Battle of Pszczyna | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of Invasion of Poland | |||||||
Polish and German deployment on September 1, 1939 | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Germany | Poland | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Heinrich von Vietinghoff obst. Haarde (WIA) obst. Streich obst. Lubbe (commander of column "A" after Haarde) |
Bernard Mond Ignacy Misiąg | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
5th Panzer Division 335 tanks Waffen SS motorized regiment "Germania" | 6th Infantry Division | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Unknown human losses 98+ tanks and AFVs 1 recon plane |
441+ killed 7+ cars 2 tankettes 33 - 34 cannons 11 anti-tank guns |
Battle of Pszczyna (Polish: Bitwa Pszczyńska) refers to a series of battles between 1 and 2 September 1939 near the town of Pszczyna during the Invasion of Poland. The battle of Pszczyna formed part of the defensive Battle of the Border. The initial, decisive victory of the Polish forces on September 1, 1939 was followed by the crushing defeat on the next day near Ćwiklice, due to a major tactical error on the part of the Polish military command,[1] resulting in premature withdrawal of the entire Armia Kraków from Upper Silesia.[2]