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Battle of the Bzura River

Battle of Bzura
Part of Invasion of Poland, World War II
WBK -battle of Bzura 1939.jpg
Polish cavalry brigade "Wielkopolska" during the battle
Date 9–19 September 1939
Location Near Kutno, Łódź Voivodeship, Poland
52°14′00″N 19°22′00″E / 52.23333°N 19.36667°E / 52.23333; 19.36667Coordinates: 52°14′00″N 19°22′00″E / 52.23333°N 19.36667°E / 52.23333; 19.36667
Result

German victory

  • Destruction of Armies Poznań and Pomorze
Belligerents
 Nazi Germany  Poland
Commanders and leaders
Nazi Germany Gerd von Rundstedt
Nazi Germany Johannes Blaskowitz
Nazi Germany Walther von Reichenau
Nazi Germany Günther von Kluge
Nazi Germany Wilhelm Ulex
Nazi Germany Erich Hoepner
Poland Tadeusz Kutrzeba
Poland Władysław Bortnowski
Poland Edmund Knoll-Kownacki
Poland Mikołaj Bołtuć
Poland Roman Abraham
Poland Leon Strzelecki
Strength
12 infantry divisions
5 armoured and motorized divisions
425,000 soldiers
8 infantry divisions
2–4 cavalry brigades
225,000 soldiers
Casualties and losses
8,000 dead
4,000 captured
50 tanks
100 cars
20 artillery pieces
18,000–20,000 dead
32,000 wounded
170,000 captured

German victory

The Battle of the Bzura (or Kutno or Battle of Kutno — German name) was a battle in the opening campaign of World War II during the 1939 German invasion of Poland, fought between 9 and 19 September, 1939, between Polish and German forces. Initially a Polish counter-offensive, the Germans outflanked the Polish forces and took all of western Poland.

It was the single largest battle in the 1939 September campaign and took place to the west of Warsaw, near the Bzura River. In it, a Polish breakout attack gained initial success but eventually faltered after a concentrated German counterattack.

The Polish plan for defense against the German invasion, Plan West, called for the defense of the borders. This was dictated more by political than military concerns, as Poles feared that the Germans, after taking over territories they lost in the Treaty of Versailles, would try to end the war and keep those territories. While defending the borders was riskier, the Poles were counting on the British and French counteroffensive (that never came). Due to this, Army Pomorze under general Władysław Bortnowski found itself in the Polish Corridor, surrounded by German forces on two fronts, and Army Poznań under general Tadeusz Kutrzeba was pushed to the westernmost fringes of the Second Polish Republic, separated both from its primary defensive positions, and from other Polish Armies.


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