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The Insignia of the
Danzig Police
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The SS-Heimwehr
Danzig |
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In 1938 the SS-Heimwehr Danzig was created
as a paramilitary police unit
for the Free City of Danzig. Following World War I Danzig
(now called
Gdansk, Poland) was
proclaimed a "Free City" by the 1920 Treaty of Versailles. This
gave Poland the ability to occupy Danzig in order to use its port
facilities for ocean commerce. Prior to this time a small German
police force had been established in Danzig in 1936. Overall the
city became a blend of both Polish and German citizens.
After the rise of the
National Socialist Party, Adolf Hitler was intent on reclaiming Danzig
for Greater Germany and the Reich. In a covert effort to control
Danzig the Schutzstaffel (SS) swelled the ranks of the Danzig Home
Guard (Heimwehr) by shipping SS men to the city to form a paramilitary
police force. Many of the men were initially disguised as
tourists in order to pass into Poland.
The total force
consisted of approximately 1500 men
who served for only a short period of time under the name "SS-Heimwehr
Danzig." The unit was formed around men drawn from the
Berlin-based third detachment of the partially Austrian 4. SS-Totenkopfstandarte
and from volunteers who were one-third natives of the 98% German Free
City of Danzig. The unit saw brief action in September 1939 during
the Polish campaign where men saw combat on the Vistula bridge at
Dirschau, the battle for the Westerplatte, and finally assisting the
German Army in taking the Oxhöfter Kämpe. Following the Polish
campaign the unit was dissolved and incorporated into the then
SS-Division "Totenkopf" which largely completed the SS-Totenkopf-Infanterie-Regiment
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Overview
Each section of German-Helmets.com
is divided into separate Information Tracks that outline important
details, facts, and historical notes pertaining to steel helmets used by
the German Armed Forces during World War II.
Information Tracks are organized
by subject matter and their content is directly related to the service arm
or organization to which each topic is related. Topic areas that
bridge one subject matter to another are cross linked within each Information Track.
This Information Track provides historical
facts pertaining to steel helmets worn by the
SS-Heimwehr Danzig
from 1938-1939. Individual links related to this subject are
outlined below.
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