Henryk Sucharski
Encyclopedia
Henryk Sucharski was a Polish
military officer and a major in the Polish Army. At the outbreak of World War II
, he was one of the commanders of the Westerplatte
position in Danzig
, which troops under his command defended for seven days against overwhelming odds. Sucharski survived the war and was posthumously promoted to the rank of general. Despite his efforts to improve the defences, he later tried to persuade his fellow officers to surrender and suffered a nervous breakdown
which required his deputy to assume command. The true nature of his role in the Westerplatte action did not become widely known until the 1990s.
, to a peasant family. He finished a local bi-yearly trade school and then a similar school in Otfinów
. In early 1917 he graduated from the 2nd KuK Gymnasium in Tarnów and on February 13 he volunteered for service with the Austro-Hungarian Army
. During his service in the March Battalion
of the Bochnia
-based 32nd Landwehr
Regiment, he passed his matura
exams and in February 1918 graduated from an officers school in Opatów
. Dispatched with his regiment to the Italian front of the Great War
, Sucharski was infected with malaria
and spent the remainder of the war in various hospitals in Sanstino and then Celje
.
Upon his return to Poland, on February 7, 1919 he joined the Polish Army and the Tarnów-based 16th Infantry Regiment, in part composed of his former Austro-Hungarian unit. In March he took part in the defence of Cieszyn Silesia
against the Czechoslovakia
n invasion and in June he was promoted to the rank of Corporal. By the end of October he was transferred to the North-Eastern sector of the front of the brief Polish-Bolshevik War where he took part in fighting along the Lithuanian border during the brief Polish-Lithuanian War
for the region around Suwałki. On January 14, 1920 he was promoted to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant
and voluntarily joined the storming battalion of the 6th Infantry Division. For his bravery (and wounds) in the battle for Potnica and Bogdanówka
on August 30, 1920, Sucharski was awarded the Order of Virtuti Militari
, the highest Polish military decoration. He also received the Cross of the Valorous
and was promoted to 1st Lieutenant after the war.
In the interbellum Henryk Sucharski remained in active service. He graduated from a variety of courses for various branches of the military and on March 19, 1928 he was promoted to the rank of Captain. An instructor in the Infantry NCO School in Ostrów Mazowiecka
, in October 1930 he joined the Brześć nad Bugiem-based 35th Infantry Regiment. After graduating from additional courses at the Centre for Infantry Training in Rembertów
near Warsaw, on March 19, 1938 Sucharski was again promoted, this time to the rank of Major.
. A skilled organizer, Sucharski focused on improving the defences of the area under his command, a tiny ex territorial area within the German-dominated city. He strengthened the fortifications of the Westerplatte peninsula and increased the number of soldiers serving there.
His actual role during the defence of the Westerplatte after the outbreak of the Polish Defensive War is a matter of controversy. On the first day of the defence Sucharski emphasised the hopeless position of the small, surrounded Polish garrison and tried to convince his fellow officers to surrender. On September 2, 1939, after a heavy aerial bombardment he suffered a nervous breakdown and his deputy, Captain Franciszek Dąbrowski
assumed command of the outpost. However, Sucharski recovered sufficiently to finally surrender the position to the Germans after a week-long defence. In recognition of the bravery of Sucharski's men, General Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt
allowed Sucharski to officially surrender with his officer’s sabre
.
After short stays in various German transit camps where the sabre was removed from his possession, on October 26, 1939 Sucharski was imprisoned in Oflag IV-A in the Hohenstein
castle. He spent the remainder of the war in various German prisoner of war
camps, including Oflag II-B in Arnswalde
(from June 25, 1940) and Oflag II-D in Gross-Born (from May 12, 1942). During the evacuation of Gross-Born in March 1945 he suffered a serious accident from which he never fully recovered.
After being liberated from the Schwerin
sub-camp of the Oflag X-C Lübeck by the Americans, on May 28, 1945 Sucharski joined the Polish II Corps
and was transferred to Italy, where he briefly served as a commander of the 6th Karpaty Rifles Battalion following January 25, 1946. On August 19, 1946, he was sent to a British military hospital in Naples
where he was interviewed by Melchior Wańkowicz
, who made Sucharski the main protagonist in his 1948 short story Westerplatte. Henryk Sucharski died from peritonitis
several days after the interview, on August 30, 1946. The following day he was buried in the Polish war cemetery in Casamassima
near Bari
. On September 1, 1971 his ashes were returned to Poland and buried with military honours at Westerplatte, where it was decorated with the Commanders' Cross of the Virtuti Militari.
During the post-war years, Wańkowicz's mythologised account of Sucharski as a brave commander enduring under hopeless odds became the main source of information on Westerplatte action. The myth was propagated in numerous books and films. [It is often thought that the Communist authorities preferred to maintain the myth of Sucharski, a heroic son of a peasant and shoemaker, rather than support his deputy, Franciszek Dąbrowski
who was born into a szlachta
family. (opinion)] It was not until the 1990s that the truth about Sucharski and Westerplatte started to become more widely known.
is named for him (located at 54°33'30.99"N and 18°30'24.21"E) and also another in Ostroleka
, called Sucharskiego, with seven apartment blocks along it.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
military officer and a major in the Polish Army. At the outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he was one of the commanders of the Westerplatte
Westerplatte
Westerplatte is a peninsula in Gdańsk, Poland, located on the Baltic Sea coast mouth of the Dead Vistula , in the Gdańsk harbour channel...
position in Danzig
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
, which troops under his command defended for seven days against overwhelming odds. Sucharski survived the war and was posthumously promoted to the rank of general. Despite his efforts to improve the defences, he later tried to persuade his fellow officers to surrender and suffered a nervous breakdown
Nervous breakdown
Mental breakdown is a non-medical term used to describe an acute, time-limited phase of a specific disorder that presents primarily with features of depression or anxiety.-Definition:...
which required his deputy to assume command. The true nature of his role in the Westerplatte action did not become widely known until the 1990s.
Early life and career
Sucharski was born on November 12, 1898, in Gręboszów, a village near TarnówTarnów
Tarnów is a city in southeastern Poland with 115,341 inhabitants as of June 2009. The city has been situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship since 1999, but from 1975 to 1998 it was the capital of the Tarnów Voivodeship. It is a major rail junction, located on the strategic east-west connection...
, to a peasant family. He finished a local bi-yearly trade school and then a similar school in Otfinów
Otfinów
Otfinów is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Żabno, within Tarnów County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Żabno, north-west of Tarnów, and east of the regional capital Kraków.-References:...
. In early 1917 he graduated from the 2nd KuK Gymnasium in Tarnów and on February 13 he volunteered for service with the Austro-Hungarian Army
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...
. During his service in the March Battalion
March battalion
A march battalion is a battalion-sized military unit formed of all the rear-echelon units of an infantry regiment. It usually includes all the tabors, field kitchen staff, reserve soldiers, military police, commander's reserves, guards, aides, and raw recruits who did not arrive at the...
of the Bochnia
Bochnia
Bochnia is a town of 30,000 inhabitants on the river Raba in southern Poland. The town lies approximately in halfway [] between Tarnów and the regional capital Kraków . Bochnia is most noted for its salt mine, the oldest functioning in Europe, built circa 1248...
-based 32nd Landwehr
Landwehr
Landwehr, or Landeswehr, is a German language term used in referring to certain national armies, or militias found in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Europe. In different context it refers to large scale, low strength fortifications...
Regiment, he passed his matura
Matura
Matura or a similar term is the common name for the high-school leaving exam or "maturity exam" in various countries, including Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia,...
exams and in February 1918 graduated from an officers school in Opatów
Opatów
Opatów is a town in Poland, in Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. It is the capital of Opatów County. Its population is 7,833 .Tourist attractions include a 12th century Collegiate Church of St...
. Dispatched with his regiment to the Italian front of the Great War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Sucharski was infected with malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
and spent the remainder of the war in various hospitals in Sanstino and then Celje
Celje
Celje is a typical Central European town and the third largest town in Slovenia. It is a regional center of Lower Styria and the administrative seat of the Urban Municipality of Celje . The town of Celje is located under Upper Celje Castle at the confluence of the Savinja, Ložnica, and Voglajna...
.
Upon his return to Poland, on February 7, 1919 he joined the Polish Army and the Tarnów-based 16th Infantry Regiment, in part composed of his former Austro-Hungarian unit. In March he took part in the defence of Cieszyn Silesia
Cieszyn Silesia
Cieszyn Silesia or Těšín Silesia or Teschen Silesia is a historical region in south-eastern Silesia, centered around the towns of Cieszyn and Český Těšín and bisected by the Olza River. Since 1920 it has been divided between Poland and Czechoslovakia, and later the Czech Republic...
against the Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
n invasion and in June he was promoted to the rank of Corporal. By the end of October he was transferred to the North-Eastern sector of the front of the brief Polish-Bolshevik War where he took part in fighting along the Lithuanian border during the brief Polish-Lithuanian War
Polish-Lithuanian War
The Polish–Lithuanian War was an armed conflict between newly independent Lithuania and Poland in the aftermath of World War I. The conflict primarily concerned territorial control of the Vilnius Region, including Vilnius , and the Suwałki Region, including the towns of Suwałki, Augustów, and Sejny...
for the region around Suwałki. On January 14, 1920 he was promoted to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant
Podporucznik
Podporucznik is a rank of the Polish Army, roughly equivalent to the military rank of the Second Lieutenant in the armed forces of other countries....
and voluntarily joined the storming battalion of the 6th Infantry Division. For his bravery (and wounds) in the battle for Potnica and Bogdanówka
Bogdanówka
Bogdanówka is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Tokarnia, within Myślenice County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately north-west of Tokarnia, south-west of Myślenice, and south of the regional capital Kraków.-References:...
on August 30, 1920, Sucharski was awarded the Order of Virtuti Militari
Virtuti Militari
The Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
, the highest Polish military decoration. He also received the Cross of the Valorous
Krzyz Walecznych
The Cross of Valor is a Polish military decoration. It was first introduced by the Council for Defense of the State on 11 August 1920. It is awarded to an individual who "has demonstrated deeds of valor and courage on the field of battle." It may be awarded to the same person up to four times...
and was promoted to 1st Lieutenant after the war.
In the interbellum Henryk Sucharski remained in active service. He graduated from a variety of courses for various branches of the military and on March 19, 1928 he was promoted to the rank of Captain. An instructor in the Infantry NCO School in Ostrów Mazowiecka
Ostrów Mazowiecka
Ostrów Mazowiecka is a town in northeastern Poland with 23,486 inhabitants . Situated in the Masovian Voivodeship , previously in Ostroleka Voivodeship . It is the capital of Ostrów Mazowiecka County....
, in October 1930 he joined the Brześć nad Bugiem-based 35th Infantry Regiment. After graduating from additional courses at the Centre for Infantry Training in Rembertów
Rembertów
Rembertów is a district of the city of Warsaw, the capital of Poland. Between 1939 and 1957 Rembertów was a separate town, after which it was incorporated as part of the borough of Praga Południe. Between 1994 and 2002 it formed a separate commune of Warszawa-Rembertów...
near Warsaw, on March 19, 1938 Sucharski was again promoted, this time to the rank of Major.
Westerplatte
On December 3, 1938 Sucharski became the commanding officer of the Military Transit Depot in Westerplatte, a Polish military outpost in the Free City of DanzigFree City of Danzig
The Free City of Danzig was a semi-autonomous city-state that existed between 1920 and 1939, consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig and surrounding areas....
. A skilled organizer, Sucharski focused on improving the defences of the area under his command, a tiny ex territorial area within the German-dominated city. He strengthened the fortifications of the Westerplatte peninsula and increased the number of soldiers serving there.
His actual role during the defence of the Westerplatte after the outbreak of the Polish Defensive War is a matter of controversy. On the first day of the defence Sucharski emphasised the hopeless position of the small, surrounded Polish garrison and tried to convince his fellow officers to surrender. On September 2, 1939, after a heavy aerial bombardment he suffered a nervous breakdown and his deputy, Captain Franciszek Dąbrowski
Franciszek Dąbrowski
Franciszek Dąbrowski – was an officer of the Polish Navy during the Polish Defensive War against the Nazi German aggression in 1939. In September 1939 he served at Westerplatte military transit depot which took part in the Battle of Westerplatte...
assumed command of the outpost. However, Sucharski recovered sufficiently to finally surrender the position to the Germans after a week-long defence. In recognition of the bravery of Sucharski's men, General Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt
Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt
Friedrich-Georg Eberhardt was a Generalleutnant in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross...
allowed Sucharski to officially surrender with his officer’s sabre
Szabla
Szabla is the Polish word for sabre. It specifically refers to an Eastern European one-edged sabre-like mêlée weapon with a curved blade and, in most cases, a two-bladed tip called a feather . Initially used by light cavalry, with time it also evolved into a variety of arms used both for martial...
.
After short stays in various German transit camps where the sabre was removed from his possession, on October 26, 1939 Sucharski was imprisoned in Oflag IV-A in the Hohenstein
Hohenstein
Hohenstein may refer to several different places in Germany, including* Hohenstein-Ernstthal, in Saxony* Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein, a county of the Holy Roman Empire , situated between Hesse-Darmstadt and Westphalia...
castle. He spent the remainder of the war in various German prisoner of war
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
camps, including Oflag II-B in Arnswalde
Choszczno
Choszczno is a town in West Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland. The town is located in a marshy district between the river Stobnica and Klukom lake , southwest of Stargard Szczeciński and on the main railway line between Szczecin and Poznań...
(from June 25, 1940) and Oflag II-D in Gross-Born (from May 12, 1942). During the evacuation of Gross-Born in March 1945 he suffered a serious accident from which he never fully recovered.
After being liberated from the Schwerin
Schwerin
Schwerin is the capital and second-largest city of the northern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The population, as of end of 2009, was 95,041.-History:...
sub-camp of the Oflag X-C Lübeck by the Americans, on May 28, 1945 Sucharski joined the Polish II Corps
Polish II Corps
Polish II Corps , 1943–1947, was a major tactical and operational unit of the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II. It was commanded by Lieutenant General Władysław Anders and by the end of 1945 it had grown to well over 100,000 soldiers....
and was transferred to Italy, where he briefly served as a commander of the 6th Karpaty Rifles Battalion following January 25, 1946. On August 19, 1946, he was sent to a British military hospital in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
where he was interviewed by Melchior Wańkowicz
Melchior Wankowicz
Melchior Wańkowicz was a Polish writer, journalist and publisher. He is most famous for his reporting for the Polish Armed Forces in the West during World War II and writing a book about the battle of Monte Cassino....
, who made Sucharski the main protagonist in his 1948 short story Westerplatte. Henryk Sucharski died from peritonitis
Peritonitis
Peritonitis is an inflammation of the peritoneum, the serous membrane that lines part of the abdominal cavity and viscera. Peritonitis may be localised or generalised, and may result from infection or from a non-infectious process.-Abdominal pain and tenderness:The main manifestations of...
several days after the interview, on August 30, 1946. The following day he was buried in the Polish war cemetery in Casamassima
Casamassima
Casamassima is a town and comune in the province of Bari, Puglia, Italy.The town is located inland from the Italian coastline, thrives and is built on agriculture, primarily that of wine, olives and almond production....
near Bari
Bari
Bari is the capital city of the province of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, in Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy after Naples, and is well known as a port and university city, as well as the city of Saint Nicholas...
. On September 1, 1971 his ashes were returned to Poland and buried with military honours at Westerplatte, where it was decorated with the Commanders' Cross of the Virtuti Militari.
During the post-war years, Wańkowicz's mythologised account of Sucharski as a brave commander enduring under hopeless odds became the main source of information on Westerplatte action. The myth was propagated in numerous books and films. [It is often thought that the Communist authorities preferred to maintain the myth of Sucharski, a heroic son of a peasant and shoemaker, rather than support his deputy, Franciszek Dąbrowski
Franciszek Dąbrowski
Franciszek Dąbrowski – was an officer of the Polish Navy during the Polish Defensive War against the Nazi German aggression in 1939. In September 1939 he served at Westerplatte military transit depot which took part in the Battle of Westerplatte...
who was born into a szlachta
Szlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
family. (opinion)] It was not until the 1990s that the truth about Sucharski and Westerplatte started to become more widely known.
Places named for him
A street in GdyniaGdynia
Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...
is named for him (located at 54°33'30.99"N and 18°30'24.21"E) and also another in Ostroleka
Ostroleka
Ostrołęka is a town in northeastern Poland on the Narew river, about northeast of Warsaw, with a population of 53,982 and an area of 29 km2 . Situated in the Masovian Voivodeship , previously capital of Ostrołęka Voivodeship . Currently capital of both Ostrołęka County and Ostrołęka City...
, called Sucharskiego, with seven apartment blocks along it.
Honours and awards
- Commander's Cross of the Virtuti MilitariVirtuti MilitariThe Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
, previously awarded the Silver Cross - Cross of Valour - twice
- Gold Cross of Merit