Battle of Osuchy The Battle of Osuchy ( less often referred to as the Battle at Sopot River ) was one of the largest battles between the Polish resistance and Nazi Germany in occupied Poland during World War II , a part of the Zamość Uprising . It took place near the village of Osuchy in the Solska Wilderness ( " Puszcza Solska " ) on 25 – 26 June 1944 during the German anti - partisan operation Sturmwind II ( Operation Hurricane II ) . The battle ended with the defeat of the local resistance forces that suffered heavy casualties . Background . The Nazi terror since 1942 - part of the Generalplan Ost - in the Zamość region in occupied Poland had led to the creation of many active resistance units . Polish partisans ( from Armia Krajowa , Bataliony Chłopskie and Armia Ludowa ) - with the aid of some Soviet partisans - made the region almost ungovernable to the Germans . The German garrison in the key city of Biłgoraj was mostly cut off from land communication with other forces ; the town of Józefów was under resistance control , as were many villages and wilderness regions . Vital German communication lines with the units at the Eastern Front were in peril , and many troops were diverted from the front to deal with the partisans . The Germans carried out a major anti - partisan operation in early June , Sturmwind I ( German for ' Storm - Wind ' ) . This operation , however , failed to defeat the partisans , who broke out of an encirclement in the Janów Forests ( " Lasy Janowskie " ) ( according to some estimates , Germans suffered higher casualties than the resistance in Sturmwind I ) . Some partisan units moved to the Solska Wilderness and the Germans decided to start another operation - Sturmwind II - to eliminate them . By 15 June most of the Forest was surrounded ; the partisan leaders assumed that the Germans would not enter it , but were proven wrong when on 21 June , after artillery and air bombardment , German forces started to advance . On the 22 June the Armia Ludowa unit , numbering about 700 , broke through the German lines in the area of Górecko Kościelne village , suffering heavy casualties . Soviet partisans under Lt . Col . Nikolai Prokopiuk - about 1900 people - tried to break free on the night of 22 to 23 June around Hamernia village ; they failed , but succeeded the following night in the area near the Borowiec and Huta Różaniecka villages . Although Polish and Soviet commanders met , they were unable to agree on a common plan ( various sources blame different sides ) . By then only the combined Armia Krajowa and Bataliony Chłopskie units under Major Edward Markiewicz " Kalina " - about 550 people - remained within the closing circle . The partisans were exhausted , pushed into a swampy area , 6 by 4 km , between the Tanew and Sopot rivers . The commander of the remaining partisans , Mjr . Markiewicz , suffered a nervous breakdown , transferred his command to Rotmistrz Mieczysław Rakoczy " Miecz " , and committed suicide . Rakoczy in turn transferred the command to Lt . Konrad Bartoszewski " Wir " who decided that the partisans ' only hope was to break through along the Sopot river toward Biłgoraj . Opposing forces . Polish resistance : German forces : Battle . On the night of 24 to 25 June , the units of Lt . Jan Kryk " Topola " ( AK ) and Lt . Jozef Mazur " Skrzypik " ( BCh ) attempted to break through the road near the villages Fryszarka and Borowiec , but were stopped by the German forces and dispersed ; both commanders died . In the meantime , the main partisan forces reached the village of Osuchy near the Sopot river . On the dawn of 25 June , they launched an assault on the German line . The Germans , however , had fortified their position ; the partisans of Mjr . Stanisław Basaj " Ryś " encountered a minefield , and found themselves under German machine gun fire . Soon , the Germans received artillery support . Finding themselves outgunned , the partisans retreated , suffering heavy casualties . The partisan unit under Lt . Jan Kędra " Błyskawica " and Lt . Antoni Wróbel " Burza " managed to break through the first German line , only to encounter a second one 300m beyond it . The most elite of the Polish units - the company of Lt . Adam Haniewicz " Woyna " - broke through the second line , but was stopped at a third line . Running out of manpower and supplies , the partisans were forced to retreat , and were further pushed back by a German counterattack . The unit of Lt . Józef Stegliński " Cord " broke through all three lines but was then engaged and destroyed by German reinforcements . The unit of Lt . Konrad Bartoszewski " Wir " , fighting nearby , did however manage to break cleanly out of the German encirclement in the confusion of the battle . The remaining Polish units were forced back into the encirclement ; eventually , all these partisans surrendered or were killed . Aftermath . It is estimated that about 400 out of the 1 , 200 - strong partisan forces that engaged the Germans on 24 – 25 June were killed ( approximately half of the Polish losses during the Sturmwind II ) . Most of the rest surrendered ; some were executed on the spot , and many were tortured for additional information about the resistance ; survivors were sent to Nazi concentration camps . Nonetheless , while the Germans had weakened the partisans , they had failed to eliminate them . In July the Polish resistance carried out the country - wide Operation Tempest , and in the Zamość region the town of Szczebrzeszyn and Zamość itself were freed by the partisans . Soon afterward , the Soviet Lublin - Brest Offensive cleared out the Germans from most of the region . Currently in Osuchy there is a military cemetery dedicated to the partisans who fell in the battle .