Polish–Lithuanian War 1536509 225654820 2008-07-14T19:25:17Z Selfworm 437261 /* See also */ Added {{Template:Polish wars and conflicts}} {{Citations missing|article|date=June 2007}} {{Infobox Military Conflict |conflict=Polish-Lithuanian War<br> |image=[[Image:Sejny Parada.jpg|300px|Cavalry parade in Sejny]] |caption=Polish cavalry parade in [[Sejny]]. |date=[[September 1]] - [[October 7]], [[1920]] |place=near [[Suwałki]], [[Poland]] |result=Polish victory |combatant1={{flagicon|Poland}} [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]] |combatant2={{flagicon|Lithuania|1918}} [[Lithuania]] |commander1={{flagicon|Poland}} [[Adam Nieniewski]] |commander2={{flagicon|Lithuania|1918}} [[Silvestras Žukauskas]] |strength1=? |strength2=ca. 8,000 men |casualties1= |casualties2= }} {{Campaignbox Polish-Lithuanian War}} {{Campaign |name=Establishment of Second Polish Republic |battles=[[Greater Poland Uprising (1918–1919)|Greater Poland (1918-19)]] - [[Polish-Ukrainian War|Ukraine (1918-19)]] - [[Polish-Soviet War|Against Soviets (1919-21)]] - [[Polish-Czechoslovak border conflicts#Czechoslovak-Polish conflict in 1919|Czechoslovakia (1919)]] - [[Sejny Uprising|Sejny (1919)]] - [[Silesian Uprisings|Upper Silesia (1919–1921)]] - [[Polish-Lithuanian War|Lithuania (1920)]] }} [[Image:Rzeczpospolita Lithuania claims.png|thumb|right|300px|Map showing areas disputed by Lithuania and Poland; [[Republic of Central Lithuania]]; and post-1922 borders.]] [[Image:Border-Lithuania-Poland-1919-1939.svg|thumb|right|300px|Selected lines of demarcation between Lithuania and Poland, 1919-1939]] The '''Polish-Lithuanian War''' was an armed conflict between [[Lithuania]] and [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]], lasting from August 1920 to [[October 7]], [[1920]], in the [[aftermath of World War I]], not long after both countries had regained their independence. It was part of a wider conflict over disputed territorial control of the cities of [[Vilnius]] ({{lang-pl|Wilno}}), [[Suwałki]] and [[Augustów]]. The conflict was claimed by Poland to be a victory, however within two days of signing a [[cease fire]] or agreement to halt the hostilities with Lithuania, Poland reneged on this temporary agreement before it formally took in force (the cease fire was to be started at October the 10th, Polish action started at October the 8th) and created the [[Republic of Central Lithuania]]. While in Lithuanian historiography the conflict is considered a separate war or treated in the context of the [[Lithuanian Wars of Independence]], in other historical traditions (including Polish and Soviet) it is almost always treated as part of the [[Polish-Soviet War]]<ref name="Seibt">{{de icon}} {{cite book | author =Ferdinand Seibt | coauthors = | title =Handbuch der europäischen Geschichte | year =1987 | editor = | pages =1072-1073 | chapter = | chapterurl = | publisher =Union Verlag | location =Friedrichstadt | id =ISBN 3129075402 | url =http://books.google.com/books?vid=OCLC00285221&id=LekfAAAAMAAJ&q=Sejny+1920&dq=Sejny+1920&pgis=1 | format = | accessdate = }}</ref><ref name="Marszałek">{{pl icon}} {{cite book | author =Piotr Krzysztof Marszałek | coauthors = | title =Rada Obrony Panstwa z 1920 roku: studium prawnohistoryczne | year = | editor = | pages = | chapter = | chapterurl = | publisher =[[Wrocław University]] | location =Wrocław | id =ISBN 8322912145 | url = | format = | accessdate = }}</ref><ref name="Wrzosek">{{pl icon}} {{cite book | author =Mieczysław Wrzosek | coauthors =Grzegorz Łukomski, Bogusław Polak | title =Wojna polsko-bolszewicka, 1919-1920: działania bojowe - kalendarium | year =1990 | editor = | pages =136-142 | chapter = | chapterurl = | publisher =Wyższa Szkoła Inżynierska | location =Koszalin | id =ISSN 0239-7129| url =http://books.google.com/books?vid=OCLC28149920&id=GJUdAAAAMAAJ&q=Sejny+1920&dq=Sejny+1920&pgis=1 | format = | accessdate = }}</ref><ref name="Łossowski">{{pl icon}} {{cite book | author =Piotr Łossowski | coauthors = | title =Stosunki polsko-litewskie w latach 1918-1920 | year =1966 | editor = | pages = | chapter = | chapterurl = | publisher =Książka i Wiedza | location =Warsaw | id = | url = | format = | accessdate = }}</ref><ref name="Łossowski_2">{{pl icon}} {{cite book | author =Piotr Łossowski | coauthors =Historical Institute of the Warsaw University (corporate author) | title =Litwa | year =2001 | editor = | pages = | chapter = | chapterurl = | publisher =Trio | location =Warsaw | id =ISBN 8385660593 | url = | format = | accessdate = }}</ref><ref name="Koryn">{{pl icon}} {{cite book | author =various authors | coauthors =Andrzej Koryn | title =Wojna polsko-sowiecka 1920 roku: przebieg walk i tło międzynarodowe | year =1991 | editor = | pages =45-51 | chapter = | chapterurl = | publisher =[[Polish Academy of Sciences|Wydawn. Instytutu Historii PAN]] | location =Warsaw | id =ISBN 8300034870 | url =http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN8300034870&id=waEdAAAAMAAJ&q=Sejny+1920&dq=Sejny+1920&pgis=1 | format = | accessdate = }}</ref>. == Before the battle == Following the start of the [[Polish-Soviet war]] in 1919 the majority of Lithuanian territory was soon occupied by the [[Red Army]] which defeated and pushed back Polish and Lithuanian self-defence units, but shortly afterwards the Soviets were forced to retreat by the [[Polish Army]]. In 1920, [[April 19]], Polish army captured [[Vilnius]] for the first time. Although [[Lithuania]] was [[neutral country|neutral]] in the Polish-Soviet war, due to Polish army's forcing its way further to Lithuania, the encounters with Polish army started<ref>Vilenas Vadapalas. ''Lietuvos Respublikos suverenitetas Vilniaus kraštui [The Lithuania's sovereignty to the Vilnius region]'' in ''Lietuvos rytai; straipsnių rinkinys [The east of Lithuania; the collection of articles''. Vilnius 1993. ISBN 9986-09-002-4</ref>. [[Lithuania]] joined the [[Russian SFSR]] side in the [[Polish-Soviet War]] in July 1919.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} The decision was made because of the intention to have Vilnius, for Poland also claimed it as well as other lands of Lithuania, and to a smaller extent by Soviet diplomatic pressure backed by the threat of the Red Army stationed on Lithuania's borders. With the treaty of peace between Lithuania and Soviet Russia in 1920, [[July 12]], the sovereignty of certain Lithuanian territories including Vilnius passed to Lithuania. After the treaty of peace between Lithuania and Soviet Russia in which Soviet Russia ceded Vilnius region to Lithania, Poland - Lithuanians claimed - [[de jure]] had never had right to Vilnius<ref>Vilenas Vadapalas. ''Lietuvos Respublikos suverenitetas Vilniaus kraštui [The Lithuania's sovereignty to the Vilnius region]'' in ''Lietuvos rytai; straipsnių rinkinys [The east of Lithuania; the collection of articles''. Vilnius 1993. ISBN 9986-09-002-4</ref>. This two-side treaty was not recognized neither by Poland nor by [[Belarus National Republic]], and Lithuania itself was not yet recognized widely internationally. The Lithuanian government announced{{Fact|date=February 2007}} its plan to assign a status of the capital city of the country to the historical capital of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Vilnius. This was opposed by Poland which pointed that Vilnius was being populated at that time mainly by Poles and Jews and Lithuanians constituted only about 2-3% of the population in the city of Vilnius itself according to [[Ethnic composition of Central Lithuania|Russian census of 1897 and German census of 1915]].<ref name="Łossowski11">{{pl icon}} [[Piotr Łossowski]], ''Konflikt polsko-litewski 1918-1920'' (The Polish-Lithuanian Conflict, 1918–1920), Warsaw, Książka i Wiedza, 1995, ISBN 8305127699, pp. 11.</ref><ref name="Demoskop">{{ru icon}} [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus_lan_97.php?reg=32 Demoscope].</ref><ref name="Brensztejn">{{pl icon}} {{cite book|author= Michał Eustachy Brensztejn|year=1919 |title=Spisy ludności m. Wilna za okupacji niemieckiej od. 1 listopada 1915 r. |publisher=Biblioteka Delegacji Rad Polskich Litwy i Białej Rusi, [[Warsaw]] |id= }}</ref> In demographic terms Vilnius was the least Lithuanian of Lithuanian cities, <ref name="MacQueen_context">Michael MacQueen, ''The Context of Mass Destruction: Agents and Prerequisites of the Holocaust in Lithuania'', Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Volume 12, Number 1, pp. 27-48, 1998, [http://hgs.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/12/1/27]</ref> divided near evenly between Poles and Jews, with ethnic Lithuanians constituting a mere fraction of the total population; the Lithuanians nonetheless believed that their historical claim to the city (former capital of the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]]) had precedence and refused to recognize any Polish claims to the city and the surrounding area.<ref name="MacQueen_context"/> Poland also argued that Lithuanians, who made a majority in certain compact areas of the territories occupied by Poland ([[Švenčionys]] and surrounding areas, [[Druskininkai]] and surrounding areas, [[Radun]], [[Gervyati]], etc.), overall constituted no more than 10% of population{{Fact|date=February 2007}}, [[Belarusians]] formed roughly 25% of the population and Poles where in majority. However, the reliability of censuses made under the Polish administration is disputed{{Dubious|date=March 2008}}. According to the data of Polish researcher Eduard Czyński's work in 1909 Belarusian was spoken by 46,1%, Lithuanian by 23% and Polish by 10% of the population of Vilnius region{{Dubious|date=March 2008}}<ref>Vilenas Vadapalas. ''Lietuvos Respublikos suverenitetas Vilniaus kraštui [The Lithuania's sovereignty to the Vilnius region]'' in ''Lietuvos rytai; straipsnių rinkinys [The east of Lithuania; the collection of articles''. Vilnius 1993. ISBN 9986-09-002-4</ref><ref>Eduard Czyński, "Etnograficzno-statystyczny zarys liczebnosci rossiedlenia ludnosci polskiej. Warsawa, 1909"</ref>. [[1920]] saw Vilnius region occupied by the Red Army for the second time, although [[de jure]] the territory belonged {{Dubious|date=March 2008}} to Lithuania, which was not recognised internationally. When the Red Army was defeated in the [[Battle of Warsaw (1920)|Battle of Warsaw]], the Soviets made the decision to hand over the [[Vilnius region]] back to Lithuania. ==Conflict== ===Early stage=== In the end of June 1920, during the Soviet [[Battle of Warsaw (1920)|summer offensive towards Warsaw]], the Lithuanian authorities started to seek contact with the Soviet authorities. A diplomatic mission sent to Moscow signed an agreement ([[Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920]]) on [[July 12]], in which the Soviet Russia allowed the Lithuanian state to seize the territory of the region of [[Suwałki]] from the withdrawing Polish forces. Two days later the disputed area of [[Vilnius]] was captured by the Red Army and handed over to the Lithuanian government. Following the Lithuanian-Soviet treaty, the demarcation line between Soviet and Lithuanian troops ran north of [[Augustów]] ([[Varėna|Orany]]-[[Merkys River|Merecz river]]-Augustów line). On [[July 19]] the town of [[Sejny]] was seized by [[Marijampolė]] Group under maj. Valevičius. On [[July 29]] the Red Army seized Augustów and the following day Lithuanians captured Suwałki. The weak Polish units retreated towards [[Łomża]], where they were surrounded by the Red Army and forced to cross the border with [[East Prussia]], where they were interned. The Lithuanian authorities started to organize themselves in the regained areas. However, after the [[Bolshevist Russia|Russian]] defeat in the [[Battle of Warsaw (1920)|Battle of Warsaw]], the danger of losing them became apparent. The badly beaten Red troops started their withdrawal from the area, and their retreat exposed the area of Augustów, also claimed by Lithuania. Knowing that the Polish Army was occupied with preparations for the [[Battle of the Niemen River]] and pursuit after the fleeing Bolsheviks, the Lithuanian authorities decided to create [[fait accompli]] by capturing the town of Augustów, which happened on [[August 26]]. At the same time envoys were sent to the Polish troops, advising them not to cross the Grabowo-Augustów-Sztabin line, which was planned by the Lithuanians as a new demarcation line between Poland and Lithuania. Although seizing the territory of Suwałki was crucial in further Polish operations against the Red Army, the Polish Army commanders did not want to engage in yet another armed conflict. The Polish Military Mission to [[Kaunas]], as well as Polish diplomats at the [[Paris Peace Conference, 1919|Paris Peace Conference]], started to put pressure on the Lithuanian government to return to the ''[[Status quo ante bellum]]'' borders between the two states. The Lithuanian authorities declined, but the Highest Council of the Paris Peace Conference accepted the so-called [[Foch Line]] (named after [[Marechal de France]] [[Ferdinand Foch]]), that was to divide Poland and Lithuania on an ethnic basis. According to that line, both the disputed city of [[Vilnius]] and the towns of Suwałki, Augustów and Sejny were to be left on the Polish side{{Fact|date=May 2007}}. Wanting to by-pass the disputed area and outflank the withdrawing Red Army, the commander of the Polish 2nd Army general [[Edward Rydz-Śmigły]] (later [[Marshal of Poland]]) ordered on [[August 27]] that the Lithuanian forces be pushed out of the disputed area to the other side of the line supported by the [[Triple Entente|Entente]]. He did not expect any serious opposition,{{Fact|date=February 2007}} but in case the Lithuanian units wanted to put up a fight, they were to be encircled, disarmed and sent home.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} The Cavalry [[Operational Group]] under [[Adam Nieniewski]] was ordered to secure the area as soon as possible. The following day the Group started its advance towards [[Augustów]] in two columns from the area of [[Białystok]]. At the same time the 1st Infantry Regiment of the [[Polish 1st Legions Infantry Division]] took the Lithuanian defenders of the town by surprise and disarmed a company of the Lithuanian 10th Infantry Regiment, securing the city. Also the Nieniewski's forces were not opposed and the Lithuanian forces withdrew northwards when asked by the Polish officers. In the evening of [[August 30]], a recce squadron of the so-called Piasecki's Cavalry Brigade under [[Zygmunt Piasecki]] reached the city of [[Suwałki]] and asked the Lithuanian forces to withdraw. The following day in the morning colonel Nieniewski entered the city, together with the his staff, 7th [[Uhlan]]s Regiment and two battalions of the 41st Suwałki Infantry Regiment. At the same time in the area of the village of Giby, between the Gieret and Pomorze lakes and south of Sejny, a well dug-in company of Lithuanian infantry, reinforced with three [[machine gun]]s, refused to withdraw and responded with fire. Unwilling to spill the blood of his men, the Polish commander asked a member of the [[French Military Mission to Poland]] general Manneville to mediate and, after a short conference, the Lithuanians withdrew. On [[August 31]] the town of [[Sejny]] was finally captured by the 16th Uhlans Regiment. The withdrawing Lithuanian forces were allowed to by-pass the town and the Foch Line was manned from both sides. To avoid conflicts with the Lithuanian forces, the Polish commander refused to send further patrols and reconnaissance squads were ordered not to reach the demarcation line. On [[September 1]], [[1920]], the Suwałki-based provisional governing body (''Rada Ludowa Okręgu Suwalskiego'' - ''Popular Council of the Suwałki Area'') was reestablished and all the courts and facilities closed down by the Lithuanian authorities were reopened. Until the authorities chosen in the 1919 elections were able to return, the cities and villages were to be governed by provisional [[starost]]s. ===Lithuanian offensive=== The area of Suwałki, lost in the effect of the Polish withdrawal, was regained with negligible losses on both sides. The Polish diplomats in [[Paris]] and [[Kaunas]] tried to reach an agreement with the Lithuanians on the recognition of the Foch Line as the future Polish-Lithuanian border. However, the Entente planned to leave the city of [[Vilnius]] on the Polish side, while the Lithuanian state saw it as its capital. The future of [[Central Lithuania]] was no clear and the Lithuanian authorities decided to use the area of Suwałki as a trading card in negotiations with the Poles and the French. On [[September 2]], [[1920]], a Lithuanian offensive towards the recently-lost towns of Suwałki and Augustów started. The [[Augustavas Operation]], as it was nick-named by the Lithuanian commanders, was carried over by forces of the Lithuanian 2nd Infantry Division, some 7000 soldiers altogether, with a 120-strong cavalry detachment, 100 machine guns and 12 pieces of artillery. The assault was planned along three main lines: [[Kalvarija]]-Suwałki, Sejny-Giby-Augustów and [[Lipsk]]-Augustów. Its purpose was to strike a wedge between the Polish troops and cut out the Polish units of Nieniewski's group from the rest of Polish Army fighting in the [[Battle of the Niemen River]] further southwards. After a series of skirmishes in the area of the villages of Żubryn, Kleszczówek and Gulbieniszki, the Lithuanian assault towards Kalwaria was repelled and driven northwards. However, the south-eastern front was broken in the area of Sztabin and Kolnica and by [[September 4]] the Lithuanian army reached the outskirts of Augustów. Also the assault towards Sejny, a town located only some two kilometres from the Foch Line, was successful. By noon of [[September 2]] near Berżniki the first skirmish was reported. A commander of Polish cavalry reconnaissance troop operating in the area was confident that the Lithuanian unit he encountered simply lost its way and approached it. However, his unit was quickly surrounded and disarmed. Soon afterwards a general assault on Sejny started. After several hours of heavy artillery barrage and fights on the outskirts of the town, it was repelled with negligible losses on both sides. Commander of the defending Polish 16th Uhlans Regiment, major Skrzyński, was confident that the fight around the city was a misunderstanding, so he asked for a [[cease fire]]. After conferring with the Lithuanian officers, these asked [[Kaunas]] for confirmation of their orders. After it was given, the Poles decided they were outnumbered and left the city towards [[Krasnopol]] and Krasne without further opposition. In the fights for the city Poles lost 3 cavalrymen killed, several soldiers wounded and 8 [[prisoner of war|POWs]]. The Lithuanian losses are unknown, except for 21 prisoners taken by the withdrawing [[Polish cavalry]]. The following days, the Polish forces from Sejny withdrew further southwards, to the area of Nowa Wieś and [[Wigry]] lake. At the same time a counter-offensive along the Augustów-Sejny road was prepared. The operation started on [[September 5]] and was a success. The Lithuanian forces advancing from Sejny were scattered and Augustów was secured. Three battalions of Lithuanian infantry were surrounded and almost completely destroyed, while the remaining forces sounded the retreat. The counter-offensive was successful and on [[September 9]] the Polish forces recaptured Sejny. The following day the Lithuanian forces were forced out to the other side of the Foch Line. The fights continued until [[September 27]], but the Polish lines were kept intact. At the same time diplomatic negotiations were resumed in Suwałki and on [[October 7]], [[1920]], a [[cease fire]] agreement was signed. The [[Suwałki Agreement]] was a military agreement which temporarily accepted a modified [[Foch Line]] as the basis of future Polish-Lithuanian talks on the border question in [[Suwałki Region]]. == Aftermath == The future of the city of Vilnius/Wilno was still unresolved by the Suwałki Agreement and was handled by other measures. Lithuania declined to enter into any negotiations on the status of the [[Vilnius]] area, claimed it as its capital city and denied any Polish influence over it whatsoever. The Polish commander [[Józef Piłsudski]] ordered his subordinate, General [[Lucjan Żeligowski]], to defect with his [[1st Lithuanian-Belarusian Division]] and capture the city, without formal [[declaration of war]] on Lithuania. With Lithuanians unwilling to enter into [[Międzymorze|a federation with Poland]], and wishing to avoid a full-out conflict and international condemnation, Józef Piłsudski staged [[Żeligowski's Rebellion|a fake rebellion]] by Polish army units (under command by gen. [[Lucjan Żeligowski]]) in the Vilnius area, which allowed the Polish army to take control of the city in [[October 9]], 1920. Both were ethnic Poles from Vilnius area. Although the Polish side officially did not take part in the conflict between "Kaunas Lithuania" and "Central Lithuania", it provided limited logistic support to the Central Lithuanian units of Żeligowski.<ref>{{en icon}} George J. Lerski. Historical Dictionary of Poland, 966-1945. 1996, p.309</ref><ref name="łossowski">{{pl icon}}{{cite book |last=Łossowski |first=Piotr |authorlink=Piotr Łossowski |title=Polska-Litwa: Ostatnie sto lat |year=1991 |publisher=Wydawnictwo Oskar |location=Warsaw |pages=110}}</ref><ref name="Čepėnas">{{cite book |last=Čepėnas |first=Pranas |authorlink=Pranas Čepėnas |title=Naujųjų laikų Lietuvos istorija |year=1986 |publisher=Dr. Griniaus fondas |location=Chicago |pages=634}}</ref> Neither side was able to gain significant advantage, and with the mediation from the League of Nations, ceasefire was signed on [[November 21]] and truce on [[November 27]].<ref name="Łoss216-218">[[Piotr Łossowski]], ''Konflikt polsko-litewski 1918-1920'', p.216-218</ref> Despite Poland's claim to Vilnius, the League of Nations chose to ask Poland to withdraw. Poland did not comply with the request. Theoretically, British and French troops could have been asked to enforce the League's decision. France, however, did not wish to antagonize Poland, which was seen as a possible ally in a future war against Germany, and Britain was not prepared to act alone. Thus the Poles were able to keep Vilnius, where a provisional government named ''[[Komisja Rządząca Litwy Środkowej]]'' (''Governing Commission of Central Lithuania'') was formed. Soon afterwards [[Election in Central Lithuania|the parliamentary elections were carried out]] and the Wilno Diet (''[[Sejm]] wileński'') has voted on [[February 20]], [[1922]], for incorporation into Poland as the capital of the [[Wilno Voivodship]]. Ironically, the loss of Vilna might have safeguarded the very existence of the Lithuanian state in the interwar period. Despite an alliance with Soviets ([[Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920]]) and the war with Poland, Lithuania was very close to being invaded by the Soviets in summer 1920 and having been forcibly converted into a socialist republic. It was only the Polish victory against the Soviets in the [[Polish-Soviet War]] (and the fact that the Poles did not object to some form of Lithuanian independence) that derailed the Soviet plans and gave Lithuania an experience of interwar independence.<ref>[[Alfred Erich Senn]], ''The Formation of the Lithuanian Foreign Office, 1918-1921'', Slavic Review, Vol. 21, No. 3. (Sep., 1962), pp. 500-507.: ''"A Bolshevik victory over the Poles would have certainly meant a move by the Lithuanian communists, backed by the Red Army, to overthrow the Lithuanian nationalist government... Kaunas, in effect, paid for its independence with the loss of Vilna."''<br>Alfred Erich Senn, ''Lietuvos valstybes...'' p. 163: ''"If the Poles didn't stop the Soviet attack, Lithuania would fell to the Soviets... Polish victory costs the Lithuanians the city of Wilno, but saved Lithuania itself."''<br>[[Antanas Ruksa]], ''Kovos del Lietuvos nepriklausomybes'', t.3, p.417: ''"In summer 1920 Russia was working on a communist revolution in Lithuania... From this disaster Lithuania was saved by the [[miracle at Vistula]]."''<br>Jonas Rudokas, [http://www.nasz-czas.lt/519/na_lamach.html Józef Piłsudski - wróg niepodległości Litwy czy jej wybawca?] (Polish translation of a Lithuanian article) "Veidas", 25 08 2005: ''[Piłsudski] "defended both Poland and Lithuanian from Soviet domination"''</ref> The League of Nations Conference of Ambassadors accepted the [[status quo]] in 1923, yet the Wilno region remained a disputed territory between Poland and Lithuania (the latter state still treated Vilnius as its constitutional capital and the capital of the claimed [[Vilnius region]]). Although only a temporary solution, the Lithuanian government declined to sign any political agreements with Poland until forced by the [[1938 Polish ultimatum to Lithuania]] and the document of [[October 7]] remained one of the legal bases of the Polish-Lithuanian border in the area. The Polish-Lithuanian relations begun to normalize after League of Nations negotiations in 1927, but it wasn't until the 1938 ultimatum that Lithuania established normal diplomatic relations with Poland and thus ''de facto'' accepted the borders of its neighbour (based on the demarcation line running along the [[Foch Line]]). This contention worsened Polish-Lithuanian foreign relations for decades to come and was one of the reasons [[Józef Piłsudski]]'s [[Międzymorze]] federation was never formed. <ref name="łossowski"/> ==Opposing forces== ===Polish=== {| border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" style="font-size: 85%; border: gray solid 1px; border-collapse: collapse; text-align: center;" |- style="background: #ececec; <nowiki>background-image:url(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c7/Polish_banner_600x20px.png);</nowiki>color:black;" ! Polish Army ! Army ! Operational Group ! Unit ! Regiment ! Remarks |- ! colspan="14" style="background: #f9f9f9; text-align: left;" | &nbsp; |- ! ROWSPAN=12 style="background:#ccc;" style="border-bottom:1px solid gray;"| [[Józef Piłsudski]]<br><small>HQ in [[Białystok]]</small> | ROWSPAN=12 | '''2nd Army'''<br><small>[[Edward Rydz-Śmigły|Edward Rydz]]</small> | ROWSPAN=12 | Cavalry Operational Group<br><small>[[Adam Nieniewski]]</small> | ROWSPAN=4 | [[Polish IV Cavalry Brigade|IV Cavalry Brigade]]<br><small>[[Adam Nieniewski]]</small> | 3rd Uhlans Regiment<br><small></small> | |- | 7th Uhlans Regiment<br><small></small> | |- | 16th Uhlans Regiment<br><small></small> | |- | Combined Uhlans Regiment<br><small></small> | [[march battalion|march squadrons]] of 2nd Cavalry Regiment, 5th, 8th, and 9th Uhlans Regiments |- | ROWSPAN=4 | Artillery<br><small></small> |- | 2nd Mounted Artillery Detachment | |- | 7th Mounted Artillery Detachment | elements, only one battery |- | 9th Artillery Regiment | elements, two batteries attached to the 41st Regiment |- | ROWSPAN=4 | Support units<br><small></small> |- | Maj. Jaworski's Cavalry Group<br><small>Jaworski</small> | volunteers |- | 41st Suwałki Infantry Regiment | reinforced with artillery |- | 211th (26th) Uhlans Regiment<br><small>Dąbrowski</small> | arrived later |- |} == References== <!--See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags--> <div class='references-small'> <references/> </div> ==See also== * [[Camps for Polish prisoners and internees in Soviet Union and Lithuania (1919-1921)]] * [[Sejny Uprising]] * [[Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920]] * [[Suvalkai region]] * [[Freedom wars of Lithuania]] {{Template:Polish wars and conflicts}} [[Category:History of Lithuania]] [[Category:History of Poland (1918–1939)]] [[Category:Wars involving Lithuania]] [[Category:Wars involving Poland]] [[Category:Russian Revolution]] [[Category:1920 in Poland]] [[Category:1920 in Lithuania]] [[Category:Warfare of the Industrial era]] [[Category:Polish-Lithuanian relations]] [[de:Militärische Intervention polnischer Truppen in Litauen]] [[it:Guerra polacco-lituana]] [[pl:Wojna litewska]] [[ru:Польско-литовская война]]