Forgotten Battle 22

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This month's Forgotten Battle is...

The Siege of the Polish Post Office

Intro

The siege of the Polish Post Office occurred on September 1, 1939. It was fought in the Free City of Danzig (now called, Gdańsk) between Polish postmen and soldiers and policemen of the German Wehrmacht. This fifteen hour siege was the very first combat action of the Second World War and would be remembered as a brave stand against overwhelming odds.

Part I

The Polish Post Office was constructed within the Free City of Danzig in the year 1920 as part of the Treaty of Versailles. The main building had two entrances, three floors, and a basement. And like most buildings in the city, it was made of bricks.

Even though the majority of Danzig's populace was German, the post office was considered by the League of Nations to be the extraterritorial property of Poland. In other words, it was both a post office and a pseudo-embassy. By August of 1941, just over 50 people (mostly former soldiers and their families) were working at the post office.

Unfortunately, the presence of the post office was deeply resented by the German citizens of Danzig. Many of them viewed it as thievery by a foreign nation. With the rise of the Third Reich many of the Germans in Danzig became more resentful and began planning to take back the post office. Their opportunity finally came when they learned of the German Wehrmacht massing on the border between Poland and Germany. With the support of Hitler, the more than 180 SS policemen of Danzig mobilized on September 1st, and began marching on the post office.

Part II

After spotting the approaching police, the Poles inside the post office also began mobilizing. Unknown to the Germans, the postman had a small arsenal of weapons inside the building (including three machine-guns). In command of this small garrison was Lieutenant Konrad Guderski. After passing out rifles, pistols, and grenades, the postman took defensive positions by the windows and inside the lobby. Simultaneously, the civilians took shelter in the building's basement.

By 4 PM, a large group of Danzig police and a few soldiers of the Wehrmacht were massed outside the post office. At that moment an officer named Willi Bethke emerged from the ranks and demand the Poles in the post office surrender and return the building to the city it was "stolen" from. In return they would be treated "humanely" as POWs.

Guderski discussed his options with his second-in-command (Alfons Flisykowski) for a few minutes. They both decided to reject the surrender demand. They had already experienced the German citizens' hatred towards them in Danzig. After hearing his surrender demand rejected, Bethke ordered three armored cars to drive in front of his policemen. For the next 45 minutes, a standoff was held until a German battleship fired in the distance. These were the first shots of World War II. At that moment, the SS launched their attack.

Part III

The armored cars opened fire on the post office. The Poles returned fire but found that their bullets could not penetrate the armored cars. They were forced move their three machine-guns from the windows and reassemble them in the lobby of the first floor. Flisykowski then had them focus their guns on the front doors of the building and prepare for the Germans to break in. They did not have long to wait. The doors bust open and several SS soldiers entered the building. They were greeted by a wall of lead that killed the first four who entered and wounded another five. Those that survived quickly retreated back to the street.

But at that moment, an explosion was heard by the rear of the building. Guderski realized that the frontal attack was a diversion and quickly raced over to discover a hole in the wall by the courtyard. On the other side of the hole was a small squad of Germans about to enter the building. With seconds to act, Guderski pulled the pin on a grenade just as one of the SS soldiers aimed at him and fired. Guderski was shot and killed instantly, but his grenade landed in the middle of the squad and detonated. Another four Germans were killed instantly and eight more were wounded and forced to retreat.

With Konrad Guderseki dead, command of the garrison now fell to Alfons Flisykowski who quickly assembled the postmen in a small defensive perimeter and awaited a second attack by the SS. Stunned by the failure of both of his assaults on the building, Willi Bethke quickly grabbed a radio and asked the Wehrmacht to send him artillery guns. 

Six hours later, the Germans received two 75 mm field guns and began to bombard the post office. As they did so, Bethke ordered another infantry attack. To their astonishment, the post-office walls held firm and the Poles once again repelled the attack. Now incensed, Bethke requested the Wehrmacht to lend him more artillery guns. An hour later, a brand new artillery gun (a 105 mm howitzer) was brought into Danzig. Its shells struck the post-office with such force that the whole section of wall by the entrance collapsed. By the time Flisykowski and his men could compose themselves, the SS were already inside the building. The Poles who survived the onslaught quickly retreated into the basement and stopped the SS advance at its staircase.

By now, Bethke was furious. In a complete rage he called the Wehrmacht for one more favor. Inside the building, Flisykowski and his men in the basement noticed a torrent of liquid coming down the staircase. When they smelled it, they realized it was gasoline. They then watched in horror as flames quickly followed. The fire forced them to retreat to the last room, but not before killing multiple soldiers and civilians. By now, the situation was hopeless and the Poles began debating whether they should surrender or attempt a breakout. One of the civilians (Doctor Jan Michoń) suggested the former and most agreed. Flisykowski and five others however, decided that they would attempt to escape.

Epilogue

Doctor Michoń walked out of the post-office waving a white handkerchief. The SS soldiers approached and immediately shot him dead. The rest of the Poles who surrendered were lined up against the wall. The prisoners were then given a mock trial and classified as illegal combatants. All were executed by firing squad. The captured civilians were sent to concentration camps and never heard from again. The casualties for the Germans are not clear, but most historians put the figure as between 10 to 30 killed and the same number wounded. The whole standoff had lasted just over 15 hours.

Flisykowski and his five men snuck out while the SS were distracted and broke into a nearby house. At this point, Flisykowski revealed that had been wounded and ordered his remaining men to leave him behind. The five men changed into civilian clothes, saluted their commander one last time, and fled into the streets of Danzig. The next day, Flisykowski was discovered by the SS and executed. Of the five others, four are known to have escaped and survived the war.

After World War II, the executions of the postmen were classified as judicial murder. Danzig officially became part of Poland and was renamed, Gdańsk. In 1979, a monument was erected in honor of the postmen's brave stand against overwhelming odds. The original building still stands and is now a museum.

https://www.warhistoryonline.com/world-war-ii/polish-post-office-danzig.html

https://europebetweeneastandwest.wordpress.com/2023/08/22/desperate-defense-siege-of-the-polish-post-office-northern-poland-berlin-54b/

https://libcom.org/article/defence-polish-post-office-danzig

https://www.dark-tourism.com/index.php/545-gdansk-polish-post-office