- 1st Lithuanian–Belarusian Division
The 1st Lithuanian–Belarusian Division ( _pl. 1. Dywizja Litewsko-Białoruska, _be. 1-ая Літоўска-Беларуская дывізія) was a volunteer unit of the
Polish Army formed around December 1918 and January 1919 during thePolish–Soviet War . It was created out of several dozen smaller units of self-defence forces created out of local volunteers in what is nowLithuania andBelarus amidst a growing series of territory disputes between theSecond Polish Republic , theRussian SFSR and several others local provisional governments and took part in several key battles of the war.History
Predecessors
With the end of the
World War I , a growing series of territorial disputes between Poland, Soviet Russia and several other local provisional governments erupted in a series of wars in Central and Eastern Europe, the most prominent of these being thePolish–Soviet War . Starting in the last years of the First World War, many smaller units of self-defence forces were created out of local volunteers in those areas, among them likely the best known being theLithuanian and Belarusian Self-Defence ('Samoobrona Litwy i Białorusi'). Self-Defence units were organized in the areas of theKresy region with Polish majorities or significant minorities – usually urbanized areas like the cities ofVilnius ,Minsk ,Hrodna ,Lida andKaunas , or towns likeAšmiany ,Wilejka ,Nemenčinė ,Świr andPanevėžys ; until December 1918 those units had no central command or organization and many of them were named after the local cities or regions (like 'Samoobrona Lidy'). The first task of those units was curbing the crime wave by Germandeserter s, and later, defence from the pro-Bolshevik groups. Despite its name, most of the members of that organization were either Poles orpolonized , and therefore supported the cause of attaching those territories with the newly recreated Polish state.Łukowski, Grzegorz andRafal E. Stolarski , "Walka o Wilno. Z dziejow Samoobrony Litwy i Bialorusi, 1918-1919" ("Fight for Wilno. From the history of the Self-Defence of Lithuania and Belarus, 1918-1919"), Adiutor, 1994, ISBN 83-900085-0-5]Operational history
The initial core of the future division was formed in December 1918 in
Minsk , where a group of roughly 1500 Poles and Belarusians rose to arms to defend the city against the advancing forces of Soviet Russia pl icon cite web | author=Krzysztof Janikula | title=Wojna roku 1920 (War of 1920) | publisher= | year=2004 | work=Flotylle Rzeczne | url=http://www.republika.pl/rzeczna2004/wojna%20roku%201920.htm | accessdate=2006-06-27 ] . However, due to Russian numerical superiority and lack of support from the side of the short-livedBelarusian National Republic , the group withdrew towards central Poland. Other such self-defence groups, resistance organizations and veterans of theGreen Army of theRussian Civil War also reached Poland, where they were reformed into a single unit under the command of generalWładysław Wejtko .Another large group of volunteers to join the division were the remnants of roughly 2,500 men strong force created in
Vilnius to defend it against the Reds in January 1919. In the effect of four day long fights for the city and the area ofNowa Wilejka , the Polish forces were pushed back and the city had to be abandoned. The newly-formed division took part in theBattle of Brześć Litewski ofJanuary 8 of that year, one of the first battles of the Polish–Soviet War.The division, commanded by Gen.
Jan Rządkowski , took part in many of the largest battles of that conflict. Among others, it played a major role in theBattle of Radzymin , a part of the Battle of Warsaw, the decisive struggle of the war. It also took part in theBattle of the Niemen , where it suffered heavy losses.pl icon cite book | author = | coauthors = | title =Bitwa niemeńska 29 VIII - 18 X 1920 (Battle of the Niemen; August 29 - October 18, 1920); collection of documents | year =1998 | editor =Marek Tarczyński | pages =647 | chapter = | chapterurl = | publisher =Rytm | location =Warsaw | id =ISBN 83-87893-55-2 | url = | format = | accessdate = ] Finally, two days prior to the cease fire ending the war, the units of the division – then commanded by Gen.Lucjan Żeligowski – took overVilnius Region from the Lithuanian forces and formed the core of the armed forces of theRepublic of Central Lithuania .Following the elections held there and that state's merger with Poland in 1923, the division was partially demobilized, while its remnants were incorporated into the
Polish 19th Infantry Division stationed in Vilnius (Polish: "Wilno").ee also
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2nd Lithuanian–Belarusian Division References
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