The Battle of Kock, fought from 2 to 6 October 1939, was the last battle of the September Campaign fought by the regular3 Polish army. General Franciszek Kleeberg's Independent Operational Group Polesie, formed from reservists, volunteers and retreating units, fought the German XIV Motorised Corps near Kock and gained the upper hand, but with almost no ammunition left Kleeberg capitulated on 6 October. Tactically the Poles won; strategically the campaign was already lost.
By October 1939 Warsaw had fallen and the Polish state was occupied from west and east. One Polish force was still marching and fighting: the men of General Franciszek Kleeberg, who fought the last battle of the campaign near the small town of Kock.
An army that would not stop
The Independent Operational Group Polesie was formed in mid September 1939 from reservists, volunteers, the Polesie units and soldiers retreating from other fronts. Under General Kleeberg it fought its way west, aiming first for besieged Warsaw and then, when the capital fell, for the army depots near Dęblin and the hills beyond, to continue the struggle.
Meeting the Germans
At the beginning of October the group ran into the German XIV Motorised Corps of General Gustav von Wietersheim near Kock1. Kleeberg's force, which included cavalry brigades and two infantry divisions, took up positions and prepared to fight.
Four days of fighting
From 2 October the two sides fought for villages, woods and roads around Kock. The Polish units counterattacked, and on 5 October they pushed back the German 13th Motorised Division1 in heavy fighting, taking prisoners and equipment.
Out of ammunition
The success came too late. That evening the quartermaster reported that almost no ammunition and no dressings were left. With Warsaw fallen and no hope of relief, Kleeberg decided to capitulate4, and on 6 October 1939 his soldiers laid down their arms3. Kleeberg died in German captivity in 1941.1
Why Kock matters
Kock was the last battle fought by the regular Polish army4 in 1939, ended not by defeat in the field but by empty magazines. It has become a symbol of the determination of the soldiers of September, who fought on long after the campaign was lost, and many of whom went on to fight in the underground and abroad.
