Lech (1904)
 Lech in 1932
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 German Empire | |
| Name |
|
| Builder | Schichau-Werke, Elbląg |
| Launched | 1904 |
| Commissioned | 1904 |
| History | |
 Polish Merchant Navy | |
| Name | Krakus |
| Commissioned | 1926 |
| History | |
| Polish Armed Forces | |
| Name | Lech |
| Commissioned | 1930 |
| Decommissioned | September 14, 1939 |
| Fate | sunk |
| History | |
| Polish People's Republic | |
| Name | Lech |
| Commissioned | January 1, 1946 |
| Decommissioned | August 28, 1946 |
| History | |
| Polish People's Republic | |
| Name | BG-6 → H-6 |
| Commissioned | January 26, 1957 |
| Decommissioned | April 1, 1983 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | tugboat |
| Displacement | 280 t (280 long tons) |
| Length | 30.8 m (101 ft 1 in) |
| Beam | 6.53 m (21 ft 5 in) |
| Draft | 3.57 m (11 ft 9 in) |
| Propulsion | triple-expansion steam engine, 450 hp |
| Speed | 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Crew | 12 |
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Lech was a steam-powered tugboat that served in the Polish Navy during the interwar period and, after World War II, until the 1980s under the designation H-6. Built in 1904, it initially operated under German shipowners as Hercules and Brussa, and later under the Polish shipowner Żegluga Wisła – Bałtyk as Krakus. It joined the Polish Navy in 1930 and was sunk during the 1939 September Campaign. After the war, it briefly returned to service in 1946 and, following a refit, resumed operations in 1957 as H-6. It was decommissioned in 1983, the last steam tugboat in the Polish Navy.
Construction and description
[edit]Lech was constructed in 1904 at the Schichau-Werke shipyard in Elbląg, originally named Hercules. Its propulsion system featured a three-cylinder compound engine producing 450 horsepower (336 kW), driving a single propeller.[1][2] Post-war, as H-6, the engine's output was reported as 500 horsepower.[3] The tugboat achieved a speed of 12 knots.[4]
The gross register tonnage was 159 GRT,[1] though some sources report 149 GRT,[2] with a displacement of 280 tonnes.[4][5] Sources vary slightly on dimensions. Recent publications list a length of 30.8 m, beam of 6.53 m, and draught of 3.57 m,[2] or a length of 30 m and beam of 6.5 m.[1] Older sources cite an overall length of 32 m (30 m length between perpendiculars), beam of 7 m, and draught of 3.8 m.[4][5]
Service history
[edit]Civilian service
[edit]Before World War I, Hercules operated at the Schichau shipyard in Gdańsk.[6] Some sources suggest it served in the Imperial German Navy (Kaiserliche Marine) from 1914 to 1916 before returning to shipyard duties.[2] From 1920, as Brussa, it was owned by Deutsche Levante Linie in Hamburg,[2] or, per other sources, from 1921 by HAPAG in Hamburg.[6] From 1922 or 1923,[7] it belonged to Bugsier-, Reederei- und Bergungs AG in Hamburg.[2]
In November 1926, the tugboat was acquired by the newly formed Polish company Żegluga Wisła – Bałtyk in Tczew and operated as Krakus until 1928, towing lighters transporting coal from Tczew to Baltic ports.[6]
Polish Navy service until 1939
[edit]In December 1928, the Polish Navy purchased the tugboat from the failing shipowner.[2] After modernization, it entered service in 1930 as Lech within the Training Squadron.[8] It was the largest and most powerful tugboat in the Polish Navy at the time,[8] stationed at the Oksywie naval base. It assisted in mooring maneuvers for large ships, towed artillery targets in the Gdańsk Bay, and was assigned to the training ship ORP Mazur.[2] It also supported the torpedo range, transported troops to Westerplatte,[2] and, with ice-strengthened hulls, broke ice during winter.[8]
At the outbreak of World War II, Lech was the only tugboat assigned to the Land Coastal Defence under Colonel Stanisław Dąbek.[9] Commanded by Senior Boatswain Stanisław Woiński, it left Oksywie on 1 September 1939 during a German bombardment, heading to Jastarnia with other vessels.[4] There, it supported mine-laying barges in the Kuźnica Bay,[9] some of which were former Żegluga Wisła – Bałtyk lighters.[8] On 14 September 1939, German Junkers Ju 87 dive-bombers from 4./Trägergruppe 186 sank Lech in Jastarnia port, along with ORP Mewa, ORP Czapla, and ORP Jaskółka.[10]
Its wartime fate remains unclear. Older sources reported its fate as unknown,[4][11] while it was likely salvaged by the Germans, though no record of its use exists.[2] Unconfirmed reports suggest it survived the war ashore at Oksywie.[12]
Post-war service
[edit]According to recent findings, Lech was repaired and recommissioned into the Polish Navy on 1 January 1946, retaining its name.[13][3] However, it sank during a storm in Gdynia's Basin No. 1 (Presidential) in July 1946 and was struck from the navy list on 28 August 1946.[13]
Subsequently salvaged and extensively refitted, it was recommissioned on 26 January 1957 as BG-6 (replacing the tugboat Pionier). In July 1957, it was redesignated H-6 under new naming conventions.[3] Its bridge was rebuilt before 1978.[14] The tugboat was decommissioned on 1 April 1983, marking the end of steam-powered tugboats in the Polish Navy.[15]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Miciński (1996, p. 163)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Danielewicz (1998, p. 40)
- ^ a b c Danielewicz (1998, pp. 42–43)
- ^ a b c d e Pertek, Jerzy (1976). Wielkie dni małej floty [Great Days of the Small Fleet] (in Polish) (8th ed.). Poznań: Wydawnictwo Poznańskie. pp. 64, 586.
- ^ a b Piaskowski, Stanisław M. (1996). Okręty Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej 1920–1946. Album planów [Ships of the Republic of Poland 1920–1946: Album of Plans] (in Polish). Warsaw: Barwa i Broń, Lampart. p. 58.
- ^ a b c Miciński (1996, p. 154)
- ^ Miciński (1996, pp. 154–155)
- ^ a b c d Miciński (1996, p. 169)
- ^ a b Danielewicz (1998, pp. 41–42)
- ^ Rohwer, Jürgen; Hümmelchen, Gerhard. "Chronik des Seekrieges" [Chronicle of the Naval War]. Württembergische Landesbibliothek (in German). Retrieved 2025-05-14.
- ^ Miciński (1996, p. 175)
- ^ Danielewicz (1998, p. 42)
- ^ a b Rochowicz, Robert (2013). "Jednostki pływające Marynarki Wojennej w latach 1945–1949. Część 1" [Floating Units of the Polish Navy 1945–1949, Part 1]. Morza, Statki i Okręty (in Polish). 18 (135): 33. ISSN 1426-529X.
- ^ Danielewicz (1998, p. 45)
- ^ Danielewicz (1998, pp. 43–44)
Bibliography
[edit]- Danielewicz, Waldemar (1998). "Holowniki Polskiej Marynarki Wojennej w latach 1920–1997" [Tugboats of the Polish Navy 1920–1997]. Morza, Statki i Okręty (in Polish). 3 (12). ISSN 1426-529X.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link) - Miciński, Jerzy (1996). Księga statków polskich: 1918–1945 [Book of Polish Ships: 1918–1945] (in Polish). Vol. 1. Gdańsk: Polnord, Oskar. ISBN 83-86181-23-0.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)