Battle of Giedraičiai
| Battle of Giedraičiai | |||||||
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| Part of Polish–Lithuanian War | |||||||
Borders of Lithuania and Central Lithuania in 1920 | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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| Units involved | |||||||
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1st Lithuanian–Belarusian Division:
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1st Infantry Division:
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| Strength | |||||||
| unknown | unknown | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| See #Casualties | See #Casualties | ||||||
The Battle of Giedraičiai (Lithuanian: Giedraičių mūšis) was fought on November 17–21, 1920, between the Lithuanian Army and a part of the Polish Army led by Lucjan Żeligowski, which called itself the Army of Central Lithuania.[4]
Prelude
Battle
November 17: Polish offensive begins
November 18: Polish debacle due to Lithuanian attack
November 19–21: Lithuanian counter-offensive
Casualties
Polish casualties
The fighting destroyed a smashed armored car, 2 machine guns, about 20,000 rifle cartridges, and several artillery shell carriages.[5] 60 prisoners of war were taken, with Polish stragglers that evaded capture being left behind.[5] In the vicinity of Giedraičiai, at least 30 Polish dead were counted, with an unknown amount unidentified.[5] The count of wounded is unknown, but 11 seriously wounded soldiers were captured by Lithuanians.[5]
Lithuanian casualties
Concerning Lithuanian soldiers, 15 were killed, about 60 wounded and about 70 were missing in action. Three officers were killed and four were wounded.[5]
Aftermath

Commemoration
The site of the battle of Giedraičiai is marked and commemorated by a symbolic cannon.[6]
References
- ^ Lesčius 2004, p. 386.
- ^ Kiaupa 2005, p. 251.
- ^ Iršėnas 2015, p. 490.
- ^ a b Jankauskas 2004, p. 534.
- ^ a b c d e Lesčius 2004, p. 393.
- ^ a b "Molėtai Tourism and Business Information Center". infomoletai.lt. Retrieved 2024-05-06.
- ^ Ališauskas 1958, p. 102.
- ^ Ališauskas 1958, p. 103.
- ^ Lesčius 2004, p. 403.
Sources
- Ališauskas, Kazys (1958). "Lietuvos kariuomenė (1918–1944)". Lietuvių enciklopedija (in Lithuanian). Vol. XV. Boston, Massachusetts: Lietuvių enciklopedijos leidykla.
- Lesčius, Vytautas (2004). Lietuvos kariuomenė nepriklausomybės kovose 1918–1920 (PDF) (in Lithuanian). Vilnius: Generolo Jono Žemaičio Lietuvos karo akademija. ISBN 9955-423-23-4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-01-02.
- Iršėnas, Marius (2015). The Lithuanian Millennium: History, Art and Culture. Vilnius, Lithuania: Vilnius Academy of Arts Press. ISBN 9786094470974.
- Jankauskas, Vidmantas (2004). "Giedraičių mūšis". Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija (in Lithuanian). Vol. VI (Fau-Goris). Vilnius: Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos institutas.
- Kiaupa, Zigmantas (2005). The History of Lithuania. Vilnius.
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