The

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

1st Cavalry Division (Polish: ''1 Dywizja Jazdy'', later ''1 Dywizja Kawalerii'') was a formation 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 ...

between the World Wars. Formed in 1919, partially of veterans of the Polish Legions, the unit saw extensive action during the Polish-Bolshevik War.

History

The unit was formed in 1919, compromising of six regiments, each with their own distinct history and made up 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 ...

veterans who had served in the Austrian, French, German, and Russian armies. As such, the division was composed of a variety of soldiers with different equipment and training. Additionally, its soldiers had fought in opposing armies during World War I. The 1st Cavalry Division was, in this regard, a prime example of the new Polish Army, which was composed in a very similar way of soldiers with completely different military backgrounds but with the common goal of defending their newly reestablished country. The division took part in the operation which resulted in the

battle of Koziatyn The Battle of Koziatyn (also known as the Raid on Koziatyn and Koziatyn Envelopment) of 25–27 April 1920 was one of the most spectacular raids of the Polish cavalry during the Polish–Soviet War. In the effect of a pincer maneuver some 160 ki ...

and the capture of Kiev in late April and early May 1920, then under the command of

Jan Romer Jan Edward Romer (1869 in Lwów – 1934 in Warsaw) was a Polish general and military commander. Studied in Mödling and joined the Austro-Hungarian Army. During the First World War fought at the battle of Limanowa (1914) and battle of Gor ...

. After this, the unit fought in the

battle of Wołodarka The Battle of Wołodarka was a clash between the Polish Army and Semyon Budyonny's First Cavalry Army. It took place between 29 and 31 May 1920, near the Ukrainian village of Volodarka, in the course of the Polish Offensive on Kiev during th ...

, where it faced the Russian ''

Konarmia __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 ...

'', led 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 ...

, who had served as a corporal under

Aleksander Karnicki Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are A ...

, now the 1st Cavalry Division's commander, in the Imperial Russian Army. The division managed to stop a Russian breakthrough in this battle on 29 May, despite being outnumbered six to one. However, this success could not permanently stop the advance of the Russian forces towards the Polish rear and the division had to retreat. The division fought the ''Konarmia'' again in early June, around

Koziatyn Koziatyn (also referred to as Kozyatyn; , ; ; ) is a city in the Vinnytsia Oblast (province) in central Ukraine. It served as the administrative center of the Koziatyn Raion (district); the city itself was not a part of the district and was separ ...

, before the Russian cavalry was called to attack Kiev. In another engagement between those two cavalry forces on 10 June, between

Zhitomir Zhytomyr ( ; see #Names, below for other names) is a city in the north of the western half of Ukraine. It is the Capital city, administrative center of Zhytomyr Oblast (Oblast, province), as well as the administrative center of the surrounding ...

and Koziatyn, the ''Konarmia's'' advance was again halted but the need for more troops on the northern front eventually forced the Poles to retreat. Upon Piłsudski's orders, cavalry from the northern frontline was moved south in the beginning of July, to reinforce the 1st Cavalry Division in an attempt to decisively defeat the ''Konarmia'', which was seen as the major threat on the southern front for the Polish Army. This expanded force was put under the command of General

Kazimierz Raszewski Kazimierz Raszewski (29 February 1864 – 14 January 1941) was a lieutenant general of the Polish Army. Early life Raszewski was born 29 February 1864 in a small village called Jasień, Greater Poland Voivodeship, Jasień near Poznań (Czempiń ...

. Meanwhile, Budyonny's forces advanced and took Równe on 2 July. The ''Konarmia'' managed to advance as far as

Brody Brody (, ; ; ; ) is a city in Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, Zolochiv Raion, Lviv Oblast, western Ukraine. It is located in the valley of the upper Styr, Styr River, approximately northeast of the oblast capital, Lviv. Brody hosts the administrati ...

by early August, when the 1st Cavalry Division, together with a Cavalry unit under General

Kazimierz Sawicki Kazimierz Sawicki (born March 5, 1926 in Toruń, died October 26, 2021 in Szczecin) was a full professor of economics, doctor honoris causa of the University of Szczecin, and a specialist in accounting. He was buried at the Central Cemetery in Szc ...

, was ordered to counterattack, but shortly after had to withdraw to the north due to the worsening situation on the northern frontline. At the

battle of Komarów The Battle of Komarów, or the Battle of Zamość Ring, was one of the most important engagements of the Polish-Soviet War. It took place between 20 August and 2 September 1920, near the village of Komarowo (now Komarów-Osada, Komarów) near Za ...

on 31 August 1920, when the division completely defeated the Russian 1st Cavalry Army, it was commanded by

Juliusz Rómmel Juliusz Karol Wilhelm Józef Rómmel (; 3 June 1881 – 8 September 1967) was a Polish military commander, a general of the Polish Armed Forces. He graduated from the Corps of Cadets in Pskov and later from Кonstantin Artillery School at St. Pe ...

. The 1st Cavalry Division was heavily reorganised in 1924, as were the other Polish cavalry divisions. The previously separate mounted rifle regiments were integrated with the four cavalry divisions. The division was disbanded, along with the 3rd and 4th Cavalry Division, in 1929 and 1930 upon the orders of Pilsudski, who had come to the conclusion that cavalry was outdated. Only the 2nd Division in Warsaw remained in existence as a backup force to counter a possible coup attempt.

Structure

Formation

The unit was formed in 1919 from six individual regiments. * 1st Lancers: Made up of veterans of the

Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...

, from an all Polish regiment * 8th Lancers: Made up from veterans of the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army, also known as the Imperial and Royal Army,; was the principal ground force of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. It consisted of three organisations: the Common Army (, recruited from all parts of Austria-Hungary), ...

* 9th Lancers: Made up partly from veterans of the 3rd Lancers of the Austrian

Landwehr ''Landwehr'' (), or ''Landeswehr'', is a German language term used in referring to certain national army, armies, or militias found in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Europe. In different context it refers to large-scale, low-strength fo ...

and the 2nd Lancers of the Polish Legion * 14th Lancers: Made up of veterans of the Imperial Russian Army * 16th Lancers: Made up of veterans of the Prussian Army * 2nd Light Horse: Made up of veterans of the Polish Legion

Reorganisation in 1924

The Polish cavalry divisions were heavily reorganised in 1924. The 1st Cavalry was now one of four divisions, the divisional headquarter being based in

Białystok Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the List of cities and towns in Poland, tenth-largest city in Poland, second in terms of population density, and thirteenth in area. Biał ...

. Of the others, the 2nd was based in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, the 3rd in

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

and the 4th in Lwów. The new organisation, still consisting of six regiments, was: * 4th Cavalry Brigade – based in Wolkowysk, consisting of: ** 2nd Lancers – based in Suwałki ** 3rd Light Horse – based in Suwałki * 8th Cavalry Brigade – based in Białystok, consisting of: ** 10th Lancers – based in Białystok ** 3rd Mounted Rifles – based in Białystok * 11th Cavalry Brigade – Augustów, consisting of: ** 1st Lancers – based in Augustovo ** 9th Mounted Rifles – based in Grajewo One of the main aims of this reorganisation was to integrate the mounted rifle regiments into the cavalry divisions, which had previously existed separately as a form of second-class cavalry.

Commanders

* Mikołaj Waraksiewicz

Members

* Stanisław Maczek, commanding officer of all the Polish forces in the United Kingdom 1945-47, was in command of the assault battalion of the First Cavalry Division in the summer of 1920.

In history

A ''1st Cavalry Division'', made up partly of Polish lancers of the ''1st Regiment of Lighthorse-Lancers'', existed in the French Army under Napoleon, being part of the Imperial Guard (Napoleon I), Imperial Guard, from 1807 until 1815. This unit took part in most major engagements of the Napoleonic wars after 1807 and was highly regarded by Napoleon.

References

Sources

* ''Warsaw 1920 – Lenin's failed conquest of Europe'', Adam Zamoyski, Harper Collins Publishers, 2008,

External links

The Polish-Bolshevik Cavalry Campaigns of 1920
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181024230615/http://www.irekw.internetdsl.pl/galicja_army/farman_pol_bol_camp.pdf , date=2018-10-24 , by Major Elbert E. Farman, Jr., Cavalry (Military Attaché to Poland), 30 July 1921

Divisions of Poland Military units and formations established in 1919 Military units and formations disestablished in 1929 Cavalry units and formations of Poland