Battle of Siemiatycze
1863 CE.
Shown on the map at 52.427°, 22.863°.
The Battle of Siemiatycze was one of the largest battles of the January Uprising. It took place on February 6–7, 1863, in the town of Siemiatycze, Russian Empire (now Poland). Russian forces of some 2,500 under General Zachar Maniukin clashed with 4,000 Polish insurgents commanded by Walenty Lewandowski, Roman Roginski and Wladyslaw Cichorski-Zameczek. The battle was won by the Russians, and their victory had widespread implications in the area of Białystok, as the local population decided not to back the uprising. Siemiatycze, located in the Grodno Governorate, was one of the centers of the Polish patriotic movement between the years of 1860 – 1862. For unknown reasons, in 1862 a Russian garrison was withdrawn from the town, which allowed the Polish conspirators to act freely. The insurgents held their meetings in the palace of Duchess Anna Jablonowska, which also served as a storage of weapons, uniforms and food. The uprising itself did not begin here on January 22, 1863, but a few days later, when news of it reached the town. Due to the lack of a Russian garrison, insurgents from the whole area began to gather in Siemiatycze in early February.
Text from the Wikipedia article Battle of Siemiatycze, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.