r/ww2•8 mo. ago

Positions of Polish (blue) and German (red) forces during four stages of the Battle of the Bzura (at the time also known as Battle of Kutno), which took place between 9 and 19 September 1939 as part of the German invasion of Poland

Situation as of 9 September: Polish forces of Poznan and Pomorze armies take positions to the north of the Bzura river; meanwhile elements of Army Lodz are retreating northeast in face of the German 8th Army, whose forces attempt to cut off the Polish armies from Warsaw (east from the areas shown on the map)

Situation on 12 September: Polish troops of the Poznan and Pomorze Armies start an offensive across the Bzura, aiming to recapture Lodz; meanwhile elements of the Lodz army retreat to Modlin Fortress

Situation on 14 September: General Tadeusz Kutrzeba, commander of the Poznan Army, orders his troops to stop the offensive in the direction of Lodz and attempt a breakthrough to Warsaw instead; German 1st Panzer Division crosses the Bzura near Sochaczew

Situation on 18 September: Polish troops moving in the direction of Warsaw are encircled and almost totally annihilated by German armies; only a small part manages to break through enemy positions and find refuge in the Kampinos Forest, from where they retreat to Warsaw and Modlin Fortress

Posted Jan 27, 2026, 1:52 PM UTC

110

Loading comments…