53 Dywizja 12 Strzelecka 2 2

17

30 min

164 Brygada 3 Armia Strzelecka

4 Armia 03 Pułk 5 Armia Rewolucyjny 2 1

21

Mozyrska Grupa Grupa

Obrońcy Warszawy

3 Armia 3 4 Armia 4

1 Armia 3 KawKor 3

“Battle of ” is a fast-paced wargame for two 3 60 command cards: 15 Armia 2 Armia

players, depicting the landmark events of August х 30 cards 16 Armia 1 Dywizja Litewsko- 3 -Białoruska 1920 during the Polish-Bolshevik war. The Polish х 30 Polish Army cards 3 Dywizja Piechoty Army must face the Bolshevik armies attacking War- 4 24 wooden command markers Legionów 3 Pociąg 3 pancerny „Mściciel” saw. The Red Army player’s goal is to invade the cap- 5 6 two-sided attack markers 6 ital. The Polish Army player’s goal is to block them 1 wooden time marker 44

and destroy the attacker’s armies. 39 Will Polish soldiers succeed? Can they defend

52 Warsaw? If they fail, Bolshevik armies will continue Good order unit Dispersed unit west over “the corpse of white ”, and commu- Units begin the game in good order, with their A dispersed unit never becomes good order, and an nism will spread across Europe... name in white letters face up. When a unit loses eliminated unit never reenters play. a combat, it becomes dispersed, and is turned to show its name in black letters. Warsaw Defenders Game components 15 Armia 15 Armia Both sides of this unit are the same. Obrońcy Warszawy Soviet Federative Socialist Republic 1 Game board with a hexagonal grid Units of the Red Army Russian The Warsaw Defenders are a 2 12 army unit tokens: 5 Armia 5 Armia unique Polish unit which never moves х 6 pentagonal Red Army units or attacks. It represents hastily organized х 6 round Polish Army units, including volunteer troops defending the capital. 1 “Obrońcy Warszawy” (Warsaw Defend- If a dispersed unit loses a combat, it is eliminated The Warsaw Defenders are immediately elimi- ers) unit 5 Armia 5 Armia and removed from the game. nated and removed from play after losing a combat. Dispersal and removal are both permanent. of the Units of the Polish Armed Forces Units of the Polish Armed Forces 2 3 Game preparation

1 Place the board in the center of the table. called the player’s reserve. Each player’s Choose which player will play which side. reserve is concealed from their opponent. Orient the map with its west side near the 4 Place 1 command marker on each unit, ex-

Polish player and its east side near the Red cept for the Warsaw Defenders. Place the re-

Mozyrska Grupa Grupa player. maining command markers near the board, 3 Armia 2 Place all units on the board in their starting where both players can easily reach them. positions. (Map spaces are marked to show 5 The Red player takes 2 additional command

16 Armia 16 the starting positions of units.) markers and places them on freely chosen

4 Armia 3 Shuffle the two command card decks sepa- Red units. One unit can receive both mark- 15 Armia 15 rately. Put the Polish deck on its designated ers, or two different units can each receive

3 Armia 3 place on the west side of the map, and the one marker.

Red deck on its place on the east side. 6 Put the time marker on the first day of the 4 Armia 4 х The Polish player draws 7 cards from calendar (August 13). the Polish deck. 7 Put the Attack markers near the board. х The Red player draws 10 cards from the

3 KawKor 3 Red deck. 2 Armia х Note: The cards in a player’s hand (wheth- er drawn during setup or during play) are 1 Armia Obrońcy Warszawy Order and attack Goal of the game markers are 5 Armia not limited Each player has a different goal in the game. this, eliminate any 3 Red Army units, or disperse by the physi- all Red Army units. cal supply; there The Red player’s goal is to invade Warsaw, which should be enough, happens if any Red Army unit enters Warsaw If neither player achieves their goal by the end but in the rare case (marked with a red border). of the fifth (final) round, then victory depends on that they run out, whether a Red unit occupies Radzymin (northeast players may impro- The Polish player’s goal is to smash the attacker’s of Warsaw, marked with an orange border). vise as needed with units, forcing the Red troops to retreat before being buttons, coins, tooth- reinforced by the Southwestern Front. To achieve picks, etc. 4 5 Sequence of play Command cards Red Army cards Polish Army cards The game lasts 5 rounds, each representing a day Each round has three phases, which from August 13–17, 1920. The game continues un- happen in order: Unit name til one player fulfills their goal, or until the end of 1. Operational phase the fifth round. 2. Combat phase 3. Cleanup phase (which can be 164 Brygada VII Brygada skipped in the fifth round) 2 Strzelecka 3 Jazdy

Operational phase

03 40 Players alternate doing actions. Usually the Red Pass Front Back Front Back player does the first action, then the Polish player. (Exceptions: see “Broken Cipher,” page 16, and When a player is unable or unwilling to do an ac- Combat strength (0, 1, 2, or 3) “Warsaw Defenders,” page 23.) tion, the player passes. A star or eagle means A player who passes can no longer do any more Color and shape showing to this card can be used to Possible actions are: actions in this operational phase. The opponent which army the card belongs strengthen any of your units. х Pillage (Red player only) can continue to do actions. When both players have х Command a unit passed, the operational phase ends. Akcja 14 Wielkopolska 2 Dywizja 11 Dywizja 53 Dywizja Grupa х Play an (Action) card Manewr 2 Dywizja Piechoty 3 Strzelecka 2 Strzelecka 2 Strzelecka 2 1 pościgowa Pillage Akcja The Red player discards 2 command markers from one Red unit and draws 1 card from the Red Złamany szyfr Note: Only selected units appear in the deck to his reserves. 2 Dołóż 2 znaczniki rozkazów na swoją dowolną armię. Akcja gameMożesz od from razu wydać tej among armii Ta karta użytaall w czasie those manewru that took part This action represents plundering Pol- rozkaz marszu i/lub natarcia. okrążającego ma siłę 5. A 31 card with 08 Akcja (Action) 12 in the 17 battle. The 26 units represented 54 in the ish territory. has special rules, overriding game were historically present, but players the game’s general rules. can create an alternate history, playing Podejrzyj 4 losowe karty z odwodów przeciwnika. W tej rundzie masz cards to assign their troops to formations pierwszeństwo w fazie walk. W następnej rundzie masz pierwszeństwo w fazie operacyjnej. other than happened in reality. 60 7 Command a unit х Attack: Discard 1 command marker from Attack markers Play an Akcja (Action) card the unit to attack an adjacent enemy unit. The player selects one of their units that has at Put an attack marker between these two units When one unit attacks another, place an attack 1. The player plays an Akcja card from their least one command marker and is not engaged in to show that the active unit is attacking the marker between them. hand, resolving its effect as described on the combat (i.e. it has no attack marker touching it). The other. Attacking ends a unit’s actions for the The arrow must point from the attacker to the card. unit can receive commands to march and attack: round: it cannot march or attack again this defender. 2. Then the card is discarded next to the board. х March: Discard 1 command token from the round. The unit being attacked immediately loses all unit, then move it to an adjacent empty space. its command markers. Playing an Akcja card does not require Com- A unit cannot enter a space occupied by an- mand markers. other unit. х A unit can march more than once in a sin- gle action, discarding a command marker 2 Manewr for each space it moves. Akcja Pociąg 1 Armia pancerny 3 Armia 3 „Mściciel” 1 Armia Syberyjska 3 Armia Brygada 3 Piechoty 15 Wielkopolska 2 Dywizja Piechoty Dołóż 2 znaczniki rozkazów na swoją dowolną armię. Możesz od razu wydać tej armii 57 7 Dywizja rozkaz marszu i/lub natarcia. Piechoty 2 52

47 1 Armia

3 Armia 3 Armia Marching and attacking can both happen in one 41 action. Discard 1 command marker for each space Engaged units cannot be commanded this round. 37

marched, and then discard 1 more to attack an en- (They can only wait for their combat to be resolved emy adjacent to the unit’s final position. in the Combat Phase.) But an engaged unit can be attacked by other enemy units. Any number of command markers may be dis- When the Red player attacks, place the attack A list of action cards appears on page 23. carded during one action, but from only one unit. marker with the red side visible; when the Polish Commanding a different unit is only possible during player attacks, show the blue side. The Warsaw Defenders a different action. Obrońcy Warszawy never receive command If a unit marches but does not attack, and still markers and so cannot has command markers, then it may be activated be commanded. Their again in a later action this round. token has symbols re- minding of this.

8 9 An example of the operational phase Now the Red player does a second action. He discards 2 command markers from the 3 KawKor 3 KawKor 3 KawKor During setup, the commander of the Red Army places 4 Armia (Cavalry Corps to command it to march one space to- 4 Armia 2 additional command markers: 1 marker on the 3rd ward Radzymin (the orange space) and then attack the 3 KawKor Cavalry Corps (3 KawKor) 1 and 1 marker on the 15 Armia Polish 1st Army in Radzymin 6. A red attack marker 15 Armia 3rd Army 2. is placed, pointing from the attacking Red unit to the 3 Armia The operational phase of the first round begins. 5 Armia 1 Armia 16 Armia defending Polish unit 7. The 1st Army had 1 com- 5 Armia 1 Armia 16 Armia mand marker, but since it was attacked, it immediately

Obrońcy Warszawy Grupa 8 Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Grupa Mozyrska loses its command marker . Mozyrska

2 Armia 2 Armia

The Red player does the first action. He discards 2 com- mand markers from the 3rd Army to command it to 3 KawKor 4 Armia march 2 spaces toward Warsaw 3. The 3rd Army now has no command markers, so the action must end now, 15 Armia otherwise the 3rd Army could march further or attack. Now the Polish player does a second action. He discards the 5th Army’s command marker to com- 5 Armia 3 Armia 3 Armia 1 Armia 16 Armia mand it to march northeast 9. 4 Armia

Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Grupa 3 KawKor Mozyrska 5 Armia 15 Armia

5 Armia 2 Armia 1 Armia 16 Armia

Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Grupa Now the Polish player does the first Polish action. He Mozyrska discards 1 command marker from the 2nd Army to 15 Armia command it to attack the adjacent enemy 3rd Army 4. 2 Armia A blue attack marker is placed, pointing from the at- 5 Armia 1 Armia 16 Armia tacking Polish unit to the defending Red unit 5.

Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Grupa Mozyrska

2 Armia

10 11 Now the Red player does a third action. Combat phase He plays an Akcja card from his reserves. The card is “Maneuver”. Following the card’s instructions, he 4 Armia In the combat phase, all attacks are resolved. 2. Both players hold their selected cards face places 2 command markers on the 16th Army q, then down, spread in a fan. 3 KawKor immediately commands it to march west twice and 5 Armia 15 Armia Usually the Red player chooses which attack to re- 3. Draw 1 random card: Each player draws one then attack the Polish 1st Army w. An attack marker solve first. (Exceptions: see “Broken Cipher,” page of the opponent’s face-down cards, but does is placed on both units, pointing from the attacking 1 Armia 16 Armia 16 Armia 16 Armia 16, and “Warsaw Defenders,” page 23.) Any attack not look at it. The drawn card goes back (un- Red unit to the defending Polish unit. The Polish 1st marker on the board (whether it is a Red attack or revealed) into the opponent’s reserve.

Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Grupa Army now has two attacks against it. Mozyrska a Polish attack) can be selected to resolve. This simulates the chaos of warfare: orders did not always reach troops in time. 2 Manewr After resolving an attack, remove its attack 2 Armia Akcja marker from the board.

4 Dywizja Dołóż 2 znaczniki rozkazów Piechoty na swoją dowolną armię. Then the Polish player chooses the next attack to 2 Możesz od razu wydać tej armii Now the Polish player can do a third action. rozkaz marszu i/lub natarcia. resolve (if any attack markers remain), then the Dywizja 7 Dywizja Ochotnicza 26 8 Dywizja But the Polish player decides to pass, and thus will do Red player, and so on, alternating until there are Piechoty 1 (22 DP) 2 3 Piechoty no further actions this round. no more attack markers on the board.

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Attack resolution 50 43 The Red player may continue to do actions. He next discards one command marker to command the 4th 1. Select 4 cards: Each player selects any 4 cards Army to march southwest e. 4 Armia from their reserve. These cards are troops as- signed to the player’s unit that is fighting in х The defender draws 1 of the attacker’s 3 KawKor Since the Polish player has passed, the Red player can 5 Armia 4 Armia 15 Armia this attack. cards, and it returns to the attacker’s re- now do another action. But now the Red player decides х A player must select 4 cards. If a player serve. to pass also. This completes the first round’s opera- has fewer than 4 cards in their reserve, The attacker draws 1 of the defender’s 1 Armia 16 Armia х tional phase. Players proceed to the combat phase. they must use all their cards. cards, and it returns to the defender’s re-

Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Grupa х A player does NOT have to select cards serve. Mozyrska that match the color of the fighting unit. A player may select cards of a different 2 Armia color, e.g. to conserve matching cards for later use.

12 13 4. Reveal troops and remove mismatched х The Warsaw Defenders have no color - х If the attacker wins, the defender retreats, advance is mandatory, but does not troops: Each player reveals his remaining every card selected by the Polish player and the attacker advances: cost a command marker. troop cards. for the Warsaw Defenders fights to defend х Move the defending unit 1 space away 6. Cleanup: х Each player removes their troops with a the capital. from the attacker (so it is no longer ad- х Discard all cards which fought in the different color from their army and re- jacent to the attacker). If more than one battle. Each command card can be used turns those non-matching cards to their destination is possible, the defending only once during the game. 7 Dywizja 2 Piechoty reserve. It may happen that a player has 8 Dywizja player chooses. This retreating move х Each player draws 1 card from their 3 Piechoty Dywizja no cards left fighting in this combat! Ochotnicza does not cost a command token. If deck to their reserve. Note: After a play- 1 (22 DP) х White cards are special: they match ev- Obrońcy Warszawy there is no legal place to retreat (all er’s deck runs out, do NOT shuffle the ery unit’s color, and so they always re- surrounding places are occupied or discard pile. The player will not draw

37

main when resolving combat. Players do past the edge of the board), then no re- more cards. 43

not return white cards to their reserve. 50 treat occurs: the defending unit stays Combat strength: 2 + 3 + 1 = 6 where it is. Note: When the defender wins, no retreat or ad- х If the defender did retreat, or it was vance occurs. eliminated, then the attacking unit im- Remember that the Warsaw Defenders are imme- 7 Dywizja 2 Piechoty Dywizja 5. Compare combat strengths: Add up each mediately advances into the now-emp- diately eliminated if they lose a combat. Ochotnicza 1 (22 DP) 8 Dywizja player’s numbers from their remaining ty space where the defender was. This 3 Armia 3 Piechoty cards in the combat and compare the sums. (If a player has no cards, their sum is 0.)The

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unit with the highest total strength wins the Cleanup phase 50

43 combat. Note: In addition to combat strength, 1. Put 1 command marker onto every unit, ex- Note: After a player’s deck runs out, Dywizja х 7 Dywizja Ochotnicza Piechoty 2 1 (22 DP) some cards have additional rules that cept the Warsaw Defenders. do NOT shuffle their discard pile. The affect combat. Apply these cards’ before х A unit can have any number of command player will not draw more cards. adding up combat strengths. markers. The more markers a unit has, х The losing unit becomes dispersed: turn the more actions it may do. In the fifth round, skip the cleanup

37 50 it over. If the losing unit was already dis- 2. The Polish player draws 3 cards from their phase. Combat strength: 2 + 1 = 3 persed, it is eliminated: remove it from deck to their reserves. the board. 3. The Red player draws 2 cards from their deck х If the total strengths are equal, then both to their reserves. units become dispersed (or eliminated, if 4. Advance the time marker to the next day. already dispersed).

14 End of the game Additional rules

The game ends immediately if one side fulfills its If neither of those immediate victories happens, During the first game, or if either player is inexperi- The revealed card cannot be selected by the opponent victory condition: then the game ends at the end of the 5th round. Now enced, you can play without the following rules. during the procedure of removing 1 card from the op- х The Red player wins immediately if a Red victory depends on whether a Red unit occupies ponent’s front units and putting it back into defender’s unit enters Warsaw (marked with a red Radzymin­ (marked with an orange border): Fortifications reserve. border). Most terrain detail on the map (e.g. rivers and

towns) do not affect the game. Dywizja 7 Dywizja Ochotnicza 4 Dywizja Piechoty 1 (22 DP) 2 Piechoty 8 Dywizja But 3 specific spaces around Warsaw have a 2 3 Piechoty

8 Dywizja game effect: Warsaw, Radzymin and Modlin are 3 Piechoty all fortified spaces.

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50 33

43

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х If a Red unit is in Radzymin, the Red player х The unit can be good order or dispersed. wins. х This can happen in the operational phase х If a Polish unit is in Radzymin, or it is unoc- 4 Dywizja (as a result of the unit marching) or in the cupied, the Polish player wins. 2 Piechoty

combat phase (after winning an attack Dywizja 7 Dywizja Ochotnicza against Warsaw and then advancing into Modlin (marked with a green border) is a set of 2 Piechoty 1 (22 DP) Warsaw). fortifications guarding access to Warsaw from the

х Merely eliminating the Warsaw Defend- north. It is not part of the victory conditions. 33

ers is not sufficient. A Red unit must still 37

50 enter Warsaw. Eliminating the Warsaw Defenders When a defending unit is in a fortified space, com- х The Polish player wins immediately if 3 Red bat resolution is modified: after players select their units are eliminated, or if all Red units on If the Warsaw Defenders become eliminated, but 4 cards, the defender selects one of their 4 cards the map are dispersed. the Red player does not occupy Warsaw, then to reveal and set aside 1 before the attacker ran- starting next round, the player order is changed! domly draws 1 card from the remaining defending From now on, in the operational phase and in the cards 2 (which returns to the defender’s reserve combat phase, the Polish player acts first, then the as usual). Red player, alternating as usual.

16 17 5 Witebska Dywizja An example combat resolution with a fortified defending unit 3 Strzelecka From the remaining three Polish cards, the Red player Players now reveal their remaining selected cards. Doborowe 2 oddziały randomly draws one (it happens to be the red 2, but Pułk 1 Rewolucyjny the Red player does not know this) and puts it back Polish strength: The yellow 2 card does not match the 16 Armia into the Polish reserve 2. 1st Army’s color, so it returns to the Polish reserve. The

09 Każda karta Armii Czerwonej o sile bojowej 1, która bierze udział 1st Army’s color is red, which matches the red 3 card w tej walce, jest traktowana jak 3. 27

and the white 1 card (since white matches everything). 23

5 Armia 3 KawKor 15 Armia 15 Wielkopolska So the total Polish combat strength is 3 + 1 = 4. 4 Armia 2 Dywizja Piechoty Combat strength: 3* + 2 + 3 = 8 * see: “Doborowe oddziały” (Elite troops) 16 Armia Dywizja 16 Pomorska Dywizja 1 Armia Ochotnicza Dywizja Piechoty Ochotnicza 1 (22 DP) 2 1 (22 DP) 8 Dywizja 3 Piechoty

41 16 Pomorska Obrońcy Warszawy The Poles lose this combat. The Polish 1st Army be- 3 Armia Grupa Dywizja Piechoty Mozyrska 2 1 Armia comes dispersed: it is flipped over. Since the attacker

50 32 won, the defender must retreat away from the attacker,

50 2 Armia if possible. The only adjacent space which is empty is 43

4 32 Modlin, so the 1st Army must retreat to Modlin . The 5 The Red 16th Army attacks the Polish 1st Army, which The Red player is luckier. Although he does not have Combat strength: 3 + 1 = 4 attacking Red 16th Army advances into Radzymin . is defending Radzymin. Both players select 4 cards the benefit of fortifications letting him protect one card, from their reserves. The Polish player selects 2 red, the Polish player randomly draws a blue card from the All the cards used in the combat (the Polish 3 and 1, 1 white and 1 yellow card to defend. Thanks to the Red player’s 4 cards. This blue card would not have and the Red 3, 2, 1) go to the discard piles near the Radzy­min fortifications, the Polish player can reveal helped the Reds anyway! The Polish player does not board. Then each player draws 1 new card from their and set aside one of these four cards, to protect it from look at the drawn card, but puts it back into the Red deck to their reserve. being drawn by the Red player. The Polish player re- reserve 3. Red strength: One of the cards is “Doborowe oddziały” veals the strength 3 red card 1. (Elite troops), which has a special combat effect to re- solve first: each Red card with strength 1 is treated as 3! All three of the cards match the 16th Army’s color

53 Dywizja (green), so they all remain and contribute their strength. 3 KawKor 5 Armia 4 Armia 15 Armia Dywizja 16 Pomorska 15 Wielkopolska 2 Strzelecka Ochotnicza Dywizja 2 Piechoty Dywizja Piechoty The white Revolutionary Regiment has strength 1, but (22 DP) 2 1 8 Dywizja 3 Piechoty Doborowe Pułk thanks to Elite Troops, its strength becomes 3! So the 5 Witebska oddziały 16 Armia Dywizja 2 1 Rewolucyjny 1 Armia 16 Armia 8 Dywizja Strzelecka total Red combat strength is 3 + 2 + 3 = 8. 3 Piechoty 3

17 50 Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Grupa 32 41 Mozyrska

Każda karta Armii Czerwonej 43 o sile bojowej 1, która bierze udział w tej walce, jest traktowana jak 3. 43 27 09 23

2 Armia

18 19 Flank attack Fortifications and flank attacks work similarly. Attack 2 is a flank attack: the Polish unit is attacking Playing a match for points Only a defender can use fortifications, and only to the west from a red space. A flank attack is an attack on an unsecured wing an attacker can make a flank attack. In the case After gaining experience with the basic game, play- of a unit. Some board spaces have red shading, and of a flank attack against a fortified defender, the Attack 3 is also a flank attack: the Red unit is attack- ers may enjoy playing a match for points. In this some do not; this red shading shows from where defender reveals a card first. ing to the southeast from a white space. variant, the players will play two games, switching a given unit can make a flank attack. A given unit sides, and the Red player scores points after each can make a flank attack only if it is on an appro- Examples: Attack 1 is not a flank attack: it is a Attack 4 is a normal attack: the Red unit is attack- game. After the match of two games, the player priate space: qualifying direction (southeast), but it is not made ing from a white space, but it is attacking to the west. with the most points wins. There are no other rule from a white space. changes. When a Polish unit attacks from a Attack 5 is also a normal attack: neither the color of After each game, regardless of who won and how, space with red shading, and the di- the space nor the direction qualify. the Red player gains points as follows: rection of the attack is northwest, 6 west, or southwest, the attack is a Attack is a flank attack: the Polish unit is attacking Red unit in Warsaw: 21 points flank attack. to the northwest from a red space.

4 Armia 4 Red unit in Radzymin: 10 points

5 Armia 5 Red unit in Modlin: 7 points When a Red unit attacks from a space without red shading, 3 KawKor Each Red unit in a space and the direction of the attack 1 Armia without red shading (other than 4 points is northeast, east, or southeast, Warsaw, Radzymin, Modlin):

15 Armia the attack is a flank attack. Obrońcy Warszawy Obrońcy Each Polish unit eliminated (including 2 points

the Warsaw Defenders): 16 Armia 16 When a unit makes a flank attack, combat resolu-

2 Armia tion is modified: after players select their 4 cards,

Grupa

the attacker selects one of their 4 cards to reveal 3 Armia Mozyrska 3 Armia 3 and set aside before the defender randomly draws Armia 4 1 card from the remaining attacking cards (which returns to the attacker’s reserve as usual).

20 21 Moving attack markers Summary of cards

If one or both units in a declared attack move The only possible retreat space for the Polish 1st Army Zagłuszanie before their combat is resolved, then move and is to the northwest 1. So the Polish 1st Army moves Action cards Zagłuszanie radiostacji 1 radiostacji rotate their attack marker as needed to keep it there, and the Red 16th Army advances into Radzy- (Radio jamming) Akcja touching both units, if they are still adjacent. This min 2. These cards can be played during the operational can happen from playing an “Assault” card, or due phase to apply their effects. Akcja Move all command to a retreat when resolving a different attack against markers from one Red unit to Przemieść wszystkie znaczniki rozkazów z jednej Armii this defender. 13 Eskadra Myśliwska another Red unit. Czerwonej na drugą. 4 Armia 13 Eskadra 55 If the two units are no longer adjacent, then (13th Fighter Escadrille) 1 Myśliwska Akcja remove the attack marker: their combat does not 3 KawKor happen. 1 Armia Akcja The Red player reveals Złamany szyfr Złamany szyfr 2 cards from their reserve, then (Broken cipher) 2 5 Armia 16 Armia 16 Armia Akcja Example: Defending Radzymin, the Polish 1st Army discards 2 random cards from Przeciwnik odsłania 2 karty z odwodów. Następnie odrzuca 2 karty wybrane losowo Akcja is under attack by three different Red units. The Red the remaining unexposed re- z nieodsłoniętych. Look at 4 random cards 56 Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia player plays the “Szturm” (Assault) card as his action. serve cards. from the Red player’s reserve. Podejrzyj 4 losowe karty z odwodów This causes the defender to retreat one space, and an In this round, you pick the first przeciwnika. W tej rundzie masz pierwszeństwo w fazie walk. W następnej rundzie masz attacking unit advances into the defender’s space. The 2 Armia combat to resolve in the combat pierwszeństwo w fazie operacyjnej. 60 Reds decide to advance with their attacking 16th Army. phase. In the next round, you go Wsparcie artylerii Wsparcie artylerii 2 first in the operational phase. After the units are moved, the attack marker must be (Artillery support) Akcja adjusted. The Red 16th Army is still adjacent to the Pol- 4 Armia Manewr ish 1st Army, so that attack marker is shifted so it still Akcja Select a Red unit adja- Wskaż armię bolszewicką / Manewr 2 sąsiadującą z twoją armią. Jeśli przeciwnik nie odrzuci Akcja touches them both. The Polish 1st Army’s new location cent to a Polish unit. If the Red z odwodów karty w jej kolorze (Maneuver) 3 KawKor (lub białej) o sile 2 lub wyższej, usuń z niej wszystkie znaczniki rozkazów is still adjacent to the attacking KawKor (3rd Cavalry player does not discard from i jeśli jest zwarta, rozprosz ją. 59 Manewr Corps), so the cavalry’s attack marker is adjusted to their reserve a card of the se- Akcja Add 2 command 2 5 Armia 16 Armia Akcja 1 Armia touch them both. lected unit’s color (or white) with markers to one of your Dołóż 2 znaczniki rozkazów na swoją dowolną armię. Możesz od razu wydać tej armii 2 Szturm But the Polish 1st Army is no longer adjacent to the strength 2 or more, then the selected unit loses all units. You may immedi- rozkaz marszu i/lub natarcia. 57 Akcja Obrońcy Warszawy 3 Armia Red 3rd Army, so the 3rd Army’s attack is canceled: that its command markers and (if good order) becomes ately do actions (march,

attack marker is removed 3. dispersed. attack) with this unit. Dołóż 2 znaczniki rozkazów Wskaż zaatakowaną armię przeciw- na swoją dowolną armię. nika (inną niż Obrońcy Warszawy). Możesz od razu wydać tej armii Jeśli to możliwe, armia ta natych- rozkaz marszu i/lub natarcia. 2 Armia miast wycofuje się o 1 pole, a ataku- 26 jąca armia wkracza na jej miejsce. Walka musi zostać rozstrzygnięta. Note: Armies are eliminated, if already dispersed!

25

22 23 Na Zachód! (Go west!) Umocnienia polowe Umocnienia Na Zachód! 3 (Field fortifications) 0 polowe Akcja Add 3 command mark- Akcja ers to any combination of your Select one face-up card (of ei- units (e.g. 1 marker on each of ther player) in this battle. (You Wskaż odkrytą kartę biorącą three different units; or 2 on may choose “Field fortifications” udział w tej walce (możesz wskazać Weź 3 znaczniki rozkazów „Umocnienia polowe”). Ta karta i umieść je na swoich dowolnie zostaje zakryta i wraca do odwodów one unit and 1 on another; or 3 wybranych armiach. itself.) Return the selected card właściciela, a jej efekt się ignoruje. 28 53 on one unit). to its owner’s reserve.

Doborowe Szturm (Assault) Doborowe oddziały 2 oddziały 2 Szturm (Elite troops) Akcja Select a Polish unit (not Akcja the Warsaw Defenders) currently In this battle, each Red card with marked by a Red attack mark- combat strength 1 is treated as Wskaż zaatakowaną armię przeciw- Każda karta Armii Czerwonej nika (inną niż Obrońcy Warszawy). o sile bojowej 1, która bierze udział er. If possible, the Polish player Jeśli to możliwe, armia ta natych- combat strength 3. w tej walce, jest traktowana jak 3. miast wycofuje się o 1 pole, a ataku- 27 jąca armia wkracza na jej miejsce. must immediately retreat the Walka musi zostać rozstrzygnięta. 25 Polish unit 1 space, and the at- tacking Red unit advances into Komisarz (Commissar) Komisarz its space. (If more than one red unit is attacking the 3 Polish unit, choose one.) In this battle, all Red cards are treated as white: none return to the reserve.

Combat cards Wszystkie karty Armii Czerwonej biorące udział w tej walce są traktowane jak białe. Żadna nie wraca do odwodów. 29 These cards’ effects happen when selected during Okrutna bitwa combat resolution. The card’s combat strength is (Severe fighting) also added as usual! Okrutna First disperse each good order 3 bitwa Grupa Grupa pościgowa 1 pościgowa unit (of both players) in the bat- (Pursuit group) tle, then resolve the battle as usual.

During an encircling maneuver, Rozprosz obie armie biorące udział w tej walce (eśli były rozproszone, nic się nie dzieje). Rozstrzygnij teraz this card has combat strength 5. Note: Armies are eliminated, if walkę na normalnych zasadach. 30 Ta karta użyta w czasie manewru okrążającego ma siłę 5. already dispersed! 54 Marek Gałęzowski A Great Debt The Polish war with the Bolsheviks and the triumph near Warsaw

“The Republic, awakened to life, found itself in a for its borders was with Bolshevik , which is seemingly overwhelming situation of human pos- for good reason now called the war for everything. sibilities. While the whole world began to rest after It began in the first days of 1919, when the Bolshevik the long storm, in the devastated Polish territory a army occupied , and it climaxed in the spring new series of fires was igniting […] in the still smok- and summer of the following year. ing embers, in the silenced factories and workshops, For several months, Poland had been enjoying in the fields sown with grenades. One must fight for its independence, regained after 123 years, and the existence, fight for borders, remembering that, first Bolshevik invasion threatened not only the loss of of all, their progress will depend on us, that the dip- some territory or even a new subjugation, as when lomats’ pen likes to trace the lines drawn with the Poland was partitioned. If the Bolsheviks conquered victorious bayonet.” Poland, it would mean the destruction of Polish cul- ture and the extermination of Polish elites. Ruling Thus was the apt assessment of Gen. Kazimierz Sosn- Russia since autumn 1917, the Bolsheviks with Vlad- kowski, one of the closest associates of Marshal Józef imir I. Lenin, did not hide their intentions, and in Piłsudski, and his companion from the beginning occupied territories they dealt ruthlessly with those in the work to gain Independence. The longest and whom they considered opponents of their power. hardest war that the revived Polish state had to fight Their victims included not only representatives of

25 the Polish intelligentsia, landowners, and Catholic clergy, but all those who expressed any attachment to Poland and its heritage. The Bolsheviks did not I. conceal that murder was a method of their policy. “They killed to break the will of the survivors,” wrote the great Russian historian Mikhail Heller. And Ste- The first operations against Poland failed quickly fan Żeromski, describing the essence of Bolshevism for the Bolsheviks. In mid-April 1919, the Polish and its attitude to Poland, said “You have broken the Army, under the personal command of the Chief of

From the collection of Sikorski family the collection of Sikorski From old yoke, but imposed one a thousand times worse and State Józef Piłsudski, launched an offensive which heavier on people.” successfully regained Vilnius and displaced the Thus, victory in the war with Soviet Russia saved Bolsheviks from the Vilnius and Novgorod regions. more than Poland’s independent existence. The In August, Minsk and Babruysk were seized, and Holy Father John Paul II was born in the year of this tanks were used in the conflict for the first time. triumph, on August 15, 1920, when the Polish Army Operations in Polesia and Volhynia were also suc-

began its victorious offensive from the River; cessful. In the summer of 1919, Bolsheviks were (NAC) The National Digital Archives he knew the value of this victory and considered it driven back at the Daugava line, at the Sluch river, part of the personal history of every Pole. During and at the Southern River, and also at the Commander-in-Chief Józef Piłsudski in conversation a pilgrimage to his fatherland in June 1999, at the Berezina River, famous for battles that Poles fought with General Edward Śmigły-Rydz. cemetery of soldiers killed in Radzymin, he said: for independence in the autumn of 1812 alongside the French Emperor Bonaparte against spanning political groups from monarchists to left- “You know that I was born in 1920, in May, at the the forces of Tsarist Russia. Gen. Stanisław Szepty- ist parties, as well as military units commanded time when the Bolsheviks were advancing on War- cki, commander of the Lithuanian-Belarusian front, by former tsarist army generals). The next goal of saw. And that is why I have a great debt from birth addressed his troops with heartfelt words of grati- the communist authorities was to subordinate the to those at that time who took up the fight against tude: “Soldiers! In the name of our country’s service, I peoples formerly subordinate to the tsarist empire, the invader and won, paying with their lives. Here, in thank you not only for the victories won, but above all who had gained the opportunity after this cemetery, their mortal remains rest. I come here for your endurance, more glorious and difficult than to build states separate from Russia. In the longer with great gratitude, to repay the debt I owe them.” the victories, for your initiative and bold strikes, the term, the Bolsheviks hoped to conquer Europe, and The Cross of Valor was established on August 11, 1920, best guarantee of victory.” eventually spread communist revolution to other to reward acts of courage in battle. (This one’s three Pushing the Red Army back east brought a break continents. They did not hide these intentions. additional bars across the ribbon show its holder in hostilities. But it did not last long. The Bolshe- Lenin and his party declared the right to self-de- received the award 4 times.) viks, using terror on a massive scale, annihilated all termination for nations living within Russia; this opposition in Russia during the Civil War, destroy- was a lie typical of their political practice. In this ing the opposition (collectively called the Whites, case, they wanted to gain support, or at least neu-

26 27 Propaganda poster issued trality, from non-Russian nationalities during the after the liberation of Civil War. In reality, they respected no rules in their Płock. The Red Army relations with non-Bolshevik states and groups, and attacked Płock on they advanced their political plans using falsehood August 18, 1920. Civilians, and deception. This continued after they won the including women and . They immediately conquered children, took part in the areas belonging to those nations, to whom they city’s defense. Barricades had recently promised the right to independent were built in the streets. existence. As early as spring 1918, a few months At night reinforcements after seizing power, a member of the Bolshevik arrived, and after many government, , stated that “Soviet power hours of heavy fighting, recognizes autonomy only when it is under ’s the Bolsheviks were direction and control. Nations do not gain autonomy, forced to retreat. but rather the working class and working peasantry, and only when they support the Soviet authorities.” At the beginning of 1920, Poland also became a Bolshevik target. Lenin decided that it was neces- sary to destroy the Polish state, impose communist rulers on Poles, and then direct further expansion to southern and western Europe. Boris Shaposhnikov, the senior commander of the Red Army, developed a war plan, which aimed to attack Poland in April

1920, in the direction of today’s , continuing domain Public the offensive to the west, and completely conquer- ing the Republic. He justified the aggression by the A Bolshevik propaganda poster from 1920 with anti- fact that the current military and political situa- Polish caption “A pig trained in Paris”. The pig’s hat is tion clearly placed Poland among the open ene- labeled “Lordly Poland”, and the pig’s hoof holds a paper mies of the Bolshevik state. This belief was shared mentioning the “Borders from 1772”. The man’s back by other Bolshevik army commanders, and one of is labeled “France”. them crudely declared that before political talks with Poles began, “we should smack them in the face” The Red Army command accepted Shaposhnikov’s plan on March 10, 1920, and the Bolshevik leaders rejected peace talks proposed by Polish diplomats. Wikimedia Commons / Public domain Commons / Public Wikimedia 28 29 In his eastern policy, Piłsudski sought to ensure lasting security for the Polish state. To this end, he formulated a federal concept. It defined a separa- tion of Poland from Russia, and gave the inhabi- tants of today’s Belarus and the right to self-determination. “Poland goes everywhere with the slogan of freedom; Poland does not go with the desire to oppress under a brutal soldier’s boot, nor with the desire to deprive anyone of their rights,” Piłsudski said in Minsk after it was liberated from Bolshevik hands. Irregular fighting with the Red Army resumed in early 1920. In the first days of January, Poles captured Daugavpils, then handed this city over to Latvia. A major success against the aggressive advances of Bolshevik Russia, which no longer

Polish Army Museum Army Polish concealed its significant concentration of military forces on the northeastern front, was the capture Renault FT-17 tank equipped by the Polish army during of Mazyr and Kalinkavichy on March 5, 1920. These

the fighting in Ukraine in 1920. were important transportation hubs: Mazyr had WBH CAW bridge connections, and Kalinkavichy had railway The Polish Chief of State, Józef Piłsudski, was lines. Thus the Red Army was left unable to rapidly Bolshevik banners captured by Polish soldiers in Rechytsa, Belarus, on May 10, 1920. right that “no matter what its government may be, shift its forces, either north Russia is fiercely imperialist. This is even a fundamen- or south. agreement with the Ukrainian leader Symon This success caused widespread enthusiasm, tal trait of its political character. We had tsarist impe- However, Piłsudski was Petliura. In words addressed to Ukrainians, Piłsud- even among opponents of Piłsudski and his eastern rialism; today we see red imperialism.” In response to aware of the temporary de- ski expressed his faith “that the Ukrainian people policy. Wojciech Trąmpczyński, Marshal of the the Bolshevik threats, he stated that Poland would laying nature of these suc- will exert all efforts to fight together with the Polish and a leader of the National Democracy movement, never make peace “under threat. Either true peace, cesses, which could not halt Republic for freedom, and to ensure happiness and was not a supporter of the Chief of State, but con- accepted voluntarily, or war. I know that the Bolshe- the invasion. Therefore, he prosperity for their fertile fatherland, which they will gratulated him by telegram and thanked him for viks are concentrating strong forces on our front. They decided to provide military enjoy after returning to work and peace.” That same “the bloody and heroic effort that brings [Poland] closer

are mistaken, thinking that they can intimidate us this domain Commons / Public Wikimedia assistance to anti-Bolshe- month, the Polish army, supported by Petliura’s to peace and lays new foundations for the power of way and can make some kind of ultimatum. Our sol- vik fighters in Ukraine, and small forces, began an offensive in Ukraine and the Polish state.” On May 18, 1920, Marshal Piłsudski diers are ready. I trust them completely.” Symon Petlura in April 1920 he signed an took Kiev on May 7. returned from the Ukrainian front to Warsaw, and

30 31 The first was east of Novohrad-Volynskyi, where troops commanded by General Jan Romer fiercely II. struck the Cavalry Army. The general wanted to pur- sue them “for total destruction”, but he was ordered to stop the pursuit. “Instead of perhaps destroying However, the Red Army was not defeated, and on May Budyonny, the ‘bane of Poland’, we only damaged 26, 1920, it launched an offensive, and its momen- him, chased him 28 kilometers, inflicted heavy losses, tum, caused primarily by Semyon Budyonny’s and forced them into a ‘fleeing panic’ towards Zhyto- Cavalry Army penetrating behind the Polish Army, myr,” wrote this excellent commander. Later, in the surprised the Polish command. The Cavalry Army’s battles of Rivne and Brody, attempts were made first strike was stopped, but on June 5, 1920, it broke to engage and destroy the Cavalry Army, but with Polish positions near Samhorodok; two days later, only partial success. Budyonny’s March, which par- after taking Zhytomyr and Berdychiv, it advanced. alyzed the Polish Army’s rear, was marked by acts In this situation, the Polish troops left Kiev. of exceptional cruelty on captured Polish soldiers

and civilians. domain Commons / Public Wikimedia “Much more mobile than infantry, and able to easily Soon, the Bolsheviks also broke the Polish de- concentrate, [the Cavalry Army] was able to smash fense in the northeast. True, their first actions were Bolsheviks. The banner reads “Death to the the front in the most weakly manned locations, and halted, and on June 8, 1920, Poles took a line along bourgeoisie and their helpers. Long live the Red then withdraw with impunity, destroying commu- the Auta and Berezina rivers. But less than a month Terror.” Mass terror was used since the beginning of nication and transportation lines, disrupting staff later, on July 4, a powerful blow from the western the Bolshevik rule in Russia and consumed tens of

The National Library of Poland / POLONA of Poland The National Library operations, destroying smaller units, cutting off front of the Red Army, commanded by Mikhail thousands of victims in the first years of their rule. lines of retreat, and preventing the construction Tukhachevsky, forced Polish Army troops to with- Józef Piłsudski—conqueror of the Bolsheviks. Poster of a continuous defensive line. The Cavalry Army draw to the Niemen River. In an order to Red Army Poland. On bayonets, we will bring happiness and by Władysław Skoczylas published in 1920. maneuvered efficiently due to its staff led by officers soldiers, Tukhachevsky summarized the purpose of peace to the working people.” (Quoted in transla- of the tsarist army. It was effectively out of the infan- the march to the west: tion from A. Nowak, Ojczyzna ocalona. Wojna pols- Trąmpczyński gave a welcoming speech, comparing try’s grasp, and due to its numbers too strong to be ko-sowiecka 1919–1920, Krakow 2010.) Piłsudski’s deed to the triumph of Bolesław I the opposed by brigades or divisions of Polish cavalry.” „Red soldiers! The armies of the Red Banner and the Brave in 1018 at Kiev. After the mass in St. Alexan- (P. Wieczorkiewicz, “1920 – A Difficult Victory”, in decaying white eagle are engaged in a deadly clash. The Bolsheviks did not intend to ask if anyone wanted der’s Church at Three Crosses Square and the sing- Niepodległość, ed. M. Gałęzowski, J. Ruman, War- Fill your hearts with anger and ruthlessness. Drown their rule. They wanted to impose it by force, and they ing of Te Deum, students of the University of War- saw 2010). the criminal government of Piłsudski in the blood called it “liberation”. Depriving words of their original saw unhitched the carriage horses and themselves of the defeated Polish army. […] In the west, the fate meaning became a typical feature of communism. pulled the Chief of State to the Belvedere Palace. In the following weeks, the Polish Army made sev- of the world revolution is being decided. The path On the Polish side, probably only a few people eral attempts to halt and destroy the Cavalry Army. to worldwide fire leads through the corpse of white knew that, as a child, Tukhachevsky was passionate

32 33 Alexander’s great-grandson Mikhail was not a mod- est regiment commander like his ancestor, but rather the head of a powerful army, and he hoped III. to conquer Warsaw in a similar triumph. The success of his offensive was mainly thanks to actions of the Cavalry Corps led by Hayk Bzhishk- In view of the Bolshevik offensive that had reached yan, also known as Gaya Gai. He flanked Polish units central Poland, the government of the Republic of and prevented them from stopping the advancing Poland sought aid from France and Great Britain, masses of Bolshevik infantry. On July 14, 1920, Gai’s countries that had decisive influence on the post- troops invaded Vilnius, and five days later, despite war shape of Europe. The price for a promise of fierce Polish resistance, they captured . intervention was very high. On July 10, 1920, during There, they murdered many prisoners of war and a conference in Spa, Western powers demanded

From the collection of Sikorski family the collection of Sikorski From raped women of the Polish Red Cross, who were that Prime Minister Władysław Grabski recognize helping the wounded. the so-called Curzon Line (named after the Brit- Soldiers of the 8th Legions’ Infantry Regiment ish Foreign Minister) beyond the eastern border

on the front, around 1919–1920. “‘I am dutifully reporting’, one reported to me, ‘that of Tadeusz Jeziorowski—nephew the collection of Zbigniew From of the Republic of Poland. It ran along the former from what the villagers say, our Polish officer should western border of Russia from the time of the Third about Russia’s nineteenth-century wars with Napo- be lying here. He was badly hurt, they say. The Bol- Tadeusz Jeziorowski, who distinguished himself during Partition of Poland, partly along the Bug River and leon’s France and Turkey, and that he followed the sheviks found him near a forest after a battle and the defense of Płock. He was a scout, not yet 12 years old. had no national justification. In addition, they footsteps of his great-grandfather, tsarist colonel the sons of bitches dragged him here; they dragged He was the youngest recipient of the Cross of Valor in history. demanded handing over the Vilnius region to Lith- Alexander Tukhachevsky. Colonel Tukhachevsky him by the legs, with his face to the ground, and bur- uania, and canceling a plebiscite in Cieszyn Silesia, participated in the suppression of the November ied the poor man alive. Only a hand from that other The Bolsheviks were temporarily halted at the where the majority were Polish, just like in the Vil- Uprising, and on September 6, 1831, he led at the world beckoned to us … A miserable fate, lieutenant!’ Bug, but the fall of the fortress in Brest on August 1 nius region. In return, they offered only to broker head of his regiment in Russian army’s assault on … I knelt down to get a better look. There was no doubt prevented launching an operation to stop the Red peace negotiations with the Bolsheviks, and if these Warsaw. It happened that he attacked a that the hand protruding from the ground was of Army’s progress. In the following days, the Bolshe- failed, they promised to provide military equipment. at , led by Captain Konstanty Juliusz Ordon, a man buried alive. The mound of earth had been viks occupied Białostocczyzna (Białystok region), Interestingly, in March 1919 at the Versailles con- made famous in ’s poem “Ordon’s moved in a particular way. And in the frozen pose , and northern Mazovia. The Polish Army ference, British Prime Minister Lloyd George spoke Redoubt”. At the moment when Russians broke into of the hand itself there was something chilling: an did not give up without a fight. Panic was largely behind the scenes of a real threat of Russian com- the Polish-defended earthwork, an ammunition eloquent, though unlike death, story of the dying ges- controlled, and a retreat took place in the course of munists taking over the world. However, he quickly explosion buried most of the defenders and many ture of a living being buried alive.” (E. Małaczewski, fierce battles in several sectors near Łomża, Mława, abandoned these opinions and began contending attackers; Tukhachevsky himself was injured and Horse on the Hill [in:] Collected works: Poems, Poetic and Pułtusk. These struggles, often victorious for the that they were peaceful. died shortly thereafter. The next day, Warsaw was Translations, Dramas, Stories, Journalism, Studies. Polish soldiers, did not change the overall situation, The attitude of the Western states resulted from conquered, and the Polish uprising soon collapsed. K. Polechoński, Łomianki 2008). which was constantly worsening. their disregard of the Bolshevik danger. After the

34 35 these “friendly harassments,” as he ironically de- Citizens of the Republic! scribed them. After the , he said: Fatherland in need! “Currently, our friends’ silence is helping the Bolshe- The enemies that surround us on all sides have viks, and their screaming is hindering our operations.” gathered all their forces to destroy our hard-gained The conditions imposed at Spa caused wide- independence, for which we fought with the blood spread indignation in Poland. Grabski resigned, and struggle of the Polish soldier. Hosts of invaders, and on July 24, 1920, the stretching all the way from deep in Asia, are trying National Defense Govern- to smash our heroic army to fall upon Poland, to lay ment was appointed, head- waste to our fields, burn our villages and cities, and ed by Wincenty Witos, leader commence their terrible reign on Poland’s grave. of the Polish People’s Par- Like a solid unshakable wall, we must stand firm. ty. Socialist leader Ignacy The Bolshevik onslaught must shatter when it strikes Daszyński was named depu- the breast of the whole nation. May unity, harmony ty minister. Earlier, on July 1, and hard work bring us together for a common cause.

the Council of National De- domain Commons / Public Wikimedia A Polish soldier bleeding on the front must have

Wikimedia Commons / Public domain Commons / Public Wikimedia fense was formed, which in- confidence that the whole nation is behind him, ready cluded Marshal Józef Piłsud- Wincenty Witos to help him at any time. Members of the British-French Interallied ski as the Chief of State and The moment has arrived. Mission to Poland, established in accordance with representatives from all political groups in the Pol- We call on everyone capable of bearing arms to the provisions of the Spa conference. The mission ish parliament, government and army. Its task was voluntarily join the ranks of the army, affirming that arrived in Warsaw shortly before the Battle of Warsaw.

“to decide on all matters related to conducting and everyone in Poland is willing to give blood and life / POLONA of Poland The National Library Its unofficial goal was to change the government ending the war and achieving peace [and] to issue for his fatherland. to make a truce with the Bolsheviks and to remove orders in these matters.” Let everyone hurry: those who feel youth and Appeal from the Council of National Defense for Polish Piłsudski from power. Edgar Vincent D’Abernon Meanwhile, the prom- strength in their veins to repel the enemy’s raids, and citizens to oppose the Bolshevik and Maxime Weygand are in the first row. ised diplomatic assistance those who can work in military institutions to sub- (translation on the left side). had failed. On July 11, the stitute for those who can be useful on the front. Let defeat of the white troops, they sought good rela- British sent a letter to Lenin Poland’s faithful and righteous sons answer Poland’s tions with Soviet Russia at all costs, disregarding in which, contrary to their cry for help and, like their fathers and grandfathers, the interests of the countries and peoples of Cen- agreement with Prime Min- strike down the enemy to lie at Poland’s feet. tral and Eastern Europe. The clearest evidence of ister Grabski at Spa, they of- Everything for victory! To arms!

this policy were their attempts to force Poland to domain Commons / Public Wikimedia fered the Bolsheviks not only accept Bolshevik demands, resulting in the loss the border on the Curzon On behalf of the Council of National Defense: of independence. Piłsudski had no illusions about Ignacy Daszyński Line, but also all of Eastern Chief of State and Commander-in-Chief Józef Piłsudski Warsaw, July 3, 1920. 36 37 of the Old Polish Military Fans of the Old Polish From the collection of Association the collection of Association From KARTA / The Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum Institute and Sikorski / The Polish KARTA

Scythemen from Independent Workers’ Associations on Saski Square with armbands reading: “Join us”. CAW WBH CAW German press depicting the liberation of Ger- In the summer of 1920, over 100,000 citizens—peasants, workers, students, landowners, townspeople— many from Polish captivity by the Red Army. The answered the call of the Council of National Defense and joined the army. The photo shows the farewell to Commander of the German Reichswehr, Gen- a unit heading for the front from Warsaw. eral Hans von Seeckt, wrote: “[…] when it comes to saving Poland from Bolshevism, no German hand Małopolska with . These had never belonged scribed the British efforts to make peace at any— Volunteer Army Cross. It did not have the status should be lifted to save this deadly enemy of the to Russia, nor were they inhabited by Russians. Polish—price: “Poland could disappear, and London of a state decoration, but was worn by veterans from Reich, this creature and ally of France, this thief of But the Bolshevik demands went much further – would swallow it, as long as Soviet Russia limited its volunteer units fighting in 1920. German land, this destroyer of German culture, and if they demanded the liquidation of almost the en- appetites to the country.” the Devil wanted to take Poland, we should help him tire Polish army and arms industry, and then the After a few days, the Bolsheviks rejected Great Lenin. And not only the promised diplomatic assis- in this.” (From a translation by Piotr Szlanta.) Brit- transfer of power to the communists. Lloyd George Britain’s mediation, because they did not intend to tance failed. The few shipments of military materi- ish leftists and trade unions were strongly against demanded that the Polish authorities accept these limit their conquering impulses to Poland. “[…] we als sent were stopped by Czechoslovakia, Germany, any aid to Poland, and Ernest Bevin, representing conditions, stating that they were very favorable. must raise the anchor and move, while imperialism the authorities of the Free City of Danzig, and even them, argued that Poland had invaded Russia as The modern historian Andrzej Nowak aptly de- has not yet managed to repair its decaying cart,” said the Belgian government. Drawings appeared in the part of a conspiracy of dark forces.

38 39 danger, Poland resisted the sirens’ call of this enemy, At Spa, British Marshal Henry Wilson had bluntly and stood like a wall to block their entry to Western told Polish representatives not to count on Western Europe. That is why this enemy swore its destruc- intervention, and that the future of Poland, which IV. tion and revenge.” Protestant clergy similarly as- the Bolsheviks were preparing to destroy, lied solely sessed the Bolshevik intentions: “Our fatherland in the hands of Poles. From all social classes, Poles is in danger! Savage hordes of Eastern barbarians took up the life and death struggle for the Repub- In the first half of August 1920, Tukhachevsky’s stand at the gates of Poland, ready to flood Poland lic, showing great solidarity and setting aside their army threatened Warsaw. The main direction of and all Europe at any moment and to destroy the disagreements. “Fatherland in danger! Only a heart attack assigned to them was north of the Polish work of generations. As in the past, again in our of stone, only a degenerate soul could not tremble at capital; they were to cross the Vistula near Płock eyes Poland is a bulwark of Christianity and civ- this cry and not feel the spontaneous need to sacrifice and Włocławek. The Red Army soldiers intended to ilization.” Polish Jews, many of whom served in all forces to rescue their country, whose existence is at flank the Polish army from the north, occupy their the Polish Army, called for defense. About one of risk,” wrote veterans of the January Uprising of 1863. rear, and cut off communications between Warsaw them, Dawid Kelhoffer, we read in the application All social groups took up this slogan. and Gdańsk. Tukhachevsky’s plan referred to oper- to award him the for valor in the After Marshal Piłsudski’s appeal, thousands ations of Field Marshal , who in 1831

The National Library of Poland / POLONA of Poland The National Library battles of Kozin and Krupiec: “without losing his of men joined the Polish Army. They also began tried a similar way to capture Warsaw and suppress cool, he took a position under the strongest Bolshevik to form the Volunteer Army, led by General Józef the . Cardinal Aleksander Kakowski did not leave fire […], dragging forward a cannon without horses, Haller. Almost one hundred thousand signed up in However, when the Bolsheviks approached the Warsaw, which was threatened by the Bolsheviks, he opened a steady barrage at a distance of about less than a month, including numerous junior high Vistula line in the north, their re- but stayed and comforted Polish soldiers on the 600 paces, caused such confusion in the ranks of the school students and scouts. All political groups and mained far behind in Lviv, despite the order of the front line of defense at Radzymin. enemy, who didn’t expect re- professional circles joined the fight. They circulated Red Army’s commander in chief Sergey Kamenev to sistance at such a close dis- pamphlets stigmatizing cowardice, evasion of mil- support Tukhachevsky’s operations. This did not Clergymen of all denominations called for the de- tance, that despite their clear itary service, and unwillingness to materially help happen because Budyonny, whose cavalry was the fense of the threatened independence, including advantage, they retreated, the war effort. “The time for hard action has come! backbone of the Bolshevik forces in the south, and the Polish episcopate (we should add that when and our own infantry, mov- Discipline and manly calm must be maintained! The his army’s political commissar, Joseph Stalin, had the Red Army neared Warsaw, most foreign del- ing forward, maintained the capital cannot be surrendered to the enemy, and we other plans and ignored Kamenev’s order. egations fled Poland’s capital; however, the papal defensive line.” Subsequent will not surrender it! Today there is no choice: either They intended to capture Lviv, and then head to nuncio Achilles Ratti, the future Pope Pius XI, re- operations saved the XXXV a fight to the end, victory and freedom, or shameful Czechoslovakia and Hungary, and did not want to

mained), as well as representatives of Jewish and Infantry Brigade from de- (NAC) The National Digital Archives slavery,” we read in a proclamation from Prime split a victory with Tukhachevsky. He tried to force German minorities. In a pastoral letter to the na- struction. “The general at- Minister Witos. the southern front Red Army to obey, but it was too tion, Polish bishops wrote that the Bolsheviks titude of my fellow believers Filip Schleicher late to change the war. particularly hated Catholic Poland: “[…] because is summed up in the slogan: Meanwhile, things were moving toward their when some powers left their original way to make with Poland and for Poland,” said deputy mayor of conclusion. Now the Polish leadership decided agreements with this enemy, oblivious to their own Lviv, Filip Schleicher, the Polish Jew. to stop the Bolsheviks at the Vistula line. The bat-

40 41 tle plan, developed primarily by the Pol- On the Polish side were also allied Ukrainian troops of ish Army’s Chief of Staff, General Tadeusz Symon Petliura and Gen. Mykhailo Omelianovych-Pav- Rozwadowski and by Commander-in-Chief lenko (who just a year earlier had fought against Poles Józef Piłsudski, was accepted by the latter near Lviv), as well as Vadim Yakovlev’s Cossack bri- on August 6, 1920. Gen. gade, who had distinguished Rozwadowski wrote themselves in battles against to the Supreme Com- the Cavalry Army. In the Polish mander on August 15, air force, a group of twenty-one 1920, that “I consider American volunteer pilots [your] coordination of served in the 7th Air Escadrille the 4th and 3rd Armies’ (the Kościuszko Squadron). operations to be very It was commanded by former

The National Library of Poland / POLONA of Poland The National Library well thought-out. You Kopański the collection of Tomasz From cowboy Cedric Fauntleroy. The have arranged the 4th actual founder of the squad- Gen. Tadeusz and 1st Armies’ opera- Col. Cedric ron was his deputy, Merian Rozwadowski tions excellently; please Fauntleroy. C. Cooper (later a Hollywood be assured that, staying film producer; he co-directed in close contact, I will expedite everything so King Kong). He wrote a letter to Marshal Piłsudski, in that from the morning of the seventeenth [of which he mentioned the par-

August], we shall be ready to cooperate.” The ticipation of Tadeusz Kościusz- Museum Institute and Sikorski / The Polish KARTA Marshal’s biographer Włodzimierz Suleja ko and Kazimierz Pułaski in similarly noted that General Rozwadowski the US Revolutionary War. An Farewell to the demobilized American volunteer “on the eve of the decisive strike […] treated the ancestor of Cooper had wit- pilots from the 7th Air Escadrille at the Lewandówka Supreme Commander as the sole author of the nessed the death of Pułaski, airport in Lviv, September-October 1921. On the battle plan, as well as the primary implementer who had served with him in wings of the Ansaldo Balilla aircraft are standing: of the key part of the plan.” the American cavalry. Now Capt. Władysław Konopka and Capt. Kenneth Murray.

Marshal Piłsudski decided above all this American wanted to pay WBH CAW From left to right: Lieutenant Jerzy Weber, Capt. The uniform badge of the 7th Air Escadrille, to relocate units fighting on the Bug and back a debt of gratitude, by de- Antoni Poznański, Capt. Zbigniew Orzechowski, Capt. whose tradition was continued by the 111 Fighter concentrate them on the Wieprz River in a fending Poland. The squadron Lt. Col. Merian Edward Corsi, Capt. George “Buck” Crawford Escadrille. In 1940, the newly formed 303 newly created operational group. This was participated in reconnaissance C. Cooper. (the 7th’s last US commander), Capt. John Speaks, Squadron in Great Britain included pilots from not an easy task, because the Polish troops flights during the offensive in 1st Lt. Elliot Chess, 1st Lt. Carl Evans, 1st Lt. John Mitland, 111 and used the same emblem. had been retreating for many weeks, which Ukraine, and later helped block the Cavalry Army, es- 1st Lt. Aleksander Seńkowski, 1st Lt. Thomas Garlick. negatively affected their morale. Nonetheless, pecially near Lviv. Three American pilots were award- ed Virtuti Militari Crosses for valor.

42 43 On the eve of the battle of Warsaw, which would decide the fate of Poland, troops of the Polish Army were divided into three fronts. The Northern Front, V. commanded by General Józef Haller, defended the line from Modlin to Dęblin. The main role in it was played by General Władysław Sikorski’s 5th Army, The battle of Warsaw began on August 13. The battle deployed north of Warsaw, and General Franciszek included numerous smaller fights: a few kilometers Latinik’s 1st Army, defending the capital. The Cen- east of the Polish capital, struggles in the areas of tral Front, stretching from Deblin to Brody, was Radzymin and Ossów, Piłsudski’s strike from the commanded by General Edward Śmigły-Rydz; the Wieprz, the defense of Płock, and fighting around Southern Front, reaching the Polish-Romanian Wkra, Ciechanów and Nasielsk. On the first day of border, was led by General Wacław Iwaszkiewicz. the battle, the Soviets strongly assaulted the Poles In the offensive plan, a decisive role was to be at Radzymin; some Polish troops left their positions

played by the Commander-in-Chief’s operational in panic. This serious crisis was averted by sending WBH CAW group striking from the Wieprz River. It included volunteer troops into the battle. Although poorly six infantry divisions and a cavalry brigade. The di- trained, they fought with great courage and deter- Members of the Voluntary Legion of Women. visions of Piłsudski’s operational group included mination, taking to heart General Rozwadowski’s

CAW WBH CAW General Daniel Konarzewski’s 14th Infantry Divi- recent proclamation about the impending exis- “The Russians saw their goal almost achieved. From sion, General Andrzej Galica’s 21st Infantry Divi- tential fight, during which they would smash the their position, the fires and lights of Warsaw were Polish heavy machine gun position at sion, most of whose soldiers came from Podhale, Bolshevik hordes, or else a new slavery would fall visible. We defended our capital in despair. The Stara Milosna, August 1920. and—highlighting their legionary lineage and tra- upon all Poles. battle was fought not only with cannons, rifles and dition—General Stefan Dąba-Biernacki’s 1st Legions The fierce battle around Radzymin and Ossów bayonets, but also with the this action was successful, and unnoticed by the Infantry Division and General Leon Berbecki’s 3rd continued for the next two days. The first town hearts and spirits of both enemy. During this maneuver, Polish units in the Legions Infantry Division (except for Konarzewski, was captured and recaptured several times by armies. They were winning, north were to block the Bolshevik attack on the both the Supreme Commander and all the gener- the Poles and the Bolsheviks. On the evening of and we were losing. The Vistula line between Modlin and Włocławek, but als mentioned above were officers of the Polish Le- August 15, Polish soldiers again occupied Radzy- road to Warsaw was open. It above all to repel a frontal attack on Warsaw. During gions). The Soviet troops attacking Warsaw still had min, which was threatened again the entire next seemed that the enemy could these operations, the plan called for an assault by numerical superiority, but not as large as at the be- day. Among the heroes of these fights was Lt. Stefan enter it unhindered. At this the Wieprz operational group, personally led by ginning of their offensive. On the other hand, on the Pogonowski, whose battalion made one of the deci- moment, a weak battalion,

Piłsudski. He intended to attack the wing of the section of the Wieprz River, where the decisive blow sive strikes. General Lucjan Żeligowski considered the collection of Zofia Jakubowicz From not waiting for the time of a Bolshevik forces attacking Warsaw, move against was to be made, there was a clear Polish advantage, this attack the most important in the fighting on general offensive, attacked their rear, and destroy them. of which the Bolshevik command was still ignorant. the outskirts of Warsaw: 1st Lt. Stefan at one o’clock in the morning, Pogonowski. striking—as it turned out

44 45 Infantry Regiment of the Volunteer Army. On August 14, during a counterattack near Ossów, he was encour- aging the young defenders of the city, until he was struck dead by a Bolshevik bullet

Public domain Public in the head. He was posthu- mously decorated with the Father Ignacy Virtuti Militari Cross, and Skorupka a Warsaw street was named after him. After World War II, the communists changed its name to Sadowa.

Today, it again has the name of the heroic priest WBH CAW and defender of Warsaw. Gen. Sikorski’s Army began advancing on the Renault FT-17 tanks supporting the 15th Infantry Division of northern front on August 14 from the area of Mod- the 1st Polish Army in the liberation of Mińsk Mazowiecki. lin and Wkra. It was initially unsuccessful—the Bolshevik army outnumbered the Poles almost Mińsk Mazowiecki, , Międzyrzec, all the way three to one. The next day, Ciechanów was recap- to Włodawa in the region. A further goal

CAW WBH CAW tured, and Nasielsk on August 16, but the situation was to get behind the Bolshevik troops, encircle in this section was still perilous. Significant Bol- them, and destroy them. On that same day, the Soldiers of the 15th Infantry Division of the Polish Army advance during a counteroffensive from Wiązowna, August 17, 1920. shevik forces, primarily Gaya Gai’s cavalry corps, Mazyr Group was protecting Bolshevik troops which had already taken an earlier toll on the Pol- near Warsaw. “The onslaught of the Command- later—the Russian army’s most vulnerable point, 21st Division retreated from Słupno, causing chaos ish army, continued their attack to cross the Vis- er-in-Chief’s army was so staggering, so unexpectedly the center of the main artery of the enemy advance. and confusion. Pogonowski, guided by extraordi- tula near Płock and Włocławek, in accordance with violent, that the entire Bolshevik central force could We lost many officers who died heroically, but the nary instinct, led the victory of the 10th Division and Tukhachevsky’s orders. not resist him for even an hour. Beaten without hes- death of Pogonowski, who was fatally wounded in the 1st Army at the Warsaw bridgehead. In this lies Because of these operations and the still unre- itation, pushed from every position, this entire force this attack—was a historic moment. In my opinion, it the great significance of his deed, and the honor of solved situation on the outskirts of Warsaw, Mar- began to run in terror to Siedlce, Brest-Litovsk, and was here that the war turned around, creating a psy- his soldierly death.” shal Piłsudski accelerated the strike from the beyond.” (Adam Grzymała-Siedlecki.) On August 19, chological turning point in us and in the Russians. Wieprz River by one day. On the morning of August the Bolsheviks began to retreat east and north in After that attack, three victorious and unstoppable Another hero of the battle was a young priest from 16, Polish infantry divisions under his personal panic. That day, Polish forces recaptured the Brest [Russian] brigades began retreating, likewise the Warsaw, Ignacy Skorupka, a chaplain in the 236th command launched an offensive, striking toward Fortress, the loss of which less than three weeks

46 47 earlier had seemed decisive for the further course of the war. “The Bolshevik line of resistance was dev- astated, shattered into small pieces, cut to shreds […]. VI. Our victorious army drove the fleeing Soviet army, unsuccessfully defending itself against fast, strong, and decisive blows,” wrote Tadeusz Szmurło. The victory at Warsaw strengthened Poland’s pres- A Polish radio broad- tige in Europe. By stopping the Bolshevik march cast also contributed to the on the Vistula, Poles influenced not only the fate great victory. Lieutenant Jan of their fatherland, but also that of Central Europe, Kowalewski had broken the which was thus defended against Soviet totalitar- Bolsheviks’ first cipher in the ianism, and they perhaps also prevented the Red summer of 1919. In March Army from marching further to the West. The Battle

1920, Poles broke the code of Warsaw was considered the “eighteenth decisive WBH CAW of radio broadcast plans for battle of the world” by Edgar V. D’Abernon, a mem- the Bolshevik offensive, and ber of the British-French mission in Poland, who Massacred bodies of 73 Polish soldiers of the Siberian Infantry Brigade. The outnumbered regiment fought Bolshevik

The National Digital Archives (NAC) The National Digital Archives later continually intercepted had earlier expressed his dislike for Poles. He had troops pushing east, and the captured soldiers were murdered especially cruelly. 1st Lt. Jan Kowalewski information about their previously said, for example, that if Poles were not further intentions. Shortly treated as “Egyptian fellahs and did not have ‘Euro- fierce fighting near Warsaw, Budyonny’s Cavalry again their opponent had turned out to be a difficult before the battle, Kowalewski and Stefan Mazurkie- pean’ overseers placed over them […], they would never Army reached Lviv. Near the city, from Zadwórze, it one. Although Budyonny’s forces were significantly wicz, a math professor at the , build a viable country.” encountered resistance from a volunteer battalion weakened, they were not completely broken up, and cracked another cipher called “Revolution”, which Three years after the victory in Warsaw, the commanded by Capt. Bolesław Zajączkowski. After in the course of fighting Poland suffered severe loss- was used to encrypt the Polish authorities decided that August 15 shall be a fierce battle, almost all of his soldiers, consisting es. Among others, the famous 4th Legions Infantry orders of Red Army troops Armed Forces Day. After World War II, it was nul- mainly of intelligentsia and youth from the faith- Regiment was smashed near attacking Warsaw. And when lified by the communists. They were ashamed of ful city, died or were killed by the Bolsheviks. In Hrubieszów by Bolsheviks the attack from the Wieprz the triumph of free Poles over red captivity, and remembrance of their bravery, Zadwórze is called retreating from Komarów. River was launched, the they strove to wipe out its memory. The Sejm of the the Polish Thermopylae, referring to the heroism of Teresa Grodzińska, a nurse, Bolsheviks’ radio communi- Republic was restored on July 30, 1992, after the the ancient Spartans, who became an eternal sym- was among those killed and cation was jammed for two liquidation of the Polish People’s Republic, and a bol of sacrifice in defense of the fatherland. murdered. She did not give days, as Polish radio inten- plaque with the names of the battles of the Polish After this unsuccessful attack on Lviv, Budyonny’s her life freely—an extremely

tionally broadcast a flood of (NAC) The National Digital Archives Army against the Bolsheviks was again placed on the cavalry headed to Zamość. They did not capture it, strong woman, she defended

Bible quotations. Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Warsaw. and they pulled back towards Komarów. There, in a herself with an ax and killed domain / Dzwoneczek , Public 1935 Issue 44, October 27, Prof. Stefan In any case, after the victory in the Battle of great cavalry battle, probably the last in the history of two attackers, before others Mazurkiewicz. Warsaw, the war was still unresolved. During the the world, they were defeated by Polish cavalry. Once cut her down with sabers. Teresa Grodzińska.

48 49 VII.

The peace treaty between Poland and Bolshevik Russia was signed on March 8, 1921, in the Latvian capital Riga. The Polish border in the northeast was drawn along the Daugava River, and in the south- east along the Zbruch River. Poland gained territory, including around Grodno, Polesia, Volhynia, and the western part of Podolia. Both states gave up all ter- ritorial claims and each undertook not to interfere in the other’s internal affairs and not to support activities directed against the other. The Bolshevik government was to pay Poland a high compensa- tion, 30 million rubles, for the exploitation of Polish lands by tsarist Russia (this condition was not met) and to return stolen cultural goods.

KARTA / The Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum Institute and Sikorski / The Polish KARTA The Treaty of Riga ignored the right of Belaru- sians and Ukrainians to independence, so the elites Destroyed bridge over the Niemen river in Grodno, October 8, 1920. of these nationalities regarded it as a partitioning of

their lands by Poland and Russia. The Riga arrange- UKW On the northeastern front, the Bolsheviks hoped later, the real offensive began, during which Poles ments also left at least several hundred thousand for a favorable change in the fortunes of war. In broke the Niemen defense, conquered Grodno, and Poles on the Soviet side, around Minsk and Zhytomyr. Peace negotiations in Riga. On the left side of the table the second half of September 1920, Tukhachevsky smashed the Bolsheviks in fights at several loca- Many had participated in the war against the Bolshe- sits the Russian delegation; on the right side sits the began to concentrate new forces there. In the last tions, including Lida. These were dramatic battles: viks and had the right to count on the fact that the Polish delegation, headed by Jan Dąbski. great offensive action of this war, the Polish Army the enemy defended firmly, and Polish troops suf- Republic will not “abandon a land that for hundreds destroyed them in the Battle of the Niemen River. As fered significant losses. However, through Septem- of years endured bad fortune without a murmur, that test at the Partition Sejm of 1773 was immortalized in the case of the Battle of Warsaw, several military ber and October, the beaten Bolsheviks were chased, sometimes suffered because of its Polishness more than in the painting by Jan Matejko and became one of the episodes took place. On September 20, Gen. Śmigły- ending with the Poles occupying Minsk. On October the beloved Motherland, and yet never renounced their most eloquent symbols of Polish history. Rydz launched an assault on Grodno. Three days 18, 1920, a truce was signed. Polishness,” wrote Henryk Grabowski, great-grand- Victory in the war with the Bolsheviks saved not son of Tadeusz Reytan, the Sejm member whose pro- only Poland’s independence, regained after 123

50 51 years of captivity, but also at least some countries Union signed the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact with in Central Europe. It was also appropriate that the Later… the Third Reich. It enabled the Germans to initiate battle with the Russian Bolsheviks was called a war aggression against Poland on September 1, 1939. for everything, because the victory defended inde- And the same Boris Shaposhnikov, who had devel- pendence and thus enabled Poles to develop freely oped plans for the invasion of Poland in 1920, was for nearly twenty years. Adam Grzymała-Siedlecki The victories of the Polish Army near Warsaw, Wkra, now the Chief of the General Staff of the Red Army, wrote: “We came from the depths of defeat to the top, to Komarów and at the Niemen saved Poland’s inde- planning another invasion. It came on September 17, the peak of triumph. They performed this miracle: the pendence, stopping the destructive deadly onslaught 1939. In its first days, many participants of the war army, government and nation. May the most distant from the east. International bodies did not guaran- with the Bolsheviks died, along with Tadeusz Rey- generations learn from this example what can be done tee Poland’s borders and independent existence. tan’s great-grandson, Henryk Grabowski, who had when the whole nation joins in unity and dedication, This was not settled in Parisian offices, but in fierce, protested against the Treaty of Riga with such con- and vows: I must win!” prolonged military struggles in the east. The Bolshe- viction. But above all, after that date thousands of Pol-

This is how the greatest Polish victory was won viks did not respect international agreements, nei- ish officers, many of whom had fought the Red Army Museum Katyń since the Battle of Vienna in 1683, in an extremely ther then nor later. made no secret that under the command of Marshal Jozef Piłsudski, were hard war, far from the jaunty mood of “żurawiejka” the Bolshevik party aimed to overthrow the world, taken into Soviet captivity. In the spring of 1940, they Bodies of Polish Army officers in the Katyń forest, marching songs “Lances for the battle, sabres in and Lenin held a similar view. It was not about this were murdered in Katyń, Kharkov, Tver and Bykivnia. exhumed by Germans in the spring of 1943. hand, chase the Bolshevik, chase, chase.” But even or that border, but about absorbing the Polish state Major Adam Sołtan was among the thousands more valuable were the words of the Command- and creating a Soviet republic in its place. murdered. Józef Czapski (mentioned earlier) imagine living outside of Poland […]; once I told him er-in-Chief Marshal Józef Piłsudski, who at the end They failed to conquer Poland and other nations described his heroic stance during the fight with about a friend who had left Poland and never returned. the war thanked his soldiers: “For work and persever- of the region in 1920, thanks to the valor of the Pol- Budyonny’s Cavalry Army. On August 19, 1920, when Adam Sołtan replied with disdain: ‘I don’t understand. ance, for sacrifice and blood, for courage and boldness, ish Army. Poland and its Chief of State Józef Piłsud- a storm of artillery fire forced the squadrons of the If I could, I would return to Poland on my knees.’” thank you, soldiers, on behalf of the entire nation and ski simply countered the aggressive and inhuman 1st Uhlans Regiment to retreat from near Żółtance, All these officers of the Polish Army who had, our Fatherland.” Bolshevism with the idea of freedom. Józef Czap- the twenty-two-year-old cadet Sołtan’s platoon in the summer of 1920, successfully repelled the ski brilliantly conveyed this idea of freedom per- stayed in the village, protecting his retreating col- Red Army’s invasion of the reborn Polish state “now sonified in Piłsudski: “His idea, his stubborn fight for leagues with machine gun fire, for which he was lay in the freshly dug earth of the forest near Smo- Poland, fatherland of united nationalities, not a single awarded the Virtuti Militari Cross. And twenty years lensk, the corpse of ‘white Poland’ with an NKVD bul- nationality… even his accent, strikingly Lithuanian, … later, Czapski, a superb painter and the author of let in the head,” in the words of Professor Andrzej everything was for me a confirmation of an idea at once The Inhuman Land, in the Starobilsk POW camp Nowak. A grim epilogue to a great victory: death at Polish and universal, potentially more universal and in met this same Major Sołtan, who in September 1939 the hands of criminal Bolshevism, which had been a better way than Russia with its cruel revolution and had fought first against the Germans, then against stopped twenty years earlier under the command totalitarianism.” the Soviets, as the chief of staff of Gen. Władysław of Marshal Józef Piłsudski, the creator of Indepen- A chance for retaliation for the 1920 defeat came Anders’s Novgorod Cavalry Brigade. Czapski recalled dence. The victory that saved Poland and gave Poles nineteen years later. On August 23, 1939, the Soviet talking with the major in the camp: “He could not twenty years of freedom. n

52 53 Bibliography

Sources Wojskowe Biuro Historyczne (CAW), Dawid Kelhoffer, VM I.482.80-7673. Studies 1920. Wojna o Polskę, selected by A. Knyt, Warszawa 2010. Bitwa Warszawska, „Mówią Wieki” 2005, issue 2 (a special issue devoted to the Battle of Warsaw, see P. Szlanta, Nieżyczliwy sąsiad. Niemcy wobec wojny polsko-radzieckiej 1920 roku). Cwałem, galopem. Opowieści z wojny bolszewickiej, selected by B. Kubicki, Sopot 1990. Czapski J., „Tamten brzeg” i własne wspomnienia [in:] idem, Czytając, Kraków 1990. Davies, N., White Eagle, Red Star: the Polish-Soviet War, 1919-20. London: Macdonald and Co, 1972. Dzieje Polski 1918–1939. Wybór materiałów źródłowych, ed. & comp. W.A. Serczyk, Kraków 1990. Gałęzowski M., Kirszak J., Twórca Niepodległej. Józef Piłsudski 1867–1935, Warszawa 2018. Geller, Mikhail, A M. Nekrich, and Phyllis B. Carlos. Utopia in Power: The History of the from 1917 to the Presents. London: Hutchinson, 1986. Grzymała-Siedlecki A., Cud Wisły. Wspomnienia korespondenta wojennego z 1920 r., Łomianki 2007. Mackiewicz J., Zwycięstwo prowokacji, Londyn 1988. Małaczewski E., Koń na wzgórzu [in:] Utwory zebrane. Wiersze, przekłady poetyckie, dramat, opowiadania, publicystyka, comp. K. Polechoński, Łomianki 2008. Nowak A., Ojczyzna ocalona. Wojna sowiecko-polska 1919–1920, Kraków 2010. Nowak A., Pierwsza zdrada Zachodu. 1920 – zapomniany appeasement, Kraków 2015. Nowik G., Wojna światów. 1920. Bitwa warszawska, Poznań 2011. Odezwa Rady Obrony Państwa [in:] Dzieje Polski 1918–1939. Wybór materiałów źródłowych, comp. W.A. Serczyk, Kraków 1990. Odziemkowski J., Leksykon wojny polsko-rosyjskiej 1919–1920, Warszawa 2004. Piłsudski J., Pisma zbiorowe, t. 5 i 7, reprint of 1937 edition, Warszawa 1990. Romer J.E., Pamiętniki, comp. J. Odziemkowski, Warszawa 2011. Rembek S., W polu. Opowieść, Warszawa 1993. Sosnkowski K., Przemówienie radiowe z okazji 15. rocznicy odzyskania niepodległości, listopad 1933 r. [w:] idem, Wybór pism, comp. J. Kirszak, Wrocław 2009. Wieczorkiewicz P., Rok 1920 – trudne zwycięstwo [in:] Niepodległość, ed. M. Gałęzowski, J. Ruman, Warszawa 2010. Wojna o wszystko. Opowieść o wojnie polsko-bolszewickiej 1919–1920, ed. W. Sienkiewicz, Warszawa 2010. Zwycięstwo 1920. Warszawa wobec agresji bolszewickiej, comp. M.M. Drozdowski, H. Eychhorn- Szwankowska, J. Wiechowski, Paryż 1990. Żeligowski L., Wojna w roku 1920. Wspomnienia i rozważania, Warszawa 2006.

Internet https://ipn.gov.pl/pl/edukacja-1/szkolenia-dla-nauczycieli

54 Game design: Jan Madejski Historical article: dr hab. Marek Gałęzowski Order of battle research: dr Marek Kozubel Assistance: dr Tomasz Ginter, dr Paweł Rokicki, Tomasz Sikorski Review: Wojciech Sieroń Editing: Iwona Gałęzowska Polish proofreading: Magdalena Baj English Translation: Russ Williams English proofreading: Anna Skudlarska Graphic design and illustrations: Roman Kucharski, Maciej Czaplicki Layout and typesetting: Łukasz M. Pogoda, Paulina Żak The game uses graphic elements from the game 7. The Defense of Lwów (Warszawa, 2014). The game was tested by members of Monsoon Group Project management: Łukasz M. Pogoda

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