Tartaren

(I will not even try to present the complicated history of this region - please refer to other sources to get acquainted with the history of Duchy of Prussia / East Prussia, particularly the Northern Wars period).

Battle of Warsaw 1656 - King Charles Gustav in skirmish with the Tatar troops of Subchan Gazi aga,
painted by Johann Phillip Lemke (1631-1711).

At the beginning of October 1656 strong Polish-Lithuanian-Tatar forces led by Field Hetman Wincenty Gosiewski left for East Prussia to crush the Swedish-Brandenburgian troops stationed there. The Polish troops, estimated around 12000-13000 cavalry (which besides Tatars included Lithuanian and Polish troops - both professional soldiers and levy in mass), forded the Narew River in Łomża or Wizna and headed for Ełk.
8th October 1656 marked the Battle of Prostki (some 130 km east of Witówko).
At the news of incoming Polish forces, General Georg Friedrich of Waldeck moved out from Wąsosz and led his 2500 cavalry and 1000 Prussian levy in mass to camp north of the village of Prostki, on the east bank of the River Ełk near a bridge he intended to defend. He also called for Bogusław Radziwiłł and his 800 cavalry stationed in the nearby Rajgród.
The news of Gosiewski's troops also reached General Wallenrodt and Colonel Josias of Waldeck, who were stationed a few days' march away from Ełk. They rushed to help, but only 2 infantry regiments and 6 cannons managed to get there on time (about 1000 men).
Early in the morning on 8th October, the Tatars and a part of Lithuanian troops reached Prostki two hours' march earlier than the core of Polish forces. Outnumbering the enemy, Gosiewski tried to lure the Brandenburgian troops from beyond the river and crush them with his main forces while sending Tatars to intercept Wallenrodt's army marching from Ełk.
A simulated retreat tricked the Brandenburgians who crossed the Ełk River. At the news of Tatars crossing the river north of Prostki, Waldeck decided to send Bogusław Radziwiłł's troops to prevent Tatars from cutting off Swedish reinforcements.
At that time, Waldeck issued an order for all his forces to return beyond the river, regroup and join with incoming help, however the core of Gosiewski's troops flanked and pinned the enemy to the river. A part of Brandenburgian forces and cannons managed to escape to the left bank and further beyond River Ełk's tributary and got in formation again.
Having crossed the river and captured the camp, the Lithuanians and a part of Tatar forces struck from behind and decimated still engaged in battle Radziwiłł's troops. Radziwiłł himself was taken prisoner.
The remaining enemy forces were shattered and General Waldeck had a narrow escape. Some of the Brandenburgian troops luckily escaped to the east and south-east as the Lithuanians were too busy looting captured enemy supplies.
Waldeck managed to flee with 500 men and Wallenrodt's infantry, constantly harassed by the Tatars and exhausted by several days' march, was defeated near Ełk by Gosiewski's cavalry.

This is when the most important, from our point of view, part of the story begins. After the battle, Hetman Gosiewski and Sub-Khan Agha Gazi got into an argument over who should keep their notable prisoner - Bogusław Radziwiłł. Subchan Gazi aga finally had to yield to Gosiewski's demands and hand Radziwiłł over. Vexed and angry he decided to return to Crimea.
One way or the other, Gosiewski's troops marched on to Lithuania and Samogitia, while the Tatars, before heading home, went in plundering south-eastern Prussia. Until the beginning of 1657, about 2000 horsemen (probably fewer taking into account the losses they had suffered) were able to ravage a vast area burning it down, looting and taking the locals in Tatar captivity.
They did not miss the opportunity to plunder "our area" and pillaged the nearby villages of Warchały, Narty, Jedwabno, Szuć and many more. Witówko had been spared just because it was founded in 1701, some 45 later.
The losses in local population were so severe that, as the records have it, even long after the Tatar raid about half of the fields lied fallow; e.g. Warchały returned to its previous population some 80-90 years later.

Heading back home to Crimea, the unleashed Subchan Gazi aga's troops plundered Podlachia as well (the Wizna Land and the Rajgród County). Although Podlachia was in fact a friendly, Polish territory, a wealthy Podlachian village on the Tatar's way apparently made him easily forget about such petty details.

In longer perspective the Tatar activity did not serve Polish interest well, since it triggered the introduction of German settlers in place of slaughtered or abducted local population.