Battles of Prehoryłe fought between Polish Partisan forces and German-Ukrainian forces, skirmishes took place over months in the village of Prehoryłe[1]
Prelude
After the massacre of Polish civilians in 1943, there were growing fears of a repetition of the events in Volhynia. So Poles organised self-defences as in the villages located between the Bug River and the strip of villages Bereść. The conflict escalated after that .in villages located between the Bug River and the strip of villages: Uchanie, Bereść, Hostynne, Werbkowice, Wronowice, Miętkie, Telatyn, Chodywańce. In these villages, to increase the effectiveness of the UNS troops, bunkers were built and trenches dug. However, in January there were only isolated mutual assaults, with a few casualties on both sides. Also from Volhynia, a throng of Polish people who were fleeing the terror began to arrive.[2][3]
The course of events was sharper in the Hrubieszów area, where, on the initiative of the commander of the Hrubieszów District of the AK under Antoni Rychel, pseud. "Anio³", Poles acted simultaneously against the Ukrainian intelligentsia and those Ukrainians who, after the attack of the USSR on Poland, sided with the Soviets. The latter were denounced to the Hrubieszów Gestapo. Against the first group, the tactic of attacks on pre-designated persons was used. By June 1943 alone, 150 people had been liquidated in this way. Polish units (a detachment of Battalion of Stanisław Basaj "Ryś"[4]
In view of the development of the situation, the Zamojski Inspectorate of the Home Army decided to evacuate the Polish civilian population to the districts of Bilgoraj, Zamojski, Chelm, Krasnostawski and the western part of Tomaszowski, to strengthen Polish self-defence in the remaining area and to launch a coordinated attack on the area occupied by the Ukrainians. At the beginning of March, the evacuation plan was launched, but was only partially carried out due to the reluctant attitude of the Polish population[5]
Battles
First Battle
In April 1943, another defence of Malkov against the onslaught of Ukrainian nationalists. The battle in the village of Prehoryłe ended with the victory of the Polish self-defence, the Ukrainian nationalists did not manage to take the well-defended Holubia.[6][7]
Second Battles
For the following months, the village was quiet, until the forces of the Home Army and the Peasant Battalions began fierce fighting with the local UPA forces. The Ukrainian forces, together with the Germans, then began attacking the ethnic Poles. Skirmishes were reported in Małków, where the forces of the Rysia Battalion under the command of Karol (Kaczała) defeated Ukrainian forces. This was not the end of the successes, the Battle of Zablocie was fought next, which brought Stanislaw Basaj fame. On 17 February the Germans directed their own and Ukrainian forces to Prehoryłe, but without success; fortunately, the forces of the Peasant Battalions arrived on time and gave an idea of why the Rysia battalion is considered not to have been defeated.[8]
On 29 February three platoons of the 1st BCh Battalion led by Stanislaw Basaj, jointly with an AK platoon (commanded by "Huragan"), in the village of Prehoryłe discovered an outpost of Ukrainian nationalists and smashed it; several dozen Ukrainians were killed from the UPA Company of "Bradiaha", while the Polish partisans had smaller losses, and the village was burnt down.
Third Battle
On 5 March, a clash with the Ukrainian SS Galizien and Ortschutz was recorded, in which 1 BCh soldier was killed and 1 wounded. When, on 9 March, two AK battalions under the command of Stefan Kwaśniewski and Zenon Jachymek took action against the Ukrainians with a broad front from Prehoryłe to Sahryń, initially the BCh units did not take part in the battle, except for a small detachment that served as a guide in the vicinity of Modryń. However, as the action unfolded, BCh units joined the action on the eastern wing of the battle, where Stefan Kwaśniewski was in command. I am writing more about this because Wojciech Sulewski in his publications attributes the whole of this battle to the 'Rysia' battalion, which is not true.[9]
Fourth Battle
On March 8, 1944, Prehoryłe was attacked by a unit of the 5th SS Police Regiment, supported by local members of the Ukrainian Self-Defense Legion . The attackers were repelled by a unit of Peasant Battalions under the command of Stanisław Basaj "Ryś", who then set fire to the farms of the Ukrainians living in the village and massacred civilians[11]
On the second day: on 9.III.1944, around 11 a.m., an alarm was raised in Górka. From the direction of Prehoryłe one could hear the rustling of machine gun series and single rifles. Still in the morning soldiers of "Rysia" in the strength of 2 platoons under the general command of "Bruchalski" (Feliks Dzygala), went to Prehoryłe burnt the day before, as a protection of the team that was to bury the previously murdered ethnic Poles.
And then an attack by UPA forces came from Holubia. A second battle broke out. This battle is called - Prehoryłe II, on 9.III.1944. To help the forces of "Bruchalski" rushed the platoon of "Szczygiel" (Feliks Zwolak). When the platoon reached Prehoryłe, the action was already coming to an end. After setting fire to a shed, "Bruchalski" managed to leave the encirclement under cover of smoke. The participation of our platoon came down to the fact that it thwarted the pursuit of "Bruchalski's" retreating partisans. The UPA-men, seeing that the Poles were with the help of new forces, then abandoned the pursuit.[12]
Aftermath
This was followed by preparations for the Hrubieszow Revolution, these victories were of great significance as they discouraged the UPA forces from continuing to fight hard for every scrap of land.
After the action on Prehoryłe II (day), the platoon of "Szczygła" returned to temporary quarters in the part of the unburned Gorki. In the evening everyone was electrified by the news that on the night of 9/10 III.1944 the following were to be liquidated: Sahryń, Turkowice, Szychowice Łasków. Sahryń, Turkowice,Malice and the like. were to be done by units from the Tomaszów Lubelski district, specifically the AK Battalion of Tomaszów "Wiktor" (Zenon Jachymek). It was to be supported by BCH platoons:, "Lisc" (Antoni Furmaga), "Vis" (Tomasz Flis) and "Moskwa" - these two platoons (the latter two) still belonged to the AK at the time - of the Hrubieszów "Wiktor" (Stefan Kwaśniewski). In Sahryń the Independent Modrin Section of Henryk Ratyna, from the composition of the 4th platoon of "Szczygiel" of the 1st Battalion of the BCH "Rysia", took part. At the same time the combined forces of the BCh and AK of the Hrubieszów district, i.e. the 1st BCh Battalion of the Hrubieszowskie Detachments of "Rysia" and the 5th Battalion of the AK "Wiktor", were to strike at the base of the Ortschutz and the SS from the SS-Galizien in Szychowice and the USN-UPA base in Łasków village.[13][14]