• Source: 1st Mechanised Division (Poland)

The 1st "Warsaw" Mechanised Division (Polish: 1 Warszawska Dywizja Zmechanizowana) was a mechanized infantry formation of the Polish Land Forces that existed from 1955 until September 1, 2011. During this entire period, the division was headquartered in Legionowo. The unit stood down in 2011 as a result of reorganizations in the Polish Army.
The division was formed in 1955 on the basis of the 1st Infantry Division of the Polish People's Army. This precursor division had existed since 1943 and saw service on the Eastern Front of the Second World War as a Soviet-controlled allied formation, part of the Polish Armed Forces in the East.




Structure


The 1955 reorganization equipped the division with armored personnel carriers and medium tanks. The division was initially structured and quartered as:

Division Headquarters and 37th Headquarters Company - Legionowo
1st Mechanised Infantry Regiment - Legionowo
2nd Mechanised Infantry Regiment - Skierniewice
3rd Mechanised Infantry Regiment - Ciechanów
33rd Medium Tank Regiment - Zambrów
1st Howitzer Artillery Regiment - Garwolin
4th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion - Skierniewice
5th Rocket Artillery Battalion - Legionowo
14th Reconnaissance Battalion - Zambrów
42nd Motor Transport Battalion - Legionowo
53rd Medical Battalion - Skierniewice
96th Sapper Company - Legionowo
110th Signal Company - Legionowo
After the fall of communism in Poland, the units of the army were organized to reflect NATO practice. Thus, by 2009, the division was structured and quartered as:

Division Headquarters and 1st Headquarters Battalion - Legionowo
1st "Warsaw" Armoured Brigade - Warsaw
3rd Legion Mechanised Infantry Brigade - Lublin
21st Podhale Rifles Brigade - Rzeszów
1st Artillery Regiment - Ciechanów
15th Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment - Gołdap
1st Reconnaissance Battalion - Siedlce
15th Sapper Battalion - Orzysz
1st Supply Battalion - Legionowo
1st Maintenance Battalion - Łomża
1st Chemical Company - Siedlce
The division provided cadres for rotations V and IX for the Polish component of Multi-National Division Central South.
Notably, under the 2009 organization, the units of the division were geographically much farther from one another than the original deployments of 1955.
For most of this period, the division was subordinated to the Warsaw Military District. As part of ongoing reorganization of the Polish Army, the 1st Mechanised Division stood down on September 1, 2011.




References






Sources


Jerzy Kajetanowicz, Wojsko Polskie w Układzie Warszawskim 1955-1985, 7 November 2009. On-line here
This article is based on the Polish Wikipedia article of the same name as it existed on October 30, 2011.

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