderewski declared Poland's support for self-determination of the eastern nations, in line with Woodrow Wilson 's doctrine and in an effort to secure Western support for Poland's policies in regard to Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania. The Polish offensive was discontinued around the line of German trenches and fortifications from World War I, because of high likelihood of Poland's war with Weimar Germany over territorial and other issues. Half of Poland's military strength had been concentrated on

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5586-470: The People of Ukraine", Piłsudski assured that "the Polish Army would only stay as long as necessary until a legal Ukrainian government took control over its own territory". Many Ukrainians were both anti-Polish and anti-Bolshevik, and were suspicious of the advancing Poles. From 12 May, a newly established Polish military authority had been engaged in requisitioning goods from the Ukrainian population, giving rise to protests lodged by Ukrainian officials. Among

5719-405: The Petliura–Piłsudski Pact, but it was signed by Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Jan Dąbski and Livytskyi. The text of the agreement was kept secret and it was not ratified by the Polish Sejm. In exchange for agreeing to a border along the Zbruch River, Petliura was promised military help in regaining Soviet-controlled Ukrainian territories, including Kiev. He would then reassume the authority of

5852-558: The Polish Army. The Polish Self-Defence forces were defeated by the Soviets at a number of locations. Minsk was taken by the Russian Western Army on 11 December 1918. The Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia was declared there on 31 December. After three days of heavy fighting with the Western Rifle Division, the Self-Defence units withdrew from Vilnius on 5 January 1919. Polish–Soviet skirmishes continued in January and February. The Polish armed forces were hurriedly formed to fight in several border wars. Two major formations manned

5985-419: The Polish borders in Galicia and Volhynia and crush a Ukrainian attempt at self-determination in the disputed territories east of the Curzon Line, which contained a significant Polish minority. On 7 February 1919, Piłsudski spoke on the subject of Poland's future frontiers: "At the moment Poland is essentially without borders and all that we can gain in this regard in the west depends on the Entente  – on

6118-439: The Polish claim to Lwów and eastern Galicia was indisputable; in April 1919, the Legislative Sejm unanimously declared that all of Galicia should be annexed by Poland. In April to June 1919, the Polish Blue Army of General Józef Haller arrived from France . It consisted of over 67,000 well-equipped and highly trained soldiers. The Blue Army helped drive the Ukrainian forces east past the Zbruch River and decisively contributed to

6251-428: The Polish forces to remain in Ukraine for the time being, while the UPR engaged in the building of its statehood. Piłsudski had a different solution in mind. He planned to definitely break the Soviet armies and dictate his peace conditions to Red Russia by 10 May. Then the Polish military would begin its evacuation. However, instead of negotiating, the enemy prepared for a counteroffensive. The Polish command knew only that

6384-443: The Polish state and capital. The signing of the agreement would reveal its content, with likely catastrophic consequences for Petliura, so it had not been signed. Factions in Polish parliament, most prominently the National Democrats, protested Piłsudski's alliance with Petliura's Ukraine, his slighting of the Polish government, and the policies of fait accompli . They felt that all major Polish moves should have been consulted with

6517-467: The Red Army and pro-Soviet formations, Nestor Makhno 's Revolutionary Insurgent Army in the southeast, the Kingdom of Romania in the southwest, Poland, and various bands lacking any political ideology. During the Polish–Ukrainian War , UPR forces fought the Polish Army. An armistice was signed by the combatants on 1 September 1919; it foresaw common action against the Bolsheviks. The city of Kiev had undergone numerous changes of government . The UPR

6650-609: The Red Army, whose units were quickly withdrawn by their commanders. Within a week, the Soviet 12th Army had become disorganized. The Polish 6th Army and Petliura's forces pushed the Soviet 14th Army out of central Ukraine as they quickly marched eastward through Vinnytsia . In Vinnytsia, from 13 May, Petliura organized his government and prepared further offensive in the direction of Odessa . The Soviet 12th Army evacuated from Kiev on 6 May. "Those beasts", wrote Piłsudski to General Sosnkowski on 6 May, "instead of defending Kiev, flee from there". The Polish offensive stopped at Kiev and

6783-422: The Red Army. In late autumn 1918, the Polish 4th Rifle Division fought the Red Army in Russia. The division operated under the authority of the Polish Army in France and General Józef Haller . Politically, the division fought under the Polish National Committee (KNP), recognized by the Allies as a temporary government of Poland. In January 1919, per Piłsudski's decision, the 4th Rifle Division became part of

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6916-433: The Russian 12th and 14th Armies would complete the frontal destruction. After a week of storming the Polish defenses, on 5 June the 1st Cavalry Army forced its way between the Polish 3rd and 6th Armies. It infiltrated and disorganized the rear infrastructure of Polish lines, eliminated many smaller units, and caused extensive destruction. Rydz-Śmigły proceeded to fortify Kiev, which he intended to defend. He refused to obey

7049-456: The Russian Civil War. Piłsudski and his allies blamed Prime Minister Ignacy Paderewski for this outcome and caused his dismissal. Paderewski, embittered, withdrew from politics. The leader of Russia's new Bolshevik government, Vladimir Lenin , aimed to regain control of the territories abandoned by Russia in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in March 1918 (the treaty was annulled by Russia on 13 November 1918) and to set up Soviet governments in

7182-424: The Russian Governor-General at Warsaw. In the aftermath of World War I , the map of Central and Eastern Europe changed drastically. The German Empire 's defeat rendered obsolete Berlin 's plans for the creation of Eastern European German-dominated states ( Mitteleuropa ), which included another rendition of the Kingdom of Poland . The Russian Empire collapsed, which resulted in the Russian Revolution and

7315-431: The Russian Southwestern Front, having received considerable reinforcements, initiated on 28 May an assault maneuver in the Kiev area. Besides the Soviet main armies, the special formations of Iona Yakir and of Filipp Golikov , in addition to the 1st Cavalry Army, became especially important in attacks on the Polish positions. The 1st Cavalry Army was supposed to penetrate the Polish formations and get to their rear, while

7448-423: The Russian front in February 1919: the northern, led by General Wacław Iwaszkiewicz-Rudoszański , and the southern, under General Antoni Listowski . On 18 October 1918, the Ukrainian National Council was formed in Eastern Galicia , still part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire ; it was led by Yevhen Petrushevych . The establishment of a Ukrainian state there was proclaimed in November 1918; it had become known as

7581-439: The South and South-east, Russia could easily move into the status of second-grade power. Poland, as the largest and strongest of the new states, could easily establish a sphere of influence stretching from Finland to the Caucasus ". Piłsudski's concepts appeared more progressive and democratic in comparison with the rival National Democracy 's plans, although both pursued the idea of direct incorporation and Polonization of

7714-429: The Southwestern Front forces east of the Dnieper were being systematically reinforced. Józef Jaklicz , chief-of-staff of the 15th Infantry Division, wrote to his wife on 30 May: "We have overestimated our strength and threw ourselves into politics on a grand scale, with the military engaged, without being properly secured ... The soldiers are cut-off from the world, there is no news or communication." Polish soldiers feared

7847-400: The Soviet armies and force Soviet acceptance of unilateral Polish conditions. The Poles signed an alliance, known as the Treaty of Warsaw , with the forces of the Ukrainian People's Republic. The Kiev offensive was the central component of Piłsudski's plan for a new order in Eastern Europe centered around a Polish-led Intermarium federation. The stated goal of the operation was to create

7980-403: The Soviets and the Germans, most of the ships were scuttled by their crews to avoid capture. In 1939-40 most of them were refloated , repaired , rearmed and included in the Soviet Pinsk Naval Flotilla (1940). They took an active part in battles of World War II but were mostly destroyed in 1941. Polish-Bolshevik War The Polish–Soviet War (14 February 1919 – 18 March 1921)

8113-422: The Supreme War Council, recognized the Polish claim to eastern Galicia in March 1923. Jan Kowalewski , a polyglot and amateur cryptographer , broke the codes and ciphers of the army of the West Ukrainian People's Republic and of General Anton Denikin 's White Russian forces. In August 1919, he became chief of the Polish General Staff 's cryptography section in Warsaw. By early September, he had gathered

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8246-414: The Ukrainian People's Republic. A military convention regarding common action and subordination of Ukrainian units to Polish command was signed by the Ukrainian and Polish sides on 24 April. On 25 April, the Polish and the UPR forces began an offensive aimed at Kiev. A preliminary trade agreement was arrived at on 1 May by the Polish and Ukrainian sides. It foresaw extensive exploitation of Ukraine by

8379-437: The Ukrainian front. On 14 May, Tukhachevsky's so-called first offensive began. Western Front's 15th and 16th Armies attacked the slightly weaker Polish forces (the combatants had respectively 75,000 and 72,000 combined infantry and cavalry soldiers at their disposal) and penetrated the Polish-held areas to the depth of one hundred kilometers. The transfer of two Polish divisions from the Ukrainian front had to be expedited and

8512-415: The Ukrainian lands passed to the Polish Crown . Between 1772 and 1795, many of the East Slavic territories became part of the Russian Empire in the course of the Partitions of Poland–Lithuania . In 1795 (the Third Partition of Poland ), Poland lost formal independence. After the Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815, much of the territory of the Duchy of Warsaw was transferred to Russian control and became

8645-444: The Ukrainian population would generally support the Polish-led effort. An intense war propaganda effort had been unleashed to prepare Polish society and the armed forces. On the one hand, the Red Army was presented as exceptionally feeble and led by incompetent commanders, a dispirited and harmless formation. The weakness of the enemy had supposedly offered a unique opportunity for Poland, one that should not be missed, especially given

8778-408: The Ukrainian territory, the Soviets could not be made to participate in forced negotiations, as the Polish side had hoped. The Polish command soon felt compelled to transfer some of its units to the northern Belarusian front. On 1 May, in a letter to his wife, Piłsudski declared a victory: "With the first stage completed, you must now be very surprised and a little scared by these great successes. In

8911-446: The West Ukrainian People's Republic and it claimed Lwów as its capital. Because of Russia-related political considerations, the Ukrainian attempts failed to generate support of the Entente powers. Key buildings in Lwów were seized by the Ukrainians on 31 October 1918. On 1 November, Polish residents of the city counterattacked and the Polish–Ukrainian War began. Lwów was under Polish control from 22 November. To Polish politicians,

9044-405: The White forces elsewhere, withdrew from its positions. The Polish "Lithuanian–Belarusian Front " was established on 15 May and placed under command of General Stanisław Szeptycki . In a statute passed on 15 May, Polish Sejm called for the inclusion of the eastern borderline nations in the Polish state as autonomous entities. It was intended to make a positive impression on the participants at

9177-416: The advancing units were emphasized. On 25 April, the day the offensive began, an official communique was issued. The Polish side claimed that the attack was a response to numerous Soviet infringements and was intended to thwart the offensive the enemy had planned. Piłsudski's forces were divided into three armies. Arranged from north to south, they were the 3rd, 2nd and 6th, with Petliura's forces attached to

9310-444: The area were not decisively defeated. The offensive lacked local support, and many Ukrainians joined the Red Army rather than Petliura’s forces. In response, the Soviet Red Army launched a successful counteroffensive starting in June 1920. By August, Soviet troops had pushed Polish forces back to Warsaw . However, at the decisive Battle of Warsaw (1920) , Polish forces achieved an unexpected victory between 12 and 25 August 1920, turning

9443-544: The autonomous Congress Poland (officially the Kingdom of Poland). After young Poles refused conscription to the Imperial Russian Army during the January Uprising of 1863, Tsar Alexander II stripped Congress Poland of its separate constitution, attempted to force general use of the Russian language and took away vast tracts of land from Poles. Congress Poland was incorporated more directly into imperial Russia by being divided into ten provinces, each with an appointed Russian military governor and all under complete control of

9576-675: The campaign's progress was dramatically reversed due to a Red Army counter-offensive , in which the 1st Cavalry Army of Semyon Budyonny played a prominent part. In the wake of the Soviet advance, the short-lived Galician Soviet Socialist Republic was created. The Polish-Soviet War ended with the Peace of Riga of 1921, which settled the border between Poland and the Ukrainian Soviet Republic. By late autumn 1919, many Polish activists from different political formations concluded that Poland, generally successful in pushing

9709-504: The capture of Kiev with the victory parade on Khreshchatyk , the city's main street. Control over Kiev was given to the Ukrainian People's Republic and the Ukrainian 6th Division was garrisoned there. However, the military achievement turned out to be incomplete, as the Bolshevik armies, contrary to Polish objectives, avoided decisive confrontations and had not been destroyed. While the Polish forces had been drawn deeply into

9842-560: The counteroffensive in the south was approved during a 15 May conference in which Sergey Kamenev also participated. Because the 12th and the 14th Armies of the Southwestern Front still did not have sufficient resources to launch an attack, the participants decided to wait for the arrival of the 1st Cavalry Army under Semyon Budyonny , which was on its way (from 10 March) to the Polish–Soviet combat area. The 1st Cavalry Army,

9975-533: The direction of the so-called Smolensk Gateway. Vladimir Lenin ordered strengthening of the Western Front defenses. The Polish attack in the Polesia and Volhynia borderlands on 7 March, led by Władysław Sikorski , as well as other actions, reinforced the Soviet suspicions. Sikorski's offensive separated the Soviet Western and Southwestern Fronts. Additional Red Army troops were brought hurriedly from

10108-465: The disputed eastern lands. However Piłsudski used his "federation" idea instrumentally. As he wrote to his close associate Leon Wasilewski in April 1919, (for now) "I want to be neither an imperialist nor a federalist. ... Taking into account that, in this God's world, an empty talk of the brotherhood of people and nations as well as the American little doctrines seem to be winning, I gladly side with

10241-464: The east, the Polish forces took Lida on 17 April, Novogrudok on 18 April, Baranavichy on 19 April and Grodno on 28 April. Piłsudski's group entered Vilnius on 19 April and captured the city after two days of fighting. The Polish action drove the Litbel government from its proclaimed capital. Upon the taking of Vilnius, in pursuit of his federation objectives, Piłsudski issued a "Proclamation to

10374-565: The east. They had been incorporated into the Russian Empire in 1772–1795 and had remained its parts, as the Northwest Territory , until World War I . After the war they were contested by the Polish, Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Lithuanian , and Latvian interests. In newly independent Poland, politics were strongly influenced by Józef Piłsudski . On 11 November 1918, Piłsudski was made head of Polish armed forces by

10507-465: The effectiveness of Bolshevik propaganda. The Polish command restricted administrative districts in Ukraine where Petliura's army was allowed to conduct recruitment campaigns. Polish officials claimed that Ukrainian candidates for the military were demoralized, would cause trouble and be of little use. A (small) Ukrainian army was supposed to only symbolize the Polish–Ukrainian alliance; the victory

10640-522: The emerging countries in the western parts of the former Russian Empire. The more ambitious goal was to also reach Germany, where he expected a socialist revolution to break out. By the end of summer 1919, the Soviets had taken over most of eastern and central Ukraine (formerly parts of the Russian Empire) and driven the Directorate of Ukraine from Kiev . In February 1919, they set up

10773-472: The escalation of the conflict, was expected. On 27 March, the Sejm militarized the railroads. On 14 April, General Sosnkowski ordered cadets in military schools to report for frontline duty. On 17 April, Piłsudski ordered his forces to assume attack positions. Foreign Minister Stanisław Patek headed for Western Europe to explain to the Allies the rationale behind the offensive Poland undertook and to seek new shipments of military supplies. Marshal Piłsudski led

10906-524: The exceptional abilities of Commander-in-chief Piłsudski and the strength and fitness of the Polish Army. On the other, the Bolsheviks were described as a threatening menace, capable of and getting ready for an offensive on massive scale. The skirmishes that had taken place were portrayed as bloody and fiercely fought battles, harbingers of that assault. An angry reaction from the Allies, opposed to

11039-711: The expected arrival of the Red Army there, Polish Self-Defence had been organized in autumn 1918 around major concentrations of Polish population, such as Minsk , Vilnius and Grodno . They were based on the Polish Military Organisation and were recognized as part of the Polish Armed Forces by the decree of Polish Chief of State Piłsudski, issued on 7 December 1918. The German Soldatenrat of Ober Ost declared on 15 November that its authority in Vilnius would be transferred to

11172-482: The extent to which it may wish to squeeze Germany. In the east, it's a different matter; there are doors here that open and close and it depends on who forces them open and how far". Polish military forces had thus set out to expand far in the eastern direction. As Piłsudski imagined, "Closed within the boundaries of the 16th century, cut off from the Black Sea and Baltic Sea, deprived of land and mineral wealth of

11305-496: The fact that the Soviets prioritized the war with the White forces, which was more crucial for them. The successes created an illusion of Polish military prowess and Soviet weakness. As Piłsudski put it, "I am not worried about the strength of Russia; if I wanted to, I could go now, say to Moscow, and no one would be able to resist my power ...". The offensive was restrained in late summer by Piłsudski, because he did not want to improve

11438-525: The federalists". According to Chwalba, the differences between Piłsudski's vision of Poland and that of his rival National Democratic leader Roman Dmowski were more rhetorical than real. Piłsudski had made many obfuscating statements, but never specifically stated his views regarding Poland's eastern borders or political arrangements he intended for the region. From late 1917, Polish revolutionary military units were formed in Russia. They were combined into

11571-647: The first time and the town of Babruysk was captured. By 2 September, Polish units reached the Daugava River. Barysaw was taken on 10 September and parts of Polotsk on 21 September. By mid-September, the Poles secured the region along the Daugava from the Dysna River to Daugavpils . The frontline had also extended south, cutting through Polesia and Volhynia; along the Zbruch River it reached

11704-493: The front was formed along the Dnieper. The combined Polish-Ukrainian forces under General Rydz-Śmigły entered the city on 7 May. A bridgehead was established and reached 15 kilometers east of the Dnieper, which was as far as the Polish 3rd Army advanced. About 20,000 Red Army troops had been taken prisoner by 2 May. Only 150 Polish soldiers died during the entire operation. On 9 May, the Polish and Ukrainian troops celebrated

11837-556: The future Polish state by structuring it as the Polish-led, multinational federation." Piłsudski had wanted to break up the Russian Empire and set up the Intermarium federation of various different states: Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine and other Central and East European countries that emerged from the crumbling empires after World War I. In Piłsudski's vision, Poland would replace a truncated and vastly reduced Russia as

11970-435: The great power of Eastern Europe. His plan excluded negotiations prior to military victory. He had hoped that the new Poland-led union would become a counterweight to any potential imperialist intentions of Russia or Germany. Piłsudski believed that there could be no independent Poland without a Ukraine free of Russian control, thus his main interest was in splitting Ukraine from Russia. He used military force to expand

12103-473: The historian Andrzej Chwalba , however, the scenario was different in late 1919 and winter–spring 1920. The Soviets, facing decreasing revolutionary fervor in Europe and having to deal with Russia's own problems, attempted to make peace with its neighbors, including Poland. According to Aviel Roshwald , (Piłsudski) "hoped to incorporate most of the territories of the defunct Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth into

12236-413: The hostility of Ukrainian rural population. The Polish forces were uniformly and thinly stretched along Poland's eastern front that was 1200 km long. They were reinforced by some World War I trenches. At some locations, considered strategically important, concentrations of troops were established, but they would be easy to go around. French General Paul Prosper Henrys , who visited the front, noted

12369-487: The inhabitants of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania" on 22 April. It was sharply criticized by his rival National Democrats, who demanded direct incorporation of the former Grand Duchy lands by Poland and signaled their opposition to Piłsudski's territorial and political concepts. Piłsudski had thus proceeded to restore the historic territories of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by military means, leaving

12502-508: The leading Ukrainian officers. The Ukrainian population was tired of hostilities after several years of war. Nationality-conscious Ukrainians often thought of Petliura as the man who sold out Ukraine to Poland. Efforts to generate Ukrainian popular support for the idea of the country's alliance with Poland had failed. The growth of Petliura's Ukrainian forces was slow: there were about 23,000 soldiers in September 1920. Petliura wanted

12635-556: The machinery and products confiscated from Ukraine were thousands of loaded cars, engines and railroad equipment, in violation of the Polish–Ukrainian accords. Because of the changing military situation, such activities had taken place over a limited period of time. The Soviet propaganda had the effect of encouraging negative Ukrainian sentiment towards the Polish operation and Polish-Ukrainian relations in general. Actions such as punitive military expeditions organized by Polish land owners against rebellious Ukrainian peasants strengthened

12768-501: The marshal was soon to find out. The military and political developments elicited a sharp response in Russia, where Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky appealed to national sentiments and called for total war with expansionist Poland. General Aleksei Brusilov , former chief commander of the Russian Empire 's Tsarist army and from 2 May chairman of the new Council of Military Experts, appealed to his former officers to re-enlist with

12901-519: The meantime, I prepare for the second phase and arrange the forces and materials so it can be as effective as the first one. So far, I had completely destroyed the entire Bolshevik 12th Army, of which nothing at all had been left ... one feels dizzy thinking of the amount of war materials captured ... I had won this great battle by a daring plan and extraordinary energy put into its execution." The triumphant tone turned out to be premature. The 12th Army, in particular, had been battered but not destroyed, as

13034-484: The military operation in person. Because of the preparations for a major military offensive, the Polish Armed Forces (about 800,000 soldiers, a majority of whom were on the Polish eastern fronts) had been reorganized as of 1 April. Seven armies had been established by 6 August. The 3rd Army, Piłsudski' favorite, was placed under Edward Rydz-Śmigły on 19 April. It was designated to execute the Kiev operation, patterned after

13167-451: The narrative was not seen as convincing in the West (the Western Front forces were rather weak at that time and had no plans for an offensive). Soviet Russia's arguments turned out to be more persuasive and the image of Poland had suffered. The Soviets came to realize that the Polish side was not interested in an armistice at the end of February. First, they suspected a strike in the north, in

13300-416: The necessary political determinations for later. On 25 April, Lenin ordered the Western Front commander to reclaim Vilnius as soon as possible. The Red Army formations that attacked the Polish forces were defeated by Edward Rydz-Śmigły 's units between 30 April and 7 May. While the Poles extended their holdings further, the Red Army, unable to accomplish its objectives and facing intensified combat with

13433-478: The newly formed Polish Reserve Army (32,000 men) was used after 25 May. Because of the energetic Polish counter-offensive led by Stanisław Szeptycki , Kazimierz Sosnkowski and Leonard Skierski , by 8 June the Poles had recovered the bulk of the lost territory, Tukhachevsky's armies were withdrawn to the Avuta and Berezina Rivers, and the front had remained inactive until July. While Tukhachevsky retained control of

13566-466: The order from the Ukrainian Front commander Antoni Listowski to withdraw in a timely manner. He demanded a written order from Piłsudski, which he received on 10 June. The Polish Army evacuation, accomplished over the next few days, was preceded by the destruction of the city's bridges, electric power stations, and water pumps on the Dnieper. After 10 June, Rydz-Śmigły evacuated the 3rd Polish Army from Kiev. The Soviets were back, which was, supposedly,

13699-548: The outcome of the war. The West Ukrainian People's Republic was defeated by mid-July and eastern Galicia had come under Polish administration. The destruction of the West Ukrainian Republic confirmed the belief held by many Ukrainians that Poland was the main enemy of their nation. From January 1919 fighting also took place in Volhynia, where the Poles faced the forces of the Ukrainian People's Republic led by Symon Petliura . The Polish offensive resulted in

13832-657: The outskirts of Lida ; on 4 March, Piłsudski ordered further movement to the east stopped. The Soviet leadership had become preoccupied with the issue of providing military assistance to the Hungarian Soviet Republic and with the Siberian offensive of the White Army , led by Alexander Kolchak . By July 1919 Polish armies eliminated the West Ukrainian People's Republic. Secretly preparing an assault on Soviet-held Vilnius, in early April Piłsudski

13965-463: The proletariat and agitated for a worldwide communist community. They intended to link the revolution in Russia with a communist Revolutions and interventions in Hungary (1918–1920) they had hoped for and to assist other communist movements in Europe. To be able to provide direct physical support to revolutionaries in the West, the Red Army would have to cross the territory of Romania. According to

14098-464: The southern, Ukrainian front, in the direction of Kiev. He had been assembling a large military force throughout the winter. He had become convinced that the Russian White movement and its forces, largely defeated by the Red Army, were no longer a security threat to Poland and that he could take on the remaining adversary, the Bolsheviks. The Red Army, which had been regrouping since 10 March,

14231-470: The strategic points needed for future offensive action, the Polish high command kept its ineffective system of linear arrangement of forces and weak rear reserves. The Soviet forces south of Polesia were also getting ready for a counterassault. On 5 May, Felix Dzerzhinsky arrived in Kharkiv and brought with him 1,400 Cheka functionaries, charged with improving discipline in Red Army units. The plan for

14364-472: The strategic situation of the advancing Whites. Kiev offensive (1920) The 1920 Kiev offensive (or Kiev expedition , Polish : wyprawa kijowska ) 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's Republic led by Symon Petliura , to seize

14497-436: The surrounding areas and the Polish authorities allowed the UPR to establish its official state structures there, including military recruiting (while advancing Poland's own claims to the territory). On 2 December, Ukrainian diplomats led by Andriy Livytskyi declared giving up Ukrainian claims to Eastern Galicia and western Volhynia, in return for Poland's recognition of Ukrainian (UPR) independence. Petliura had thus accepted

14630-516: The territorial gains Poland made in the course of the Polish–Ukrainian War, when it defeated the West Ukrainian People's Republic (WUPR), a Ukrainian statehood attempt in Volhynia and eastern Eastern Galicia. The two regions were largely Ukrainian populated but had a significant Polish minority. On 21 April 1920, Piłsudski and a three-man Directorate of Ukraine , led by Petliura, agreed to the Treaty of Warsaw . The treaty has been known as

14763-470: The territories of modern-day Ukraine which mostly fell under Soviet control after the October Revolution as the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic . Polish and Soviet forces fought in 1919 and the Poles advanced in the disputed borderlands. In early 1920, Piłsudski concentrated on preparations for a military invasion of central Ukraine. It would result, he anticipated, in destruction of

14896-482: The tide of the war. This battle, often referred to as the "Miracle on the Vistula," is considered one of the most significant military triumphs in Polish history. The war ended with a ceasefire on 18 October 1920, and peace negotiations led to the Peace of Riga , signed on 18 March 1921. The treaty divided disputed territories between Poland and Soviet Russia. Poland’s eastern border was established about 200 km east of

15029-433: The time of the Polish offensive, the UPR had been defeated by the Red Army and controlled only a small sliver of land near the territory administered by Poland. Under these circumstances, Petliura saw no choice but to accept Piłsudski's offer of joining an alliance with Poland despite many unresolved territorial disputes between the two nations. Already on 16 November 1919, Polish forces took over Kamianets-Podilskyi and

15162-563: The treaty and proceeded to recover many of the former territories of the Russian Empire. However, preoccupied with the civil war, it did not have the resources to react swiftly to the national rebellions. In November 1918, Poland became a sovereign state . Among the several border wars fought by the Second Polish Republic was the successful Greater Poland uprising (1918–1919) against Weimar Germany . The historic Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth included vast territories in

15295-572: The two states. It was one of the series of notes exchanged by the two governments in 1918 and 1919. In February, Polish troops marched east to face the Soviets; the new Polish Sejm declared the need to liberate "the northeast provinces of Poland with their capital in Wilno [Vilnius]". After the German World War I troops had been evacuated from the region, the Battle of Bereza Kartuska , a Polish–Soviet skirmish, took place. It occurred during

15428-770: The war, some of the ships were returned to their owners, the rest remained on active service and were pressed into the so-called Pinsk Flotilla. In peace-time the Riverine Flotilla of the Polish Navy, as it was officially called, operated on the Pina River ( Dnieper–Bug Canal ), as well as on the Pripyat and the Strumień rivers. It served as a mobile reserve of the Border Defense Corps and

15561-401: The warfare that took place in late April 1920 was an escalation of the fighting that had begun a year and a half earlier. The war's main territories of contention lie in what is now Ukraine and Belarus . Until the mid-13th century, they formed part of the medieval state of Kievan Rus' . After a period of internal wars and the 1240 Mongol invasion , the lands became objects of expansion for

15694-634: The weakness of Polish rear reserves. He suggested that the ratio of frontline troops to the reserves should be 2:1, not 5:1, as was the case. According to the concept of Boris Shaposhnikov , chief operations manager on the Field Staff of the Revolutionary Military Council , the Soviet leadership decided to concentrate forces in Belarus and launch a counteroffensive from there. The Polish challenge in Ukraine necessitated

15827-525: Was able to shift some of the forces used in Ukraine to the northern front. The idea was to create a fait accompli and to prevent the Western powers from granting the territories claimed by Poland to White Russia (the Whites were expected to prevail in the Russian Civil War). A new Polish offensive started on 16 April. Five thousand soldiers, led by Piłsudski, headed for Vilnius. Advancing to

15960-487: Was among the Polish cavalry men recognized for valour. Planes of the Polish Air Force caused panic in the enemy ranks. In a 26 April letter to Prime Minister Leopold Skulski, Piłsudski characterized the Bolshevik formations as "almost incapable of any resistance", strongly impressed by the extraordinary speed of Polish moves. Contrary to the Polish expectations, many towns had been taken without any opposition from

16093-523: Was capable of carrying out Piłsudski's objective of building and leading an anti-Russian federation of states . The Soviet peace offers were rejected by Piłsudski, who did not trust the Russians and openly preferred to get the issues resolved on the battlefield. He had stated, on many occasions, that he could beat the Bolsheviks whenever and wherever he wanted to. On 22 April 1920, Stanisław Grabski ,

16226-559: Was carried out by the southern group of Polish armies, under Piłsudski's command. The operation was prepared and carried out by Piłsudski and his allies , Piłsudski's trusted officers with the Polish Legions backgrounds. Major generals on the General Staff were kept in the dark about the emerging details of the offensive. Piłsudski was convinced that the Soviets did not have major military forces at their disposal and that

16359-580: Was declared and Russian society mobilized accordingly. For the Russian and Soviet publicists, the Kiev Expedition had become synonymous with the Polish politics of aggression and political thoughtlessness. The negative image of Poland they had created was exploited by the Soviet Union in the following years, most importantly in September 1939 and during World War II . What appeared to be

16492-756: Was established in 1917; a Bolshevik uprising was suppressed in January 1918. The Red Army took Kiev in February, followed by the Army of the German Empire in March; Ukrainian forces retook the city in December. In February 1919, the Red Army regained control. In August, it was taken first by the UPR and then by Denikin's army . The Soviets were in control again from December 1919 (the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic had its temporary capital in Kharkiv ). By

16625-457: Was forced into exile after the Polish–Ukrainian War. UPR Prime Minister Isaak Mazepa resigned his position in protest of the Warsaw agreements. While to many protesting WUPR activists Petliura was a traitor and renegade, the divided UPR circles quarreled about the merits of the Polish–Ukrainian alliance. Piłsudski resolved to realize his political objectives by way of military determinations. For political reasons, he chose to launch an attack on

16758-736: Was fought primarily between the Second Polish Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , following World War I and the Russian Revolution , over territories previously controlled by the Russian Empire and the Habsburg monarchy . After the collapse of the Central Powers and the Armistice of 11 November 1918 , Vladimir Lenin 's Soviet Russia annulled the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk and moved forces westward to reclaim

16891-467: Was greeted in the Sejm by its Marshal Wojciech Trąmpczyński , who spoke of a tremendous triumph of Polish arms and said to Piłsudski: "The victories of our army accomplished under your leadership will influence the future in our east". "I left Warsaw that was intoxicated by the triumph; the nation had lost its sense of reality" – commented Charles de Gaulle . On 26 April in Zhytomyr, in his "Call to

17024-482: Was hostile to the Polish authorities and actively supported the Bolsheviks. Also in Podolia and near the eastern reaches of Galicia, the Polish armies kept slowly advancing to the east until December. They crossed the Zbruch River and displaced Soviet forces from a number of localities. The Polish forces took Minsk on 8 August. The Berezina River was reached on 18 August. On 28 August, tanks were deployed for

17157-541: Was intended to belong to Poland alone. A strong, victorious Ukrainian army might have demanded revisions in the treaties and reopen border disputes. A modest in size and capabilities UPR, a Poland-dependent "buffer" state, would guarantee loyalty and solidarity with Polish politics. Polish soldiers in Ukraine often acted as an occupation force. According to Polish General Leon Berbecki , "the orgy of plunder" ... "lasted for several weeks". Piłsudski and other Polish commanders had been instrumental in their treatment of Petliura and

17290-618: Was not fully ready for combat. One important factor that limited the Soviet response to the Polish attack was the peasant Pitchfork uprising that took place in February–March and was taken very seriously by the Bolshevik leadership. It distracted the Soviet Commissar of War Leon Trotsky so much that he had temporarily left Ukraine and Belarus poorly defended. The Kiev Expedition, in which 65,000 Polish and 15,000 Ukrainian soldiers took part, commenced on 25 April 1920. It

17423-649: Was not in a position to impose a new geostrategic situation in Europe. The UPR was supposed to subordinate its military and economy to Warsaw. Ukraine was going to join the Polish-led Intermarium federation of states in central and eastern Europe. Piłsudski wanted a Poland-allied Ukraine to be a buffer between Poland and Russia. Provisions in the treaty guaranteed the rights of the Polish and Ukrainian minorities within each state and obliged each side not to conclude international agreements against each other. Piłsudski also needed an alliance with

17556-532: Was to constitute the core of the forces defending the area of the Pinsk Marshes. The Polish commander-in-chief and Marshal of Poland , Edward Rydz-Śmigły , forecast that the area would be used for a last stand by the Polish Army, where it would await the relief on the western front from Poland's allies. However the Invasion of Poland on September 1, 1939 made the plans obsolete. During actions against

17689-633: Was to support the front in case of a war with the Soviet Union . Prior to the invasion of Poland , a number of ships of the Riverine Flotilla were moved to the Vistula as a detachment and became Oddział Wydzielony Rzeki Wisły , better known as the Vistula Flotilla. In the Polish operational plans, the Pinsk flotilla was to form a mobile strategic reserve of the Polish Army in the area and

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