10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade (Poland)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade
abbreviation= 10th Cav Bde
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country= Poland
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branch= Polish Army
type= Armoured
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size= Brigade
command_structure= 1st Armoured Division (Poland)
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Polish 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade (Polish "10 Brygada Kawalerii Pancernej", French "10e Brigade blindée polonaise") was an armoured unit of the Polish Army. Organized in France during World War II as part of the Polish Army in France, mostly by the veterans of the 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade who managed to escape from Nazi and Soviet occupied Poland. Led by general Stanisław Maczek, it took part in the Battle of France of 1940. It was later recreated in Great Britain as a part of the First Polish Armoured Division

History

When Poland was defeated by Germany in 1939, many Polish soldiers went to France to create new army to fight the Nazis. These forces were commanded by general Władysław Sikorski, who was also the prime minister of Polish government in exile. Unfortunately, French generals were not interested in Polish relations about campaign in Poland and German tactics of Blitzkrieg. They considered Polish soldiers and officers incompetent, and believed in the Maginot Line. When general Maczek and his veterans tried to create Polish mechanized division, they could not get the equipment necessary for training, so the new unit grew very slowly.

Everything changed, when Germany invaded France in 1940, simply going around French fortifications. General Maczek's unit suddenly received all the equipment they had asked for, with one condition: they had to go into action immediately. That was impossible, because many Polish soldiers had no idea how to use the new equipment and there was no time for exercises. General Maczek decided to lead a small force of his best trained men, hoping that the rest of his unit would join them later. That small force was called 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade (10 Brygada Kawalerii Pancernej) in honour of the "Black Brigade" from 1939. On June 6, 10th Brigade had one tank battalion, two strong motorized cavalry squadrons, one anti-tank battery and one anti-aircraft battery.

The brigade was attached to French 4th Army near Reims, and was ordered to cover its left flank. However, Maczek's unit was much too weak to do it successfully against German armoured divisions. Polish soldiers managed only to cover one retreating French infantry division by attacking German forces in Champaubert-Montgivroux. Later the brigade had to withdraw with the rest of French troops, and joined the French XXIII Corps. On June 16 the brigade attacked by night the town of Montbard over the Burgundy Canal. Maczek's soldiers completely surprised the Germans and took many prisoners.

But the brigade by then was fighting alone, with the French units on both flanks either routed or in retreat. There were no French forces to exploit that victory, and the decimated Polish unit found itself surrounded and without fuel. On June 18, general Maczek decided to destroy useless equipment and to withdraw on foot. Later that day he had to split the remnants of his brigade into small groups, so they could pass the enemy lines. Many of Maczek's men, including the general himself, found their way to the United Kingdom, where a Polish armoured unit was recreated, while others joined the Polish and French resistance organizations in France and Belgium.

10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade was a small unit, but with excellent fighting spirit. Most of its soldiers managed to get to Great Britain, when the 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade was recreated as a part of general Maczek's 1st Armoured Division.

ources

Stanisław Maczek, "Od Podwody do czołga", Lublin-London 1990

ee also

* Polish Army in France
* Polish contribution to World War II
* Franco-Polish Military Alliance