Armia Czerwona w 1920 roku. Organizacja, stany osobowe, działalność propagandowa ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem frontu polskiego w świetle wybranych źródeł i polskich opracowań wywiadowczych

Abstract

The Polish-Soviet War, which took place between 1919 and 1920, remains one of the most dramatic, yet also one of the brightest pages in the history of the Polish military. Not only did the Polish army achieve a spectacular victory that ensured Poland’s sovereignty and unrestrained development, but also, according to many historians and politicians, saved Europe from the flood of communism. Apart from the famous Battle of Warsaw, the warfare that lasted from February 1919 to October 1920 included the Kiev Offensive, the Battle of Komarów and the Battle of the Niemen River. The war with the Bolshevists was not just a conflict over the borders, but also concerned the preservation of national sovereignty, threatened by the Bolshevists' attempts to spread the communist revolution throughout Europe. The intention of the Polish side, on the other hand, was to separate the nations occupying the regions to the west and south of Russia and to connect them with Poland through close federal ties. The fate of the war was finally decided in August 1920 at the gates of Warsaw. The Polish Army, following the operational plans of the High Command approved by Józef Piłsudski, the Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Army, pushed the Red Army east past the Neman River line with a surprising counter-attack. This battle saved Poland's independence and forced the Bolshevists to cancel their plans to spread the communist revolution to the countries of Central and Western Europe.