Kepa Oksywska

The Polish army occupied the Oksywie Heights outside the city of Gdynia in northern Poland and when the German forces managed to cut off the nearby Hel Peninsula, the region was besieged. The Polish commanders wanted to avoid destroying …

1939-09-10

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The Polish army occupied the Oksywie Heights outside the city of Gdynia in northern Poland and when the German forces managed to cut off the nearby Hel Peninsula, the region was besieged. The Polish commanders wanted to avoid destroying the city in dangerous urban combat so their prepared defenses were on the surrounding hills. With Germans advancing from the west and also coming from East Prussia through the "Polish Corridor," the Poles quickly became embroiled in a two-front battle. With their prepared defenses, though, the Polish forces were able to halt the German blitzkrieg and the fighting began to resemble that of World War I. About 9,000 defenders and their equipment were amassed in an area no larger than 4 km² and the Polish forces were able to inflict significant casualties on the Germans. Between 10 and 19 September there were about 110 skirmishes fought in the Oksywie Heights but constant German bombardment, lack of supplies, no hope of reinforcements, and a nearly 100% casualty rate eventually forced Polish commanders to surrender.

Gdynia, Poland

The invasion of Poland marked the beginning of World War II. The German invasion began on 1 September 1939, one week after the signing of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact between Germany and the Soviet Union, and one day after the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union had approved the pact. The Soviets invaded Poland on 17 September. The campaign ended on 6 October with Germany and the Soviet Union dividing and annexing the whole of Poland under the terms of the German–Soviet Frontier Treaty.

Wikipedia: Invasion of Poland

German

Polish

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