military@cbnews.att.com (09/21/89)
[No look at WW II would be complete without gaps filled in later. I mistakenly skipped posting 9/19, so here it is; with my apologies to Bill. Only Now Can The Story Be Told! :-) --CDR] Tuesday, 19 September, 1939 Resistance in the Bzura pocket ends. The remnants of the Armies of Pomorze and Poznan, totalling some 80 to 100,000 men, 320 guns, 130 aircraft, and 40 tanks, surrender. (1) This marks the end of the largest battle of encirclement in history (at the time). The bombardment of Warsaw continues. The Polish 10th Mechanized Cavalry Brigade, Poland's only remaining armored unit, escapes to Rumania, where it is interned, having had little contact with German forces through the entire campaign. Its commander, General Maczek, eventually reaches France with his troops and commands another armored brigade. Lvov is surrounded by German troops. Russian troops meet Germans at Brest-Litovsk, and arrange for that fortress to be handed over to them in accord with the Russo-German pact, which defines the new border along the line of the Bug; Brest is in Soviet territory. References: (1) von Manstein, _Lost Victories_ C.Argyle, _Chronology of World War II_ J. Piekalkiewicz, _Tank War 1939-1940_ R.Dupuy and T.Dupuy, _The Encyclopedia of Military History_ -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@cbnews.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "Red Army troops were greeted with cheers by the local White Russian and Ukrainian populations." - Red Army Report No. 1