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TOWN SET TO MARK NIGHT OF HEROISM

By Annette Walton - Monday, April 23, 2007
TOWN SET TO MARK NIGHT OF HEROISM
ORP Blyskawica saved Cowes from worse destruction during a night of bombing terror.
THE links between the Island and Poland are set to be strengthened this year, when the 65th anniversary of the role played by a Polish warship during Luftwaffe air raids carried out during the Blitz of 1942 will be commemorated.
On the first weekend of May, the people of Cowes and East Cowes and the Island’s Polish community, will join forces to remember the heroism of the Polish warship ORP Blyskawica and its crew, which were instrumental in saving the town from a potentially devastating attack.
On the evening of May 4, 1942, the destroyer, which was built between 1935-1937 by Cowes shipbuilder J. Samuel White, was anchored near the chain ferry on the Medina when around 160 low-flying German fighter-bombers attacked the town and its dockyards at about 11pm, causing considerable damage.
Defying Admiralty orders, the ship opened fire and created a series of smokescreens that obscured the town from above, preventing further devastation during two waves of attacks, which lasted until daybreak.
More than 200 tonnes of bombs were dropped, most into the sea, but 70 people in Cowes and East Cowes died as a result of the attack. Ten more died in Newport.
On Friday, May 4, a commemorative plaque will be unveiled by the Polish ambassador, Barbara Tuge-Ereclnska, in their memory.
The ceremony will take place at 11am in Francki Place, outside The Painters Arms, Cross Street, Cowes, and will be attended by Friends of ORP Blyskawica, along with representatives from Cowes and East Cowes town councils and the IW Council.
The growing number of Polish people settling and working on the Island means this poignant occasion will be particularly pertinent and anybody wishing to participate can contact Cllr Tim Gladdis on 280263 or Otton Hulacki on 883340.
  • The annual ceremony of remembrance, from Friday, May 4, to Sunday, May 6, will feature a packed programme of events. Details in the Friday, April 27, County Press.