Battle of Jaworow The Battle of Jaworów ( also known as the Battle of Yavoriv ) , was fought between the Germans and elements of the Polish " Malpolska " Army from 14 to 16 September 1939 . The Germans were trying to force their way to Lwów . Before the Battle . Under orders from General Kazimierz Sosnkowski , the 11th ( " Carpathian " ) , 24th and 38th Infantry Divisions were advancing toward the forests near Janów ( present day Ivano - Frankov ) to enter Lwów . Under the command of Colonel Bronisław Prugar - Ketling , the Carpathian Infantry Division was advancing on the left flank , formed into two columns . The first column consisted of the 49th Hutsul Rifle Regiment and Riflemen of the 53rd Kresy Regiment who were marching in the van . The other column , approaching from a different direction , was made up of the 48th Kresy Regiment . A night attack was planned for the division to take over the western edge of the forest . Meanwhile , the 38th ID was attacking on the right flank from two different directions in the north . The regiment of SS - Standarte Germania , ( predecessor of SS Viking ) , a mechanized unit , and the 1st Mountain Division were defending against the attack . The Battle . The battle started with an engagement initiated by the 49th battalion . Polish infantry took a part of the forest and the villages of Szumlaki and Ozmola . At 2100 , Muzylowice was captured . The Germans lost a significant number of men , artillery , tractors and cars . However , because the infantry units did not have any extra crews trained to man the captured equipment , the booty was destroyed . The German losses were so significant that one of three battalion s making up the SS - Standarte Germania was wiped out , most of their heavy equipment was destroyed . The Polish generals , were surprised at how much equipment was destroyed and how much was captured still in operational condition . In the meantime , the 48th Infantry Regiment attacked and took Rozgozno ; several POWs were taken , as were six anti - tank guns , a battery of light artillery , and an unknown number of trucks . The same regiment took over Czerczyk and the hunting lodge where the road from Jaworów forks to and Przyłbice . The 38th Regiment entered the combat with a delay because of the heavy bombardment and bad coordination of the rear elements of the 24th Regiment . The Tabor ( a type of mobile fortification ) , of the 24th was inadvertandly left in the way of the advancing 38th Regiment . Only by 2100 were Czarnokonce and Rodatycze taken . The Germans put up tough resistance only in the village of Hartfeld ; however , two Polish battalions succeeded in taking it . Some POWs were taken ; trucks , fuel tankers and other captured equipment was destroyed . The 98th Regiment continued to attack and reached Dobrostany . In the north , the Poles achieved a decisive victory . The German commander of the 14th Army pulled the SS Germania from the battle because it suffered heavy losses and lost the majority of its vehicles and heavy equipment . In the south , however , the German Group " Utz " from the 1 . Mountain Division held their positions . In the secondary offensive , the 24th Infantry Division , after an all - night march , reached the forest north of Moloszkowicze . On 16 September , the Germans created a rear reinforcement formation . The commander of the 1st Mountain Division formed the " Pemsel " combat group . " Pemsel " was to cut off the route to Lwów by attacking in the direction of Dobrostany and Jaryn . A Polish infantry battalion did successfully repel the German counter - attack at Dobrostany , destroying several heavy guns and armored cars . However , the 38 ID were spread too thinly during the initial attack and many of its component parts lost contact . The commander made incorrect decisions based on a false picture of the battlefield . Nevertheless , six battalions got through to Janów . General Kazimierz Sosnkowski set up his HQ in the forests near Berdyczow and told his forces to focus their defensive efforts on the western flank . With the benefit of hindsight , General Sosnkowski wrote that the success of the Polish infantry in the battle was due to the foot soldiers being the best organized , commanded and trained within the entire Southern Front . Aftermath . Poles . The day after the battle , the Soviets invaded Poland from the east . Breaking through to Lviv became unrealistic , since the town was encircled by the united forces of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union . Some soldiers were taken prisoner and sent to German and Soviet POW camps . Others were executed by the Soviets , while some participated in the battles around Lublin , a few successfully crossed the so - called Hungarian Bridgehead ( named after the Romanian Bridgehead was cut off by the Soviets ) and reached either France , where they continued to fight in 1940 , or the UK , alongside British Commonwealth forces . Germans . German officers and NCOs of the SS Germania were not permitted to lead German troops into battle again ( except for a few when the Soviets gained the upper hand ) . Instead , they were assigned to lead a foreign volunteer division known as SS Viking .