Kresowa Cavalry Brigade (Polish: ') 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 ...

in the interbellum period. It was organized on April 1, 1937 and was based on the Second Cavalry Brigade. Stationed in the town of

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 ...

, it consisted of several regiments: Kresowa BK w 1938

20th Uhlan Regiment of King Jan III Sobieski 20th Uhlan Regiment of King Jan III Sobieski (Polish: 20 Pułk Ułanów im. Króla Jana III Sobieskiego, 20 puł) was a cavalry unit of the Polish Army in the Second Polish Republic. Formed in 1920, it was stationed in the garrison of Rzeszów. Duri ...

, stationed in

Rzeszów Rzeszów ( , ) is the largest city in southeastern Poland. It is located on both sides of the Wisłok River in the heartland of the Sandomierz Basin. Rzeszów is the capital of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship and the county seat, seat of Rzeszów C ...

, * 22nd Carpathian Uhlan Regiment, stationed in Brody, * 6th Hetman

Stanisław Żółkiewski Stanisław Żółkiewski (; 1547 – 7 October 1620) was a Polish people, Polish szlachta, nobleman of the Lubicz coat of arms, a magnate, military commander, and Chancellor (Poland), Chancellor of the Polish Crown in the Polish–Lithuanian C ...

Mounted Rifles Regiment, stationed in Zolkiew, * 13th Mounted Artillery Regiment, stationed in Kamionka Strumilowa, * 4th Squadron of Pioneers, stationed in

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

, * 2nd Squadron of Communication, stationed in Lwów.. During the

Polish September Campaign 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 Republic of Poland by Nazi Germany, the Slovak Republic, and the Soviet ...

the Brigade, under Colonel Stefan Hanka-Kulesza was part of the

Łódź Army Łódź Army () was one of the Polish armies of the Polish Armed Forces of the Second Polish Republic that took part in the Invasion of Poland of 1939. It was officially created on 23 March 1939 with the task of filling the gap between Poznań ...

. In the first two days of the conflict it remained in the rear, however,

Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...

attacks on the unit inflicted heavy losses. In the morning of September 3, 1939, the Brigade took positions around the town of

Szadek Szadek is a town in Zduńska Wola County, Łódź Voivodeship, Poland, with 1,898 inhabitants (2020). It is located in the Sieradz Land. History The oldest known mention of the town comes from 1295, when it was part of fragmented Piast-ruled Po ...

, strengthening the 10th Infantry Division. The two units merged, creating "

Sieradz Sieradz (,) is a city on the Warta river in central Poland with 40,891 inhabitants (2021). It is the seat of the Sieradz County, situated in the Łódź Voivodeship. Sieradz is a capital of the historical Sieradz Land. Sieradz is one of the olde ...

" Operational Group under General

Franciszek Dindorf-Ankowicz Franciszek () is a masculine given name of Polish origin (female form Franciszka). It is a cognate of Francis, Francisco, François, and Franz. People with the name include: *Edward Pfeiffer (Franciszek Edward Pfeiffer) (1895–1964), Polish gener ...

. Next day, it attacked German 24th I.D. of General

Friedrich Olbricht Friedrich Olbricht (4 October 1888 – 21 July 1944) was a German general during World War II. He is known for being one of the plotters involved in the 20 July Plot, an attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler in 1944. Olbricht was a senior staff o ...

, west of the town of Warta. After first contact with the enemy, the Brigade withdrew for unknown reasons, leaving a gap in the northern wing of the Łódź Army. As a consequence, Colonel Hanka-Kulesza was dismissed and replaced by Colonel

Jerzy Grobicki Jerzy is the Polish version of the masculine given name George. The most common nickname for Jerzy is Jurek (), which may also be used as an official first name. Occasionally the nickname Jerzyk may be used, which means "swift" in Polish. People ...

. On September 5 the Brigade defended the line of the

Warta The river Warta ( , ; ; ) rises in central Poland and meanders greatly through the Polish Plain in a north-westerly direction to flow into the Oder at Kostrzyn nad Odrą on Poland's border with Germany. About long, it the second-longest riv ...

river, near Sieradz. Threatened with encirclement, it withdrew eastwards, crossing the

Ner The Ner is a river in central Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Ru ...

to the area of

Zgierz Zgierz is a city in central Poland, located just to the north of Łódź, and part of the metropolitan area centered on that city. As of 2021, it had a population of 54,974. Located within the historic Łęczyca Land, it is the capital of Zgie ...

. On September 8, as a result of German attacks, it dispersed. Remnants crossed the

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

on September 10 and joined the Northern Front of General

Stefan Dąb-Biernacki Stefan Dąb-Biernacki (7 January 1890 – 9 February 1959) was a general of the army during the Second Polish Republic. He served as a major general in the Polish Armed Forces (Second Polish Republic, Polish Army in overall command of Prusy Army ...

, fighting in the

Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski The Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski took place from 18 September to 20 September 1939 near the town of Tomaszów Lubelski. It was the second largest battle

. Last units of the Brigade capitulated on September 26, after skirmishes in the area of

Sadowa Wisznia Sudova Vyshnia (, ; ) is a small city in the Yavoriv Raion of the Lviv Oblast (region) of Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Sudova Vyshnia urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Its population is The town has a number of Catholi ...

See also