The largest and final battle of the November Uprising, its fall ended Polish resistance and placed Warsaw under Russian imperial control.
Key Facts
- Battle dates
- 6–8 September 1831
- Wola garrison survivors
- 11 out of 3,500 defenders
- Siege began
- 20 August 1831
- Conflict
- Polish–Russian War of 1830–31 (November Uprising)
- Polish Army retreat
- Withdrew to Modlin, then crossed into Prussia and Austria
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
After nearly a year of the November Uprising, a large Russian force besieged Warsaw from 20 August 1831. Russian commander Paskevich anticipated Polish capitulation through moderate leader Krukowiecki, but when a less conciliatory faction took power and rejected Russian surrender terms, Paskevich ordered a direct assault on the city's western fortifications.
On 6 September 1831, Russian forces attacked Warsaw's western defences, beginning with the heavily fortified suburb of Wola. Despite fierce resistance at Fort 54, Fort 56, and the Wola redoubt, the outer Polish defensive line was breached on the first day. By 7 September, Russian artillery ranged the city itself, and Polish authorities ordered evacuation to avoid mass civilian casualties. Warsaw fell on 8 September 1831.
The fall of Warsaw effectively ended the November Uprising. The remaining Polish Army retreated to Modlin before crossing into Prussia and Austria to avoid Russian capture. The battle inspired Polish romantic literature by Mickiewicz and Słowacki, and is widely believed to have inspired Chopin's Revolutionary Étude. International sympathy for Polish independence increased as a result.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Ivan Paskevich, Karl Wilhelm von Toll.
Side B
1 belligerent
Jan Krukowiecki.