Polish Armed Forces (Poland) 1939

Polish Armed Forces (Poland) 1939
Name	Polish Armed Forces (Poland) 1939
Native name	Siły Zbrojne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej (1939)
Active	1939
Country	Second Polish Republic
Allegiance	Second Polish Republic
Headquarters	Warsaw
Commander in chief	Ignacy Mościcki
Supreme command	Edward Rydz-Śmigły
Notable commanders	Władysław Sikorski, Tadeusz Kutrzeba, Mieczysław Boruta-Spiechowicz, Mikołaj Bołtuć, Kazimierz Sosnkowski, Stefan Rowecki, Józef Haller, Józef Piłsudski
Active personnel	~950,000

Polish Armed Forces (Poland) 1939 were the armed formations fielded by the Second Polish Republic on the eve of the Invasion of Poland in September 1939. Facing the Wehrmacht and the Red Army under the shadow of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, Polish forces attempted mobilization, defensive deployment, and strategic withdrawal while coordinating with allies France and the United Kingdom whose guarantees and plans such as the French offensive never directly altered the 1939 campaign outcome.

Background and mobilization

In the interwar period the Polish–Soviet War aftermath, the Constitution of April 1935 milieu, and the legacy of Józef Piłsudski shaped doctrine for the Polish Army (1918–1939), Polish Navy (1918–1939), and Polish Air Force modernization. Threat perceptions centered on Nazi Germany and Soviet Union expansion, complicated by territorial issues like the Danzig Corridor, the Munich Agreement, and the Anglo-Polish military alliance (1939). Mobilization decrees were influenced by Edward Rydz-Śmigły and staff such as Wacław Stachiewicz, while political leaders including Ignacy Mościcki and foreign ministers like Józef Beck negotiated with Édouard Daladier and Neville Chamberlain.

Organizational structure and command

The high command comprised the Naczelny Wódz and the General Staff with theater commands organized into armies: Army Kraków, Army Poznań, Army Łódź, Army Modlin, Army Pomorze, Army Karpaty, and Operational Group Polesie. Senior commanders included Tadeusz Kutrzeba, Władysław Bortnowski, Sylwester Kaliski, and Kazimierz Fabrycy. Branches encompassed the Border Guard, Polish Legions, Territorial Defense, and paramilitary formations such as Strzelec (organization) and the Sokół movement, while naval units operated from Gdynia and Hel Peninsula under commanders like Roman Starzyński.

Order of battle and unit disposition

At mobilization Poland fielded infantry divisions, cavalry brigades, motorized units, and reserve formations arrayed along fortified lines: the Fortified Area of Modlin, Fortified Area of Poznań and improvised defenses near Łódź. Major units included the 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade, 1st Legions Infantry Division, 6th Infantry Division (Poland), Wileńska Cavalry Brigade, and the Narew Independent Operational Group. Air units such as the PZL P.11-equipped fighter squadrons and bomber escadrilles deployed to Okęcie and Warsaw-Babice. Naval squadrons aboard destroyers like ORP Błyskawica and submarines such as ORP Orzeł operated from Gdynia.

Equipment and armaments

Polish forces used a mixture of indigenous and imported equipment: infantry rifles like the Karabinek wz. 1929, machine guns such as the km wz. 1928, and anti-tank guns including the 37 mm Bofors and obsolete Citadel 75 mm variants. Armored units employed light tanks including the 7TP and exported Vickers 6-Ton variants, while artillery included 75 mm wz.02/26 and heavy pieces like the 155 mm wz.1917 Schneider. Aircraft inventory featured PZL P.11, PZL.23 Karaś, PZL.37 Łoś prototypes, and reconnaissance types; naval armament incorporated 8.8 cm SK C/35-class equivalents on surface vessels and torpedoes on submarines such as ORP Wilk. Logistic constraints involved shortages of mechanized transport, fuel, and modern anti-aircraft artillery.

Defensive plans and deployments

Poland implemented Plan Zachód and elements of Plan Wschód to defend against western and eastern threats, deploying armies along the Border of Poland, fortified centers like Warsaw, and strategic corridors including the Danzig Corridor. Commanders intended mobile counterattacks from the Poznań and Kraków military districts and defensive lines along rivers such as the Vistula, San River, Bug River, and Narew. The defense incorporated static defenses at Hel Peninsula and urban defense plans for Warsaw while coordinating with ally expectations from Anglo-French military planning.

Combat operations and campaigns (September 1939)

The campaign began with the Battle of Westerplatte, the Invasion of Poland major operations, and rapid advances by the Army Group North (Wehrmacht) and Army Group South (Wehrmacht). Notable engagements included the Battle of Bzura, Siege of Warsaw, Battle of the Border, Battle of Pszczyna, Battle of Kock (1939), Battle of Tomaszów Lubelski (1939), and the Battle of Hel. Polish counterattacks by formations under Tadeusz Kutrzeba and Władysław Sikorski achieved tactical successes but were overwhelmed by Blitzkrieg combined-arms operations emphasizing Panzerwaffe spearheads and Luftwaffe air superiority centered on units like Luftflotte 1 and Luftflotte 4. The Soviet invasion of Poland from the east in mid-September encircled remaining formations including the Operational Group Polesie commanded by Franciszek Kleeberg.

Losses, casualties, and capture of territory

Poland suffered heavy losses: destroyed formations, captured personnel, and civilian casualties from bombardments and sieges including Wieluń and early sieges. Large swathes of territory including Western Borderlands, Galicia, Pomerelia, and Upper Silesia fell to Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia and General Government occupation regimes or the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic and Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. Prisoner and POW policies involved German camps such as Stalag XVII-B precedents and Soviet internments leading to events culminating in Katyn massacre in 1940. Material losses included aircraft destroyed on the ground at Okęcie and armored losses near Krojanty.

Aftermath and evacuation/reconstitution efforts

Following defeat, senior leaders like Władysław Sikorski and units evacuated via Romania and Hungary to France and later United Kingdom to form the Polish Armed Forces in the West. Naval assets executed the Peking Plan to sail to United Kingdom ports; submarines and destroyers escaped to continue operations with the Royal Navy. The Polish government-in-exile in London coordinated reconstitution with exiled officers such as Kazimierz Sosnkowski and Władysław Anders forming Polish divisions in France and the Soviet Union-formed Anders' Army later evacuated through Persia. Resistance efforts began with the formation of Związek Walki Zbrojnej and later the Armia Krajowa, while diplomatic consequences influenced the Treaty of Versailles (aftermath) memory and postwar borders discussed at Yalta Conference.

Category:Military history of Poland