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Shadows in the Mist

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Title
Shadows in the Mist
Description
The Battle of Bzura (Sept 9-19, 1939) was one of the biggest battles of the Polish campaign. In the first phase of the battle (Sept 9-12), two Polish armies, “Pomorze” and the “Poznań”, attacked the left flank of the German …
Publisher
Date
1939-09-14
Scenario#
PoH07
Scenario Description
The Battle of Bzura (Sept 9-19, 1939) was one of the biggest battles of the Polish campaign. In the first phase of the battle (Sept 9-12), two Polish armies, “Pomorze” and the “Poznań”, attacked the left flank of the German 8th Army, threatening the communication lines of the German armies moving towards Warsaw. The scale and the speed of the Polish operation surprised the German general staff, forcing them to halt their advance towards Warsaw and the Vistula river. The Germans reacted quickly, assembling all of their available fast moving mobile units to deploy against the Polish counter-offensive. The German 8th Army nearly reached its breaking point, but managed to hold its positions thanks to the quick response of the 10th Army’s mobile units. During the second phase of the battle (Sept 13-15), Polish forces were trying to establish a bridgehead over the river Bzura, in order to open a road corridor for the deployment of Polish reinforcement armies destined for Warsaw. Łowicz and Sochaczew, two cities situated on the banks of the Bzura river, were sites of fierce and bloody urban fighting. In the third stage of the battle (Sept 16-19), the Germans managed to encircle and pin the Polish forces along the river, in what is now called the Bzura pocket. The Germans systematically destroyed most of the Polish armies with heavy air and artillery attacks. Only a few Polish units managed to break out through the Kampinos Woods and enter Warsaw. The Battle of Bzura was the largest allied counteroffensive operation until the 1941 Soviet winter campaign!
Location
Lowicz, Poland
Battle Name
Battle Narrative
The Battle of the Bzura was the largest Polish counter-attack of the German Invasion of Poland, fought between the 9th and 19th of September. The battle took place west of Warsaw, near the Bzura River. It began as a Polish counter-offensive, which gained initial success, but the Germans outflanked the Polish forces with a concentrated counter-attack. This weakened Polish forces and the Poznań and Pomorze Armies were destroyed. Western Poland was now under German rule.  The battle has been described as "the bloodiest and most bitter battle of the entire Polish campaign". Winston Churchill called the battle an "ever-glorious struggle".
Narrative Source
Combatants
German
Polish

Geolocation