Battle of Wizna
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The Battle of Wizna was a 1939 World War II engagement in northeastern Poland, often dubbed the "Polish Thermopylae" for the vastly outnumbered Polish defenders’ stubborn resistance against advancing German forces.
Statements (47)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf | battle ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs | Polish Thermopylae NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| attackingForce | German Army NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| casualties |
heavy Polish casualties
ⓘ
significant German casualties relative to expectations ⓘ |
| commanderOfAttackers | Heinz Guderian NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| commanderOfDefenders |
Brykalski
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Władysław Raginis NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| commemoratedBy |
annual ceremonies in Poland
ⓘ
monuments near Wizna ⓘ |
| conflict | World War II ⓘ |
| country | Poland ⓘ |
| defendingForce | Polish Army NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| endDate | 1939-09-10 ⓘ |
| followedBy | German advance toward Brest and further east ⓘ |
| fortifications |
Wizna fortified line
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
bunkers and field fortifications ⓘ |
| front | Eastern Front of World War II (1939 campaign) NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| hasHeroicFigure | Władysław Raginis NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| hasParticipant |
10th Panzer Division (Germany)
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
3rd Army (Germany) NERFINISHED ⓘ Polish 18th Infantry Division elements NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| inPopularCulture | referenced in songs and literature about Polish resistance ⓘ |
| legacy |
subject of Polish national remembrance
ⓘ
symbol of Polish resistance ⓘ |
| location |
Wizna
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
northeastern Poland ⓘ |
| memorialType | war memorial ⓘ |
| nicknameOrigin | compared to Battle of Thermopylae NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| notableFor |
disproportionate forces
ⓘ
heroic last stand ⓘ stubborn Polish resistance ⓘ |
| partOf | Invasion of Poland NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| precededBy | initial German invasion of Poland on 1939-09-01 ⓘ |
| primaryObjectiveOfAttackers | break Polish defensive line near Wizna ⓘ |
| primaryObjectiveOfDefenders | delay German advance ⓘ |
| RaginisFate | committed suicide rather than surrender his position ⓘ |
| result | German victory ⓘ |
| startDate | 1939-09-07 ⓘ |
| strategicEffect | temporary delay of German advance ⓘ |
| strengthOfAttackers |
heavy artillery units
ⓘ
over 40,000 soldiers ⓘ several hundred tanks ⓘ |
| strengthOfDefenders | approximately 700 soldiers ⓘ |
| tacticalOutcome | Polish defensive line overrun ⓘ |
| theater | European theatre of World War II ⓘ |
| year | 1939 ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.