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The Battle of Żarnów was fought on September 16, 1655 between forces of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth commanded by John II Casimir and forces of the Swedish Empire commanded by Charles X Gustav. The result was a Swedish victory. == Background == Swedish army captured Warsaw in late July 1655, after the Polish capital had been abandoned by king John II Casimir. Soon afterwards, the Swedes began chasing Polish troops, which retreated southwards. On September 9, near Inowłódz, a unit under Stefan Czarniecki attacked Swedish rear guard of 500, commanded by George Forgell. Poles managed to kill some 200 Swedes, but this did not halt the advance of the invaders. Swedish army continued its march southwards, capturing and burning the towns of Inowłódz, Drzewica and Odrzywół. On September 12, the siege of Opoczno began. The town, lacking modern fortifications, quickly capitulated, and was almost completely destroyed, with only 20 houses left intact. Similar fate awaited other local towns - in Drzewica, only 21 houses remained, while in Odrzywół - only 22. Local residents were shaken by the barbarity of the Swedish invaders, as northwestern corner of Lesser Poland had not experienced such vast destruction since the 13th century Mongol invasion of Poland. In early September 1655, Polish forces loyal to John II Casimir concentrated near Wolborz. Charles Gustav decided to confront them, leaving Warsaw on September 12. Polish units in Wolborz consisted mostly of nobility Levée en masse from Mazovia and northern Lesser Poland, which was no match for experienced Swedish mercenaries. Since the morale among the Poles was low, John Casimir planned to withdraw towards Kraków. The nobility disagreed with this plan, demanding to fight the invaders near its homes. On September 15, the Royal Crown army and Levée en masse units, altogether numbering some 11,000, reached Żarnów, where Polish king decided to personally face Charles Gustav. Swedish army was of similar strength, but with more infantry and 40 artillery pieces, versus 6 Polish cannons. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Battle of Żarnów」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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