9th Infantry Division (Poland)

The 9th Infantry Division (9 Dywizja Piechoty) was a unit of the Polish Army in the Second Polish Republic. The division was originally formed in 1919. Stationed in Siedlce, it took part in the Polish September Campaign under Colonel Józef Werobej.

As part of Pomorze Army the 9th I.D. defended the 70-kilometer line between the town of Pruszcz and the village of Gostycyn in Polish Pomerania. In the morning of September 1, 1939, it was attacked by three Wehrmacht divisions - 2nd Armored-Motorized, 3rd Armored and 32nd I.D. After heavy fighting, the Poles withdrew in the evening to the area of Cekcyn. Another defense line was established there, but the Germans broke it and the 9th I.D. retreated over the Brda and to the suburbs of Bydgoszcz.

There, General Władysław Bortnowski ordered three Polish units - 9th I.D., the 27th Infantry Division, and Operational Group “Czersk” - to counterattack on the morning of September. However, communication between 9th I.D. and 27th I.D. failed and the offensive was a failure, with the German 3rd Armored Division managing to halt it.

After the defeat, the 9th I.D. gathered in the forests north of Bydgoszcz. Soon afterwards, it was attacked by the Luftwaffe. Unable to defend itself and without air support, the division scattered and ceased to exist. Only the 35th Infantry Regiment remained as a unit and managed to break out of the German encirclement on September 5.

A 9th Infantry Division was also formed as part of the Anders Army briefly in 1942, and there was a 9th Home Army Infantry Division active in 1944. Additionally, the People's Army of Poland formed a 9th Infantry Division which was active from 1944 to 1962, after which it became the 9th Mechanised Division.