Puławy Legion
Encyclopedia
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, as part of the Imperial Russian Army
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...
. It was created in late 1914 from volunteers gathered together due to several initiatives, most notably of which was that of the pro-Russian Polish National Committee
Polish National Committee (1914–1917)
Polish National Committee was formed in Russian partition during World War I, and grouped Polish politicians who wanted to advance the Polish cause by supporting Russia in World War I...
, supported by Polish National Democrats
Endecja
National Democracy was a Polish right-wing nationalist political movement active from the latter 19th century to the end of the Second Polish Republic in 1939. A founder and principal ideologue was Roman Dmowski...
. The initiative was supposed to counteract the Polish Legions
Polish Legions in World War I
Polish Legions was the name of Polish armed forces created in August 1914 in Galicia. Thanks to the efforts of KSSN and the Polish members of the Austrian parliament, the unit became an independent formation of the Austro-Hungarian Army...
of Józef Piłsudski forming under the Austro–Hungarian Army. The formation finished organizing in January 1915; at that time it numbered about 1,000 soldiers, and constituted a battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
of the Russian Army. The formation was used in combat against the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
. Eventually, the Legion was disbanded in October 1915 and reorganized into the Polish Rifle Brigade.
History
In 1795 Poland was partitionedPartitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
between the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
, Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
and the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. In 1914, with the onset of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, those powers found themselves on separate sides, and all tried to recruit Poles into their ranks, promising increased autonomy after the war in return. In the Russian Empire, efforts of Witold Ostoja-Gorczyński, supported by the command of the Southwestern Front
Southwestern Front (Russian Empire)
The Southwestern Front was a major unit of the Imperial Russian Army during the First World War. It was established on 19 August 1914.- Commanders of the Southwestern Front :* 19.07.1914-17.03.1916 — General of Infantry Nikolai Ivanov...
, resulted in a growing group of Polish volunteers gathering from October and November 1914 first at Chełm and Brest
Brest, Belarus
Brest , formerly also Brest-on-the-Bug and Brest-Litovsk , is a city in Belarus at the border with Poland opposite the city of Terespol, where the Bug River and Mukhavets rivers meet...
, and later at Puławy. This initiative, supported by the Polish National Democrats
Endecja
National Democracy was a Polish right-wing nationalist political movement active from the latter 19th century to the end of the Second Polish Republic in 1939. A founder and principal ideologue was Roman Dmowski...
, was also aimed at countering the (eventually more successful) initiative of Józef Piłsudski, who was forming his own Polish Legions under the supervision of the Austro-Hungarian Army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
.
The organization of the formation was delayed due to logistical problems. In January 1915 Polish National Committee
Polish National Committee (1914–1917)
Polish National Committee was formed in Russian partition during World War I, and grouped Polish politicians who wanted to advance the Polish cause by supporting Russia in World War I...
threw its support behind the initiative, and colonel Antoni Reutt was nominated for the organization's commander. As the numbers of volunteers were growing, a second legion was created in Lublin
Lublin
Lublin is the ninth largest city in Poland. It is the capital of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 350,392 . Lublin is also the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river...
(the Lublin Legion). A cavalry formation was also being created. The formation was officially known as the Polish Legion(s), and was subordinate to the LIX Defense Brigade of General Piotr Szymanowski. Later, in a reorganization, the Legions were renamed (the Puławy Legion into the 739 New Aleksandrovo Squad (Druzyna), and the Lublin Legion into the 740 Lublin Squad).
By January 1915 the Legion has finished organizing, at that time numbering about 1,000 volunteers; an equivalent of an Imperial Russian Army infantry battalion (in February it would be divided into four companies). It was however still plagued by logistical problems (for example, it did not receive the promised artillery, and the machine guns it received were captured Austrian ones – without ammunition). There were also problems with the transfer of volunteers from other Russian Imperial formation (requests were commonly denied), and the project to recruit volunteers from Polish prisoners of war from the Austro-Hungarian Army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
was refused.
The Puławy Legion was deployed to the frontlines on 20 March 1915; at that time it was taken out from under general Szymanowski and was assigned to the Moscow Grenadier Corps under general Mrozowski. The Lublin Legion was never deployed to the frontlines, instead it was used to replenish the losses of the Puławy Legion. The formation was to be used in combat against the German Empire
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
, but morale was affected by the rumors it would be used against Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
and its Polish Legions.
The formation fought in several battles:
- 19 May – at Pakosław (where colonel Reutt was injured, and the command passed to colonel Jan RządkowskiJan RzadkowskiJan Rządkowski was a Polish military officer and a General of the Polish Army. He is best known as the commanding officer of the 1st Lithuanian-Belarusian Division during the Polish-Bolshevik War and then the commander of the armed forces of the Republic of Central Lithuania.Jan Piotr Rządkowski...
) - 16 June – at Michałów (or Michałowo)
- 17 July – at WładysławowoWładysławowoWładysławowo is a town on the south coast of the Baltic Sea in the Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania region, northern Poland, with 15,015 inhabitants.-Overview:...
- 21 July – at Kolonia ChechelskaKolonia ChechelskaKolonia Chechelska is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Policzna, within Zwoleń County, Masovian Voivodeship, in east-central Poland. It lies approximately east of Zwoleń and south-east of Warsaw.The village has a population of 20....
- 22 July – at Puławska Góra
- 14 August – at KarczowkaKarczówkaKarczówka may refer to the following places:*Karczówka, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship *Karczówka, Przysucha County in Masovian Voivodeship *Karczówka, Zwoleń County in Masovian Voivodeship...
- 20 August – at NurzecNurzecThe Nurzec is a river in north-eastern Poland, a tributary of the Bug River. It flows through the geographical region known in Polish as Wysoczyzny Podlasko-Bialoruskie...
- 23 August – at OpakaOpakaOpaka is a town in the district of Turgovishte in northeast Bulgaria. As of December 2009, the town had a population of 2,873 and covers an area of 57 km²....
- 5 September – at IzabelinIzabelinIzabelin may refer to the following places in Poland:*Izabelin, Lublin Voivodeship *Izabelin, Podlaskie Voivodeship *Izabelin, Zgierz County in Łódź Voivodeship...
- 9 September – at Zelwa
During that period, the Legion sustained heavy casualties – 415 dead and 1,016 wounded (92% of its initial numbers).
Eventually, the Legion was disbanded in October 1915; some troops joined the newly forming Polish Rifle Briade (Brygada Strzelców Polskich). The reorganization was a result of efforts by Colonel Rządkowaski and others aiming at increasing the size of the Polish forces in the Russian Army.
Commanders
- Colonel Antoni Reutt – from 17 January 1915
- Colonel Jan RządkowskiJan RzadkowskiJan Rządkowski was a Polish military officer and a General of the Polish Army. He is best known as the commanding officer of the 1st Lithuanian-Belarusian Division during the Polish-Bolshevik War and then the commander of the armed forces of the Republic of Central Lithuania.Jan Piotr Rządkowski...
– from 19 May 1915