TheBattle of Schoenfeld(Polish:Szarża pod Borujskiem) took place on 1 March 1945 duringWorld War IIand was the scene of the lastmounted chargein the history of the Polish cavalry and the last confirmed successful cavalry charge in world history.[notes 1]The Polish charge overran German defensive positions and forced a German retreat from the village ofSchoenfeld(today known asŻeńsko,formerly known in Polish asBorujsko). In March 1945, theFirst Armyof the Polish People's Army was advancing intoPomeraniaas part of an overall push by, and backed by,Sovietforces to reach the Baltic Sea and the area ofStettin(some 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Schoenfeld). Schoenfeld was part of the third line offortificationsbuilt by the Germans to shelter Pomerania from attack.
| Battle of Schoenfeld | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theEast Pomeranian Offensivein theEastern FrontofWorld War II | |||||||
 Polish 1st Cavalry Brigade, March 1945 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Poland |
 Germany | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Jan Rotkiewicz(2nd ID) Konstanty Gryżawski (1st Cavalry Brig) | Karl Rübel(163. ID) | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
|
2nd Infantry Division 1st "Warsaw" Independent Cavalry Brigade | 163rd Infantry Division | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
|
Polish forces: 147 killed |
German forces: c.500 killed | ||||||
An initial Polish attack on Schoenfeld with tanks and infantry of the2nd Infantry Divisionfloundered in the low, open wetlands that were dominated by the fire of infantry and antitank guns from Schoenfeld, which sat at a slightly higher elevation on a small hill (Hill 157). German troops defending the village were part of the163rd Infantry Division.[1]
The 1st "Warsaw" Independent Cavalry Brigade was then employed against the German position. Two squadrons (companies[2]) of cavalry supported by the elements of the horse--artillery company, having used a ravine to cover their approach to their infantry and tanker brothers-in-arms, charged through the smoke of burning tanks,[3]and achieved tactical surprise with a swift mounted assault that overran the German antitank gun positions[4]on the forward slope of Hill 157. This success was followed by an attack into the village itself by the cavalry, who by this time had been joined by the infantry and tanks.[5]In the face of this development, the surviving German defenders withdrew, allowing the Poles to consolidate their gains in and around the village at 1700.[5] 7 Polish cavalry men, 124 Polish infantry, and 16 tank men were dead for circa 500 dead Germans.
Today, a plaque mounted on a stone near the edge of Żeńsko commemorates the cavalry charge.[citation needed]
Citations
editNotes
edit- ^The websitewww.historycy.orgnotes the assertion by Polish author Cezar Leżeński (inOstatnia szarża) that further cavalry charges were made on April 21, 1945, atHeckelbergand Grunthal (six kilometers east of Heckelberg); as well as mentioning a mounted charge by Polish frontier security forces (Wojska Ochrony Pogranicza) againstUPAinsurgents in 1947.
Sources
edit- Krzysztof Komorowski,Boje Polskie 1939–1945,Warszawa: Bellona, 2009.
- Janusz Piekalkiewicz,The Cavalry of World War II,New York: Stein and Day, 1980.
- Steven J. Zaloga,The Polish Army 1939–45,Oxford: Osprey, 1998.
- www.polskaniezwykla.pl