News
Fallen Polish defenders of the Military Transit Depot on Westerplatte. Rifleman Jan Czywil
In today's article from the #WesterplatteHistory series, we would like to discuss the issue of post-war awarding of Virtuti Militari orders to the soldiers of Westerplatte.
Over the years, especially during periods of increased interest in the topic of Westerplatte, new, unverified, and therefore presumed Westerplatte defenders have emerged. None of the surviving archival documents confirm the presence of these individuals on the peninsula in September 1939.
IN THE NEAR FUTURE, CONSTRUCTION WORK WILL BEGIN AIMING TO COMPLETE A NEW FORM OF CEMETERY ON WESTERPLATTE. ALL IDENTIFIED POLISH DEFENDERS WHO FELL ON THE TERRITORY OF THE MILITARY TRANSIT DEPOT ON WESTERPLATTE IN SEPTEMBER 1939 WILL BE BURIED THERE.
The outbreak of World War II in the spring of 1939 led to the arrival of a new guard platoon, deployed by the 2nd Infantry Division of the Legions. This platoon would become the last officially stationed on the grounds of the Military Transit Depot on Westerplatte (MTD).
The Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk, in cooperation with the Polish Army sappers, has been systematically clearing the area of the Military Transit Depot (MTD) of explosive and hazardous materials since 2020. Archaeological supervision accompanies these ongoing efforts.
We encourage you to become acquainted with the publication "Sonderfahndungsbuch Poland. Special Book of the Wanted in Poland" (Introduction and Compilation by Grzegorz Bębnik), which is available for purchase in our museum shop.
On June 27th of this year, the director of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk - Dr. hab. Grzegorz Berendt, and the director of the Institute of Road and Bridge Research - Dr. Eng. Mariusz Urbański, signed an agreement on cooperation between the two institutions.
On June 22nd, 2023, aboard the Nova Star ferry, an agreement of partnership was signed between the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk and Polska Żegluga Bałtycka SA (Polferries). This collaboration marks another initiative to popularize historical knowledge about the world's largest armed conflict.