| Siege of Danzig | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofEast Pomeranian offensive | |||||||
_2010-07-15_164.jpg) Plaque commemorating the raising of the Polish flag by soldiers of the1st Warsaw Armoured Brigade on theArtus Court in 1945 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Germany | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Dietrich von Saucken |  Stanisław Wojcicki | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| 2nd Army (Wehrmacht) | 1st Warsaw Armoured Brigade | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||
Thesiege of Danzig was the siege and capture of the city ofDanzig (now Gdańsk) by thePolish andSoviet armies fromNazi Germany in March 1945, during the final months ofWorld War II.
On 14 January, the2nd Belorussian Front started an attack against the2nd Army from theirgarrison inPułtusk, and in the next ten days, they advanced quickly up theVistula River. Danzig (Gdańsk) was eventually reached in early March, and as it was an important strategic location and the last German stronghold in the region, the Soviets started coordinating attacks.[1]
GeneralKarl-Wilhelm Specht organised the defences. He was replaced byDietrich von Saucken due to not agreeing to Hitler's policies on the defense of the city.[2] The Soviets began massivebombardments of Danzig on 15 March. Aparatrooper unit was deployed in theOliwa Forests (Lasy Oliwskie) on 18 March, which provoked the Soviets to enter it and start bloody fighting in the forest. The fight continued until 25 March and resulted in a Soviet victory. It is regarded as the most intense and bloody battle of the siege.[1]
On 21 March, the way toNenkau (Jasień) was opened. On 22 March, the Soviets entered the city from the north (throughZoppot). On 24 March,Praust (Pruszcz Gdański) was taken, though it was not an important strategic move, as the areas nearby were flooded and the main offensives were in the north and west. After the takeover ofGlettkau (Jelitkowo) on 25 March, Soviet tanks continued their advance towardsBrösen (Brzeźno), though it was stopped by the 62nd Grenadier Regiment, which had recently entrenched in the region. Intense fighting broke out in the downtown in the next few days, though the combat within the city was more limited.[3]
In the following days,Oliwa would become another centre for artillery as the Soviets advanced through the city. On 27 March the Soviets captured the Hagelsberg (Góra Gradowa) mountain near the city center, andNeufahrwasser (Nowy Port), an important port. Now, thegasworks in theGdańsk Shipyard were only 100 metres away from Soviet-occupied territory. Fighting began in the remnants of German-held territory, andŚródmieście was burning. The lack of water and low accessibility caused the fire to continue, which did not give an advantage to either side.[2] Mass bombardments and common[clarification needed] Soviet attacks resulted in Red Army divisions in[clarification needed] the centre of the city to themouth of the Vistula and its surroundings.[3] On 28 March, the Polish flag was raised atopArtus Court by soldiers of the Polish1st Warsaw Armoured Brigade.[4] The Germans finally surrendered on 30 March.[5][1]
Danzig was left as ruins.[6] The bombardments, constant combat and continuous fires resulted in most of the city's landmarks being destroyed. On 30 March, the city, once again renamed Gdańsk was subject to theprovisional government, which created theGdańsk Voivodeship.[6] Massdeportation of Germans from the city started shortly after the battle in order to raise the government's popularity and manifest the new administration system.[7] By 1946, around 68% of the German population was gone.[2]
In 1965, a memorial plaque was installed at theArtus Court to commemorate the raising of the Polish flag by soldiers of the1st Warsaw Armoured Brigade on theArtus Court and the return of Gdańsk to Poland in 1945.
