Battle of Wołodarka The Battle of Wołodarka was a clash between the Polish Army and Siemion Budionnyi ' s First Cavalry Army . It took place May 29 – 31 , 1920 , near the Ukrainian village of Volodarka , in the course of the Polish Offensive on Kiev during the Polish - Soviet War . Before the battle . After the Polish Army captured Kiev on May 7 , 1920 , it became apparent that Józef Piłsudski ' s plan to fight a major battle against the Soviet armies in Ukraine had failed . The Soviets avoided battle , withdrew from all of right - bank Ukraine , and also gave up its capital . At the same time , Red Army headquarters ordered Siemion Budionnyi ' s battle - proven 1st Cavalry Army to relocate to Ukraine , begin an offensive , and outflank the overstretched Polish forces and Symon Petlura ' s small contingent of Ukrainian People ' s Republic troops . The Soviet advance finally began on May 26 , 1920 , with the Red 12th Army and Komdiv Iona Yakir ' s Corps crossing the Dnieper River and attacking the weakest part of the Polish defenses . The assault began the same day as the reorganization of the Polish forces in the area , and was initially aimed at the Polish 7th Infantry Division , the weakest and least battle - proven Polish unit . In addition , the Polish defenses were weakened by the relocation of a large part of the Polish forces to northern Polesie , where Piłsudski was preparing defenses against possible Russian attack . The following day , Budionnyi ' s 1st Cavalry Army joined the assault and attacked the Polish 6th Army ' s 13th Infantry Division . The Soviets planned to outflank the Poles and Ukrainians by forming two giant pincers advancing separately toward Bila Tserkva and Khvastiv . However , apart from the fresh and battle - proven units of the First Cavalry Army , the Russian commander of the Southwestern Front , Komandarm Alexander Ilyich Yegorov , had only the 12th Red Army , reinforced with fresh , untrained recruits , which had been badly beaten during the Soviet retreat from Ukraine only a month earlier . Due to this , the planned offensive could not begin on all fronts at once , and the mobility of the troops was limited . On May 29 , 1920 , the commander of the Polish 3rd Army ordered a counterattack . Lt . Col . Stefan Dąb - Biernacki ' s newly formed Wasilków Group was to attack the Yakir Group before it could attack the weakened 7th Division . The assault was successful , and the group — comprising a single ( 5th Legions ) infantry regiment , reinforced with one battalion of the elite 1st Legions Infantry Regiment , two artillery groups , and two cavalry squadrons — was able to take the Soviets by surprise . After the first assault , the Bolshevik 44th Rifle Division had lost one of its brigades and its entire staff , which delayed the Soviet assault on the Polish northern flank , thus securing it . However , at the same time the southern flank , between the Polish 3rd and 6th Armies , was threatened by the First Cavalry Army , which had crossed the Dnieper River and was concentrating near Uman . From there , it easily broke the thin line of Polish defenses and began a fast advance toward the strategically important railway node of Koziatyn . The battle . On May 29 , 1920 , the Soviet 1st Cavalry Army ' s 4th Cavalry Division attacked Polish positions at the villages of Volodarka , Berezno and Novokhvastiv . The area was defended by the Polish 44th Kresy Rifle Regiment , 16th Uhlan Regiment , elements of the 1st Uhlan Regiment , and the 7th Mounted Artillery Group . The Polish defenders formed strong pockets of resistance in the villages — a tactic that had shown itself to be superior to an attempted defense of an entire frontline . Due to this , the Soviet forces could not fully exploit their numerical advantage . In addition , poor command procedures caused the Soviet cavalry regiments to begin their attacks on the Polish positions in piecemeal fashion . Moreover , instead of simply bypassing the Polish positions , the Russian commander decided to attack them frontally . After the initial Cossack cavalry assault was repelled with heavy - machine - gun fire , the Polish cavalry counter - charged the Cossacks , and an intense hand - to - hand cavalry battle with sabre s ensued . Both sides suffered major casualties . For example , the Polish 1st Uhlan Regiment ' s third squadron lost 30 of 72 men and a similar number of horses . The Polish charge succeeded . When further reinforcements arrived and joined in , the Cossacks fled the field . After the Battle . The following day , the 3rd Don Cossack Cavalry Brigade , comprising Cossacks who had formerly served in Gen . Anton Denikin ' s White Russian army and then been forcibly drafted into the Red Army , approached Polish positions and , after brief negotiations , switched sides to fight on the Polish side against the Bolsheviks , under the name of Free Cossack Brigade . Colonel Vadim Yakovlev would remain the brigade ' s commander until it was disbanded in 1923 . Due to the Polish forces ' strong resistance and high mobility , the 1st Cavalry Army ' s assault was repelled . Only the 6th Cavalry Division managed to break through the lines of the Polish 13th Infantry Division , but was repulsed the following day ( May 31 , 1920 ) and , after three days of heavy fighting , forced to retreat to its initial positions near Human .