After the Battle of Grochow of February 1831 he superseded Prince Michał Gedeon Radziwiłł as commander in chief; but avoided all decisive operations as he hoped for the pacific intervention of the European powers in favor of Poland.

[1] In the beginning of March 1831 he even entered into correspondence with the Russian Field-marshal Hans Karl von Diebitsch, who was taken very ill both at Paris and London[ambiguous].

In the Battle of Ostrołęka (26 May 1831) he showed his usual valour and considerable ability, but after a bloody contest Diebitsch prevailed and Skrzynecki fell back upon Warsaw, where he demanded a reconstruction of the government and his own appointment as dictator.

[1] But public opinion was now running strongly against him and he was forced on 10 August, in his camp at Bolimów, to place his resignation in the hands of his successor, Henryk Dembiński.

Subsequently, he resided at Prague, but migrated in 1839 to Brussels, where he was made commander in chief of the Belgian army, an appointment he was forced to resign due to the combined and emphatic protests of Russia, Austria and Prussia; however he remained in Belgium in active service until 1848.