II wojna światowa: ORP Wilk

If you like my content, you can buy me a virtual coffee if you'd like: https://buycoffee.to/nieznaneoblicza Thank you. Link to my book "The Battle of the Atlantic. A War Epic from 1939-1945": https://www.legimi.pl/ebook-bitwa-o-a... Link to my book "U-Boots. Incredible Missions of World War II": https://www.legimi.pl/ebook-u-booty-n... Free excerpt from the book "U-Boots. Incredible Missions of World War II": https://drive.google.com/file/d/16efP... Get interesting additional bonuses!!! If you liked the episode, you can support the channel's development through Patronite.pl and receive extra bonuses: https://patronite.pl/Nieznane.oblicza You can also buy a symbolic coffee as a token of gratitude for the prepared material by clicking this link: https://buycoffee.to/nieznaneoblicza Thank you in advance for all your support. ORP "Wilk" was one of three Polish underwater minelayers of the "Wilk" class from the interwar period and World War II. The keel for its construction was laid in 1927 at the French Normand shipyard in Le Havre. After approximately two years of shipbuilding work, the ship was launched on April 12, 1929, and while still in France, specifically in Cherbourg, the Polish flag-raising ceremony took place on October 31, 1931. On that same day, the ship was incorporated into the Polish Navy and, manned by a Polish crew led by thirty-five-year-old naval captain Aleksander Mochuczy, set sail for Poland. "Wilk" had a relatively large displacement, 980 tons on the surface and 1,250 tons submerged. She was capable of reaching a top speed of fourteen and a half knots on her diesel engines, and her armament consisted of one 100-millimeter gun, one 40-millimeter anti-aircraft gun, and seven 550-millimeter torpedo tubes. Shortly after arriving, on December 4, 1936, "Wilk" was initially incorporated into the Submarine Group of the Minelayer Squadron, and on May 1 of the following year, she became part of the Submarine Squadron. In the years preceding the outbreak of World War II, "Wilk" was engaged in numerous foreign voyages, including those to Stockholm in 1932, Amsterdam two years later, and finally, in 1935, to Tallinn, Estonia. In 1938, thirty-two-year-old Captain Bogusław Krawczyk became "Wilk's" commander. At that time, he was considered one of the best Polish submarine commanders. He was valued for his extensive knowledge, personal culture, and leadership skills, but at the same time, everyone who knew him also knew that he was stubborn, possessed of excessive pride and ambition, traits that led to conflicts with his superiors… However, there is no doubt that Krawczyk was a very good commander. It was under his command that the crew of the ORP "Wilk" soon faced their first serious combat test… This was the naval defense of the Polish coast in the defensive war of 1939…