Polish Navy

The Polish Navy (Polska Marynarka Wojenna, PMW) is the branch of Poland's armed forces responsible for naval operations. It has 149 ships (out of them 4 submarines, 1 destroyer, 3 frigates, 23 patrol boats) and about 14,300 commissioned and enlisted personnel. The traditional ship prefix in the Polish Navy is ORP ( "Okręt Rzeczpospolitej Polskiej" - "Naval Ship of the Polish Republic").

The Polish Navy is one of the largest navies on the Baltic Sea. It is mostly responsible for Baltic Sea operations, including amphibious exercises with Polish Marines. Other duties include search and rescue operations covering the majority of the Baltic, as well as hydrographic measurements and research.

Recently the Polish Navy played a more international role as part of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, specifically providing logistical and communications support for the United States Navy.

Origins

Template:Polish Army The Polish Navy has its roots in naval vessels that were largely used on Poland's main rivers in defense of trade and commerce. During the Thirteen Year War (1454-1466), this small force of inland ships for the first time saw real open sea combat. At the Battle of the Vistula Tributaries, the Polish Kaperska Fleet defeated the Prussian Navy and secured permanent access to the Baltic Sea. The Peace of Torun in 1466 acquired for Poland the strategic naval city of Gdansk, and with it the means of maintaining a large fleet on the Baltic. In 1561, following a victory over Russian Naval forces in the Baltic, the Polish Navy acquired a second key port at Riga, in modern-day Latvia.

The most celebrated victory of the Commonwealth Navy was the battle of Oliwa in 1627 against Sweden, during the Polish-Swedish War. The victory over Sweden secured for Poland permanent access to the Atlantic, and laid the foundations for expeditions beyond Europe. Around this time the need for a permanent naval force was recognized by King Zygmunt August, and the Commission of Royal Ships (Komisja Okretow Krolewskich) was created in 1625. This commission, along with the ultimate allocation of funds by the Sejm in 1637, created a permanent Commonwealth Navy. The result of this was a brief acquisition of the island of Tobago in the West Indies.

The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, although the dominant force in Central and Eastern Europe during the 16th-18th Centuries, never developed its navy to full potential. The small Polish coastline and the limited access to the Atlantic never allowed for a massive buildup of naval forces, especially not to the level of colonial powers such as England and France. The Partitions of Poland at the end of the 18th century brought an end to the independent Polish Navy.

20th Century

Following World War I, the Second Polish Republic on 28 November, 1918, by the order of Józef Piłsudski, commander of the Armed Forces of Poland, founded the modern Polish Navy. The token naval force was placed under the command of Captain Bogumił Nowotny as its first chief.

In the 1920s and 1930s the Polish Navy underwent a modernisation program under the leadership of Vice-Admiral Jerzy Świrski (Chief of Naval Staff) and Rear-Admiral Józef Unrug (CO of the Fleet). A number of ships were acquired from France, Holland, and England. The overall public uneasiness with the idea of armament, along with the budgetary limitations placed on the government by the Great Depression never allowed the navy to expand beyond a small Baltic force. By September 1939 the Polish Navy consisted of 5 submarines, 4 destroyers, and various support vessels and mine-warfare ships. This force was no match for the large German Navy, and so a strategy of harassment and indirect engagement was implemented.

The outbreak of World War II caught the Polish Navy off guard and in a state of expansion. Lacking numerical superiority, Polish Naval commanders decided to withdraw the main fleet to Great Britain in hopes of aiding the allied war effort. In accordance with this policy, 3 destroyers were transferred to British ports and then operated in combination with Royal Navy vessels against Germany. During the war the Polish Navy was supplemented with leased British ships, including 2 cruisers, 2 submarines, and a number of smaller fast-attack vessels. The Polish Navy fought alongside the allied navies, and aided in the escort of convoys across the Atlantic from the United States to England. Polish naval vessels played a part in the sinking of the Bismarck, and in the landings in Normandy during D-Day.

After World War II, on July 7, 1945, the new Soviet-imposed Communist government revived the Polish Navy with headquarters in Gdynia. During Communist times, Poland's Navy experienced a great buildup, including the development of a separate amphibious force of Polish Marines. The Navy also acquired a number of Soviet-made ships, including a Kilo class submarine which was modified and upgraded and assigned the Orzel Class distinction. The primary role of the Warsaw Pact Polish Navy was to be Baltic Sea control, as well as amphibious operations along the entire Baltic coastline against NATO forces in Denmark and Germany. The collapse of the Soviet Union, the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact, and the fall of Communism ended this stance.

21st Century

Poland's entrance into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has greatly changed the structure and role of the Polish Navy. Whereas before, most of Naval High Command was concerned with coastal defense and Baltic Sea Operations, the current mindset is for integration with international naval operations. The focus is on expansion of subsurface naval capabilities, and in the creation of a large submarine force. To facilitate these changes the Republic of Poland has undertaken a number of modernization progams aimed at creating a force capable of power projection around the world. This includes a number of foreign acquisitions, including the acquisition of Kobben Class submarines from Norway, and Oliver Hazard Perry class frigates from the United States. The Naval air arm has also acquired a number of SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters, and the Polish Marines have undergone an intensification in training to match that of the United States Marines.

The Polish Navy has taken part in numerous joint force operations. In 1999 the naval base at Gdynia became the home base of all NATO submarine forces in the Baltic, codenamed COPERATIVE POSEIDON. That same year joint US-Polish submarine training manoeuvres codenamed BALTIC PORPOISE for the first time utilized the port in a multinational military nature.

Organization and Missions

The Polish Navy is organized into 3 separate fleets, and a Naval Air Arm. In addition to this the Polish Navy supplies nearly 40 ships as part of the NATO Rapid Reaction Force, designed to be a force projection and conflict response force around the world.

• 3rd Baltic Battle Fleet (based at Gdynia)
• 8th Coastal/Marine Fleet (based Swinoujscie)
• 9th Coastal Defense Fleet (based at Hel)
• Naval Air Arm (based at Gdynia)

The main mission of the Polish Navy is the defense of Polish territorial waters, the Polish coastline, and Polish interests abroad. Secondary roles include the support of NATO allied operations, such as in the Middle East, and search and rescue operations throughout the Baltic Sea.

Naval Jack and Naval Flag

The flag of the Polish Navy is a red flag with the emblem of the Polish Armed Forces - Navy on the foreground. The Naval Emblem has an anchor to distinguish it from other Armed Forces branches. It is traditionally flown on naval bases on land, and at the headquarters of naval command in Gdynia.

The naval jack of the Polish navy is based on a traditional 17th Century fighting jack design of a sword ready to strike at the enemy. It was first used during the battle of Oliwa in 1627 against Sweden, during the Polish-Swedish War. It is traditionally flown from the bow of the ship, and the ensign at the rear when docked.

See also

• Roman Krzyzelewski, current commander-in-chief of the Polish Navy
• List of ships of the Polish Navy
• Polish Navy contribution to World War II

External links

• Official Polish Navy homepage (http://www.mw.mil.pl/)
• A history of the navy to 1945 (http://www.polish-navy.org/)
• a "Polish Navy Homepage" (http://crolick.website.pl/pmw/)

pl:Marynarka Wojenna Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej