Key Facts
- Duration
- August 6–11, 1944 (6 days)
- Defending unit
- Radosław Group, Home Army Kedyw
- Personnel losses
- More than half of original strength
- Area defended
- Powązki and Okopowa Street cemetery zone, Wola
- Withdrawal route
- Through ruins of Warsaw Ghetto to Old Town
Strategic Narrative Overview
From August 6 to 11, 1944, the Radosław Group fought fierce defensive battles in partial encirclement against superior German forces. Their resistance successfully tied down significant enemy troops, delaying German pressure on other sectors and allowing the Home Army command to organize the defense of the Old Town. Lieutenant Colonel Jan Mazurkiewicz ('Radosław') sought permission to withdraw to the nearby Kampinos Forest but was denied by superiors.
01 / The Origins
The Warsaw Uprising began on August 1, 1944, as the Polish Home Army sought to liberate Warsaw from German occupation before Soviet forces arrived. In the Wola district, the Home Army's elite Kedyw units of the Radosław Group were tasked with holding the cemetery zone around Powązki and Okopowa Street, a strategically important area that anchored the Polish defensive line in western Warsaw.
03 / The Outcome
Unable to withdraw to Kampinos Forest as preferred, Mazurkiewicz was ultimately forced to lead his units through the ruins of the Warsaw Ghetto to reach the Old Town. The fighting cost the Radosław Group more than half its original personnel. Though the position was abandoned, the delaying action had achieved its strategic purpose of stabilizing the broader uprising's defensive posture in the critical early days.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent
Jan Mazurkiewicz ('Radosław').
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.