Operation Arsenal

The Operation Arsenal, code name: "Meksyk II" (Polish: Akcja pod Arsenałem) was the first major operation by the Szare Szeregi (Gray Ranks) Polish Underground formation during the Nazi occupation of Poland.[1] It took place on March 26, 1943 in Warsaw. Its name was coined after the Warsaw Arsenal, in front of which the action took place. The plan was to free the troop leader Jan Bytnar "Rudy", who was arrested together with his father by the Gestapo. The operation was executed by 28 scouts led by Warsaw Standard Commander Stanisław Broniewski "Orsza". The initiator and the commander of the "Attack Group" was Tadeusz Zawadzki "Zośka".[2]

Operation Arsenal
Part of World War II

Długa Street where the Operation Arsenal took place
DateMarch 26, 1943
Location
Warsaw, General Government (German-occupied Poland)
Result Liberation of "Rudy", successful escape
Belligerents
Szare Szeregi Nazi Germany
Commanders and leaders
Stanisław Broniewski
Tadeusz Zawadzki		 Unknown, probably none
Strength
28 men ~15-20 men
Casualties and losses
2 dead
1 captured (subsequently executed)
140 Polish and Jewish hostages killed in reprisal		 4 killed
9 wounded
Part of a series on the
 Polish
Underground State

The successfully conducted operation led to the release of Jan Bytnar and 24 other prisoners, including another Storm Group troop leader, Henryk Ostrowski "Henryk", and 6 women, in an attack on the prison van that was taking the inmates from Pawiak Prison to Gestapo Headquarters at Szucha Avenue. Bytnar himself died four days later on account of injuries sustained due to German torture. Both of his interrogators, identified as Hubert Schulz and Ewald Lange, were assassinated by Szare Szeregi within two months.[3]

The Operation was presented in a 1978 Polish film Akcja pod Arsenałem[4] and in a 2014 Polish film Stones for the Rampart based on Aleksander Kamiński's novel of the same name.[5]

Details
Sections Commander Members
Commander of the operation:
Commander of the "Attack Group":
Commander of the "Cover Group":		 "Orsza" Stanisław Broniewski
"Zośka" Tadeusz Zawadzki
"Giewont" Władysław Cieplak
  Attack Group
"Bottles" "Anoda" Jan Rodowicz "Bolec" Tadeusz Chojko
"Heniek" Henryk Kupis
"Stasiek" Stanisław Pomykalski
"STEN I" "Maciek" Sławomir Maciej Bittner "Kołczan" Eugeniusz Koecher
"Sem" Wiesław Krajewski
"STEN II" "Słoń" Jerzy Gawin "Buzdygan" Tadeusz Krzyżewicz (died, due to wounds)
"Cielak" Tadeusz Szajnoch
"Grenades" "Alek" Maciej Aleksy Dawidowski (died, due to wounds) "Hubert" Hubert Lenk
"Mirski" Jerzy Zapadko
  Cover Group
"Signalisation" "Kuba" Konrad Okolski "Kadłubek" Witold Bartnicki
"Jur" Andrzej Wolski
"Old Town" "Katoda" Józef Saski "Kopeć" Stanisław Jastrzębski
"Rawicz" Żelisław Olech
"Ghetto" "Tytus" Tytus Trzciński "Felek" Feliks Pendelski
"Ziutek" Józef Pleszczyński
"Pająk" Jerzy Tabor
"Cars" "Jeremi" Jerzy Zborowski
"Jurek TK" Jerzy Pepłowski
gollark: Also, different battery technologies run at different voltages.
gollark: It's not constant.
gollark: I mean, arguably joules would be better, but it's better than ampere-hours.
gollark: What's a stupid unit, Wh?
gollark: Finally, a thing which actually measures battery capacity in watt-hours.

See also

References
  1. "Najbardziej spektakularna operacja Szarych Szeregów w czasie okupacji. Rocznica Akcji pod Arsenałem". Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  2. "Akcja pod arsenałem". Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  3. "Akcja pod Arsenałem: odbić "Rudego" z rąk Gestapo". Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  4. "Akcja pod Arsenałem". Retrieved 20 April 2020.
  5. "Kamienie na szaniec". Retrieved 20 April 2020.

Further reading
  • Tomasz Strzembosz: Odbijanie więźniów w Warszawie 1939-1944. Warszawa: Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe, 1972, s. 114

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