The day's events began with ceremonies led by Defence Minister Mariusz Błaszczak in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in central Warsaw and a religious service at a church in the southern city of Katowice.
President Andrzej Duda attended the service, along with a host of government officials including Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, as well as parliamentary leaders and military men.
After the mass, the president laid a wreath at a monument in Katowice in honour of Poles who fought a series of three armed insurgencies from 1919 to 1921 to break away from Germany and join newly independent Poland.
The highlight of Armed Forces Day was a large-scale military parade in the city of Katowice.
Officials nationwide paid tribute to celebrated statesman and military leader Józef Piłsudski, who is viewed as the father of Polish independence.
August 15 marks Armed Forces Day in Poland, an annual celebration commemorating the victory over the Russian Bolsheviks in the 1920 Battle of Warsaw.
It is believed that the landmark battle, often described as the “Miracle of the Vistula,” saved Poland’s newly regained independence after the end of World War I and prevented the Bolshevik revolution from spreading into western Europe.
The battle, part of the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1921, was fought from August 12 to 25 in 1920 as Red Army forces commanded by Mikhail Tukhachevsky approached the Polish capital. Polish forces led by Marshal Józef Piłsudski counterattacked, forcing the Soviets to withdraw.
Around 4,500 Polish soldiers were killed, 10,000 went missing and 22,000 were wounded, compared with estimated Russian losses of 10,000 killed, 500 missing, 30,000 wounded and 66,000 taken prisoner.
The 1920 Battle of Warsaw has been listed among the most important battles that have decided the fate of the world.
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Source: IAR, PAP, TVP Info