The 13th Wilno Uhlan Regiment () was a 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 ...

during the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

and the Polish Defence War of 1939.

Origins

The ancestral units to the regiment were created mainly as means of defending the Polish interest and the interest of the ethnic Poles living in

Kresy Eastern Borderlands (), often simply Borderlands (, ) was a historical region of the eastern part of the Second Polish Republic. The term was coined during the interwar period (1918–1939). Largely agricultural and extensively multi-ethnic with ...

at the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Russians, Poles, Ukrainians, Lithuanians, Belarusians, and even

Anarchists Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or hierarchy, primarily targeting the state and capitalism. Anarchism advocates for the replacement of the state w ...

competed for the sovereignty over the area.

Formation

The 13th Regiment was formed out of the cavalry units of the Lithuanian and Belarusian Self-Defence on December 27, 1918, on the estate of a Mr. Pośpieszek. On December 28, the regiment was moved to the garrison at

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

and was stationed in the

barracks Barracks are buildings used to accommodate military personnel and quasi-military personnel such as police. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word 'soldier's tent', but today barracks ar ...

in the Antokol district. , ''

nom-de-guerre A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war. In ''ancien régime'' France it would be adopted by each new recruit (or assigned to them by ...

'' Dąb''', lit. 'Oak', was the regiment's first commander. The regiment was the first in newly independent Poland, and was originally called the 1st Regiment of Wilno

Uhlan Uhlan (; ; ; ; ) is a type of light cavalry, primarily armed with a lance. The uhlans started as Grand Ducal Lithuanian Army, Lithuanian irregular cavalry, that were later also adopted by other countries during the 18th century, including Polis ...

s. It became officially part of the

Polish Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland (, ; abbreviated SZ RP), also called the Polish Armed Forces and popularly called in Poland (, roughly "the Polish Military"—abbreviated ''WP''), are the national Military, armed forces of the Poland, ...

in June 1919, receiving its name and number. The regiment was nationally famous because its commander, Major Władysław Dąbrowski, was a . In the official

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 ...

documents, the phrase "Wilenskich" ("of Vilnius") was omitted; the official name was the 13th Regiment. In spite of this, the officers, soldiers and public persisted in calling it the "13th Wilno Regiment".

Lipka Tatar Tradition

Since the joining, the regiment had been following dual tradition of the afore-mentioned Lithuanian and Belarusian Self-Defence and of the 7th Lithuanian Tatar Regiment, which used to be stationed in Janów, the same place where over century later, the 13th Regiment fought its very first battle.

Polish-Soviet War

The 13th Regiment participated in the

Polish–Soviet War The Polish–Soviet War (14 February 1919 – 18 March 1921) was fought primarily between the Second Polish Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, following World War I and the Russian Revolution. After the collapse ...

of 1919–1920 and became known for many flanking manoeuvres and raids behind Soviet lines. It protected the retreat of General Żeligowski's troops. On 25 February 1920, while it was stationed in Vilnius, the regiment mutinied, because it refused to fight against Lithuanians. On June 29, 1919, in

, General

Edward Rydz-Śmigły Marshal Edward Śmigły-Rydz also called Edward Rydz-Śmigły, (11 March 1886 – 2 December 1941) was a Polish people, Polish politician, statesman, Marshal of Poland and Commander-in-Chief of Poland's armed forces, as well as a painter and ...

handed over the regiment's new banner to a small delegation from a combat area. After a failed attempt at seizing territory in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

beyond

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, many soldiers from the disbanded Tatar Uhlan Regiment, (named after Colonel Mustafa Achmatowicz, a renowned eighteenth-century Lithuanian

Tatar Tatar may refer to: Peoples * Tatars, an umbrella term for different Turkic ethnic groups bearing the name "Tatar" * Volga Tatars, a people from the Volga-Ural region of western Russia * Crimean Tatars, a people from the Crimea peninsula by the B ...

cavalryman), joined the "Wilno Regiment".

Interwar period

In late 1921, the regiment patrolled the Polish border with

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

and was stationed for a brief period in Głębokie, at present

Hlybokaye Hlybokaye or Glubokoye (; ; ; ; ) is a town in Vitebsk Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Hlybokaye District. As of 2024, it has a population of 17,746. The town is located on the international road from Polotsk to Vilniu ...

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. The regiment was moved to Nowa Wilejka near Vilnius in 1922, where it stayed until 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 ...

in 1939. In 1936, a Tatar unit was created within the 13th Regiment of Wilno Uhlans. By the order of the Polish

Minister of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

, issued on June 9, a troop within the regiment was renamed the , to which all new recruits of Tatar ethnicity were directed. Captain Michał Bohdanowicz was the original commander. The unit was led for a short time by Captain Bazyli Marcisz and

podpułkownik ''Podpolkovnik'' () is a military rank in Slavic peoples, Slavic and nearby countries which corresponds to the lieutenant colonel in the English-speaking states and military. In different languages the exact name of this rank maintains a varie ...

. Captain Aleksander Jeljaszewicz became its last commander from November 25, 1938. During the Regiment's Holiday on July 25, 1937, the squadron (or mounted infantry battalion) received a buńczuk made according to the old Tatar traditions and funded by the entire Tatar community of Poland. During the symbolic ceremony of the burial of the heart of Marshal

Józef Piłsudski Józef Klemens Piłsudski (; 5 December 1867 – 12 May 1935) was a Polish statesman who served as the Chief of State (Poland), Chief of State (1918–1922) and first Marshal of Poland (from 1920). In the aftermath of World War I, he beca ...

in the Rasos cemetery in Vilnius, a detail from the 1st Tatar Squadron fired a

three-volley salute The three-volley salute is a ceremonial act performed at military funerals and sometimes also police funerals. The custom likely originates with Roman funeral rites. Dirt would be cast on the body three times followed, and the ceremony was ende ...

Banners and markings

The regiment's lances initially bore pennons, but after 1936 these were only issued by personal request, when all cavalry units were transformed into

mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. Unlike cavalry, mounted infantry dismounted to fight on foot. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the ''Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Editio ...

units and were in the process of becoming fully mechanized divisions. However, progress was slow, only two fully mechanized units fought in the

in 1939 besides armoured units, heavy artillery units, AA artillery units, Polish Air Force's ground units, and most of the tabors. Uniforms were adorned with miniature banners, pink in colour, with a slim cornflower-coloured stripe in the middle. Each trooper's

rogatywka ''Rogatywka'' (; sometimes translated as '' peaked cap'') is the Polish generic name for a peaked, four-pointed cap used by various Polish military formations throughout the ages. It is a distant relative of its 18th-century predecessor, th ...

(hat) was adorned with a pink stripe running around the crown. The 1st Tatar Squadron also wore on the small banners, a golden Crescent Moon and star. The regiment's holiday was July 25 (in memory of the Battle of Janow in 1920).

The Uhlans in command

* Major Władysław Dąbrowski (ur. 1891) (1918–1920) * Colonel Eugeniusz Ślaski (1920) * Colonel Mścisław Butkiewicz (1920–1922) * Honorary Colonel Terencjusz O'Brien (1922) * Colonel Tomasz Brzozowski (1922–1925) * Colonel Aleksander Kunicki (1925–1927) * Colonel (finished senior officers' school) Adam Korytowski (XI 1927 – III 1930) * Lieutenant Colonel (finished senior officers' school) Czesław Chmielewski (1930–1937) * Colonel Kazimierz Żelisławski (1937–1939) * Lieutenant Colonel Józef Szostak (finished senior officers' school) (1939)

A selection of Uhlan Officers

*Lieutenant Ignacy Cieplak *Lieutenant Jerzy Cydzik

Invasion of Poland

In 1939, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Józef Szostak, the 13th Regiment of Wilno Uhlans fought as a part of the

Wileńska Cavalry Brigade Wileńska Cavalry Brigade () was a unit of the Polish Army, created on 1 April 1937 out of the 3rd Independent Cavalry Brigade. Its headquarters were stationed in Wilno (Vilnius), with some regiments garrisoned in the neighboring towns. In late 193 ...

under the command of Colonel Konstanty Drucki-Lubecki. Between September 2 and 5, the brigade took part in heavy fighting near

Piotrków Trybunalski Piotrków Trybunalski (; also known by #Etymology, alternative names), often simplified to Piotrków, is a city in central Poland with 71,252 inhabitants (2021). It is the capital of Piotrków County and the second-largest city in the Łódź Voi ...

. On September 9 and 10, the brigade lost many men and much equipment while retreating across 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 ...

river near Maciejowice. The brigade fought in Lubelszczyzna near the city of

Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...

, before being crushed near Tomaszow Lubelski. The largest remnant of the regiment became part of the Independent Operational Group Polesie under the command of Major General Franciszek Kleeberg.

Home Army

Subdivisions of the 13th Regiment of Wilno Uhlans AK were recreated in 1944 in the Wilno District of 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 ...

as a

division in the Rūdninkai Forest, a mounted infantry battalion attached to the , a mounted infantry platoon attached to the and a mounted infantry platoon operating within

Kampinos Forest Kampinos Forest () is a large forest complex located in Masovian Voivodeship, west of Warsaw in Poland. It covers a part of the ancient valley of the Vistula basin, between the Vistula and the Bzura rivers. The forest began to form 14-11,000 yea ...

References

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:13th Regiment Of Wilno Uhlans Cavalry regiments of Poland Wilno Voivodeship (1926–1939) Vilnius in World War II Polish Land Forces Military units and formations established in 1918 Cavalry regiments of Central Lithuania pl:Pułki kawalerii Wojska Polskiego