Westerplatte

przegladdziennikarski.pl 2 weeks ago

It would be hard to find any publications concerning the Polish defence war in 1939, besides called the September Campaign, in which the name Westerplatte would not be mentioned. After all, the defence of this Polish enclave in the Free City of Gdańsk did not find the destiny of the Polish war in 1939, but it had a symbolic dimension showing Poles' heroism in defence recently, due to the fact that only 20 years earlier regained independence.

After the revival of the state after the partitions, Poland gained access to the Baltic but did not have any crucial seaport. Therefore, by decision of the League of Nations in 1924, Poland was handed over to the peninsula on the Gulf of Gdańsk, at the mouth of the Dead Vistula, within the Free City of Gdańsk, but excluded from its territory, to the transhipment base of imported goods, including weapons and ammunition for the Polish army. The dimension of this peninsula was about 2 kilometres and the width was 300 to 500 metres.

In 1926, a WP defender unit was transported by sea on board the ORP trawler "Mewa" with initially 22 soldiers, including 2 officers. In addition, further soldiers and civilian workers were active in handling warehouses and premises of the Military Transit Component. There were expected to be 88 soldiers. At a later time, in the face of tensions in Europe, 4 reinforced concretes were erected worth it, resistant to explosions, with firing holes.

German aggression took over large areas of Poland and in many places Polish soldiers sacrificed themselves – fighting frequently the overwhelming forces of the enemy, for example over the Vistula River, it is Westerplatte that remains 1 of the most recognizable symbols of the Polish war in 1939 and is inactive the subject of interest, as evidenced by the large attendance of visitors to the erstwhile Polish Transit Component. Visitors ask the guides mainly about Polish soldiers defending this facility, how many of them there were, how many died and what happened to them after surrender, etc. They would besides like to know whether it is actual that Captain Franciszek Dąbrowski was actually in charge of the fight, as Major Commander Henryk Sucharski suffered a intellectual breakdown, while referring to the feature film, the second and controversial 1 about Westerplatte. Many of us most likely remember a fragment of the poem by Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński, that “Four soldiers from Westerplatte went to heaven”, which may have suggested that soldiers defending the Military Transit Component died all single one.

There were many discrepancies – from the actual number of Westerplatte crew on September 1, where they were recruited and about their postwar fates. Only in 2023, 3 historians from the planet War II Museum: W. Samól, J. Tuliszek and S. Rut carefully calculated that 207 soldiers and civilian workers were Westerplatte's crew on September 1, 1939. civilian workers were 26 and they besides had military training. The names of the defenders of the Ingredients were besides established. The Museum on Westerplatte is now a branch of the planet War II Museum. Incidentally, 1 of the German archivists, examining the papers that were placed in the hands of the Wehrmacht, stated 280.

Westerplatte's crew as standard counted 88 soldiers, so many determined the League of Nations. Due to the increase in tension between Germany and the Free City of Gdańsk and Poland, the Polish garrison was secretly reinforced until the period of August 1939. The annexation of the Lithuanian Klaipeda through the 3rd Reich in March 1939 became an alarm signal. By expanding the military presence of the Ingredients, various ulteriors have been used, specified as the “civilization” of any positions, specified as shoemaker, tailor, gunsmith or hairdresser. These functions were performed by soldiers, so they were replaced by civilian workers, and soldiers remained in the depot anyway. besides “smuggling” soldiers from Gdynia to Westerplatte by sea utilizing tugs. It was akin with weapon equipment and artillery equipment. The Polish defender unit on Westerplatte could not own dense device guns, let alone artillery. utilizing various fortels, in addition to standard equipment with Mauser rifles and pistols, the weapons included device guns, including 16 dense and 25 light and handguns, 2 anti-tank guns 37 mm Boforsa, 1 field cannon 75 mm and 4 mortars 81 mm, and hand grenades. There were 25,000 rounds per cc, 5,000 rounds per cc, and 300 rounds per cc. In addition, many earthworks were carried out, mainly trenches with fronts that were masked, nests for device guns were besides prepared, and the entrance to the peninsula was secured with metallic mesh of tempered steel and "Spanish goats" as an anti-tank dam. This is why the ingredient's defence was effective for almost a week, besides considering excellent training and advanced morale of officers and soldiers.

The service on Westerplatte was treated as a military mission outside of the state, so the crew of the Components were selected reasonably rigorously. This “first-line” facility was directed to soldiers with advanced morale, efficient, skillful, military and tactical training, as well as cognition of the handling of various types of tiny arms, even anti-tank guns and mortars. In addition, soldiers sent to the Ingredients should be at least 170 cm tall, they had to be Polish nationalities and be single, service at least a year in the military and were besides suggested to be Roman Catholic. While serving outside the state, officers and soldiers received a peculiar addition to the wage and could usage the canteen where they bought duty-free goods. For example, Major Sucharski's wage was PLN 1400. (at that time the major's wage was about 800 PLN) besides strict requirements were placed before civilian workers who had to have military training and be WP reservists.

Food was besides good, dairy cows and pigs and vegetables were besides grown in the Ingredients. Since Polish soldiers were unwelcomely seen in the Free City of Gdańsk, and to Gdynia was rather far away, they were trying to make their time free on their own beach and swimming on canoes.

Soldiers were recruited from multiple units, and the core of the last shift was soldiers, including their commander Major Henry Sucharski of the 4th Legion Infantry Regiment of Kielce, which was then commanded by Colonel Sigismund Berling. The command of this regiment was liable for the appointment and preparation of a spring change of the Military Transit Component. peculiar guidelines of the Main Staff of the Polish Academy of Sciences regulated the form of training and selection of people for this mission crucial for Poland. At the time of the launch of the port in Gdynia, the transshipment warehouse dealt to a tiny degree with what it was intended for, but having and maintaining the Polish enclave in Gdańsk was very important. The last crew reinforced respective top soldiers from the erstwhile shift from the 5th Legion Infantry Regiment of Vilnius. 15 soldiers from the 2nd Marine firearm Battalion were besides sent to Westerplatte as well as the Navy of the Republic of Poland seconded 2 sub-commissioners – mats, to operate a motorboat equipped with the Component.

In the head of the Main Inspectorate of Training and General Staff, the best soldiers – specialists – should go to the Military Transit Component on Westerplatte. This included officers. There were besides very carefully selected civilian workers, only military-trained reservists. Therefore, in September 1939, a truly good crew fought at Westerplatte. The above mentioned historians from the planet War II Museum besides confirmed the number of 15 fallen Westerplats, and this number should be added to the radiotelegraphist Kazimierz Rasiński, most likely murdered by Germans already in captivity.

In autumn 2019, a squad of workers, including archaeologists from the planet War II Museum, found 9 dead Polish soldiers, 7 of whom were identified. This was worked by IPN prosecutors from Gdańsk and geneticists from the Pomeranian Medical University from Szczecin. recognition of the another 2 bodies failed. Furthermore, 1 of the fallen, Fr Andrzej Kowalczyk, whose remains were transferred from Westerplatte in 1963 to the municipal cemetery in Srebrzysk, was solemnly transferred again to Westerplatte. All 9 of the dead were buried in November 2022 at the fresh WP Soldiers Cemetery on Westerplatte, where they rested alongside their commander – Major Henryk Sucharski. Even before the death of Sucharski, at the Ancona casino where Major stayed after his release from German captivity, there was an accidental encounter between Major Sucharski and Melchior Wańkowicz, a war correspondent in 2. General Anders Corps. For Wańkowicz it was a unique chance to conduct an interview with the hero of September fights and compose about it in a book about Westerplatte. Major Sucharski shortly died in 1946 and was buried at the Polish War Cemetery in Casamissima. His remains in 1971 were exhumed and brought from Italy to Gdańsk. This was in the days of Gierek, who wanted to gain popularity among Poles. Major Sucharski's ashes were exhibited at the Artus Court, where the cavings worshipped him, and was later buried at Westerplatte. Major's ceremony ceremony had a very solemn character and was held in full accord with the military ceremony: with the honorary company WP, banners, orchestra and hall of honor. The ceremony was attended by then Minister of National Defence Gen. Wojciech Jaruzelski, who gave a commemorative speech.

The fates of the Westerplats were different, the majority were sent to prisoner camps, the officers went to the camps – including Major Henryk Sucharski, whom German general Friedrich Eberhardt allowed to keep the sabre in captivity, Captain Franciszek Dąbrowski, Captain Doctor Mieczysław Sielny, Lieutenant Leon Pajak, Lieutenant Stefan Grodecki, Lieutenant Zdzisław Kręgielski, Chor. Jan Gryczman, and the officers and ranks to the stalags. The civilian workers of the military did not enjoy the same legal protection as the soldiers, even those who were mobilized just before the war broke out. These men were transferred from the stalags to the Stutthof civilian Prisoners' Oboz, which was not then an extermination camp. This happened to 9 Westerplatte prisoners, and 4 did not last the war. Another group were prisoners of war who tried to escape respective times, but were captured and sentenced to concentration camps. After being liberated from captivity, more than 40 Westerplats continued to participate in further fighting with Germany, in the ranks of the Polish Armed Forces in the West, as well as in the formations of the Polish Army later called "people", as well as in the opposition movement, mostly in the AK and even in the Red Army. The postwar service of the Polish Army was undertaken by Captain M. He was weak and promoted to major, but was bullied by Military Information, and Captain F. Dąbrowski served in the Navy and advanced to Lieutenant Commander. The destiny of Westerplats reflects all archetypes of Polish destiny during planet War II. The postwar fates of Westerplaters are small known and documented. That is why large words of appreciation belong to the late editor Stanislaw Górnikiewicz, who in the times of the Polish People's Republic not only surrounded the "mother care" of the inactive legendary defenders of the Polish Transit Component on Westerplatte, but even presided over the ellipse of Westerplats in the framework of the erstwhile Union of Fighters for Freedom and Democracy (ZBOWiD). Her work first published by the Maritime Publishing home in the book “Lows of Westerplatte” allowed to verify the list of Westerplattists and destruct people who tried to impersonate and had nothing to do with the protection of the Component. In addition, Mrs Górnikiewicz described the post-war fates of many of them. Earlier, on August 30, 1881, she was co-organizer of the lofty ceremony, at the mass grave of the fallen Westerplatians, at the ashes of their commander Major Sucharski, in which the priest Bishop Lech Kaczmarek celebrated the Mass and solemnly consecrated the cross, reimposed on the graves of the fallen heroes, and earlier removed. This was already possible, due to the fact that it continued at that time “the carnival of Solidarity” before the martial law.

I had the pleasance of getting to know and working together with Stanisława Górnikiewicz. In September 1984, in Gdańsk, central public celebrations were held on the 45th anniversary of the Nazi German attack on Poland. The main ceremonies were held at Polish Post and at Westerplatte. At that time, there was besides a convention of the Westerplats inactive alive, as far as I remember, there were inactive about 80 of them. This convention was co-organised by Mrs. Górnikiewicz, with the very large aid of the army, specifically "Blue Berets". Veterans from Westerplatte were accommodated in military facilities and ate meals at a military casino, at the Garrison Club at Słowackiego Street. At the time, I served in the office of the 7th Desert Division in Gdańsk and commander of the Brig-Gen division. Henryk Szafranski appointed me to fly for the commander of the Gdańsk garrison all matters related to the stay of participants and which was secured by the Division. Then I met Mrs. Górnikiewicz and talked to her and many heroes about whom the celebrated announcer of Polish Radio Tadeusz Bocheński started all war message in the first days of September 1939 with the words: "And Westerplatte is inactive fighting" After the reunion, Mrs Górnikiewicz gave me her book “Lions of Westerplatte” with a dedication, and then I asked the convention participants to sign this book, which they did. It's just besides bad they didn't all sign up.

Marek Skolimowski