Westerplatte

Westerplatte is a peninsula in the city of Gdansk. From 1926 till the outbreak of World War II, it was a station of the Polish Military Depot. On 25th August 1939 a German battleship Schleswig-Holstein came to Gdansk. The Nazis made everybody believe it was meant to be a diplomatic, non-violent visit. However, on the early morning of 1 September 1939, the Schleswig-Holstein fired the first salvo. The battle of Westerplatte lasted for a week, despite the overwhelming advantage of the German army. Once Polish troops finally surrendered, the entire area of Westerplatte was completed ruined. In March 1940 the Nazis established a unit of Stutthof concentration camp on the peninsula. After the war ended, a cross was placed on the former battlefield, together with a memorial plate with names of the fallen Polish soldiers who defended the peninsula heroically. Nowadays, you can visit the massive Monument of the Coast Defenders (Pomnik Obrońców Wybrzeża), unveiled in 1966. There is also a small military cemetery with the tombs of the perished soldiers.