Battle of Warka The Battle of Warka on April 7 , 1656 between forces of the Polish - Lithuanian Commonwealth commanded by Stefan Czarniecki on one side , and on the other Swedish forces commanded by Frederick VI , Margrave of Baden - Durlach . Battle was fought for about two hours , ending in Polish victory . It was first Polish success in the open field since Swedish invasion of Poland in early summer 1655 ( see Swedish invasion of Poland ) . Polish forces won the battle . Background . After the Battle of Jaroslaw , which took place on March 15 , 1656 , Swedish forces under king Charles X Gustav found themselves in a difficult situation . They needed reinforcements , so on March 16 , the king ordered his brother , Adolph John , to send the army of Frederick VI , Margrave of Baden - Durlach , which was stationed in Warsaw . In the second half of March 1656 , the margrave left Warsaw , with 2 , 500 reiter s and dragoon s . His mission was to relieve main Swedish army , together with the king himself , which was trapped and surrounded by Poles and Lithuanians in the confluence of the Vistula and San rivers . The margrave and his soldiers had to cross the dense Kozienice Wilderness , where Swedish units were constantly attacked by Polish guerillas . After a few days , Frederick VI received a message from Charles Gustav , ordering him to return to Warsaw . The Swedish king realized that main Polish forces , which had trapped him in the area of Gorzyce , headed northwards , to face Frederick . Polish hetman s Jerzy Lubomirski and Stefan Czarniecki were no longer in the area , which gave Charles Gustav a chance to escape the trap . Frederick VI obeyed royal order , and began a retreat , via Kozienice and Warka . The Polish forces under Czarniecki and Lubomirski that chased him had to cover the distance of some 80 kilometers , which was difficult in the conditions of early spring , when roads were flooded by melting snow . The forces of Frederick VI could have escaped the Poles , but the margrave made a grave mistake , when he decided to wait for a column of Swedish soldiers together with heavy wagons , which marched slowly to Warka from Radom . When Polish forces reached Zwolen , after a quick march from Sandomierz , Frederick ’ s unit was still located south of the Pilica river . The Battle . After both Swedish groups had joined , they crossed the Pilica , which lasted a whole night . At the same time , Polish forces under Lubomirski caught Swedish rear guard . The skirmish , which took place near Kozienice , ended with complete destruction of the Swedish unit . The survivors , who reached Frederick VI , told him about the danger , but the margrave waited with destruction of the bridge until the morning of April 7 . After leaving rear guard along the river , the Swedes formed a 4 - kilometer long column , and began marching towards Warsaw . When Polish forces arrived , the column stretched from Piaseczno in the north to Warka in the south . Frederick VI did not feel threatened , as the Pilica was very wide after snowmelt , and there was no bridge available for Polish cavalry . The Poles , however , quickly found a ford , crossing the river near the village of Winiary , where they immediately attacked Swedish reiters . Polish forces were then divided into three groups . One of the groups , under Czarniecki , attacked Swedes guarding the partly destroyed bridge . After capturing the bridge , Polish engineers rebuilt it , which allowed three regiments to cross the Pilica . At the same time Lubomirski attacked the regiment of an officer named Ritter , destroying it . Frederick VI , whose forces shrank to 2 , 500 , ordered some units to guard the wagons , while the remaining regiments took positions at the edge of a forest , waiting for the attacking Poles with loaded muskets . Since Swedish troops stood in front of the forest , it was impossible for the Poles to encircle them , and frontal attack was the only solution . First to attack was Lubmirski ’ s cavalry , but it was twice stopped by Swedish firepower . Soon , Lubomirski was reinforced by Czarniecki with three regiments . Altogether , the Poles had 8 , 000 soldiers , divided into ten regiments , but some 6 , 000 took place in the main fight , as the remaining ones were busy chasing the retreating Swedes or looting the wagons . Swedish defense was broken in the third attack , carried out by Polish hussars . Survivors fled to the forest , trying to organize defensive positions there . Local residents then set the grass and bushes on fire , which forced the Swedes to return to the open field . The battle then turned into a slaughter ; those reiters and dragoons that survived were mercilessly murdered by the peasants . A Swedish regiment tried to escape to a forest near the village of Magierowa Wola , but was destroyed by the Polish hussars s of Zamoyski . Other Polish units awaited fleeing Swedes near Chynow . Frederick himself escaped to Czersk , where he organized defence in the local castle . Polish units , who chased him , did not try to capture the castle , as they lacked infantry and artillery . Polish cavalry had very little time , as all units had to quickly return to the south , to prevent royal Swedish army from escaping . In the meantime , however , Charles Gustav , in a daring operation , managed to evade second - rate forces , which encircled him , and crossed the San . Aftermath . Swedish losses amounted to some 1 , 500 , with 260 captured , while Poles lost 100 dead and 100 wounded , plus a great number of trained horses , killed by Swedish muskets . Polish forces captured a number of wagons ( app . 200 ) with looted properties , and food , which was especially important in the destroyed , starving country . The victory of Warka had a symbolic meaning for Poland - Lithuania . The Polish Crown army , which had lost its best soldiers in the Battle of Batoh ( 1652 ) , was based on young , inexperienced recruits , who had lost several battles with the Swedish Empire in the previous months . The Battle of Warka was first Polish victory in an open field .