View source for Battle of Kolberg (1945)

{{Short description|Taking of the city of Kolberg during World War II}}
{{Other uses|Battle of Kolberg (disambiguation)}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2008}}

{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Battle of Kolberg
| partof            = the [[East Pomeranian Offensive]], [[Eastern Front (WWII)|Eastern Front]] of [[World War II]]
| image             = Kolobrzeg1945.JPG
| image_size        = 300px
| caption           = Kołobrzeg (Kolberg) in 1945.
| date              = 4–18 March 1945
| place             = [[Kołobrzeg|Kolberg]], [[Pomerania Province (1815-1945)|Pomerania]], Germany<br>({{small|now}} [[Kołobrzeg]], [[Poland]])
| casus             = 
| territory         = 
| result            = Polish-Soviet victory
*German [[Operation Hannibal|evacuation by sea]]
*80% of city destroyed
| combatant1        = {{flagcountry|Nazi Germany}}
| combatant2        = {{flagcountry|Soviet Union|1936}}<br>
<small>(Primarily until 7 March)</small> <br>
{{flagicon|Poland|1928}} [[Polish Armed Forces in the East|Poland]] <br> <small>(From 8 March)</small> <br>
| commander1        = [[Fritz Fullriede]]
| commander2        = [[Stanislav Poplavsky]]
| strength1         = 8,000 – 15,000 personnel <br> 18 tanks <br> 1 armoured train <br> 60 artillery pieces <br> 2 heavy cruisers
| strength2         = 28,000+ personnel <br> <small>(From 12 March)</small>
| casualties1       = KIA: unknown<br>~2,000 captured
| casualties2       = 1,206 killed and missing
<br>
3,000 wounded
| notes             = 
| units1            = [[Army Group Vistula]]
*[[15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Latvian)|15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS]]
*[[33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne|33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS]]
*[[Third Panzer Army]]
[[Volkssturm]] [[militia]]

[[Kriegsmarine]]
*[[German cruiser Admiral Scheer|Admiral Scheer cruiser]]
*[[German cruiser Deutschland|Lützow cruiser]]
| units2            = [[1st Belorussian Front]]
*[[Red Army]]
**[[69th Covering Brigade (Russia)|272nd Rifle Division]]
**[[45th Tank Brigade]]
*[[First Polish Army (1944–1945)|First Polish Army]]
**[[3rd Infantry Division (Poland)|3rd Infantry Division]]
**[[4th Infantry Division (Poland)|4th Infantry Division]]
**[[6th Infantry Division (Poland)|6th Infantry Division]]
}}
{{Location map many | Germany 1937
 |width = 300
 |float = right
 |caption = {{center|'''Location of the Battle of Kolberg'''}}
 |label='''Battle of Kolberg'''
   |label_size=86
   |position=right
   |bg=white
   |lat_deg=54 | lat_min= 10
   |lon_deg=15 | lon_min= 35
   |mark=Battle_icon_active_(crossed_swords).svg
   |marksize=18
 |label2=<small>Königsberg</small>
   |pos2=left
   |bg2=white
   |lat2_deg=54 | lat2_min= 43
   |lon2_deg=20 | lon2_min= 31
   |mark2=Yellow pog.svg
   |mark2size = 5
 |label3=<small>Warsaw</small>
   |pos3=bottom
   |bg3=white
   |lat3_deg=52 | lat3_min= 14
   |lon3_deg=21 | lon3_min= 00
   |mark3=Yellow pog.svg
   |mark3size = 5
|label4=<small>Berlin</small>
   |pos4=left
   |bg4=white
   |lat4_deg=52 | lat4_min= 30
   |lon4_deg=13 | lon4_min= 24
   |mark4=Yellow pog.svg
   |mark4size = 5
}}
{{Campaignbox Axis–Soviet War}}
{{Campaignbox Poland 1944–1945}}
The '''Battle of Kolberg''' or '''Battle of Kołobrzeg''' (also, battle for '''Festung Kolberg''') was the taking of the city of ''Kolberg'', now the city of [[Kołobrzeg]], in [[Pomerania Province (1815-1945)|Pomerania]] by the [[Soviet Army]] and its [[Ludowe Wojsko Polskie|Polish allies]] from [[Nazi Germany|Nazi German]] forces during the [[World War II]] [[East Pomeranian Offensive]]. Between 4 and 18 March 1945 there was major [[urban fighting]] of the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] and Polish forces against the German army for the control over the city. The Germans succeeded in evacuating much of their military personnel and refugees from the city via sea before it was taken by the Poles on 18 March.

==Background==
On 4 March 1945 Kolberg, a large [[Baltic Sea|Baltic]] seaport in the Province of Pomerania, was designated [[German World War II strongholds|a stronghold]] as ''Festung Kolberg''. It was one of the key German positions in the [[Pomeranian Wall]], a vital link between Pomerania and [[Prussia]]. The German High Command planned to use the seaport to supply nearby German forces, and hoped that the stronghold would draw off Soviet forces from the main thrust towards Berlin.

The Soviet [[East Pomeranian Offensive]], commencing on 24 February 1945 managed to cut off and surround the city and its defenders (mostly from the German [[Army Group Vistula]]). The first commander of ''Festung Kolberg'' was an elderly officer, General {{ill|Paul Herrmann (general)|lt=Paul Herrmann|de|Paul_Herrmann_(General,_1892)}}, but due to illness he was transferred in February to a less demanding post. The command was taken by Colonel [[Gerhard Troschel]]. After 1 March the city was under the command of a former ''[[Afrika Korps]]'' officer, Colonel [[Fritz Fullriede]].

==Opposing forces==
The German defence forces represented various formations from the Army Group 'Vistula,' some tasked with defending the fortress, others simply cut off in the Kolberg pocket. The most notable units included elements of the [[3rd Panzer Army|Third Panzer Army]]; the [[33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne (1st French)]] and the [[15th Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS (1st Latvian)]]. Estimates of the German defenders &mdash; including local militia and volunteers ([[Volkssturm]]) &mdash; range from 8,000 to 15,000, supported by some artillery (about 60 pieces), an [[armored train]] and about 18 tanks and a dozen support vehicles of various types. The German units also received some air and sea support (including artillery fire from [[pocket battleship]]s ''[[German pocket battleship Deutschland|Lützow]]'' and ''[[German pocket battleship Admiral Scheer|Admiral Scheer]]'').

The Soviet and Soviet-allied Polish forces attacking the city can be divided into two waves: one of units of the [[Red Army]], from 4 to 7 March, and one of units of the [[First Polish Army (1944–45)|First Polish Army]] (from the [[1st Belorussian Front]]), from 8 to 14 March, although some Soviet units took part in the combat after 8 March. The Soviet main units were the [[45th Tank Brigade (Soviet Union)|45th Tank Brigade]] (engaged from 4 to 7 March) and the [[272nd Rifle Division (Soviet Union)|272nd Rifle Division]] (6 to 9 March). The Polish units included: [[Polish 6th Infantry Division]] (from 7 March), [[Polish 3rd Infantry Division (Traugutt)|Polish 3rd Infantry Division]] (from 9 March), [[Polish 4th Infantry Division]] (from 12 March), and various support units. The personnel of the Polish units numbered over 28,000.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

==Battle==
<!--  Commented out: [[Image:Mapa walk - Kolobrzeg - Sroga.jpg|thumb|right|400px|Map of the assault {{puic|Mapa walk - Kolobrzeg - Sroga.jpg|log=2009 September 25}}]] -->
The first attack was led on 4 March by the Soviet units of the [[1st Belorussian Front]] and [[2nd Belorussian Front]]; with first Soviet units entering the city around 0800, but was repulsed. On the same day, the nearby city of [[Koszalin|Köslin]] (now Koszalin) fell and Soviets started to gather reinforcements to take Kolberg.

On 6 March the Soviet High Command decided to turn the siege of the city from the Soviet forces to its Polish allies. By 8 March the Soviets received reinforcements in the form of the units from the [[Ludowe Wojsko Polskie|Polish People's Army]], the [[First Polish Army (1944-1945)|Polish First Army]] under the command of Polish-born general [[Stanislaw Poplawski]]: the [[6th Polish Infantry Division|6th]], the [[Polish 3rd Infantry Division (Traugutt)|3rd Polish Infantry Division]] and support units. The Polish First Army was now tasked with taking the city; however their first attack was also repulsed. The German forces held stubbornly to the city, protecting the ongoing evacuation. Due to a lack of anti-tank weapons, German [[destroyer]]s used their guns to support the defenders of Kolberg.

On 12 March a new assault was launched, with [[heavy tank]]s, additional artillery units and the [[4th Polish Infantry Division]]. The attack advanced but at the cost of very heavy casualties, and was broken off on 14 March. The Germans refused a proposal to surrender.

On 15 March the fighting resumed and the Germans received reinforcements from [[Świnoujście|Swinemünde]] (now Świnoujście) &mdash; the ''Kell'' battalions. However, they failed to stop the Polish forces, which took the barracks, part of the railway station and the Salt Island.

By 16 March the Germans pulled back most of their forces and concentrated on the defense of the port. The destruction of the [[collegiate church in Kołobrzeg|collegiate church in Kolberg]] after heavy artillery shelling by [[Katyusha rocket launcher|katyusha]]s allowed the Polish troops to breach the inner city. Polish forces assaulted the railway station (defended by a German [[armored train]] Panzerzug 72A, which was destroyed on 16 March), pharmaceutics factory and the horse riding arena.

On 17 March the Germans abandoned most of the defensive lines, leaving only a small number of troops to cover their retreat, and started to evacuate their main body of forces from the city. Polish forces took the railway station and reached the port, but most of the German troops managed to evacuate to Swinemünde (now [[Świnoujście]]). The last German stronghold was in the fort built near today's lighthouse on the coastline.

==Aftermath==
Over 80% of the city was destroyed in the heavy fighting. The battle was among the most intense [[urban warfare]] the Polish army took part in. Polish casualties were estimated at 1,206 dead and missing, and 3,000 wounded.

On 18 March, the day the city fell, the [[Ludowe Wojsko Polskie|Polish People's Army]] re-enacted ''[[Poland's Wedding to the Sea]]'' ceremony, which had been celebrated for the first time in 1920 by General [[Jozef Haller de Hallenburg|Józef Haller]] (there was also a lesser-known ceremony on 17 March).[http://www.przeglad-tygodnik.pl/index.php?site=historia&name=103] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928011656/http://www.przeglad-tygodnik.pl/index.php?site=historia&name=103 |date=2007-09-28 }}

==Evacuation==
With the Soviet forces approaching in 1945, valuable equipment, most of the inhabitants, and tens of thousands of refugees from surrounding areas (about 70,000), as well as 40,000 German soldiers were evacuated from the besieged city by [[Kriegsmarine|German naval forces]] in ''[[Operation Hannibal]]''. Only about 2,000 soldiers were left on 17 March to cover the last sea transports.

==In media==
In 1945, [[Polish Film Chronicle]] made a short film about the battle.[http://www.kinopolska.pl/film.php?data=2007-01-18&id=12511] In 1969, a movie was made in Poland, ''{{ill|Jarzębina czerwona|pl}}'', with the battle for the city as its background.[https://web.archive.org/web/20070928004610/http://www.polandbymail.com/get_item_v592_jarzebina-czerwona-pl.htm] In 2005, a 25-minute Polish documentary film about the battle for the city was made.[http://www.filmpolski.pl/fp/index.php/4220447]

Less than two months before the battle, a [[Kolberg (film)|German propaganda movie]], filmed in the city in 1944 and covering the [[Siege of Kolberg (1807)| siege of Kolberg of 1807]], was released.

==See also==
*[[History of Pomerania (1933–1945)]]
*[[East Pomeranian Offensive]]
*[[Kolberg (film)|''Kolberg'']], a 1945 Nazi-produced film about [[Siege of Kolberg (1807)|the 1807 battle]], released only some five weeks before the 1945 battle's beginning.

==References==
{{No footnotes|date=April 2008}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070811131030/http://mapy.blink.pl/kolberg/ Festung Kolberg] {{in lang|pl}}

==External links==
*[http://www.militarni.pl/?lang=1&cat=78&art_id=195 Kołobrzeg marzec 1945] — jak dziś wygląda pole bitwy… {{in lang|pl}}
*[https://archive.today/20070515214731/http://www.prezydent.pl/x.node?id=6042904&eventId=2526469 Speech by Polish president] on the 60th anniversary of the 45' Wedding to the Sea {{in lang|pl}}

==Further reading==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070703090609/http://mapy.blink.pl/kolberg/bibliografia.htm Extensive bibliography] {{in lang|pl}}

{{coord missing|West Pomeranian Voivodeship}}
{{Pomeranian history}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kolberg 1945}}
[[Category:Conflicts in 1945]]
[[Category:Poland–Soviet Union relations]]
[[Category:Kołobrzeg]]
[[Category:Urban warfare]]
[[Category:Battles of World War II involving Germany]]
[[Category:Battles and operations of the Soviet–German War]]
[[Category:March 1945 events in Europe]]
[[Category:1945 in Germany]]