Battle of Jordanów The Battle of Jordanów took place on 1 – 3 September 1939 , during the Invasion of Poland and the opening stages of World War II . It was fought between the German XVIII Panzer Corps of Gen . E . Beyer and the Polish 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade under Col . Stanisław Maczek . Opening Hostilities . On 1 September 1939 , the XVIII Panzer Corps , part of the 14th Army , crossed the Polish border from Slovakia . In an attempt to outflank the positions of the Polish Kraków Army under Gen . Antoni Szylling defending Silesia and western Lesser Poland , the Germans crossed the Tatra passes and assaulted the towns of Chabówka and Nowy Targ . Their orders were to seize the town of Myślenice not later than on 3 September thus encircling the entire Polish army fighting in the area . Opposing Forces . The area assaulted by the XVIII Corps was only lightly defended by a single infantry regiment of the Border Defence Corps under Lt . Col . Jan Wójcik . Hard pressed by a combined force of 3rd Mountain Division , 2nd Panzer Division and 4th Light Division under Gen . Alfred Ritter von Hubicki , the Border Defence Corps , aided by the local volunteers and units of the National Defence , withstood the attack , but also suffered heavy losses . Despite stopping the Germans in the vicinity of Nowy Targ , the town was taken by the Germans and the risk of breaking through the Polish lines became apparent . Polish Counterattack . To counter the threat , General Szylling ordered the 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade , until then held in reserve , to move to the area and block the area of Jordanów and Rabka . Overnight the brigade was transported to the area and Col . Maczek installed his headquarters in the village of Krzeczów . The detachments of the Polish unit entered combat almost instantly . Particularly heavy fights occurred in the hills to the south of Jordanów , around the mountain of Wysoka , where the 24th Motorized Regiment under Col . Kazimierz Dworzak , aided by the KOP and anti - tank artillery defended the area against the 2nd Panzer Division . Heavy artillery barrage started at 5 AM and soon afterwards the entire division started an all - out assault of the Polish positions . Despite suffering heavy losses , the Poles managed to stop the German assault and by noon the Germans withdrew losing approximately 30 tanks . However , the numerical and technical superiority of the Wehrmacht was tremendous and after three failed assaults , in the late evening the Germans finally seized the mountain of Wysoka and the village at its feet . The Poles withdrew under cover of an armoured train . The village of Wysoka became a centre for German service units and munitions depot . However , during the night the civilian inhabitants set two oil tanks on fire . The explosion destroyed a number of previously damaged tanks of the 2nd division , also killing a number of resting soldiers of the 3rd Mountain Division . Losses . Altogether , in the battle of Jordanów the Germans lost approximately 50 tanks and a number of other armoured fighting vehicle s . Polish losses were also significant , and especially so in the ill - equipped volunteer units . After the battle . Beskides Withdrawal and Ambush . Having reconed the German units in the area , Gen . Szylling ordered the 10th Cavalry Brigade to slowly withdraw along the Beskides and organize delaying actions along the rivers and mountain ranges . Despite being badly outnumbered , the following day the Polish unit organized an ambush near Lubień and Sucha Beskidzka , in which the German tanks suffered additional losses . The same day the 24th Recce Escadrille composed of 6 PZL . 23 Karaś bombers destroyed a number of tanks around Jordanów and the village of Podwilko . The 31st Recce Escadrille , forming part of the organic aviation of the Karpaty Army successfully bombed the tanks of the 4th Light Division on the road between Nowy Targ and Chabówka . Ambushes of Kasina Wielka and Myślenice . After that the Poles withdrew yet another time , this time to the area of Kasina Wielka , where two ambushes were organized on 4 September . The following day the Poles followed the road towards Myślenice , where yet another ambush was organized . This tactics proved to be a good weapon against the German blitzkrieg as the Germans in the area could not advance faster than mere 10 to 20 kilometres a day and suffering heavy losses in men and equipment . Because of its success , the 10th Motorized Cavalry Brigade remained a fully operational unit until 19 September 1939 , when it was ordered to cross the border with Hungary .