Battle of Mokra - Final Struggles

Final Struggles

At 1215 approximately 100 German tanks returned to the village of Mokra. The main assault broke the lines of the 4th squadron of the 21st Regiment and the tanks managed to charge the AT artillery nests, destroying two of the guns and breaking through to the central part of the village. The houses there were set on fire and the 21st Regiment managed to withdraw to the rail road line, under cover of the smoke. Only isolated pockets of resistance were left in the village itself, which caused much confusion to the Germans.

The withdrawal of the 21st Regiment allowed the Germans to attack the 12th Regiment and the 2nd Artillery Battalion directly. The losses of the latter unit were high since most of the 75 mm field guns were not the best weapon for antitank fire. The 2nd battery lost all three guns and the HMG, while the 5th battery lost two guns. However, the rest of the artillery positions were covered with smoke from the burning houses the Germans had set afire, and were successfully hidden. When a group of tanks unknowingly approached the 1st battery, the Polish guns opened direct fire to the German tanks, destroying 13 of them in a matter of minutes. This allowed for the Poles to hold their positions. Also, the 12th Regiment under Andrzej Kuczek attacked the German tanks from the back, from the previously-retaken forest to the Northwest of the village. Although both sides suffered heavy losses, the Germans withdrew. After the assault ended, the 2nd Artillery Battalion was withdrawn from the battle due to heavy losses and lack of ammunition.

At 1500, the Germans repeated the frontal assault with heavy artillery fire, tactical air attacks and almost 180 tanks from Wilkowiecko. Simultaneously, side attacks were commenced on the Polish flanks. The frontal assault was directed on the 2nd Squadron of the 12th Regiment (commanded by Stanisław Raczkowski), in the centre of the village. Although the Polish artillery destroyed many of them, the German tanks managed to break through again to the village. The 4th squadron under Feliks Pruszyński counter-attacked, but both squadrons were being constantly pressed towards the rail road line. Colonel Filipowicz had no further reserves and the German tanks were nearing the railway crossing, while the Polish cavalry was being pushed back with heavy losses. Soon the regiments lost contact with each other. Because of the smoke, the battle broke down to a series of different skirmishes in the forests, the village and along the rails. All batteries but one of the 2nd Battalion were withdrawn from the battle. This made the situation of the 12th Regiment critical.

The 2nd Mounted Rifle Regiment, the only unit that was still intact and in contact with the commander of the brigade, was ordered to assault at all cost and reinforce the 12th Regiment and the gap between the cavalry and the 84th Regiment in the south. This helped the Polish defence, but only for a moment. Colonel Filipowicz ordered the Polish tankettes to charge the German tanks in the village. Although the tankettes were not supplied with antitank ammunition, in chaos of the battle they managed to halt the German advance for a moment. After losing one tankette the Poles withdrew, but managed to gain enough time for the armoured trains to return to the area. To the north, on the positions of the 19th Regiment the tanks also managed to break through and started crossing the rail road near Izbiska. When the German tanks crossed the line, both of the armoured trains arrived and attacked them from behind. While the losses in tanks were limited, the panic that started in German units resulted in many tanks being abandoned by their crews, who could not drive the tanks directly through the railway tracks (elevated some two metres above the ground) and the crossing was blocked by burning AFVs. Although both trains suffered some losses and were finally forced to retreat, the panic in German ranks was not stopped. In the smoke some of the German tanks started firing at German positions, while others simply retreated towards the initial position, directly through the German infantry.

In the south the Polish infantry was yet again pushed deeper into the forest, but its lines were not broken. At 1700 that day the battle was over.