Part Two: The Naval Battles of the German Army in the Polish Campaign

On August 25, 1939, the German Navy's old battleship Schleswig-Holstein made a "friendly visit" to the Free City of Danzig under the pretext of "commemorating the fallen soldiers of World War I." However, Captain Krechkamp was well aware of the true mission of this voyage—an order from Admiral Raeder, the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy: "After the initiation of the White Plan, destroy the Polish Navy; blockade the Polish coast, seal off its ports, and disrupt Poland's maritime shipping; ensure Germany's maritime security." Admiral Albrecht, Commander of the Eastern Theater of the German Navy and Chief of Naval Operations, instructed Krechkamp to anchor his warship in a favorable position near the West Prussia Fortress in the northern suburbs of Danzig, waiting for the moment of Y, the onset of war.

II. The War Preparations of Germany and Poland

In Gdynia, the Polish army was surrounded by the German forces in a confined area around the city and the Oksywie naval base. A Polish armored train conducted defensive operations along the outer ring railway of the city. The Polish defenders comprised various units, totaling over 7,500 personnel, equipped with 4 pieces of 105 mm artillery, 1 piece of 100 mm artillery, 15 pieces of 75 mm artillery, 9 pieces of 37 mm anti-aircraft/anti-tank guns, more than 10 mortars, and over 140 machine guns. Despite facing an overwhelming German encirclement, the Polish defenders in Gdynia held out until September 17, the infamous day when the Soviet Union participated in the partition of Poland. The last Polish combat unit in the Gdynia area—a platoon composed of landed sailors—finally surrendered. Poland suffered 1,500 casualties, with 3,500 wounded or missing. The losses on the German side were approximately similar to those of Poland.

At that time, the German Navy was divided into three combat groups: small gunboats and minesweepers blockaded the Danzig Bay; the destroyer fleet and torpedo boats were commanded by Vice Admiral Lüth, intercepting Polish and neutral merchant vessels and cargo ships off the Polish coastline; the cruiser fleet and approximately 10 submarines intercepted Polish warships and civilian vessels attempting to escape from the Baltic Sea along the line from Sweden to Pomerania. In addition, the battleship Schleswig was anchored at the entrance of the Danzig port canal, shelling Polish targets.

Two days before the outbreak of war, on August 30, 1939, Joseph Unrug, the Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Navy, received a top-secret telegram from the Naval Ministry in Warsaw: "Commence Operation Beijing." At 2:30 AM that day, the destroyers Błyskawica, Grom, and Burza secretly departed from the Gdynia naval base, heading towards the anchorage at Hel. By dusk, the three destroyers were sailing together, swiftly exiting the Baltic Sea, and at midnight sent a telegram to the Polish Naval Ministry: "We are traversing the Kattegat Strait." The German submarines U-31 and U-19 spotted these three destroyers in the Baltic Sea but did not launch an attack—war had not yet broken out. The three destroyers arrived at the naval base in Leith, Scotland, on the 31st. In the days prior, the Polish Navy's training ship Wilja and the sailing vessel Iskra also set sail for refuge in the United Kingdom.

On the eve of the outbreak of war, the strength of the Polish Navy was as follows

3. The first shot of World War II - the attack on Fort Westerplatte

With the conclusion of World War I and the downfall of the three authoritarian states of Germany, Austria, and Russia, the great and valiant Polish nation established an independent national state after more than 100 years of statelessness. The Polish people once again possessed their homeland—the Republic of Poland (historically referred to as the First Republic)

After the German forces captured Gdynia, General von Koblitz commanded a fierce assault on the Hel Peninsula, supported by the air force and navy. On September 21, the old battleship Schleswig-Holstein also arrived at Hel and, along with it, bombarded Polish positions. Additionally, the German navy deployed two gunnery training ships, two patrol boats, and an old torpedo boat, T-196, to participate in the bombardment of Hel. On September 25, Vice Admiral Herbert Schmutte ordered two battleships to conduct a large-scale bombardment of the Hel fortress and its surrounding areas to destroy the fortress's artillery positions. During the artillery battle, Schleswig-Holstein came under heavy counterfire and had to release smoke to escape. Schleswig-Holstein was hit twice but managed to retreat to Gdynia. However, one of its 280 mm shells destroyed a Polish 152 mm coastal artillery position, resulting in heavy casualties among Polish soldiers. On September 27, German forces attacked the stronghold at Czaplinek on the Hel Peninsula. In another naval artillery engagement, Schleswig-Holstein was subjected to a concentrated fire from Polish artillery at a distance of 14,000 meters. The first salvo missed, but the second salvo damaged its forward main turret. The damaged Schleswig-Holstein quickly withdrew from the battle under the cover of Schleswig-Holstein, and for the remainder of the war, it could only be used as an icebreaker and floating dormitory.

However, the Polish soldiers had not yet had the opportunity to celebrate their victory when a swarm of German aircraft arrived at Hel. During the air raid, the Gryf was hit again, igniting a fire on board, and all the ship's pumps failed. Fortunately, the mines on the ship had already been removed. After the German pilots dropped the hetushucomcom bombs, they returned to machine-gun the Polish sailors on the deck. With the German forces having already destroyed Poland's air power, the Polish warships received no aerial support, and the Polish sailors on board could only fire machine guns and rifles at the rampaging Ju-87s in the sky. By the afternoon, seeing that the fire was uncontrollable, Captain Hryhvytsky ordered the ship to be abandoned. At 1305, the Gryf ran aground and sank on the shallow beach of the Hel Peninsula. That afternoon, the German Air Force organized another air raid. The Witcher-class destroyer was hit at the bow, and the side of the ship was also damaged by a near miss, tearing a large gash in the armor belt. The next two bombs fell in the middle of the ship. With the violent explosions, one person was killed and 22 were injured. The Witcher began to sink, and Captain Walden also issued the order to abandon ship. The Polish sailors jumped into the water and swam towards the shore. Even after the Poles had abandoned ship, the German aircraft continued to fire on the Polish sailors in the water. In this attack, the Mewa minesweeper was also sunk. An hour later, German aircraft returned and sank the Haller gunboat.

On September 30, the German offensive experienced a brief pause. The Polish defenders seized this opportunity to swiftly detonate 10 tons of explosives, which had been dismantled from torpedo warheads, destroying two passages at the narrowest point and isolating the Hel Peninsula from the mainland. However, the ammunition and food supplies at Hel had already been exhausted, resulting in a loss of resources to continue the fight. Furthermore, Warsaw had fallen, the Polish government was detained by Romania, and the navy's vessels had either been lost or fled to Britain. The resistance at the Hel base and fortress had lost its military significance for the nationwide struggle of Poland; it was only out of national sentiment that Polish soldiers fought desperately to hold onto this last piece of territory of the Republic of Poland. On October 1, Admiral Józef Unrug, the Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Navy, ordered the Hel Fortress to cease resistance and led the soldiers to surrender. On October 1, Admiral Józef Unrug, the Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Navy, ordered the Hel Fortress to cease resistance and led the soldiers to surrender. At 11:00 on October 2, 1939, German troops entered the Hel base.

The Polish garrison stationed at the Westplatt Fortress consisted of 182 soldiers from the Polish 209th Infantry Regiment, equipped with 1 piece of 75 mm artillery, 2 pieces of 37 mm artillery, 4 pieces of 81 mm mortars, and 22 heavy machine guns. On the German side, there were 4 pieces of 280 mm artillery, 10 pieces of 150 mm artillery, and 4 pieces of 88 mm artillery

Seven, Epilogue

Bai Hai: W. Jasik, J. Kierkus, J. Marciniewski, J. Maj, S. Murzicz, J. Podczaski, S. Sowinski, K. Taube, M. Wojciechowski

The destroyers Blyskawica, Grom, and Burza arrived at Firth of Forth, Scotland, at 1300 hours on September 1, 1939. Following the outbreak of war, the United Kingdom provided the Polish Navy with two light cruisers (Conrad, Dragon), three destroyers (Piorun, Garland, Orkan), three escort destroyers (Krakowiak, Kujawiak, Slazak), three submarines (Sokol, Dzik, Jastrzab), and ten torpedo boats (S1 - S10). Under the leadership of Admiral Świrski, a new Polish Navy was established in London, participating in famous battles such as the encirclement of the battleship Bismarck, the encirclement of the Scharnhorst, Atlantic convoys, and the Normandy landings, sinking 11 Axis surface vessels, 8 submarines, and over 30 aircraft.

Polish historians recall the naval and land battles of the entire Polish Navy, stating: "... In September 1939, the sailors of the Polish Navy wrote a glorious chapter in the history of the Polish nation. They faced such a formidable enemy, without the assistance of allies, isolated from their fellow comrades, and with nothing but courage as their advantage; none of this diminished their indomitable fighting spirit. The powerful and ruthless Nazis did not defeat them. They ultimately laid down their arms, not out of cowardice or a desire to survive, but entirely due to obeying orders from their superiors. They faced such a formidable enemy, without the assistance of allies, isolated from their fellow comrades, and with nothing but courage as their advantage; none of this diminished their indomitable fighting spirit. The powerful and ruthless Nazis did not defeat them. They ultimately laid down their arms, not out of cowardice or a desire to survive, but entirely due to obeying orders from their superiors. The white and red flag of the Polish Navy will forever fly over the seven seas"

After the Mewa was sunk by bombing, the remaining 5 Polish minesweepers were commanded by Rear Admiral Potzkowski to provide support to the Polish garrison in the Gdynia area. When the German forces besieged the Polish stronghold at Oksywie Hill, three of the minesweepers shelled the German positions on September 12. During the night of the 13th and 14th, these three minesweepers laid 60 mines 4 nautical miles southeast of the Hel base. On the 15th, all 5 minesweepers jointly bombarded the German positions north of Oksywie Hill. On the same day, German aircraft sank the minesweeper Jaskolka, the hydrographic survey vessel Pomorzanin, and a tugboat, while damaging the minesweepers Rybitwa and Czapla. The artillery from these warships was also dismantled and installed at the Hel base. The remaining minesweepers were all transferred from a small fishing port near Gdynia to Hel. The artillery from these warships was also dismantled and installed at the Hel base. The remaining minesweepers were all transferred from a small fishing port near Gdynia to Hel

Since the ancient times of the Hanseatic League, the Polish nation has had a long maritime history. During the reign of King Sigismund II Augustus in the 16th century, the first Polish navy was established. The newly reborn Poland quickly began to form its own navy. A large number of Polish officers from the former Tsarist Russia, Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Germany responded to the call to join the navy. The first two ministers of the navy of the Polish Republic, Bogumił Nowotny and Kazimierz Porębski, came from the Austrian and Russian navies, respectively. The newly formed Polish navy ordered a cruiser, four destroyers, and several torpedo boats from Britain, but all were vetoed by Lloyd George. After coordination by the League of Nations, in 1921, the Polish navy acquired six old German torpedo boats, and soon purchased four minesweepers and several other small vessels from Finland and Denmark. By 1930, under the leadership of Minister of the Navy Świrski, Poland ordered two destroyers, Wicher (Hurricane) and Burza (Storm), as well as three submarines from French shipyards, each costing 12,750,000 francs. In 1936, Poland ordered two destroyers, Grom (Thunder) and Blyskawica (Lightning), from Britain, and two submarines, Orzel and Sep, from the Netherlands. Additionally, in the 1930s, Poland also built several minesweepers.

Auxiliary Vessels: Training Ship Wilja, Sailing Training Ship Iskra, Hydrographic Survey Vessel Pomorzanin

In September, the Polish inland river fleet also provided artillery support to the ground troops. On September 17, the Soviet Union invaded Poland. The desperate sailors of the Polish inland river fleet, along with young cadets from the Polish Naval Academy, scuttled their own ships, retreated ashore, and formed the "Polish Special Legion" to engage in combat against the Soviet and German invaders. It was not until October 6 that this force finally ceased resistance.

On the eve of the outbreak of war, the naval forces of Poland and Germany were starkly imbalanced. In comparison to the Polish Navy, the German Navy at that time possessed 2 battlecruisers, 2 old battleships, 3 pocket battleships, 8 cruisers, 17 destroyers, 20 torpedo boats, and 57 submarines. Moreover, with Germany controlling the exits of the Baltic Sea and holding the majority of the southern coastline, Polish naval vessels had no chance of surviving in combat against the overwhelmingly superior German Navy. To preserve its strength, Admiral Świrski, the Polish Minister of the Navy (as shown in the image), planned to order the main naval vessels to seek refuge in the United Kingdom and France on the eve of the war's outbreak. The British Admiralty representative, Colonel Lawrence, also suggested to Poland the option of retreating to British bases. The escape plan for Polish vessels was named "Operation Peking."

6 minesweepers: Jaskolka, Mewa, Rybitwa, Czajka, Zuraw, Czapla

That night, after the air raid in Germany had concluded, Polish soldiers returned to the stranded and sunken warship, racing against time to dismantle all usable weapons: the three twin 120 mm guns from the Gryf, the four 75 mm guns from the Haller and Piłsudski gunboats, and all machine guns. These weapons were installed at the Hel Fortress. The remaining surface vessels of the Polish Navy had all sunk, but their sailors had all transferred to land to continue the fight. The white and red Polish naval flag still proudly flew over Hel.

Defend the Polish coast

4 vessels: Wicher, Burza, Grom, Blyskawica

The main naval base of Poland is located at the Port of Gdynia. At the tip of Hel Peninsula, the Hel Base was constructed, along with fortifications and a fortress, equipped with 4 units of 152 mm Swedish Bofors coastal artillery.

Despite the near-total loss of the Polish Navy's surface vessels, the Polish submarines remain a formidable deterrent force. At the onset of the war, the Polish Navy deployed all its submarines to sea. Due to the significant threat posed by Polish submarines to German cruisers and other warships, the German Navy ordered its cruisers to withdraw from the eastern Baltic Sea. Simultaneously, the German Navy launched a thorough search and hunt for the Polish submarines. On September 2 and 7, German anti-submarine destroyers dropped 42 depth charges on the Wilk, damaging its hull. The continuous bombing of the Hel base by the German Air Force destroyed any hope for repairs to the Wilk there. Under these circumstances, the Polish Navy Command ordered it to proceed to the United Kingdom or Sweden. The commander, Major Krawczyk, decided to head for the United Kingdom. On September 15, the Wilk sent a telegram to the Polish Navy Command, which had retreated to the Hel base: "We have passed through the Sound Strait. We are accelerating towards England. Poland will never perish!" The Sep submarine also endured multiple attacks from German aircraft and warships, reporting to the Navy Command on the 15th: "Diesel engine damaged. Unable to continue fighting. Preparing to head for Stockholm." On September 15, the Wilk sent a telegram to the Polish Navy Command, which had retreated to the Hel base: "We have passed through the Sound Strait. We are accelerating towards England. Poland will never perish!" The Sep submarine also endured multiple attacks from German aircraft and warships, reporting to the Navy Command on the 15th: "Diesel engine damaged. Unable to continue fighting. Preparing to head for Stockholm." The Rys, battered and with fuel and supplies nearly exhausted, also sought refuge in Sweden on September 18. The Zbik submarine escaped the German Navy's attacks after the outbreak of war, patrolling the Baltic Sea for 25 days without finding any valuable targets, and also sought refuge in Sandhamn, Sweden.

Other prisoner of war camps: M. Blonski, T. Braminski, R. Czeczot, W. Foldzinski, B. Gonera, M. Januszewski, E. Kowalinski, A. Kreisler, L. Maslocha, W. Nabrodzki, W. Szczepanowski, M. Uniejewski, A. Wasowicz, T. Ziolkowski, W. Gierdzielewski, F. Sokolowski, J. Zdeb, B. Mikulowski, W. Galinski, A. Kasztelan, S. Ziolkowski, W. Gierdzielewski, F. Sokolowski, J. Zdeb, B. Mikulowski, W. Galinski, A. Kasztelan, S. Stokwisz

1. Navy of the Republic of Poland

5. Submarine Warfare

3 gunboats: Mazur, General Haller, Komendant Pilsudski

1 mine-laying ship: Gryf

The Hel Peninsula, located in the northern part of the Danzig Bay, served as the last fortress of the Polish Army and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, as well as the final base of the Polish Navy. It is equipped with naval warehouses, shipyards, oil depots, and docks. The stationed forces consist of 2,000 Army personnel and 3,500 Navy personnel. The armament includes 4 pieces of 152 mm artillery, 4 pieces of 105 mm artillery, 2 pieces of 100 mm artillery, 8 pieces of 75 mm artillery, as well as 3 pieces of 120 mm artillery and 4 pieces of 75 mm artillery dismantled from warships. The commander is Vice Admiral Józef.

After the Soviet occupation of Poland, a large number of captured Polish officers, soldiers, priests, nurses, and civilians were executed by shooting or by means of scuttling ships in Katyn and other locations, including naval personnel and military academy students. Below is a list of some of the victims among them

6. Capture the Haier Fortress

Inland River Fleet: 44 vessels including gunboats and other combat ships, totaling 1,100 tons; auxiliary ships amounting to 3,670 tons

The heroic deeds of the Polish Navy will forever be etched in the annals of world naval history

At 04:17 on September 1, 1939, just 28 minutes before the commencement of the "White Plan," the battleship Schleswig-Holstein fired its four main guns at the Westerplatte fortress, bombarding Polish barracks and positions located 600 meters away. The first shot of World War II was fired here. Over the next six years, all of Europe would be ravaged and poisoned under such artillery fire. The Polish barracks and positions located 600 meters away were bombarded. The first shot of World War II was fired here. Over the next six years, all of Europe would be ravaged and poisoned under such artillery fire.

5 submarines: Wilk, Zbik, Rys, Orzel, Sep