19391 September 1939 · Gdańsk

Westerplatte and the invasion of Poland

The German battleship Schleswig-Holstein firing on Westerplatte on 1 September 1939 — Archival image: Autor nieznany. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

At dawn the German battleship Schleswig-Holstein opened fire on the Polish military depot at Westerplatte, at the mouth of Gdańsk harbour, as German armies crossed Poland's borders. About 200 Polish soldiers held out for a week, and postal workers fought for the Polish Post Office in the city. Britain and France declared war on Germany two days later.

Military & Battlefields
Gdańsk, Poland

Sites

Site 1: WesterplatteRuined guardhouses, the barracks and the Monument to the Defenders of the Coast.Map ↗
Site 2: Polish Post OfficeMuseum in the post office defended by its staff.Map ↗
Site 3: Museum of the Second World WarLarge museum on the war's causes, course and civilian experience.Map ↗